This episode of the Digital Gold Podcast features filmmaker Lauren Sieckmann, co-creator and director of Unbanked, a global Bitcoin documentary. Lauren shares her journey from Nebraska, where her father first introduced her to Satoshi Nakamoto’s story, to building a career in film that blends storytelling, Bitcoin, and AI. She discusses the challenges of breaking into the film industry, how she turned early passion into a full-scale production, and what it was like interviewing figures like Michael Saylor and Jack Dorsey. Throughout the conversation, Lauren highlights the core message of her documentary: Bitcoin is for everyone across geographies, politics, and backgrounds, and its greatest power lies not just in number go up but in driving financial literacy and personal sovereignty.
Dive into this episode with filmmaker Lauren Sieckmann, co-director of Unbanked, as she shares her journey from Nebraska to directing a global Bitcoin documentary. Use the timestamps below to jump straight to the moments that matter most.
00:00 – Intro: JP introduces Lauren Sieckmann, co-director of Unbanked, and her journey into Bitcoin filmmaking.
02:00 – Nebraska beginnings: Lauren shares how her father introduced her to Satoshi Nakamoto and The Bitcoin Standard, sparking her fascination with Bitcoin and money.
05:00 – Writing the first script: The story behind Lauren’s first attempt at a Satoshi feature film and her early struggles breaking into the film industry.
10:00 – Finding funding and a co-director: How networking on Clubhouse led to support from Jason Williams and her collaboration with David Kuhn.
15:00 – Interviewing Bitcoin’s leaders: Behind-the-scenes stories from interviews with Michael Saylor, Jack Dorsey, Adam Back, and Ted Cruz.
20:00 – Themes of Unbanked: Lauren explains why Bitcoin is for everyone, across politics and geography, and how the film showcases real-world use cases.
25:00 – Financial literacy and sovereignty: Why Bitcoin’s biggest contribution may be sparking global financial education and individual empowerment.
30:00 – Distribution and screenings: Plans for festival showings, streaming availability, and how to host private or theater screenings through Gather.
35:00 – Lightning round: Quick questions with Lauren on her first Bitcoin purchase, favorite films, AI tools for filmmaking, and dream cameos.
38:00 – Personal reflections: Lauren and JP reflect on filming in Austin and Iowa, capturing meaningful moments, and the importance of art in Bitcoin storytelling.
41:00 – Closing thoughts: Lauren shares her hope that Unbanked leaves audiences inspired, empowered, and eager to explore Bitcoin further.
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@LaurenSieckmann
@UnbankedMovie
www.unbankedmovie.com
http://bit.ly/Unbanked_Watch_Here
Jp: [00:00:00] Welcome to the Digital Gold Podcast. Today's guest is Lauren Seman. She is a director, writer, and producer. Alongside David Kuhn, she created and directed Unbanked a global Bitcoin documentary in her debut future film set for release in 2025. In 2019, her father's introduction to Satoshi Nakamoto story ignited her fascination with Bitcoin, inspiring her to merge her storytelling craft.
With her advocacy for financial literacy, an early adopter of ai, Lauren collaborates with top AI companies as a creative partner, leveraging cutting edge tools to enhance storytelling and streamline production. She's passionate about AI's potential to empower creatives and revolutionize the filmmaking process.
Lauren, welcome to the show.
Lauren: Hi. Thanks for having me.
Jp: I'm so excited for you to be here. So back in 2019, that moment when your dad says Satoshi Nakamoto is the man of the future, he should be on Time Magazine. What's going through your mind? Do you remember that moment?
Lauren: Yeah, [00:01:00] I think it was right before COVID. I don't think COVID had quite happened yet. So, I was back home visiting my parents in Nebraska and around this time I had been studying acting. I lived in LA I didn't know what I really wanted to do in the film industry, but I knew that I wanted to tell stories and I wasn't sure yet what that was gonna look like, so I was in Nebraska and I was trying to figure out, how do I get into the film industry? I have no background in film whatsoever. What's so funny is I went to USC for college and that's actually one of the best film schools in the country. And unfortunately, at the time I did not know I wanted to get into film, so I didn't major in it.
That was a really big missed opportunity. But, you know, in the film industry, I think one of the big challenges is finding a way in there's no one way to break into the film industry. And I think that's why there's a really big barrier there. So, you know, I was back [00:02:00] home in Nebraska.
My dad was like, well, you know, you, maybe you should write a script and you should look at Satoshi, like, read this book. And he gave me the Bitcoin standard, by ine. And so, I read this book, and, I was just blown away and I knew nothing about money. You know, I studied business, in college and I just had no idea about money and all the ways, money is manipulated and it just felt, you know and I was never a very political person.
