Film & Media
John Haley is a documentary filmmaker whose stories reflect fissures and seams in the American social fabric. Focused on individuals and communities navigating a fractured national landscape, his films disentangle American mythos from reality through observational cinematography, personal testimonies, symbolic imagery, and vivid, recurring soundscapes. His work has screened at DOC NYC, Palm Springs International ShortFest, Nashville Film Festival, Virginia Film Festival, St. Louis International Film Festival, New Hampshire Film Festival, and more. He was a 2020 Southern Exposure Fellow, a 2022 Verdant Fund Grantee, and is an Assistant Professor of Creative Media at the University of Alabama.
During his residency, John worked on a documentary film project in pre-production. This film, entitled Empire Builder, will employ the symbolism of Amtrak’s Empire Builder train and its westward march as a means for examining the space between mythical constructions of the United States of America and the ways in which citizens and residents navigate the institutions and powers that shape everyday existence within the nation. John also worked with residents at the Red Wing Correctional Facility.