Musical Passage

Jim Brown is a filmmaker who understands the connection between free speech and making music. His documentary, THE WEAVERS: WASN'T THAT A TIME, was an exhilarating look at the spirit of those blacklisted folk singers. In MUSICAL PASSAGE the musicians are Russian Jewish émigrés, now part of the Soviet Émigré Orchestra. Their zest is infectious. Emotional reflections on life, the Revolution, and self-expression, as well as the magnificent music of Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Haydn, and Shostakovich are featured in this gem of a film.

Three-time Emmy-award winning producer/director Jim Brown is responsible for some of the most popular and critically acclaimed programs on American music in the last three decades. These include: "The Weavers: Wasn’t That A Time!" (Emmy Award and numerous international awards, theatrical release by United Artists and televised in 16 countries); "A vision Shared: A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly" (Emmy and Ace Award nomination, produced for Showtime, televised in over 12 countries); "American Roots Music" (a 4-part series for PBS, as well as a DVD, CD box set and book tracing the development of uniquely American music genres- including blues, gospel, country, bluegrass, Cajun, zydeco, tejano and Native American- during the 20th century, nominated for two Emmy Awards; First Place Music Documentary, US International Film and Video Festival; Best Historical Recording, Association for Independent Music); "Peter, Paul and Mary, Carry it on: A Musical Legacy" (a musical portrait of the 43-year history of the group and a record-breaking fundraising special for PBS as well as a DVD release by Warner Brothers); "Three Pickers with Earl Scruggs, Doc Watson and Ricky Skaggs and special guest Alison Krauss" (broadcast on PBS’ Great Performances and resulted in a best-selling bluegrass CD and DVD on Rounder Records, nominated for two Grammy Awards). His films also include "In The Hank Williams Tradition" (co-produced by The Country Music Foundation) for PBS; "Woody Guthrie: Hard Travelin’" (Emmy nomination) for PBS; "An Evening with Harry Belafonte and Friends for PBS" (First Place International Film and Video Festival); "In The Spotlight: Mary Chapin Carpenter" for PBS; "Child of Mine: Songs for Our Children" (Ace Award for Best Music Special) for the Disney Channel; "Pete Seeger Family Concert" (Parent’s Choice Classic Award) for PBS; "Songs of the Civil War" (co-produced with Ken Burns for PBS; "We Shall Overcome" (Emmy Award) for PBS; "Musical Passage" (Blue Ribbon American Film Festival), theatrical release by Films Inc., televised on PBS and ABC; and "American Guitar Heroes" (in association with Alligator Records), The Playboy Channel. Brown has produced and directed projects for Columbia Records, Sony Music, Polygram, Island Records and Palm Pictures. He has also done Emmy Award-winning work for Sesame Street where he produced segments on cultural diversity for children. As a teenager, Brown was influenced by the late Lee Hays and Pete Seeger, and he has frequently collaborated with Harold Leventhal, a leading impresario and the focus of Brown’s latest feature documentary "Isn’t This a Time." In the early 80s, he worked with Alan Lomax, filming folk music across the United States for the American Patchwork series. Jim Brown is an Associate professor at New York University’s Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at Tisch School of the Arts. He is currently at work on a biography of Pete Seeger for theatrical release as well as a feature documentary on the life of Harry Belafonte.