And this just woke me up and I just felt like I became this Libertarian of really starting to have a passion about our financial system and how screwed up it is, and I just couldn't believe that I had never learned any of this until that moment. So between that and then learning about Satoshi's story, just in general, how we don't know who this person is and how he could just create this, I was so drawn by.
Who is this person and what life experiences did he have to sit down and say, I'm gonna create this money, this form of money that nobody can do base, nobody can control it. And to me, that was [00:03:00] kind of the major moment that got me interested in Bitcoin and also from a storytelling perspective.
And so, I was like, you know what? I don't know how to get into this film industry. I love Bitcoin. This, this is fascinating to me. And so, I think then COVID hit and I actually just stayed in Nebraska. I moved out of la I stayed in Nebraska near my parents. And, my dad's like, you should write a script about Satoshi. So, I, started writing a script about Satoshi and my dad and I kind of actually did it together, and it's probably a horrible script. I have not visited this script since 2019. But it was really just kind of about what life experiences Satoshi could have gone through to get to this point.
And that story was meant to make an everyday person understand how they can relate to this technology. So, I wrote this full-length feature film. It was like 110 pages. It's probably not very good because this was like my first ever script I ever wrote. And then I kind of got to the end of this and I was like well, I have [00:04:00] no idea how to get this made. I don't even know how to revise this script. I knew nobody in the film industry. I knew nothing about production. I mean, I knew absolutely nothing. So, I was like, well, you know, I watched all these Bitcoin documentaries and I felt like, oh, and to rewind, I first kind of got into, when I first write, started writing the script.
Ben Prentice. Start, I don't know if you know Ben Prentice, but I remember I met some people, through Twitter or Clubhouse and he was one of the first people I met just online. And I was like; I'm writing a script. Can you help me? Like, I don't understand proof of work and all this. And I was sending it back and forth with him and he was so helpful and so kind, and just helped me understand the, really, the technical aspects of this, which is very complicated.
So shout out to Ben, for all his help. Back then. But, after this process of having this script, I was like, I have no idea how I'm gonna get this made. So, I watched a bunch of Bitcoin documentaries and I felt like there was an opportunity to tell a story about Bitcoin, but in the form of a documentary. [00:05:00] And, I felt like a lot of the documentaries that, we have great documentaries, but they all focus on a different time period, you know, kind of the early cyberpunk days. And. That was kind of where the documentary sprung from was, I think there's an opportunity to make a Bitcoin documentary and I think we need to focus on what's happening today and
just everyday people. So, first of all, you know, I said my dad introduced me to Satoshi Nakamoto story, which is pretty crazy. So, my dad is, I don't wanna like drop his age, but he's 70 years old and he got into Bitcoin in 2015, which is pretty early for, I hate to call him a boomer, but you know, he's a boomer.
So, I think that was really cool. And he kind of had, during the 2008 financial crisis that's the first time in his life that he really looked at the financial system and said, how the hell are these things happening? Like, how do we have this crisis? And he was impacted by that crisis. And he just saw all the destruction that happened. And that's the first time he really kind of looked into Bitcoin. I think he got introduced to it [00:06:00] through Real Vision. I think back then Real Vision was the World Crypto Network. And then he got into Bitcoin in 2015, which, to me is pretty cool.
But yeah, so that's kind of like the starting point of the documentary. It was pretty, a wild experience, but I just kind of got to a point where I was like, I do not know how to get into this film industry. And I think there's no one way to do it. If you wanna create something, you just find your own unique path to create it. And you don't let anybody tell you no, even though they will a thousand times before you get a yes. But, yeah that's kind of the early beginnings of this.
Jp: It sounds like almost a trial by fire. I dunno how many people think, oh, let me read this Bitcoin book and then like, I need to make a documentary about this whole ecosystem. So, I think that's a very, very unique approach to read the book Lauren and be like, I'm gonna be a director now. Is that the first like. Did you make YouTube videos before? Did you do like other creative mediums or was it just straight like, let me write 110-page script.
Lauren: Yeah, so I [00:07:00] was a volleyball player my entire life. I was always an athlete, but I was also had this very big creative side. I was always very artsy, and my mom is like that too. And so I always kind of had a creative side in me, but I was always an athlete for, I mean, until I was probably 23, 24. I think, I actually don't even really know like what I want to call myself., I'm a director and co-producer and writer of this documentary alongside David, but I kind of consider myself like this creative generalist. I love to just find, something that needs to be created and find a way to create it. That's kind of like maybe more of like a creator. I, would consider myself that. Like less of a director, but more of a creator. So, yeah, I think it was that moment I was like, I just wanna create this, like this is cool and I see an opportunity and I wanna find a way to make this happen. And, it was a massive learning experience for me because I've never made a film. So, yeah, it was crazy. I'm still mind blown that I've got this documentary sitting there. I mean, this was. Long process. You know, [00:08:00] 2019, I think David and I started working on it together officially in October of 2021. And here we are. It's available now to watch, but it's what, four years later? It's pretty crazy.
