Inside the making of “Remaining Native” with filmmakers Paige Bethmann and Steph Khoury

Image Source: SXSW.

"Remaining Native " is a SXSW documentary about Ku Stevens, a 17-year-old Native American solo runner living on the Yerington Paiute reservation in Northwest Nevada. Despite having no coach at his high school, Ku is determined to be seen by his dream school, the University of Oregon.

Directed by Paige Bethmann and edited by Steph Khoury, the film follows Ku's journey to run a collegiate qualifying time, all while reconciling with the memory of his great-grandfather, Frank Quinn, who at eight years old, ran 50 miles across the desert to escape an Indian boarding school. The documentary thoughtfully explores the interwoven nature of Ku and Frank's experiences through years of footage and archival material.

Bethmann and Khoury used Adobe Creative Cloud to tell this story, including Premiere Pro, Photoshop, After Effects, Frame.io and more. Productions in Premiere Pro specifically helped them collaborate seamlessly during the largely remote post-production process: "For features or any projects with a large amount of media, Productions allows you the space to break it down into smaller chunks," said Khoury. "Jess Epstein, our producer, and Beth Kearsley, our Associate editor, could be working on archival, Paige could be reviewing a scene assembly, and I could be navigating the different folders and accessing my selects while assembling an act."

Read on for more Premiere Pro tips from Bethmann and Khoury and a behind-the-scenes look at the making of "Remaining Native."

Paige, how and where did you get into directing?

I've always loved film, and in high school I would often try to get out of writing essays by proposing video projects instead. After I graduated, I went to Ithaca College (where I met Steph!) but I studied Film and Television. I thought I wanted to be a live studio director, I did a lot of work on the broadcast side and then when I moved to NYC, I was producing a lot of short form non-fiction content for Vox Media. I fell in love with documentary and non-fiction based work and was really inspired to connect with a real story to take on myself.

Steph, how and where did you first learn to edit?

In high school, my advanced art class was canceled, and I was placed in video production to fill my schedule. At the time, I was a student athlete, so I started to film competitions and edit highlight reels. I enjoyed the editing process and pursued Documentary Studies and Production at Ithaca College (where I met Paige!). We were consistently making films throughout college and each time I was drawn back to editing. I loved spending time in the editing suites reviewing material, finding patterns, and seeing the story take shape.

Where were you when you found out you got into SXSW? How did you feel?

Khoury: I was working on another edit when Paige told me the news. I was really excited, and it felt surreal after working on the project for nearly two years to get the news that we made it and were screening at SXSW. I had been to SXSW in 2018 for the premiere of Death Metal Grandma, and knew this festival was the perfect fit.

Bethmann: Our producer Jess Epstein picked me up to drive to our sound mix in Brooklyn and as we were driving, I saw the email and immediately screamed. I felt a huge sense of relief knowing that I'd be able to have a great launching pad to share Ku and his family's story. Also, knowing that Austin has such a large running community was exciting to think about ways we can plan activations around the film. We ended up hosting a 5K run in partnership with Nike to bring local runners and Indigenous community members together to celebrate our World Premiere and connect with the story on a physical level!

How do you begin a project/set up your workspace?

Khoury: Before each project, whether it's a feature or a short, I usually describe my workflow as "helping my future self." First step is conversations with the team to get some understanding of the main characters, scenes, spaces, environment, archival, or events so we can effectively begin sorting material out in appropriate ways. This becomes a foundation to develop a shorthand with the material, scenes, and themes within the project. During this time, it's really important to know just enough information to help organize, but not major details so the story can unfold through the screening process without any added perspectives. The technical organizational work up front allows creativity to thrive within the edit, because you're not spending 10 minutes trying to find that one moment you need.

Tell us about a favorite scene or moment from this project and why it stands out to you.

Bethmann: My favorite moments have been the time we got to spend together in person. Steph and our producer Jess came to Reno to edit and also participated in the Remembrance Run in 2023. To be able to share that experience with them and infuse it into our process of editing felt so good. They were able to meet all of Ku's family and run on the land in which the story is told.

Khoury: Working on Arcadia was probably one of my favorite scenes to edit, because of the energy of the event, but also because of the evolution of the scene. We had several iterations of it, and for a long time, Ku's voice was interwoven through the race. It was the biggest race and an important scene, but it wasn't hitting the way we'd hope it would. During an in-person edit, we started to question if including the interview was the right decision. We decided to edit without the interview and the final version became a beautiful culmination of the poetic style we had built across the film over numerous cuts. It was such an exciting breakthrough to solve as a team.

What were some specific post-production challenges you faced that were unique to your project? How did you go about solving them?

