Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Director/Producer
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi is an Academy® Award-winning filmmaker. Most recently Vasarhelyi directed and produced Free Solo, an intimate, unflinching portrait of rock climber Alex Honnold, which was awarded a BAFTA and the Academy® Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2019. The film also received seven Emmy® awards. Vasarhelyi’s other films as a director include Meru (Oscars Shortlist 2016; Sundance Audience Award 2015); Incorruptible (Truer Than Fiction Independent Spirit Award 2016); Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love (Oscilloscope, 2009), which premiered at the Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals; A Normal Life (Tribeca Film Festival, Best Documentary 2003); and Touba (SXSW, Special Jury Prize Best Cinematography in 2013).
Bob Eisenhardt, Producer/Editor
Bob Eisenhardt is a filmmaker renowned for editing documentaries. He is an Oscar nominee, a four-time Emmy® winner, and a two-time winner of the Eddie award from the American Cinema Editors. He has over sixty films to his credit. His film, Spaces: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph, was an Academy® Award nominee for Best Short Documentary. Bob edited Free Solo, for which he received the ACE Eddie for Best Editing - Documentary. Other films include: Scotty and The Secret History of Hollywood, Meru, and two films that premiered at the New York Film Festival, Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, and Everything is Copy: Nora Ephron, Scripted and Unscripted, winner of ACE Eddie for Best Editing – TV Documentary. Other films include Wagner’s Dream, Valentino: The Last Emperor, and Dixie Chicks: Shut Up & Sing. Bob also teaches the thesis master class at the SVA MFA Program and at the NYFA.
Thanet Natisri, Subject
Thanet Natisri is a founding member and CEO of American Groundwater Solutions, LLC, founder and CEO of WATERFORCE CO., LTD., and co-owner of Thai D Classic Thai Cuisine in Marion, IL. Thanet has been highly involved in charitable acts regarding water management and environmental care globally for several years. Beginning in 2014 Thanet and his team along with Nitedsasanakun Foundation kickstarted the ongoing National Groundwater Bank Project in Thailand, which has helped to lift thousands of people from poverty. During the Thai cave rescue incident in 2018, Thanet was requested by the Royal Thai Army to help with water management operations which included water diversion and pumping operations for the mission. His charity work has been recognized by the US Congress and Illinois House of Representatives and has received numerous honors from 2018-2021. including the United Nation Human Rights Defender award.
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Director/Producer
Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi is an Academy® Award-winning filmmaker. Most recently Vasarhelyi directed and produced Free Solo, an intimate, unflinching portrait of rock climber Alex Honnold, which was awarded a BAFTA and the Academy® Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2019. The film also received seven Emmy® awards. Vasarhelyi’s other films as a director include Meru (Oscars Shortlist 2016; Sundance Audience Award 2015); Incorruptible (Truer Than Fiction Independent Spirit Award 2016); Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love (Oscilloscope, 2009), which premiered at the Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals; A Normal Life (Tribeca Film Festival, Best Documentary 2003); and Touba (SXSW, Special Jury Prize Best Cinematography in 2013).
Bob Eisenhardt, Producer/Editor
Bob Eisenhardt is a filmmaker renowned for editing documentaries. He is an Oscar nominee, a four-time Emmy® winner, and a two-time winner of the Eddie award from the American Cinema Editors. He has over sixty films to his credit. His film, Spaces: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph, was an Academy® Award nominee for Best Short Documentary. Bob edited Free Solo, for which he received the ACE Eddie for Best Editing - Documentary. Other films include: Scotty and The Secret History of Hollywood, Meru, and two films that premiered at the New York Film Festival, Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, and Everything is Copy: Nora Ephron, Scripted and Unscripted, winner of ACE Eddie for Best Editing – TV Documentary. Other films include Wagner’s Dream, Valentino: The Last Emperor, and Dixie Chicks: Shut Up & Sing. Bob also teaches the thesis master class at the SVA MFA Program and at the NYFA.
Thanet Natisri, Subject
Thanet Natisri is a founding member and CEO of American Groundwater Solutions, LLC, founder and CEO of WATERFORCE CO., LTD., and co-owner of Thai D Classic Thai Cuisine in Marion, IL. Thanet has been highly involved in charitable acts regarding water management and environmental care globally for several years. Beginning in 2014 Thanet and his team along with Nitedsasanakun Foundation kickstarted the ongoing National Groundwater Bank Project in Thailand, which has helped to lift thousands of people from poverty. During the Thai cave rescue incident in 2018, Thanet was requested by the Royal Thai Army to help with water management operations which included water diversion and pumping operations for the mission. His charity work has been recognized by the US Congress and Illinois House of Representatives and has received numerous honors from 2018-2021. including the United Nation Human Rights Defender award.