Jp: then what was the attraction primarily? Was it like ideological because of your dad and like how it's different than 2008 and maybe what happened there? Was it just number go up? Or was it more technical interest into Bitcoin? 'cause you don't see many volleyball players saying Bitcoin film now, this is amazing. So, what drew you to it?
Lauren: I don't know. It's a good question. I think I've always kind of been interested in I hate to say nerdy things, but kind of nerdy technical things. I'm not a technical person. I was never a software developer, but I'm very much interested, like I love the movie The Big Short, for example. So, I've always been kind of interested, maybe I didn't know at the time when I watched it, what exactly it was completely about, and the significance of that event. But I was always very much interested, in these things. But I don't think until I got into Bitcoin, I really understood the significance of [00:09:00] all of this and, how big it is and how much it affects our everyday lives. But I think for me, like I saw a lot of times in my life. Where, my dad was stressed about money or, I saw, money, you know, be kind of the demise of families that were around me, and I never really understood, what was behind all of that until. I got into Bitcoin and I think that moment of getting into Bitcoin and seeing how money really works really just clicked for me.
And then understanding the kind of pressure and the things my dad of, a dad that is providing for his families had to go through, you know? And I think it just made me, I actually made my dad and I bond a lot more. We got really close after I got into Bitcoin and we're still very close. And I think it was just like a. A cool moment that, now I'm very passionate about and I think it's because I saw my dad go through all of this and yeah, I'm not sure, it's a good question. I don't know if I had a perfect answer for it, but I would say that's probably my best answer.
Jp: There's no perfect answer. I think you mentioned this trend of [00:10:00] money and when you're building a documentary, the first thing you might not think about is the finances for it. But very quickly after maybe writing the script or thinking about the documentary more, the question comes as, how do I finance this shoot where you guys flew to some amazing destinations all across the globe.
So talk to me about. That process and maybe what unlocked momentum for you where you really started to get the capital you needed, plus how do you even budget for that? do you do?
Lauren: Okay, so this goes back all the way back to my club. House days. So when I first got into Bitcoin and I said, I'm making this documentary, I don't know how yet, but I'm gonna find a way. So, I first started off on Clubhouse. I had no Twitter followers yet. My dad was like, oh, I think all the Bitcoiners hang out on Clubhouse.
So, I'm like, okay. So I created an account and I just sat in the audience, , and I was terrified to speak to people and I just knew that I was gonna have to, at some point show people that I know what I'm talking [00:11:00] about when it comes to Bitcoin and build trust and network. , And so Clubhouse really was my starting place, and I think that's where I originally met you. And eventually got connected through to Jason Williams, who is, an executive producer of the documentary and the first person to actually, commit capital to the film. So, I owe Jason a lot. He's been a huge supporter. He. Awesome guy. So, you know, I first started off on Clubhouse and it was just networking and I had like, maybe like 20 followers on Twitter and I never tweeted.
So, I was like, you know what? If I'm gonna get people to respond to my dms, I'm gonna have to not be private. I'm gonna have to tweet things. I'm gonna have to find a way to stand out. And so, what I started doing was. I started making these, Twitter threads because I'm like, ah, I wanna make a Bitcoin movie.
I love film, so I'm gonna make these threads about Bitcoin and movies. And so, I found a way and some of those went viral. I mean, you know, relatively viral, like, like 2000 likes. And I think that's the first-time people started following me and associating me with [00:12:00] film and Bitcoin. And I think that was very helpful. In getting people to respond to my dms and take me more seriously. I think that was a very important step. But I got introduced to Jason through a friend, and he was the first person to like the idea and say, look, I, if you can find someone to do this with you, like, I'll put in money. So, I had Jason committed and he was a huge supporter.
And then, I got connected to David, my current film partner and who we co-directed this together. Later that year and after that, I was able to then tell investors, I've got this great director and producer to work with me. And that was massive in, helping, my pitch. But,
Jp: how did you meet David? Like that's such a crucial inflection point.
Lauren: Yeah. I didn't know anybody and I just was kind of networking, but every little person that I did know, I was like, talking to everybody that I could and I was just getting intros to, everybody. And we ended up getting. Introduced through Eugene Jarecki, who David has worked with, and Eugene has [00:13:00] done incredible documentaries at the highest level.
I got connected to Eugene. Eugene was like, oh, I'm in Berlin and I won't be able to be a part of this, but you need to talk to David. He's the best. And he connected me to David. And from there we just decided to partner on this. And what was cool is this was David's first introduction to Bitcoin.