Bethmann and Khoury: The legacy of Indian Boarding schools and Ku's great-grandfather's story is quite heavy and painful. We were able to get access to hundreds of photos from The Stewart Indian School's archive. We spent a lot of time going through the photographs which showed the process of assimilation with children who were taken away from their families was extremely heartbreaking. We knew we wanted to be able to share the history without having to walk the audience through a historical timeline, but we weren't quite sure on how to achieve this. During an in-person edit, we discovered a portion of the interview where Ku said "imagine you're 8." We thought it was a powerful motif to ask viewers to imagine themselves as these children while navigating their experiences with care and sensitivity. It was important to share the truth about the abuse while also giving space to connect with the children and their humanity. Gaze became an important factor into our conversations, where we focused on the expressions, but also tried to use the imagery so it could be seen from the perspective of a child.

What Adobe tools did you use on this project and why did you originally choose them?

Bethmann: We used Premiere Productions, After Effects, InDesign, Photoshop, and Frame.io. We knew we wanted to use Adobe Creative Cloud because all of our collaborators were so familiar with the software. Most of our edit was done remotely, and it was really easy to share things with one another and work together staying within the Adobe universe. Frame.io was a big part of our finishing process workflow for color and mix. Communicating with my colorist and sound designer was seamless to immediately identify where attention needed to be drawn to.

Khoury: When I came onto the project, they had started to prep dailies onto string outs in Premiere Productions. If we weren't in Productions, I would have suggested it, because of the versatility of the program. For features or any projects with a large amount of media, Productions allows you the space to break it down into smaller chunks. So Jess, our producer, and Beth, our Associate Editor, could be working on archival, Paige could be reviewing a scene assembly, and I could be navigating the different folders and accessing my selects while assembling an act. Productions also was incredible in terms of archiving different versions of cuts, acts and scenes that we could easily refer back to.

If you could share one tip about Premiere Pro, what would it be?

Bethmann: I learned all my Premiere Pro tips from Steph. She really helped me understand organization and searchability. My tip would be to set-up your project and create a marker system so everything you need can be searchable.

Khoury: Adding onto Paige's tip, learning keyboard shortcuts exponentially sped up the rate at which I was editing when I was starting out. There's so many resources out there to learn them, but you can also use the keyboard shortcuts window to search for a command and create a unique keyboard setting, like syncing audio. Overtime, I've developed my own set of shortcuts for different stages of the editing process, such as one for logging material during the screening process. Premiere Pro allows you to export your keyboard settings and import them if you are working on a different computer. Same goes for workspace layouts! If I'm working from a different edit bay, I always bring those settings with me.

Who is your creative inspiration and why?

Khoury: I grew up documenting life through my drawings but became fascinated with people and culture through my multicultural family. As a daughter of immigrants with family members from all over the world, I loved learning from my aunts and uncles recipes, stories, and cultural nuances at holidays or family events. My art practice allowed me to see there's more than one way to engage with the world. I'm especially influenced by impressionist art, because it reminds me visuals are like brush strokes, where with each cut, there's a pacing or rhythm decision that shapes the story being told.

Bethmann: My grandmother was a traditional Mohawk storyteller, and as a little girl, I would listen to her share stories about Sky Woman and how maple syrup was made. I was always in awe of her ability to recall every detail from memory. She would often tell me that our stories didn't come from books but were passed down from the land and our ancestors. I've always been inspired by her and have approached my work with the same energy she carried when it comes to storytelling by getting to know all the details and connecting to place.

What's the toughest thing you've had to face in your career and how did you overcome it? What advice do you have for aspiring filmmakers or content creators?

Bethmann: "Remaining Native" was my first independent feature film, and while I was grateful to have so much support from folks who believed in Ku's story, sometimes it got really hard to quiet the noise. People come to your work with their own relationships to the story, expectations, ideas and experiences, and as much as you want to accept the help from others, you have to remember the original reasons of why you wanted to create your work in the first place. Staying true to your heart and vision is probably the hardest thing to do when navigating an industry that puts a lot of pressure on young artists, but if you return to what grounds you in the work, you'll be able to say and feel that you did everything you could to fight for the vision you had.

Khoury: Be open to opportunities where you can lean into creativity and cut as much as possible. The consistency in which I was editing early on was really formative in developing my workflow as well as honing my storytelling abilities. I'm fortunate to have worked with Julie Winokur and Reiley Wooten, who encouraged experimentation and having fun. The editing process can be demanding at times, comes with a lot of ups and downs, but be kind to yourself in the process. It's so beautiful when you get to step back and see what you've created. It doesn't need to be an award-winning film - as long as you're creating, it's art.

What's your favorite thing about your workspace and why?

Bethmann: This is a photo from when Steph came out to edit at my apartment in Reno, Nevada. I love my workspace because often my cat, Disco, will come in to supervise.

Khoury: I primarily work remotely, so two monitors and the large desk provides me plenty of space for me to take notes on my notepad, laptop or iPad. Sometimes, I'll also use my iPad as a third monitor with slack to communicate with team members. I love having a window to the side so I can get some sun in the morning before having to close the blinds in the afternoon. My favorite part is how colorful the space is. When I'm not editing, I pull out my sketchpad and keep up with my art practice.