Maiken Baird

Maiken Baird is an American documentary film director and producer.

Baird (along with co-director Michelle Major) directed the documentary film Venus and Serena and produced Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer.[1]

Early life and career

Baird obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Columbia University in 1989 and a Master's Degree in International Relations and Political Science from Stanford University in 1992.[1]

Before her film career began, Baird worked at the United Nations, the European Union and the Royal Institute of International Affairs.[1] Baird's first position working on documentary films was as a researcher at ABC News under Peter Jennings, where she first worked with her future co-director Michelle Majors.[2] Baird later produced television documentaries for a variety of sources including New York Times Television, National Geographic Channel, A&E and MTV.[1]

Directing career

Baird met and became friends with Michelle Major while working together for ABC News. The pair became interested in directing a documentary about the Williams sisters in 2007 and began pitching the project.[2]

After what Baird says were "countless meetings and hundreds of emails" the sisters allowed Baird and Major access to film them throughout 2011.[3] The pair went on to film over 400 hours of footage over the course of the year.[4]

In 2013 Baird and Major became the target of a lawsuit by the United States Tennis Association over their use of unauthorized footage in the film.[5] While Baird and Majors initially sought and received an invitation from the USTA to film at the 2011 US Open, the organization later claimed the pair had violated a five-minute limit to the use of licensed footage and presented a view of professional tennis which was "not in the best interest of the sport."[5]

Baird and Major attributed the lawsuit to their use of footage of Serena Williams' 2009 outburst at the US Open. The filmmakers believed the USTA worried the footage would cast the organisation in a bad light.[6]

In a letter co-written with Major, Baird appealed to the tennis community for support in challenging what she called an "attempt to censor filmmakers" by the USTA.[7]

Baird and Major reached a confidential settlement with the organization in 2013 which allowed Venus and Serena to be released unedited.[8]

Personal life

Baird lives in London with her husband and three children.[1]

See also

List of female film and television directors

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "MAIKEN BAIRD AND MICHELLE MAJOR". American Film Showcase. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  2. 1 2 Carman-Lehach, Katie (September 8, 2013). "Venus and Serena: Interview with doc filmmakers Michelle Major and Maiken Baird". HerFilmProject.
  3. ↑ Minow, Nell. "Interview: Maiken Baird and Michelle Major of "Venus and Serena"". Belief Net. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  4. ↑ Morales, Wilson (May 7, 2013). "Directors Maiken Baird, Michelle Major talk Venus and Serena doc". Black Film. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  5. 1 2 Sandomir, Richard (June 17, 2013). "U.S.T.A. Sues Filmmakers of 'Venus and Serena'". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  6. ↑ Gardner, Eriq (June 18, 2013). "Venus and Serena Documentary Suit Could Shape News Access to Sport Events". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  7. ↑ Major, Michelle; Baird, Maiken (June 19, 2013). "An Open Letter to the Tennis Community". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  8. ↑ Mohr, Ian (April 22, 2014). "Williams sisters tennis doc won't be edited". Page Six.

External links

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