He had never been into Bitcoin or knew much about it. And so, I think that's why the partnership was so great because. I knew too much about Bitcoin and he knew nothing. So we had a really great balance there as co-directors. But, and now he loves it. It's been really cool to see his journey kind of getting into Bitcoin from beginning of this production till now.
And, , it's been cool to like, you know, his experience, from beginning to end and, yeah, now he's very passionate about Bitcoin, so it's been pretty cool.
Jp: Is there anything that came up in that co-directing where you. Like he had an epiphany about Bitcoin or like you were able to cross the chasm with him of why bitcoin's so important or kind of 'cause the co-directing. It's like you're both trying to pull the script [00:14:00] effectively in the film in one direction, and you both have these ideas of what it is in your head.
And so not having. Like having different beliefs about Bitcoin or different understandings about it must have made it some ports difficult, but also just because you're so passionate about your side of the Bitcoin story and talk to me more about how that interplay works.
Lauren: Yeah, no, I mean, you don't see a lot of co-directors 'cause it's very hard, you know? But I think we were lucky that we have a great dynamic in the sense of, I am not a documentary expert. He is, he's a documentary expert and so I think I lean on him to help guide me in this process of making the film.
But, he leans on me about Bitcoin information and that side of the story because I do know Bitcoin and I, so I think we've got a great dynamic where, we've got a very strategic division of labor because we both have our strength and, we're lucky that it worked out really well.
Jp: That's all that matters. so, you're directing this film, you're sitting down with people like Michael Saylor, Jack Dorsey, Adam [00:15:00] back. Who surprised you the most when you're having those conversations and who did your team interview versus maybe you, I know some of you guys had a lot of people working on this. You didn't get to interview every single person, but talk to me more about those conversations and maybe who surprised you?
Lauren: Yeah. I would say, who surprised? I would say, one of my favorite interviews was Sailor and I just remember one, he was really hard to get and I did not know if we were gonna get him in this film. And I'm telling you; I tried. Every way possible to get him in this film. And finally, it worked.
So, we went to his interview and I wouldn't say necessarily surprised in his, I mean, you know, sailor's brilliant and he's, you've seen him on podcasts, but I was just so surprised with how he can sit there. I mean, he sat there for. Two hours during this interview and just the way that he can just talk.
I mean, he doesn't even need breaks, he just goes for two hours straight and I just could not believe the stamina and being able to do that. I mean, it was just incredible to watch him in person. You don't see the editing cuts like you do in a [00:16:00] podcast. But, he just, the way he can sit there and just talk about Bitcoin and you can just tell that he's so genuinely passionate about it. I think that was really cool. And I remember just after that interview; David and I like giving each other like a giant hug. Like, oh my gosh, I cannot believe we just got that. You know, like, that was just so cool. We were both so excited about that interview. Ted Cruz, like very generous with his time, like very kind. Which those people are busy. Scheduling with senators is very hard and he was surprisingly very generous with his time. Which, I think is awesome. I think a lot of people you expect a lot of, everyone we interviewed, they're very busy people and they're very hard to reach people, but they were all so kind and generous and I think genuinely passionate, about the topic.
Yeah, so David, David does all the interviews. We kind of write the questions together and talk about that and David interviews and we kind of decided that makes the most sense when you're interviewing. There's a lot that goes into it and you have to kind of keep the subject's eye line. You also, an issue for me is I know so much about [00:17:00] Bitcoin that a subject says something, I might not be like, oh, well, what do you mean? Or I might just, you know, it's a little bit too, I know a little bit too much about Bitcoin, and David does a fantastic job. He knows exactly how to interview subjects.
There's a lot that goes into it. And we found that system worked the best for us. But yeah, I would, I'm not sure if I know the most surprising. I think what's cool though, like a lot of things we learned along the way, because if you think about it, documentaries are, you're documenting life and there is a process where I would say we planned to some extent, I remember the first time David and I met, we laid out this giant piece of paper and we wrote out an outline. It's a rough outline, but it's like, this is where we're gonna start and this is where we're gonna end. These are the people we want to interview, and this is where they fit.
And as you go on in this process, we have to. Go back to that drawing board and change things because as we document life, we get things or we can't get certain people or somebody gave us something that we didn't expect to get from them and that [00:18:00] we don't need this other piece and things change because you are documenting life and you can't plan how that's gonna go. One of the, a really cool piece of advice that David gave me in the beginning was if we set out and we end up making the film that we set out to make, then we're not doing it right. This should change. We should discover new things., And that's exactly what we did. And I think that's really cool. And one of my probably favorite aspects about making documentaries.
