{"id":8130,"date":"2025-11-03T08:02:52","date_gmt":"2025-11-03T13:02:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hra.org\/?p=8130"},"modified":"2025-11-06T07:26:21","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T12:26:21","slug":"david-schmidt-05-documentarian-the-american-revolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hra.org\/david-schmidt-05-documentarian-the-american-revolution\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cA Real Homecoming\u201d: David Schmidt \u201905 Channels a Lifelong Love of History into Latest Documentary Series, \u201cThe American Revolution\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"HRA

HRA alumnus and documentary filmmaker David Schmidt ’05, Courtesy of The American Revolution Film Project\/Florentine Films. Photo credit: Stephanie Berger<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cI tell people I grew up in 1774,\u201d said Hampton Roads Academy <\/span>alumnus<\/span><\/a> and filmmaker David Schmidt \u201905. Now, with his most recent documentary, <\/span>The American Revolution<\/span><\/i><\/a> (2025), which he produced and co-directed with Sarah Botstein and the legendary Ken Burns, Schmidt is excited to share a slice of the rich history that surrounded him during his childhood in the Historic Triangle.<\/span><\/p>\n

The 12-hour, six-part series, premiering November 16 on PBS, follows a diverse cast of men and women who lived through a period of dramatic global upheaval\u2014rank-and-file Continental soldiers and militiamen, Patriot leaders, American Loyalists, British officers, German mercenaries, Native combatants and civilians, free and enslaved African Americans, French and Spanish allies, and refugees on both sides of the revolutionary struggle. In the leadup to the U.S. semiquincentennial, the documentary will not simply glorify the American colonists\u2019 fight for independence, but rather highlight the contradictions of an imperfect society\u2019s contest for liberty and the legacies of the conflict that reverberate worldwide to the present day.<\/span><\/p>\n

Though he spent his early life just minutes from the Yorktown Battlefield, Schmidt found his ten years working on <\/span>The American Revolution<\/span><\/i> to be an eye-opening experience. \u201cI understand my country far better than I did before,\u201d he said. \u201cThe American Revolution is a big story, and it belongs to everyone.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Schmidt considers it a tremendous gift to be able to tell such stories as a career. And his time as a student at HRA played a crucial role in sparking the passion for American history that set him on this path.<\/span><\/p>\n

Deep Roots in History<\/h3>\n

For Schmidt, it is little wonder that he was \u201cobsessed with history from an early age.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

After his family moved to James City County during his toddler years, Schmidt\u2019s mother strongly encouraged her children to pursue extracurricular activities at <\/span>Colonial Williamsburg<\/span><\/a>. Young David would welcome early America into his life with open arms, following the example of his four older siblings, all of whom graduated from HRA\u2014Danny Schmidt \u201996, Andy Schmidt \u201998, Lisa Schmidt Ha-Ngoc \u201900, and Kita Schmidt McCord \u201900.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HRA

Lisa Schmidt Ha-Ngoc \u201900, Kita Schmidt McCord \u201900, and David Schmidt \u201905 in Colonial Williamsburg, c. 1998<\/p><\/div>\n

Schmidt first got involved with the living history museum around age seven and participated in the Colonial Williamsburg Fife and Drum Corps from age ten until his mid-teens. He also worked for one summer on the ongoing excavation at <\/span>Historic Jamestowne<\/span><\/a>, where his brother Danny was already employed as an archaeologist.<\/span><\/p>\n

But the colonial period was not Schmidt\u2019s only interest within American history. When he was about eight years old, his brothers introduced him to Ken Burns\u2019 classic series <\/span>The Civil War<\/span><\/i> (1990), igniting a love for Burns\u2019 work that he has never shaken.<\/span><\/p>\n

Schmidt\u2019s fascination with the American past would only grow thanks to a host of excellent teachers at HRA\u2014most of all the late Larry Cunningham. Schmidt was a student in four of Cunningham\u2019s classes, starting in eighth grade and continuing with AP United States History and two semester-long senior courses in government and America since 1941. In Cunningham\u2019s classroom, excerpts from <\/span>The Civil War<\/span><\/i> again made their way into his life.<\/span><\/p>\n

