Michael James Ramsey

I am leading teams of Navajo and Puebloan collaborators as we create high-value documentaries, interactive campaigns, and fundraising assets. Completed projects include the award-winning documentary "Our Story-The Indigenous Led Fight to Protect Greater Chaco" (Prime, Kanopy, Tubi, and over 300 universities and schools), The Tribes v. Trump (fundraising interactive messaging via the Verse platform), and we are in the final phases of post-production on a feature-length documentary presenting the 6 sacred mountains of Diné Bikeyah, the traditional homelands of the Diné (Navajo) people which features many of the most beautiful places on over 65,000 square miles. I have managed these projects and our fiscal sponsorship relationships with Fiscal Sponsorship Allies, which has allowed us full editorial control, led by our Diné collaborators.

• Developed and executed production schedules to meet project deadlines.
• Coordinated cross-functional teams to streamline workflows and enhance communication.
• Managed budget allocations, ensuring cost-effective resource utilization across projects.
• Oversaw talent acquisition processes, selecting skilled personnel for diverse production roles.
• Led brainstorming sessions to generate innovative concepts for upcoming productions.
• Cultivated relationships with vendors and stakeholders to optimize collaboration efforts.
• Presented production ideas and determined creative scenarios for production and delivery.
• Oversaw post-production processes, including video editing and sound mixing, to ensure a polished final product.
• Developed schedules for production, editing, and duplication for timely delivery.
• Fostered a positive working environment by promoting open communication channels among team members during projects.
• Planned video shoots in studio and remotely by managing production through stages to completion.

My career in film and television began when an ethnomusicology grant took me to Brazil and the Caribbean, and through many lucky circumstances, I ended up filming bottlenose dolphins and bull sharks daily. Since then, my work as a writer, producer, director, cinematographer, and editor has appeared in feature-length documentaries, music videos, television series, animations, and commercials. Partners include The Discovery Channel, PBS, National Geographic, CSPAN, McGarryBowen NY, Sequence, Continuity, The Oceanic Preservation Society, Ambrose, Getty Images, and others. My work has been screened in several hundred film festivals, has won various advertising awards, and over one hundred national and international awards, including an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature 2009 (The Cove).

Led projects and efforts to promote hydrogen fuel cell adoption, including interactive applications, 3D modelling, animations, and an internationally produced campaign presenting the evolution of transportation technologies and adoption with shoots in Indonesia, Thailand, West Africa, Japan, and Morocco. We also produced videos to promote and share Toyota's efforts to clean up Diesel fuel operations in the Galapagos Islands.