Jp: And so, these themes that you're talking about, I can just imagine like a massive whiteboard effectively, but with on paper and you guys just like drawing stick figures and like little Bitcoin logos and like arrows everywhere. What's the theme that, or themes that go through the film that you want to share with the audience? And then what's a theme that we'll never see because it got caught?
Lauren: Yeah, man. So, we filmed 200 hours of footage and the film is only an hour and 25 minutes. So
Jp: 120th of everything. Got cut.
Lauren: Everything got cut. And that's just how it works, you know? And some films film way more than that and [00:19:00] then they have to cut way more. So, it's not easy. And we're lucky. We have the best team. I mean, we have the best editors. So, what you see when you watch this film is you see the result of incredible people, many incredible people working on this. It's not just David and I mean we have the best people working on this But I would say, kind of the main message we wanted people to see. I think one thing that I've been frustrated about with Bitcoin, not necessarily it's not Bitcoin's fault, but it's just that Bitcoin has become I have, I know some people who are like, oh, well, Bitcoin is just kind of this conservative, it's been, this conservative thing. I'm like, no, it's not. It's really not. It's really for any, anybody, on any political spectrum. And I think, you know, one theme was just to show that it's very simple, but Bitcoin is for everybody. I think, you know, you'll see in the film that, I think there's things that people will love no matter, you know, what your politics are. And that was kind of the goal. Another thing is we tried to explore all the different ways that Bitcoin is being used. And we're not trying to tell people what [00:20:00] Bitcoin's use case is. It's more about showing it and what everyday people are using it for. And, letting the message speak for itself.
Lauren: And so, you know, I would say right now I think Bitcoin is something different depending on where you are. And the film really highlights that. And I think it's gonna depend who knows where, what Bitcoin's main use case is gonna be in 20 years and 30 years. But I think it's definitely gonna depend on where you are and what the circumstances are.
But you know I think something that is very cool too, and I'm not sure, how much this is really said in the film, but to me it's a big takeaway is that I think one of Bitcoin's most important aspects is not necessarily its number go up or its savings method, it's just that it's brought this movement of financial literacy. And I think that is so important there's a moment that we have, a guy from Harlem that's. Says, he talks about like how he just one day was like, I don't know what's going on. Like why is my savings account like this? And why do I not have this much money in savings? And getting into [00:21:00] Bitcoin and just kind of is awakening there. And I think that is so powerful. Like beyond the number, go up, beyond, I mean obviously number go up is great. I think that's an important aspect of Bitcoin. I think being able to save your money and hold its value is important. I think transactions are important. But I just think the fact that people are more financially literate today and. To me that is an important message from the film, and it's not as prominent, but I think it's an important takeaway.
Jp: I liked how you definitely interweave different like levels of socioeconomic status and. Beliefs in the film because you have these people that are, Michael Saylor, $75 billion of Bitcoin, and you have someone in Harlem,, a hundred dollars of Bitcoin, a thousand dollars of Bitcoin, and be able to show the passion at both levels where it doesn't matter the amount of Bitcoin you own, but the fact that you can have access to this technology and the [00:22:00] benefits it brings you are the same that it brings Michael Saylor. Is an amazing aspect of the film, I think is underappreciated, but also just something that people don't talk about enough about Bitcoin. The fact that it is like the internet and anyone can access it. So, you did a really good job with trying to interweave that, I would say in into the film itself.
Lauren: Thank you. Yeah, I think that's really important because, as I talk to other people that I meet that don't know much about Bitcoin, and I try and talk to 'em about it, they're like, oh, well, it's just like so expensive. I'm like, ah, it's not like if, you know, you know what? I think there is a use case for everybody. I think Bitcoin has so many use cases. It's so valuable in so many different ways, and I think when people can understand the different ways that it can help you in your life or, depending on your situation, I, I think that's important. And I do believe some people say like the price doesn't matter. I do think the price does matter. I think the price going up is important. I think that's a great aspect of Bitcoin. But I think there are so many great aspects that people can use it in their life and they just don't know it yet.
So that was kind of the goal is for I think back [00:23:00] to my dad and how he got into Bitcoin because he's like, why am I having such a hard time with this financial system? And then he looked into it and. It changed his mind set and it changed the way he saves money and the way he spends money. And you know, my dad has done lightning transactions. My dad has paid as a rifer in Bitcoin. He's done everything with Bitcoin, which is really cool. But I think more people need to see how it can relate to them on that level. And so that was really the goal is to show everyday people how you can use this technology. It's not too early to get into it. And yeah, there's a lot of aspects people can appreciate, but I think a lot of the times the story is always about the price and , so I think these other stories get missed.
Jp: Why do money stories tug at people's emotions so much? Like why is that such a core belief? Is it because money is freedom? And you talk about freedom tech a little bit. Maybe can you explain that in normal English or kind of what that means to you along with that? Why money is the money story?