He often connects with fellow HRA alumni, whether they attended school with him or not, over their profound shared appreciation of Cunningham\u2019s teaching. \u201cAmerican history is a great story,\u201d Schmidt said, \u201cand I was lucky to get the opportunity to hear him tell it so many times.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

From Student to Storyteller<\/h3>\n

As he prepared to graduate from Dartmouth College with a degree in history in 2009, Schmidt was certain he wanted to tell the story of American history as well. How he would do so, however, was an open question. He considered both teaching and work in museums, but he ultimately \u201cfell into\u201d documentary filmmaking.<\/span><\/p>\n

By chance, on a visit to career services late in his senior year, Schmidt came across a shadowing offering at Florentine Films, Burns\u2019 production company. He leapt at the opportunity.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was not long before Schmidt decided to devote his professional life to creating documentaries. His shadowing experience led to an internship at the company and, four months later, a full-time position as a researcher, apprentice editor, and script supervisor for <\/span>The Roosevelts<\/span><\/i> (2014).<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HRA

David Schmidt and Ken Burns after a playback screening in New York City, Courtesy of The American Revolution Film Project\/Florentine Films. Photo credit: Daniel J. White<\/p><\/div>\n

This series would mark the first of many collaborations between Schmidt and Burns. The HRA alumnus went on to win the <\/span>Jane Mercer Footage Researcher of the Year award for <\/span>The Vietnam War<\/span><\/i> (2017), a project on which he also worked closely with writer Geoffrey C. Ward and helped coordinate postproduction. Five years later, he and Burns produced the two-part biography <\/span>Benjamin Franklin<\/span><\/i> (2022).<\/span><\/p>\n

Across each of these projects, Schmidt said, the \u201cbedrock of knowledge about American history\u201d that he obtained in Larry Cunningham\u2019s classroom consistently served him well. Particularly while working on <\/span>The Vietnam War<\/span><\/i>, he found that <\/span>many of his colleagues did not possess the wealth of reference points that he had internalized in an \u201cawesome class\u201d at HRA.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Story Comes Full-Circle<\/h3>\n

Schmidt described <\/span>The American Revolution<\/span><\/i>, his latest project with Florentine Films, as \u201ca real homecoming.\u201d He and his team filmed more footage on the Peninsula than anywhere else in the country, in no small part because of the local community\u2019s commitment to historic preservation and interpretation.<\/span><\/p>\n

On September 20, 2025, Schmidt gave this community a <\/span>sneak preview<\/span><\/a> of his new series, including scenes no public audience had viewed before, at a special screening at Yorktown Battlefield, hosted by <\/span>Colonial National Historical Park<\/span><\/a> in partnership with <\/span>WHRO Public Media<\/span><\/a>, York County, the <\/span>Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation<\/span><\/a>, and the <\/span>VA250 Commission<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HRA

Sarah Botstein, David Schmidt, and Megan Ruffe look on as Buddy Squires films in Colonial Williamsburg, Courtesy of The American Revolution Film Project\/Florentine Films. Photo credit: Ellen Peltz<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cIt was truly exceptional,\u201d said HRA Director of Alumni Relations Tommy Yevak \u201983, who had the privilege of attending the event. \u201cOur students at HRA can become whatever they put their hearts and minds to, and David is another great example of that. I\u2019m proud to have been his Middle School P.E. teacher for multiple years, but I\u2019m prouder to be his friend and a big, big admirer of his work in filmmaking.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDavid has that ability to make the ground come alive in such a historic, hallowed place,\u201d Yevak added.<\/span><\/p>\n

But for Schmidt, it is the places themselves\u2014storied locations like Yorktown, Jamestown, and Colonial Williamsburg\u2014that bring history to life.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHistory really is everywhere,\u201d he said. For students at HRA, fortunate enough to have history on vivid display right in their backyard, Schmidt\u2019s advice was simple: \u201cSeek it out. Immerse yourself in it. Better understand your community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI tell people I grew up in 1774,\u201d said Hampton Roads Academy alumnus and filmmaker David Schmidt \u201905. Now, with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":8135,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,15,50,63],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-portrait-of-a-graduate","category-alumni","category-home","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8130"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8130\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8483,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8130\/revisions\/8483"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hra.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}