Keith’s out this week, so Ben is strutting Travis Heights solo with his good pal Scott(y) Ballew. Scott’s a lesson in cutting-against the grain and getting more for it. You might know him from his work as the former Head of Content at Yeti, making 100+ branded docs with one rule: no product placement. Scott's path is pure chaos theory - starting with a UT football national championship ring, spending time as an insurance salesman, working the ol’ LA PA grind to end up changing how brands tell stories (all while writing and recording his own songs), Scott's tried it all. We dig into the decade-long golden era at Yeti where he worked with 20 filmmakers at once (including Ben on the TOOTSIE film), and how he learned directing on the job from his inspirations. Scott breaks down Terry Allen's "follow the muse" philosophy (including how it sent him on his own musical journey), the surreal Telluride premiere of ALL THAT IS SACRED (his Jimmy Buffett/Tom McGuane film that premiered the day Buffett died), and why he'd rather make films with friends than chase a Townes Van Zandt-type of obsession (learning in part by documenting Townes' son, J.T.).

Plus: exploring classic Texas cinema with Jeff Nichols, why loving your subjects beats gotcha filmmaking, and the eternal truth that podcasts are the new mayonnaise. This episode is sponsored by our friends at The Long Time—a 5-acre event-space and playground for your imagination. It’s also the home field of The Texas Playboys (the sandlot baseball team that both Ben and Scott play for).

For more information go to thelongtime.com and follow along on IG @thelongtimetexas

Discussion Links: WINNEBAGO MAN (2009) | GREENBERG (2010) | DIG! (2004) | BE HERE TO LOVE ME (2004) | THE DEVIL AND DANIEL JOHNSTON (2005) | NO DIRECTION HOME (2005) | MUD (2012) | ALL THAT IS SACRED (2023) | THE LONG TIME (2018) | TOOTSIE (2016) | ANCHOR POINT (2016) | EVERYTHING FOR ALL REASONS (2019)

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction and Travis Heights Walk

02:00 Defining Yourself as a Creative

05:00 UT Football and National Championship

09:00 LA Dreams: Music Manager to PA

13:00 Podcasts Are the New Mayonnaise

15:00 Starting at Yeti 18:00 Why Branded Docs Work

24:00 Learning to Direct in the Edit Room

31:00 The Golden Era and Going Public

35:00 Writing Songs Out of Necessity

40:00 Tom McGuane, Jimmy Buffett, and Key West

47:00 Loving Your Subjects

53:00 Telluride and Jimmy Buffett's Death

57:00 Moving to Tecovas

01:00:00 Working with Jeff Nichols

01:02:00 Lightning Round: NO DIRECTION HOME (at home)

01:06:00 Dynamic Life vs One-Track Obsession

01:12:00 Closing Thoughts

YouTube Tags:

Scott Ballew, Yeti, branded documentaries, Tecovas, Terry Allen, Jimmy Buffett, Tom McGuane, All That Is Sacred, Austin filmmakers, documentary filmmaking, Jeff Nichols, Telluride Film Festival, Ryan Bingham, Ben Steinbauer, Travis Heights, documentary marketing, music and film, character-driven storytelling, Texas Playboys, The Long Time