Lauren: Yeah, I think, the money story is hard because look, the more money you make, the more [00:24:00] choices, the more opportunities. I think certain things become easier, but I don't think money solves everything. , , I'm a big believer in that, but,, having more money is always nice and having, , people on Twitter joke, , a lot about like generational wealth with Bitcoin, , and having all this money and being able to retire and having, being able to retire your children and their grandchildren and like, I think that's great.
Like, that'd be awesome. Like, why not be able to do that with Bitcoin. I think making money and striving to make money and profit is a good thing sometimes I feel like we look at it as a bad thing, but I think it's a good thing. But I think financial freedom in general is just being financially sovereign and just being able to know that you are in control of your finances and your savings and growing your own wealth. And I think, it's more about feeling like we're in a system were. Some things are out of our control. Like simple things like we don't think about how our money in our bank it's not technically ours I think about, some of these issues we don't have as much in America, but for example, there's people in Argentina who have literally had savings in a bank.
I know people who have lost their savings [00:25:00] multiple time in a bank because they don't actually own it when they deposit it into the bank. So I think, to me, financial freedom or freedom technology is just sovereignty. F, you know, financial sovereignty and being able to make your own choices and have the options.
Jp: And you mentioned the counterparty risks of like putting money in a bank and you knowing multiple people that have lost that. I personally don't know anyone that has gone through that. Did you try to show that off in the film? Like that this does occur or and is that in the US tell me more about that.
Lauren: Yeah. So, you know, you don't see that happen in the US because we have a lot of regulations and laws around that and protections, in banks. you know, In Argentina we do have a character in our film from Argentina. He's kind of an act two and he talks about how he lost his life savings twice. And, it's not a massive. Story in our film, I think it would be a story for one film, you know, a second film. It would be a great story for one of those. But there's been multiple times in Argentina where don't know the full [00:26:00] story, but I think something happened where the Central Bank just took money outta people's bank accounts because they had to hold a fill. And when you deposit, you don't have your right. It's not technically yours. And you can lose it. They don't have regulations like they do here. That happens here, you're gonna get paid up to a certain amount because of insurance. But, in Argentina it's much different.
And this was in the early two thousand, this happened.But yeah, I think when people understand money and they understand inflation and they understand what's happening with their money, if they have the tools, they have the options to do something different and do something that they control. To me that is freedom. You don't have to do it, but just knowing that you have the option to save money somewhere else, to put your value into something else for it to grow, not depreciate. I think to me, that is freedom to have the knowledge of those tools and to know what the issue is and I think that is the most important
Jp: I definitely agree. The silence, theft, maybe we haven't heard about people losing money in a bank, but the inflation, the money printing since COVID, the [00:27:00] depreciation of the dollar. And it's something that is at least in way more in the conversation today because of Twitter and the internet and the ability to talk and actually have an alternative, which is Bitcoin. One Bitcoin always equals one Bitcoin. And that's the beauty of it. 'cause sadly, $1. Yes, is always $1, but that purchasing power is gonna change. And technically Bitcoin's purchasing power changes every day compared to dollar. So anyway, that's a bad example. But like when it comes to like deciding when a cut is done, you mentioned a few different, like, not scenes, but like part act one, act two, act three.
How do you know? Like, 'cause the story is of Bitcoin's always evolving. I mean, we had FTX, then we have like now this if a Bitcoin treasury craze. How do you know when to say we're stopping here? This is where our film unbanked is gonna sit in time in the Bitcoin story.
Lauren: So that's, it's not easy. I can't tell you how many times David is. David and I are like. Oh [00:28:00] man, do we need to add this? Like are we gonna be outdated if we don't update this part or, it's not an easy thing, but I think at the end of the day, we are documenting life and I think at some point we are documenting a period in life and if too much time passes. This highlights this period of time and what's happening in the stories from that time period. So, I think in a way we were really worried about something getting outdated. But I think the way that we ended it, you can't totally prevent that from happening. But I think the way that we ended up being like, okay, this is done.
We are not adding anymore. I think it's at a great place where it has that balance of things is obviously gonna change, you know? We kind of ended this around. This was about. End of last year. So, I would say, yeah, things change, but I think we were able to end it in a way that it feels balanced enough where people will know that this is from a specific time period and things will definitely change, but I [00:29:00] think we're getting it out the right time.
This is. I think about what if we get this done and put it out, a year and a half ago, even a year ago, I mean, Bitcoin was at a way different place. I don't think it was as talked about, we were more in a bear market. The timing right now is actually a lot better. So, I think we're very happy with how everything turned out.
Jp: And so, tell me more. Like, are we doing a, festival circuit? Are you going straight to streaming? Do people pay on demand? Where do people find the film and kind of what's the best way to get communities organized or events together for people that wanna do group streamings, let me do that again. What's the best way of people that wanna do group streamings?
