3.83-Filmmaker Interview with Daniel Persitz

Update: 2025-10-14

Description

In today's episode, I interview Daniel Persitz, director of the short film "Key of Genius," a story of a young blind autistic savant and the teacher determined to unlock his genius through music.

Listen to hear about the process of casting such a specific character, a brief communication with royalty, and the task of picking which music to feature in a film that focuses so much on playing music.

Books mentioned in this episode include:

In the Key of Genius: The Extraordinary Life of Derek Paravicini by Adam Ockelford
Throne of Glass (series) by Sarah J. Maas
Game of Thrones (series) by George R. R. Martin

Films and TV shows mentioned in this episode include:

"Key of Genius" directed by Daniel Persitz
Up directed by Pete Docter
Back to the Future directed by Robert Zemeckis
The King's Speech directed by Tom Hooper
Jurassic Park directed by Steven Spielberg
Coco directed by Lee Unkrich and Adrian Molina
The Shawshank Redemption directed by Frank Darabont
Game of Thrones (series)

Other media mentioned in this episode:

Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar

Follow Daniel on Instagram @dpersitz and the film @keyofgenius_film. Check out the 60 Minutes video Daniel mentions at the beginning of the interview on YouTube.

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