# Florentine Films: Ken Burns

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2022-04-11
- Length: 1h 17m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns

## Summary

Ken Burns, co-founder of Florentine Films, explains how he built one of the most valuable documentary archives in the world by maintaining total creative control and intellectual property ownership. He details the grueling five-year fundraising process for his breakthrough film 'Brooklyn Bridge,' where he relied on stubbornness and perseverance to secure grants from corporations and foundations despite constant rejections. Burns discusses his signature 'Ken Burns Effect' technique of animating still photographs with sound and music, and how he structured his company as a series of separate LLCs to preserve artistic integrity over profit margins.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=0) Introduction: Ken Burns and Florentine Films
- [4:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=279) Early Life and the Loss of His Mother
- [12:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=729) Transition from Feature Films to Documentary
- [19:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=1182) Founding Florentine Films and Early Projects
- [21:08](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=1268) Fundraising for 'Brooklyn Bridge' and Creative Control
- [38:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=2303) Developing the 'Ken Burns Effect' and Filmmaking Style
- [45:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=2758) Business Structure, IP Ownership, and PBS Partnership
- [56:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns#t=3375) Personal Grief, Family, and Legacy

## Topics

- [Intellectual property](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/intellectual-property)
- [Fundraising & investors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/fundraising)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Florentine Films (company)
- Brooklyn Bridge (product)
- The Civil War (product)
- PBS (company)
- WNET (company)
- Citibank (company)
- Liberty Mutual Insurance (company)
- Statue of Liberty (product)
- Benjamin Franklin (product)
- Hampshire College (company)
- U.S. Bank (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Afterschool Podcast, Episode 6 - Gary Hustwit (9/24)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2013-11-04-afterschool-podcast-episode-6-gary-hustwit-9-24) (Core77 Podcast)
- [Mike Burroughs (Founder / Creator, Stanceworks)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/just-gonna-send-it/2026-08-26-mike-burroughs-founder-creator-stanceworks) (Just Gonna Send It)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-04-11-florentine-films-ken-burns. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.