Lauren: Yeah, so, oh, we have a lot of ways, so right now you can watch the film on our website. It's technically a pre-release. It's for just a limited window. So, from August 15th until October 15th, it is available to rent on our website. And after that it's gonna go to a wider distribution, which we have not been able to announce yet, but we will. So, we have a wider [00:30:00] distribution plan for the fall. We were in the Manhattan Film Festival and we won a a best duck award, which we're really excited about. And we will have another festival coming up, which we can't announce yet as well. But yeah, we will have this pre-release screening for about two months, and then we have.
Some, wider distribution plans that we're really excited to announce when we're able to do that. People can also set up group screening. So, on our website you have two options. You can set up a group screening where you can bring people to your home, wherever you want, and, you can screen it that way or we have this great, platform that we're working with called Gather, where if you want to get it into a movie theater,
there's two ways you can kind of do it. It's very simple on the website, it explains it very well on how to do it. But if you wanna get unbanked into a movie theater and be a host of it, you can book the date and the theater you want, and then all you have to do is just sell enough tickets.
And if enough tickets sell, then it moves forward. And if it doesn't, then the tickets get reimbursed. And so, it's a [00:31:00] really cool process. It really simplifies it for people. But yeah, we have many ways we'll also share a lot of updates on our X account and on our website. So, if you follow us, really any social media, we'll have updates on our film and where you can watch and what's happening. But we're definitely more active on x.
Jp: Well, that's amazing. I was just checking out the Gather website. So right now. 1299 for 30 days it seems like to pre-order for someone who wants to watch it at their house and you know, in their nice living room. That's interesting. You mentioned like the group filming’s at the movie theaters do you know the amount of people you need to get? That's something that maybe I'll try.
Lauren: Yeah, you should. I think it would be really cool to get something in Austin. So, we have a few people doing it right now. One person just went ahead and bought out the movie theater, all the tickets, and then they're gonna just make it kind of an event. But. Or you just, I mean, it depends on the movie theater.
So, when you go in and it will give you the choices for theaters, it'll show you how many tickets out of, how many seats there are need to sell in order for that to move forward. So, it'll tell [00:32:00] you there's many options. I think a lot of a MC theaters are an option, but there's different theater sizes, so, yeah it's a pretty cool way to, get screenings.
Jp: Oh, awesome. I'll definitely have to check it out. And to your point, maybe put one together
Lauren: Yeah. That would be awesome. Yeah.
Jp: So, we'll walk through some, quick lightning questions for you. So, your first Bitcoin purchase, do you remember what year it was or month? I.
Lauren: Yeah, it was 2019, early 2019. I think I bought, I don't remember the amount, but I remember it was, I bought on Swan and I remember like , , it used to be really cool. You buy on Swan and then it has like fireworks and stuff and I thought that was really cool. So,
Jp: You did it. Digital money.
Lauren: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I felt really
Jp: That's okay. You don't need to say the amount, just looking for the date, you know, that
Lauren: yeah. Yep.
Jp: What about your favorite film for money and power? Money or power?
Lauren: the Big short is one of my all-time favorite films in general about money. I mean, can I say my film [00:33:00] unbanked.
Jp: Of course. What’s, one AI tool you are using today that you think other people should check out?
Lauren: Oh man. I'm obsessed with ai. I use AI every day. If you wanna do films, I would say check out Higgs Field. It's pretty cool. Yeah, Higgs Field's a pretty good one.
Jp: And then what would be a dream cameo for a future project?
Lauren: Oh man. Like somebody else I could pick to be in a cameo in my film.
Jp: Yeah.
Lauren: Oh man. Bitcoin related or just any film?
Jp: Any film?
Lauren: Oh, man. I'm a big Christian Bale fan. I'd say I love Christian Bale, in any film that, yeah, that would be like a dream.
Jp: Do you have another film you're thinking about potentially rolling out or trying to go through the whole gambit again, or are you gonna go on vacation for a few years
Lauren: Yeah. Dave and I have talked about it. We, I'd love to get like a second unbanked two or something. We've been exploring some stories. And other than that I'm kind of making short films with AI and sort of exploring [00:34:00] what. Tools filmmakers can use with ai, which I think is really cool. So right now just kind of seeing where things go.
Jp: Makes sense. last on the lightning round and then we'll have some closing questions is, which one's more important to you? The film Real counter, like the view counter or the Bitcoin price. Which one's more satisfying to
Lauren: Oh man. Oh, that's a really hard question. I mean, I probably, oh man, that's a hard question. I had to say how many people watch the film?
Jp: Yeah, it's reasonable. It's, more connected. Do you,
Lauren: right. Yeah.
