In this episode, Vicki sits down with her longtime friend and collaborator TJ Berden — filmmaker, producer, and one of her people — for a conversation twenty years in the making.

They talk about finding your people in Hollywood, what it means to have big dreams and a big heart in a town that wants to know if it's sellable, and what it looks like to stay true to your values across two decades of an industry that keeps changing the rules. They also talk about neurodivergent creatives — what TJ calls pearl divers — and what it means to make work that goes to the depths of human experience.

This is a conversation about traumedy, friendship, identity, and why the stories that are hardest to tell are usually the ones most worth making.

ABOUT TJ

TJ Berden is a filmmaker and producer based in Michigan. He has produced films distributed by major studios and made documentaries on subjects ranging from prison reform to education reform to faith. His current project is Cinderella Nun — a documentary about Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the 106-year-old nun and New York Times bestselling author who became one of the most beloved figures in college basketball.

Cinderella Nun: https://www.cinderellanun.com/

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🎙️ Executive Producers: Amy Burns, Anamaria B Call, Andrew Banner, Anna Goodson, Ashley Apelzin, Audrea Volker, Ben Coulson, Brian Churcek, Cappy Hamper, Carley Biblin, Charlene Deva, Chloe Cross, Clay Duhigg, Clayton Oliver, Danny Dunn, Daria Brown, David Garrido, Emily Burgess, Eric Crane, Erik Stenerud, Fiona Baker, Grace Norman, Helen Shaddock, Jaimie Collins, Jason Killian, Jen Unruh, Jennifer Carpenter, Julia Tretter, Kathie Watson-Gray, Kenneth Knowles, Kira Cotter, Kristine Lang, Kyle Raney, Llew P Williams, Laura Alvarado, Laura De Vito, Laura Provonsha, Lily George, Nelly Darmi, Nigel Rogers, Rachel Miller, Tim Scott, Tyler Kunz, Victoria Steed, Yanina Wood.

🎧 Producers: AJ Knight, Bobby Simon, Da Kovac, Eleanor Collins, Emily Griffiths, Hannah Hughes, Jennifer Kemp, Jonas Fløde, Kate F, Katie N Benitez, Kendra Murphy, Lisa Dennys, Logan Wall, Louise Lomas, Melissa Nance, Nicola Owen, Rebecka Johansson, Sam Morris, Sarah Hannah Morris.

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