Kelly Gorham
Kelly Gorham is Montana born and raised and has relied on his old-school work ethic to drive a career spanning over 30 years. He began that career by begging the local newspaper photo editor to let him mop the darkroom floor just to get his foot in the door. Since then, his assignments as a staff and independent photographer and filmmaker have ranged from the prize pig at the county fair to the backstreets of Berlin and the wilds of Yellowstone. Kelly’s interest in storytelling and his careful approach to working with the subjects of those stories has made him a valuable creative contributor to a variety of projects for media outlets around the globe.
Career Storyline
32
Years of Experience
250+
Assignments
1
Feature Film
1
Chance to get it right
“When I was an up and coming freestyle skier in the 1980s in Montana, I knew something special was happening here and I wanted to document it.” In 2000, Kelly began researching and writing the feature documentary film “Mavericks,” which told the rags to riches story of grit and determination of his fellow competitors who went on to numerous Olympic and world championship titles in the sport. “Mavericks” premiered in 2022 after several years of co-production with Montana PBS and has achieved various accolades including a total of five Emmy nominations and the Emmy award for editing.
Awards and
Recognition
2023
Two Emmy nominations "Mavericks" feature film. With Montana PBS.
2023
NPPA Best of Photojournalism 2nd place long-form documentary "Mavericks"
2022
MT Broadcasters Assoc. E.B. Craney Award - Production of the Year "Mavericks"
2023
FliC International Cinemafest Best Documentary Feature "Mavericks"
A documentary film is only as good as the interviews. I want to get to the heart of what people are thinking and feeling. Slick camera work and drone shots won’t capture that. It’s not glamorous, but you have to put in the time for research and to develop meaningful relationships with the subjects. My superpower is that I can get past the media-trained anecdotes of an Olympic athlete or guide a camera shy quantum physicist to share why their research is so meaningful to them, and why the rest of us should care.
-Kelly