Max Hechtman

Max Bennett Hechtman (born April 26, 1997) is an American filmmaker born in New York, New York. He is known for his 2018 documentary, Stories of Strength and Hope: Preventing Youth Suicide and the 2019 narrative short film, Abigail.[1][2][3]

Max Hechtman
Hechtman at the 2019 Long Island International Film Expo.
Born	Max Bennett Hechtman April 26, 1997 New York, New York, U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	East Meadow High School
Alma mater	Fashion Institute of Technology (BS)
Occupation	Cinematographer, Producer, Writer, Director, Editor
Years active	2015–present
Website	http://www.maxbhechtman.com/

Life and career

Hechtman grew up in East Meadow, New York and graduated from East Meadow High School in 2015.[4] He earned his bachelor of science degree in Film and Media in 2019 from the Fashion Institute of Technology and was awarded the Film and Media Department Medal two years before.

Most of Hechtman's films deal with contemporary social issues, such as climate change, sustainability, mental health, social media and mobile technology. The latter issues were highlighted in his first student film, I Am Here (2016).[5]

In 2016, he produced the documentary, FIT Hives: Sustainability - The Secret to Survival, which documents the genesis of the Hives project of the Fashion Institute of Technology.[6]

In 2018, Hechtman made Stories of Strength and Hope: Preventing Youth Suicide. The documentary was inspired by his seeing Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway[7] and a Middle School assembly given by suicide/bullying prevention advocate John Halligan about his son, Ryan Halligan, who died by suicide in 2003. The film covers the subject matter from the perspectives of the family, someone with a lived experience, clinician and the media. The documentary was screened at the 2018 Chelsea Film Festival. It also was screened and won the Best Documentary award at the 2019 Long Island International Film Expo.[8]

In 2019, Hechtman made his senior thesis film, Abigail, which he co-directed and co-produced with Christonikos Tsalikis. The film was adapted from a one-scene screenplay by Jason K. Allen and inspired by a true story dealing with the subject matter of end-of-life decisions.[9] The film was named a quarterfinalist in Stage 32's 5th Annual Short Film Contest. Its first public screening took place virtually at the 2020 Long Island International Film Expo, where it won the Audience Award, and was nominated for Best Short Film, Best Long Island Short Film and Best Director.[10]

In 2020, Hechtman served as the visual designer and trailer editor for Bálint Varga's audiobook, d'ILLUSION: The Houdini Musical. Hechtman also produced a documentary about the making of the audiobook, which was released on December 10, 2020.[11][12]

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2014	Cooking with Kefi	Assistant editor	Television series
2015	Forgiveness	Director, writer, cinematographer, editor	Narrative short film
2015	Remembering Isabelle	Director, cinematographer, editor	Narrative short film
2016	Eat Your Vegetables	Camera operator, editor, lighting	Narrative short film
2016	Messenger	Director, camera operator, editor	Narrative short film
2016	FIT Hives: Sustainability - The Secret to Survival	Video production manager, cinematographer, editor	Documentary short film
2016	I Am Here	Producer, story, camera operator, editor	Narrative short film
2017	Generation Rescue	Cinematographer, editor	Documentary short film
2017	Pathways to Climate Success	Co-director, producer, cinematographer, editor	Documentary short film
2017	So Tiri: Thes Pastítsio	Assistant editor	Music video
2018	Finger Lakes: A Place for Everyone	Director, editor	Narrative short film
2018	Deadline	Director, producer, writer, cinematographer, editor	Narrative short film
2018	Stories of Strength and Hope: Preventing Youth Suicide	Director, producer, cinematographer, editor	Documentary short film
2019	Abigail	Co-director, co-producer, writer, camera operator, editor	Narrative short film
2020	The Magic Behind d'ILLUSION: The Houdini Musical - The Audio Theater Experience	Director, producer, editor, visual/marketing designer	Documentary short film

Cameo appearances

Year	Film	Notes
2020	Ben Platt Live from Radio City Music Hall	Concert film
2020	The Magic Behind d'ILLUSION: The Houdini Musical - The Audio Theater Experience	Documentary short film

Awards and nominations

Film festival awards

Year	Festival	Film	Award	Result	Notes
2017	Fashion Film Festival Chicago	FIT Hives: Sustainability - The Secret to Survival	Eco Sustainable Award	Won
2019	Long Island International Film Expo	Stories of Strength and Hope: Preventing Youth Suicide	Best Documentary	Won
2020	Stage 32 5th Annual Short Film Contest	Abigail	Quarterfinalist	Won	[13]
	Long Island International Film Expo		Audience Award	Won	[14]
			Best Short Film	Nominated
			Best Long Island Short Film	Nominated
			Best Director	Nominated	Directed with Christonikos Tsalikis

References

1. Stieglitz, Brian. "E.M. filmmaker tackles youth suicide in his next documentary | Herald Community Newspapers". liherald.com. Archived from the original on 2018-10-09. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
2. Desk, TV News. "Long Island International Film Expo Announces Award Winners at Closing Event". BroadwayWorld.com.
3. "East Meadow filmmaker wins Best Documentary at local festival". Herald Community Newspapers.
4. "Making it to the big screen". Herald Community Newspapers.
5. "Local student shoots film at Herald offices". Herald Community Newspapers.
6. "FIT's Happy Bees". FIT Newsroom. July 26, 2017.
7. Spake, Nick. "What We Know About The "Dear Evan Hansen" Movie So Far". WatchMojo.com.
8. Press, Long Island (July 8, 2019). "Long Island International Film Expo Returns to Bellmore".
9. Stieglitz, Brian (September 22, 2020). "East Meadow filmmaker nominated for three awards at local festival". Herald Community Newspapers. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
10. "Archives". The Long Island International Film Expo. Retrieved 2020-10-12.
11. Desk, BWW News. "d'ILLUSION: The Houdini Musical Releases Theater Audio Experience". BroadwayWorld.com.
12. Stieglitz, Brian (December 15, 2020). "East Meadow filmmaker documents a new form of music theater". Herald Community Newspapers. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
13. LLC, Stage 32. "5th Annual Stage 32 Short Film Program Contest". Stage 32. Retrieved 2020-08-16.
14. "Archives". The Long Island International Film Expo. Retrieved 2020-10-12.

External links

• Max Hechtman at IMDb
• Max Hechtman website