Our Team
Sam Katz
Founder & Executive Producer
The founder of History Making Productions, Sam is a team builder, great recruiter of creative talent, and a producer who demands excellence. Sam has led a variety of civic and non-profit organizations in Philadelphia and beyond. History Making Productions is his lasting legacy, forging a richer and deeper understanding of Philadelphia and the world.
Rachel Sophia Stewart
Senior Editor
The filmmaker in charge of the editor suite, Rachel joined the HMP team in 2012. Her intuitive approach to pacing and storytelling enhances the emotional impact of our films. She has been recognized with five Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards. Since 2013, she has edited Philadelphia: The Great Experiment, Octavius V. Catto: A Legacy for the 21st Century, Sisters in Freedom, and Beethoven in Beijing.
Andrew Ferrett
Director & Producer
The leader of our filmmaking team, Andrew is responsible for the creative vision that guides our approach to narrative history. With films such as Philadelphia: The Great Experiment, Before Hollywood, and Sisters In Freedom he aims to shed light on stories long excluded from the public conversation. He is the recipient of seven Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
Jon Kohl
Archival Producer & Editor
The relentless investigator behind HMP’s archival department, Jon is a graduate of Temple University’s film department. He shapes the visual language of our documentaries through archival materials acquisition, digitization, and licensing. He produced Cecil’s People, which won two Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards for Best Cultural Program in 2015 and 2016.
Nathaniel Popkin
Senior Writer & Producer
The writer behind our character and idea-driven narrative documentaries, Nathaniel develops scripts and sees them through research, expert interviews, and post-production. Nathaniel is the author of five books and co-editor of the anthology Who Will Speak for America? He is the recipient of three Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards and a Fellowship from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.
Eva Roben
Producer & Researcher
The lead historical researcher on staff, Eva grounds HMP’s work in the most current scholarship. She joined the studio in 2017. Her role includes producing, primary and secondary source research, and archival acquisitions, as well as fundraising and communications.
Paul Van Haute
Director of Photography
Paul brings more than 30 years of experience in the film industry as a gaffer and cinematographer. The realism in his images brings the viewer deeper into the stories that we are telling. His contributions have been recognized with six Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards for Philadelphia: The Great Experiment and Before Hollywood.
Amy Cohen
Director of Education
The creator of HMP’s groundbreaking educational program, Amy develops curricular materials to accompany our documentaries, which she presents at primary and secondary schools and universities, and other venues. A former history teacher, Amy trains teachers and administrators how to integrate HMP films in the classroom. She was instrumental in producing Cecil's People and Octavius V. Catto: A Legacy for the 21st Century.
Ginny Lasco
Creative Director
The designer of HMP production and promotional materials, Ginny creates branding strategies for our projects and collaborates with other team members to design graphic representations which, together with interviews, reenactment scenes and original art, help to convey a diverse and dramatic set of visuals for audiences. Ginny’s creative work has been recognized with several Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
Patrick de Caumette
Music Composer
The creator of the HMP sound, Patrick composes original musical scores for our documentary films. Trained in the United States at Berklee College of Music and in France, he has enjoyed an extensive career in film, television and video games for various corporations, including Disney, ABC, Comcast, Canal +, UbiSoft, SYFY, USA Network and Netflix. Patrick’s work has been recognized with five Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
