0
Skip to Content
Plant People
Plant People

About the filmmakers

Directors: McKenna Asakawa and Brady Holden

Director of Photography: Brady Holden

Producer: McKenna Asakawa

Executive Producers: Peggy Olwell and Lisa Smith

With funding and support from: Natural Areas Association

McKenna Asakawa

McKenna is a director, producer, and editor who tells human stories about the built and natural environment.

She draws on a decade conducting interviews and writing to translate complex systems—from transmission corridors to seed supply chains—into rigorously researched, clear, and people-centered narratives.

McKenna has led educational film projects used in schools and universities, and her work has appeared with environmental and engineering organizations including the Society for Ecological Restoration, Wild Salmon Center, The Nature Conservancy, The Klamath Tribes, Hawaiian Electric, and HDR Engineering.

With roots from rural Japan and the mountains of Colorado, she brings to every project a deep love of nature and a curiosity about the connections between cultures, landscapes, and ways of knowing.

Brady Holden

Brady is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and cinematographer and the founder of Holden Films, a production company specializing in documentary storytelling for environmental organizations.

Brady has led film projects for organizations including The Nature Conservancy, Society for Ecological Restoration, Wild Salmon Center, Oregon Wild, Columbia Land Trust, Land Trust Alliance, Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts, and Friends of the Columbia Gorge. His work has also appeared on PBS FRONTLINE, CNN’s Parts Unknown with Anthony Bourdain, NPR, Outside Magazine, Bloomberg, HGTV, and in museums and National Park Service visitor centers across the country.

Having filmed in more than 25 countries, Brady is drawn to human stories connected to overlooked landscapes and communities working to protect and restore them.

Learn more about our production company, Holden Films at holdenfilms.org.

Contact us

mckenna@holdenfilms.org

brady@holdenfilms.org