Steve Dorst

Steve Dorst

Independent Filmmaker
Director, Producer, Shooter, Editor

Projects

The feature documentary SHATTERED SKY premiered in festivals and public in 2012 to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the international ozone treaty. SHATTERED SKY shows how America led the world to solve the ozone crisis. It inspires us all to do the same on climate change and renewable energy.

. . . An invisible compound threatens Earth’s life-support systems, with effects so pervasive that scientists sound the alarm, businesses must innovate, politicians are forced to take action—and American leadership is absolutely vital. Climate change? No...the hole in the ozone layer.

For the first time in film, Shattered Sky tells the story of how—during geopolitical turmoil, a recession, and two consecutive Republican administrations— America led the world to solve the biggest environmental crisis ever seen. Today, will we dare to do the same on addressing climate change and securing safe, clean sources of energy?

Shot over four years in and around Cincinnati’s majestic Washington Park, Rebirth of Over-the-Rhine tells the story of one man’s last shot at redemption as the neighborhood around him changes before his eyes.

When the story begins, Washington Park is a refuge for a massive population of homeless people and those with nowhere else to turn. Having survived more than a year homeless in the park, Mike is not young anymore. But now he’s striving for a better future—battling addiction, going back to school, and braving messy jobs. Mike is eyewitness to a $100 million renovation of Washington Park—where he used to sleep and where friends still hang out. Developers and politicians assert one vision for a better city, while the deeply rooted Homeless Coalition organizes against mass redevelopment. Meanwhile, all sides watch in suspense as anthropologists exhume human remains from a pauper’s cemetery below the park’s surface.

As seasons pass, Mike learns skills to become an essential member of the film team, and eventually he narrates the unfolding drama himself—with insight and humor. Somewhere along the way, the story becomes much more than citizens battling for their city’s future. Rebirth of Over-the-Rhine reveals how the future is only possible when you come to terms with your past.

Volcanic Sprint takes you deep inside the most extreme marathon in the world—the Mt. Cameroon Race of Hope, a marathon-length sprint 10,000 feet up a live volcano, and back down again.

Sarah Etonge is a five-time champion and mother of seven known as the Queen of the Mountain. Just days before the race, Sarah is haunted by a nagging knee injury and the strain of a hospitalized child. For former champion John Ekema, it’s a chance to relive fading glory through his son. For two-time champion Dominique Tedjiozem, attacked by rivals during the 2002 race, it’s a chance for vengeance.

For these competitors, Mt. Cameroon isn’t just a race. It’s their best shot at achieving fame and fortune in a country short on both. But nearly half of all runners will quit the race … conquered by Mt. Cameroon.

The award-winning TV series, Bench to Bedside, was acquired in 2013 by the commercial television arm of Australian Broadcast Corporation for global distribution.

Steve Dorst is credited as Director of Photography, Editor, and Writer on 10 of the 12 episodes. He is also credited as Director on four episodes.

Filmed documentary-style, Bench to Bedside is about true stories, real diseases, and high stakes. It's where science meets reality TV.