Meet Mitch Dickman of Listen Productions

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mitch Dickman.

Mitch, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was 19 years old, working a concrete paving job in the hot summer and realized I was done with it. So I did what any young adult who was interested in the film industry would do: I picked up a phone book (yeah, it was 20 years ago) and called all the production companies I could find. Out of all the companies I called, I only had one company give me an opportunity to work on my first movie. But all it took was one. I met my wife there, and then I transferred to the film program at the University of Colorado at Denver to pursue film production as a career.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been a fun ride, and to me, it’s all about the journey. There are always challenges, but collaborating with people to creatively solve those problems has been more interesting to me than if it were smooth.

Listen Productions – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I own a production company called Listen Productions. We’ve produced film and video content, but we specialize in feature films—including a number of award-winning films such as Casting JonBenet (Co-Producer, 2017 Sundance), Hanna Ranch (Producer/Director, 2014 New York Times Critics Pick), Rolling Papers (Producer/Director, 2015 South by Southwest) and my newest feature, Silent Rose (Director, 2020), a multi-character portrait of high school life after the 2016 presidential election fallout, which was purchased by the new streaming service Topic, which specializes in international independent film and television.

In 2015, Variety magazine named me a “Top 10 Documaker to watch,” and some of the other films I’ve been involved in are Walden (Producer, 2017 Denver Film Festival), Being Evel (Line Producer, 2015 Sundance) and Speaking is Difficult (Cinematographer, 2016 Sundance).

I’m most proud of the stories we’ve told and the economic impact we’ve had on our state and industry with these stories—not to mention the fact that we are still here doing what we love, which I find especially rewarding in itself. What sets us apart is probably the amount of content we are creating in the long-form space. We are currently so busy that we are actually transitioning Listen Productions to more of a boutique studio model, where we have multiple projects in development, production, post-production and out on platforms to watch… right now.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
With my latest feature film, Silent Rose (www.topic.com/silent-rose), I learned a tremendous amount about the perspective of today’s youth within the walls of a high school. When I met the lead, Shatira Herrera, I essentially cast her on the spot. It took me a while to realize that she was as much of a creator of the project as I was. We were in constant contact, and I allowed her to help craft which way the story was going. That really helped to keep it authentic and real—which I think helps make the film relatable for audiences both younger and older.

Generally, I have learned many lessons—mainly to trust people and process over the final product. But, I wouldn’t do anything differently if given the chance—or else I wouldn’t have learned those lessons.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.listenproductions.com/
• Email: trevor@mygrasslands.com

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