The second annual Geist-Yancey Lecture on the arts will take place on the campus of Central Methodist University on March 6, with filmmaker Nathan Truesdell slated as the featured speaker. Truesdell’s talk, “How I Learned to Make Movies,” will be held at 7 p.m. in Inman Lecture Hall (Stedman 200).
Truesdell is a multi-hyphenate filmmaker from Clark, Mo. who has been nominated for an Academy Award, a PGA Award, an IDA Award, was selected for the inaugural “DOC NYC 40 Under 40” list, and won a Cinema Eye Honor for Cinematography.
His directorial work includes the award-winning Balloonfest, The Water Slide, The Art of Making Money, It's Coming!, and When the LAPD Blows Up Your Neighborhood. He was the camera department head for the HBO series How To with John Wilson. He produced and was co-director of photography for the Tribeca winner and Oscar nominee Ascension (2021) and produced documentaries such as We Always Lie to Strangers, Caucus, Convention, and Peace in the Valley and co-produced The Gospel of Eureka. He was a cinematographer on Dope is Death, Deprogrammed, and was a cinematographer and editor on Killing Them Safely. He also served as art director for the narrative film You're Next. His films have appeared at numerous festivals, including Sundance, Tribeca, SXSW, TIFF, and the True/False Film Fest in Columbia.
Truesdell is a graduate of the University of Missouri and Moberly High School.
About the lecture series
Dr. Joe Geist was a faculty member at Central Methodist College from 1972 to 1998 and was named Professor Emeritus upon his retirement from teaching. He served as curator of the Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art from 1998 to 2014 and now serves as its registrar. His professional life has been dedicated to the furthering of the liberal arts, culture, literature, and learning.
Mr. Tom Yancey, a 1954 alumnus of Central, joined the faculty in the Swinney Conservatory in 1958. In 1972, he served as the Conservatory's dean, and in 1995 he accepted Professor Emeritus status. In addition to being an accomplished musician, Yancey was a well-known artist. He, along with Geist, was a co-founder of the Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art and was curator of the Gallery from 1993 until 1998. Yancey passed away in 2019.
The purpose of the Geist-Yancey lectureship is to provide a lasting legacy of Joe's and Tom's endless pursuit of the furthering of the pillars of arts, culture, and learning in higher education. The lectures have a theme of cultural affairs, and the speaker is a noted/national individual from outside the CMU community.
For those unable to attend in person, the lecture will be livestreamed at the following link: https://centralmethodist.zoom.us/j/93841989883.