David is an Oscar® nominated and Emmy Award® winning filmmaker who continues a distinguished career as a writer, director, and producer.David learned his craft in the Film Unit of the Smithsonian Institution where he served an apprenticeship and won two Emmys. His films have been selected for screening and honored with awards by the Chicago, Atlanta, Miami, San Francisco, American, Hawaii, Wild & Scenic, American Conservation, CINE, Environmental Film Festival, and Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival.In 2016, the Smithsonian presented a retrospective of David’s films in celebration of the National Park Centennial. In 2018, he received the John de Graff Award from the Wild & Scenic Film Festival acknowledging a "life-long commitment to environmental filmmaking."David has also produced and directed films about the La Guardia High School for the Performing Arts in New York City, the return of Hong Kong to China, and an exploration of the ancient Maya of Central America for Lost Civilizations (1996), winner of the national Emmy® Award for Best Informational Series.In the 1990s, David was a primary director for the highly rated NBC television series Unsolved Mysteries. David wrote and directed the destination film for Yosemite National Park, Spirit of Yosemite (2001). ‘Spirit’ was honored as “Best Special Venue Program” by the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival, also presented as an “Outstanding Achievement in Digital Cinema” at the Cannes Film Festival.In 2001, David launched his production company, Backcountry Pictures, with his producing partner, Sally Kaplan. Discover Hetch Hetchy (2006), is their award-winning film hosted and narrated by Harrison Ford. Grand Teton Video Rivers (2006) is the destination film for Grand Teton National Park. David and Sally presented their two-part documentary, California Forever (2015) to a national audience on PBS.Currently, David is writing and directing a feature doc about the Desert Southwest, "Exquisite Wasteland."In April of 2022, David received a one year Fellowship from the National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) through Independent Television Service (ITVS) to develop, research and write two, one hour docs for PBS. Episode One examines the early history of the American Conservation Movement and the founding father who’s defense of nature and wild animals made them legends. Episode Two highlights the transformation of the American Conservation Movement in the 1890s to modern environmentalism and the shift from setting aside vast tracts of wilderness to issues of environmental justice.