Brian Lindstrom BA ’84 signs development deal with HBO

Brian Lindstrom BA ’84 and his wife, best-selling author Cheryl Strayed, just signed a development deal with HBO to adapt her essay collection, Tiny Beautiful Things, into a television series. The show, to be produced by Lindstrom and Strayed with Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern, would be set and filmed in Portland, reported Entertainment Weekly. Strayed is best known for her novel, Wild, which was made into a major motion picture.

The writer and director of several documentary films, Brian Lindstrom’s past projects have dealt with some of the most pressing and vexing issues of our day, from mental health to public safety. These include Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse, which tells the story of a man’s battle with schizophrenia and his death in police custody, and a short film called Finding Normal that highlights the struggles of recovering drug addicts.  

Brian’s newest documentary, Mothering Inside, recently garnered the Best of the Northwestprize at the Bend Film Festival. The work explores the efforts of the Coffee Creek Family Preservation project, which works to rehabilitate incarcerated women and ensure that mothers in prison are able to play an active role in their children’s lives.

As Brian explains, “I’m fascinated with people who transcend human frailty and other setbacks to discover their truer, better selves.”

Brian majored in communications at Lewis & Clark and credits the support of Stuart Kaplan, now professor emeritus of communication, for helping him discover and develop his passion for filmmaking.

Read more about Brian, his work, and his time at Lewis & Clark in our Chronicle magazine.