Robert Boyd (he/him) is a filmmaker, editor, narrator, Fulbright National Geographic Fellow, and lover of small and microscopic life.
Robert strives to create compelling narratives through reporting, writing, and filmmaking. While working as a video engineer intern aboard the Exploration Vessel Nautilus, he facilitated and filmed live educational interactions between Ocean Exploration Trust staff and on-shore educational groups. He also controlled and monitored ROV-mounted cameras, recording deep sea fauna found in the Gulf of California.
Previously, Robert worked with the National Park Service, using film to highlight the environmental and historical amenities of Manassas National Battlefield Park, Everglades National Park, and Indiana Dunes National Park. He produced a piece exploring zooplankton research at the Smithsonian Institution. Robert also served as a Post-Graduate Fellow with the Investigative Reporting Workshop and PBS Frontline, where he assisted with creating the Peabody-nominated primetime documentary "The Healthcare Divide".
For most of 2022, Robert was on assignment in Barbados for a Fulbright National Geographic Fellowship, where he created a documentary about the Barbados Threadsnake, one of the world’s smallest serpents.
Charles Connell (he/him) is a documentary filmmaker hailing from Rochester Hills, Michigan. After earning a BS in Advertising Management from Michigan State University, he enrolled at American University in Washington, D.C., where he is currently working toward a Film & Media Arts MFA with a concentration in Environmental and Wildlife Filmmaking.
A lifelong learner and a well-rounded teammate who loves to create, Charles has developed his skills while producing video projects for the National Park Service, having his work showcased on Maryland Public Television, and teaching others along the way.
Combining his love of the outdoors, fascination with the animal kingdom, a knack for storytelling, and an ever-present positive attitude, Charles looks to create fresh and unique documentary films that can educate, entertain, and bring about impactful change.
Olivia Hall (she/her) is a proud Alabama native and recent graduate from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. At UAB, Olivia discovered a passion for multimodal storytelling as well as a deeper love and appreciation for the South. Her student documentary short, "Up In Smoke," created with Southern Exposure alum Annie Foreman, was showcased at the 2023 Sidewalk Film Festival. Olivia is particularly passionate about exploring the relationship between individuals and their environment through film, with a focus on the South's natural beauty and charm.
Hannah Schoettmer and Kaleb Manske are both recent graduates from the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California. They are both independently award-winning filmmakers and writers, having screened work in festivals like the Chicago Horror Film Festival, the Milwaukee Film Festival, Pareidolia Video Art Festival, and Panic Fest and they have published writing in venues like The Louisville Review, the Indianapolis Review, and Glass: A Journal of Poetry.
They met in a Documentary Production course, where they teamed up and co-directed a short documentary about P-22, a famous mountain lion who lived in Los Angeles. Over the course of that project, they realized that they challenged each other creatively in ways that bettered their work. They decided to continue making documentaries together as a team, and are excited to bring their skills to Southern Exposure.
Born in Louisville, Mississippi, Jermaine Thompson learned language from big-armed women who greased their skillets with gossip and from full-bellied men who cursed and prayed with the same fervor. He’s been writing poetry since he was 13 — inspired by having to memorize Langston Hughes’ “Harlem” for a Black History Program at his Presbyterian church home. Jermaine loves language for what it creates, what it destroys, what binds in heaven, & for what it loses on earth. Jermaine teaches 9th –12th grade Humanities at Build Up Community School in Birmingham, AL. He has publications in The Pinch, Memorious, Whale Road Review, Southern Indiana Review, and New Letters. In his spare time, he enjoys word games, live music, theater, and buying statement hoodies.
Jermaine is our special Poet and Filmmaking Fellow for 2024. His film and poem were made as part of the Alabama Poetry Delegation, a partnership between Alabama Poetry Laureate Ashley M. Jones, and the Alabama Writers Forum. It is supported by the Academy of American Poets and the Mellon Foundation.