Benjamin Jeffrey Steinbauer (born July 28, 1977) is an American director, writer and producer, who is best known for directing the feature documentary Winnebago Man (2009).^[1] Steinbauer has directed other documentaries, including Chop & Steele (2022), which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival,^[2] Brute Force (2012) and Heroes From The Storm (2017), as well as episodic television for the PBS show Stories of the Mind and the CBS show Pink Collar Crimes.

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Quick Facts Born, Education ...

Ben Steinbauer
Born	Benjamin Jeffrey Steinbauer (1977-07-28) July 28, 1977 (age 46) Wichita, Kansas, U.S.
Education	Edmond Memorial High School University of Kansas (B.A.)
Occupation	Film director
Years active	2001–present

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Ben Steinbauer is an American filmmaker known for his work in documentaries and music videos. He graduated from Edmond Memorial High School in Edmond, Oklahoma, in 1995 and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Film from The University of Kansas in 2001.^[3] Steinbauer is a member of the Professional Advisory Board for the K.U. Film program.^[4]

While attending college, Steinbauer began his filmmaking career by producing documentaries and music videos for various artists, including Forty Minutes of Hell; Everest; and The Danny Pound Band.^[5] In 2002, he worked on Bradley Beesley's documentary "The Fearless Freaks", which focuses on the band The Flaming Lips.^[6][7]

Steinbauer pursued graduate studies in film at the University of Texas at Austin. His pre-thesis film, "The Next Tim Day", received the best documentary award at Cinema Texas.^[8] He was awarded a Princess Grace Award for Filmmaking for his graduate thesis film,^[9] which developed into the documentary "Winnebago Man."^[10] After completing his studies, Steinbauer served as a faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin, where he taught Intro To Filmmaking^[11] and was recognized as Teacher of the Year for the College of Communications.^[12]

"Winnebago Man" premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival in 2009^[13] and was theatrically released in the U.S. and Canada in 2010.^[14][15] The documentary received praise from critics, including Michael Moore^[16] and Roger Ebert.^[17] Steinbauer appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 2010 to promote the film.^[18]

Steinbauer has directed several other works, including the short documentary "Brute Force" (2012)^[19] and the co-directed "Calls To Okies: The Park Grubbs Story" (2015),^[20] both of which premiered at South by Southwest. His virtual reality film, "The Superlative Light" (2016),^[21] was featured in various publications and premiered at SXSW.^[22][23] Steinbauer also directed episodes of the PBS series "Stories of the Mind" in 2016, which won multiple Emmys.^[24]

Following Hurricane Harvey, Steinbauer collaborated with Texas Monthly to create "Heroes From the Storm" (2017),^[25] which was recognized with a Vimeo Staff Pick^[26] and selected for the U.S. State Department's American Film Showcase.^[27] In 2018, he directed episodes of the CBS comedic docuseries "Pink Collar Crimes."^[28]

Steinbauer's recent work includes the feature-length comedy documentary "Chop & Steele," co-directed with Berndt Mader and premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2022.^[2] The film, featuring notable personalities like Howie Mandel and David Cross, was released theatrically by Drafthouse Films in Spring 2023.^[29]

Steinbauer co-owns the production company The Bear, which was founded in 2007, with writer and director Berndt Mader.^[30] Based in Austin, Texas, its feature film credits include Chop & Steele (2022), directed by Steinbauer and Mader, Booger Red (2015), directed by Mader; Prince Avalanche (2013), directed by David Gordon Green; Double Play (2013), directed by Gabe Klinger; 5 Time Champion (2011); directed by Mader; Slacker 2011 (2011), directed by Steinbauer, Mader, and various other Austin-based directors; and Winnebago Man (2009), directed by Steinbauer.

In 2005, Steinbauer was awarded the Princess Grace Award for Filmmaking for his graduate thesis film,^[31] which went on to become Winnebago Man.^[32] Steinbauer was named "one of the best emerging Texas filmmakers of 2009" by Texas Monthly for his documentary Winnebago Man.^[33]

Winnebago Man won Best Documentary at the Sarasota Film Festival, an Audience Award at CineVegas Film Festival, Audience Top 10 at Hot Docs Film Festival, the Founder Prize at Traverse City Film Festival, and Best Documentary at the Edmonton International Film Festival.^[34] Winnebago Man was also in the official selection for IDFA and Sheffield Doc/Fest. The Austin Film Critics Association named Winnebago Man the Best Austin Film for 2010.^[35]

Steinbauer's 2012 film Brute Force won Best Documentary Short at Sidewalk Moving Pictures Festival^[36] in Birmingham, Alabama, and screened at the New Media Film Festival^[37] in Los Angeles, California.

• Chop & Steele (2022)
• Siren Song (2019)
• Pink Collar Crimes (2018, eight episodes)
• Heroes From the Storm (2017)
• Slow To Show (2016)
• Stories of the Mind (2016, five episodes)
• The Superlative Light (2016)
• Calls To Okies: The Park Grubbs Story (2015)
• Documentary Subjects Wanted (2013)
• Brute Force (2012)
• Slacker 2011 (2011)
• Winnebago Man (2009)