Director Jason Hehir talks Michael Jordan, Ken Burns, and The Last Dance

What do the NBA, the Chicago Bulls, and Michael Jordan all have in common? Iconic storytelling, brought to life by Jason Hehir, the director of The Last Dance—a documentary miniseries that became a cultural phenomenon during the early months of the Covid lockdown. In this conversation, Franklin and Kate dive deep with Jason to uncover how he got Michael Jordan to finally open up, the parallels between hip-hop and the NBA’s meteoric rise to global fame, and the art of humanizing larger-than-life sports legends. They also discuss Jason’s unique approach to portraying mythic figures, handling critique from none other than Ken Burns, and the challenge of crafting a hit documentary while the world is already watching your hit documentary.

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This conversation took place in 2020. To learn more about The Black List, visit www.blcklst.com.

Mentions: 

+The Last Dance, http://www.netflix.com/gb/title/80203144

+ESPN: The Last Dance, https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/28973557/the-last-dance-untold-story-michael-jordan-chicago-bulls