JJ Gerber

@jjgerbertv

Filmmaker Director/Producer: @thelifeweleavefilm Premiered SXSW 2026 Producer: @omoiyarisongfilm Stream on Paramount+
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Weeks posts
Every great conversation starts with a warmup! Festival Programming Manager Megan Leonard moderates a conversation between local filmmakers: Chezik Tsunoda, Director of UNDER A MILLION STARS, JJ Gerber, Director of THE LIFE WE LEAVE, and Zach Weintraub, Writer/Director/Producer/Actor/Editor of ASSETS & LIABILITIES. Watch the entire episode on our YouTube channel, and catch screenings of their films throughout #SIFF2026 via 🔗 in bio. Thank you to 100 Percent for producing this video!
137 6
8 days ago
A lovely review from @hammertonail leading into our @siffnews screenings starting next week! We'll be at opening night tomorrow, will you?! #humancomposting #thelifeweleave #soilhealth
25 0
11 days ago
Thank you @mkefilm and everyone that came out! We had a packed house, and the Q&A was so fun! We were so excited to welcome family, friends and new friends to the world of #humancomposting Next stop @siffnews #deathcare #thelifeweleave
54 2
21 days ago
Omg y'all we are so excited to bring this one home to @siffnews ! Tickets on sale soon! (I think member tickets on sale already?- link in bio!) We are standing on the shoulders of giants. This film features families in our community facing the death of their loved ones with grace, as well as the team at @returnhomenor as they discover what deathcare can look like in the modern age. So many members of the Seattle community have had a hand in this film, or supported us mentally, emotionally, professionally on this journey. It's truly meaningful to bring this one home. 🎟️ in bio. #seattlefilm #thelifeweleave #humancomposting
125 13
1 month ago
"THE LIFE WE LEAVE is a refreshing, joyous gem of a documentary that also doesn't shy away from the pain of loss" - Chase Hutchinson @theinlander
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1 month ago
We're a solid week out from @sxsw now and I can finally reflect on the experience with a bit of clarity - and all I can say is Holy Shit. We are proud to tell this story of how confronting mortality can change our lives. Taking a deeper look at how our deathcare systems are operating gives us more power to choose what we want to happen to our own bodies after death. We can't thank the team at Return Home for opening our hearts and minds to what is possible, and the families we profiled for showing us true grace in the hardest times of your lives. Thank you @claudasaur @peterhallhuman and all of the programmers for inviting us to premiere with you in Austin, and @therealcharnick for the most heartfelt Q&A you've ever heard. We had such amazing audiences with our friends and family and strangers that were curious and some who had no idea what they were coming into but left with seemingly only nice things to say! Thank you to you all. And most of all, to this amazing team - we wouldn't be here with out you. (and there's probably too many of us to tag everyone, but god damnit, i will try!) Producers: @cmbriand @faroutgirl @melanie.d.miller Executive Producers: Rocky Collins Mark Reed @farstaractionfund Co-Executive Producers: @elisavolpina @patchamundo @dibecka Co-Producers: @andrew__burton @seagsees Editors: @smjeglum @giordano_gbg Add’l Editor: @theotherjoshaltman DoP: Kyle Seago Composer: @williamryanfritchmusic Colorist: @lostintime23 Supervising Sound Editor and Re-Recording Mixer: @tripbrock Contributing Producers: David Lowe David Kershner Jason Stephens Associate Producer: @hortoninstawho Assistant Editor: Mikayla Irle Teresa McDonald David Aristizabal Post House: Lightwave Post Sound House: Monkeyland Audio Title & GFX Design: @tandemmedia_ig Distribution Advisory Services: @cinephildocs Festival Public Relations: @leemeltzerconsulting
155 7
1 month ago
Human composting isn’t a topic everyone wants to discuss, but JJ Gerber ended up finding something very interesting and worthwhile when he started making his film THE LIFE WE LEAVE, screening this week at SXSW. Check out the full conversation on the Awards Buzz YouTube channel! #thelifeweleave @jjgerbertv #jjgerber @sxsw #sxsw @awardsbuzz
85 2
2 months ago
⚰️ @jjgerbertv on @thelifeweleavefilm in our latest Doc Voices issue, @sxsw Ones to Watch part one! ⚰️ "We're all going to die. Tomorrow is not promised... I finally understood what ritual around death can do." Check out the rest at link in bio!
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2 months ago
Giddy Up! In Doc Voices we're going to @sxsw , beginning our coverage with nature-oriented docs: Head to that link in bio to read: 🧌 Marq Evans on CAPTURING BIGFOOT 🗻 @EdwardJohnDrake Scott Veltri, Francis Cronin on THE ASCENT @TheAscentFilm 🍄 Otilia Portillo Padua on DAUGHTERS OF THE FOREST @daughters_of_the_forest_film ⚰️ @jjgerbertv on THE LIFE WE LIVE @thelifeweleave 🌪️ @thatmikolim on STORMBOUND
64 1
2 months ago
I'm so humbled to announce the world premiere of THE LIFE WE LEAVE at @sxsw 2026, in Austin TX!! This film was born of grief and has grown into more than I had ever imagined. I'm so grateful to the families that have shared their stories, and their grief with us, the team at Return Home for being so radically transparent in all aspects of their lives, and for my filmmaking team that has grown through the years to a caliber that I can't believe- truly the best out there... And most of all, my family, Kat and Marlowe, for holding me close and giving me the space and time to explore this approaching tidal wave of emotion. The Life We Leave: When Washington legalizes human composting, entrepreneur Micah Truman bets everything on a new vision of deathcare. With @returnhomenor funeral directors @tenaciousbrie13 and @thefuneralace , he builds the first large-scale terramation facility, reshaping how we grieve and return to the Earth. Producers: @cmbriand @faroutgirl @melanie.d.miller Executive Producers: Rocky Collins Mark Reed Co-Executive Producers: @elisavolpina @patchamundo @dibecka Co-Producers: @andrew__burton @seagsees Supervising Editor: Elisa Borona, ACE Editors: @smjeglum @giordano_gbg Add’l Editor: @theotherjoshaltman DoP: Kyle Seago Composer: @williamryanfritchmusic Associate Producer: @hortoninstawho Assistant Editor: Mikayla Irle Make sure to follow @thelifeweleavefilm for the latest updates, including screening dates, when passes & tickets go on sale, etc!
183 31
4 months ago
Capping off an epic, and unexpected run... What we lack in statues we make up for 10 fold in love and friendships and the knowledge that our scrappy team could climb this tall ass mountain... @kgerbung your love and support kept me going and keeps me going (and you said I had to mention you first). @kishi_bashi @jtaylorsmith and @maxreggieritter I'm so proud of you guys and I love you and gosh darn it, I'm just so happy to be your friends. @thesheilanevins We're humbled you chose our film to put your weight behind, thanks for showing us the ropes! I'm grateful for @jimangelo819 @jennymills888 , @drewkentwallin @suckatash for your constant support! Thanks to our friends and collaborators that believed in us, gave us your time and talent- and those that came out or tuned in to watch! What an inspiration this has been... Can't wait to do it again... One day, but for now- sleep! 😴😴😴😴
219 10
1 year ago
I'm very excited (and terrified) to announce my next film project and this time, I'm directing?! Thanks to @siffnews and the Satterberg Foundation for this amazing opportunity to make it a reality! This has been such a community project on the filmmaking side- working with @cmbriand @seagsees @smjeglum has been a dream. Can't wait to tell this story! Follow @lifeafterlifedoc for occasional updates as we set sail! #humancomposting #documentaryfilm #whatisthislife
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1 year ago