"Welcome Beck" Thursdays with Luke Lorentzen presenting 'Refining Your Story.'

“Welcome Beck” Thursdays, hosted by the English and Journalism departments, bring documentary filmmaker Luke Lorentzen back for a final appearance to present “Refining Your Story.” This weekly online series connects Denisonians and the general public with acclaimed writers and reporters.

Experimenting with the ways in which non-fiction stories are told, filmmaker Luke Lorentzen takes viewers into hidden worlds to meet otherwise overlooked, hard-working people. His award-winning film, “Midnight Family,” tells the story of a family-run ambulance business in Mexico City. Lorentzen’s work as a director and cinematographer includes one of Netflix’s most watched original series, “Last Chance U,” which has been nominated for an Emmy and Critics Choice Award.

In this talk, Lorentzen discusses how to finish a project and craft a story, using Last Chance U as a model. After three years of filming the Netflix series, Luke became a season 4 director. It turned out to be the least predictable season with unique challenges. Not only will we look at clips and hear how he managed to take this raw material and turn it into a finished product, but we’ll also hear about Luke’s current project: documenting one of the cutting edge pastoral care programs in the nation’s hospital system. In addition, Lorentzen spent a few days in PA canvassing (not filming), and listening to stories. He has some interesting things to say about how a narrative journalist is processing this election. Then he will talk about how to finish a project using Last Chance U, season 5, as one example.

Our “Welcome Beck” Thursdays events are part of the Beck Series, the virtual reading series of Denison University, highlighting the best in fiction, poetry, journalism, and scholarship. This event is funded by the Harriet Ewens Beck Endowment, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and a gift by alumna Sue Douthit O’Donnell, ‘67.