Jp: so, I guess when the credits are rolling and people are sitting in their chair, what's the feeling that you hope the audience is left with or a mixture of feelings, like we talked about the thread, the messaging. What are you looking to leave the audience with?
Lauren: I think I want people to just feel really hopeful and inspired, and I think it should make people feel empowered and good. And , I think it's also gonna [00:35:00] depend I think a lot of Bitcoiners will watch this, but my goal is for it to get to people who don't know much about Bitcoin and are interested in it.
And one thing that we have at the way enter the film, it says, this is not financial advice. It's an opportunity or an invitation to research and do your own research and understand this technology. And, I want people to feel empowered over their own finances and. Really just wanna look into this. I really want the everyday person to want to be more financially literate and want to take control over their finances. And I really hope that this story, whether they buy Bitcoin or not, I think that's the most important.
Jp: And it's about the opportunity to know what Bitcoin is, to your point. Like, it's up to you to decide if it's for you to buy some of it, but if you're listening, we recommend you buy, definitely buy some Bitcoin, you know? 'cause pump our Bitcoin bags. No, I'm joking. When it comes to the last, those scenes you're shooting, was there any scene you remember particularly that was just [00:36:00] maybe outside of an interview but in like a natural location? 'cause you guys go to some crazy places.
Lauren: To crazy places. Yeah.
Jp: That you were like, wow, this is beautiful. I never would've thought I would. I'm doing this and I'm so blessed
Lauren: yeah, I think, for me, so this was my first film ever. So, for me it was like any experience, I, I felt that being on set is a really cool thing and I would say like, so the first shoot that we did, it was in LA and we filmed, Brian Brooks, who you see in our film. He's a fantastic in our film and we got to film this NASCAR race.
So, this is my first time ever being on set. So, I was nervous. I mean, I learned so much, it was incredible. But the last day of the shoot we filmed a NASCAR race and that was awesome. And I don't know how our dp, I mean. Those cars are just like going by so fast. It's so loud. And we got up so close to this fence and our DP was filming through the fence.And I don't know how we did it because it was, I mean, it [00:37:00] hurt your ears to be that close. It was incredible. But we got that shot and that shot is in the film and that's like one of my favorites because it also was a memory of one of my first times being on set, and just all the things I learned. And that was a really cool experience.
Jp: Like I'm doing it like this is the cameras, the action, the lights like we're here in the
Lauren: And I've never been at a NASCAR race either, and that's a cool experience on its own too. But, just for my first time, in this film, it was like, wow, this film is actually happening. You know, this used to just be a dream and a thought and I think it's important. If you have an idea, even if you have no experience, just find a way to do it. You know? There's no one way. I think if you just go for it. I think it's important. You have an idea, just go for it.
Jp: Just trust your vision, put your savings into a monetary asset like Bitcoin that's gonna help you out. And one thing I'll mention is, 'cause we haven't mentioned it yet, but I'm interviewed in the. Show, which is amazing. So that's part of the relationship we've been able to build over the years is I got to film in Austin and in [00:38:00] Iowa and actually in one of our old facilities that, I dunno if you know this, but burned down in January. So, like your film captured like some of the last footage that I have of the first Bitcoin mine I ever built. So it's, yeah, it's sad, but it's also like. It was kind of cool to reminisce and see now that it's been, eight months from when it happened. So, it's not as emotionally charged as when it, when we first found out the news, but it was great to just be able to see, like, it, it's always cringey watching yourself on camera, but like be able to be, be a part of the story.
Lauren: this podcast because I don't like listening to myself talk, but I get it. It was a cool. At the end, one of my favorite parts. I mean, you were a main character in our story. You're one of the few that are there all the way through to beginning and end. And one of my favorite parts is at the end when you're in Iowa, I just think some of the things you say and it's just this really powerful moment that kind of ties things together. So, I thought Iowa stuff is some of my favorite.
Jp: And I think that's the first time I've ever been videoed slack lining. So, for people who, [00:39:00] there's some b roll in there of us, doing some fun things in Austin. So.
Lauren: Yeah. Yeah. No, it's cool. You're awesome. You're really, really good in our film. And what's so funny too is, I think I told you this, but you were one of the first people that I met, well, I think I met a few other people on Clubhouse, but you're the first person I met in person. So, we met on Clubhouse because I was like, you guys, I'm trying to make this documentary. We're gonna film Bitcoin mining, and this was so early, and I think somebody connected me to you and then. We met, I went to Bitcoin 2021 with my dad because I didn't know anybody and I like didn't have any friends that knew Bitcoin, so I went with my dad, and then my dad and I met you. Bitcoin 2021 was like; it was so hot.
That was in Miami. There was no like, no air conditioning in some of the other tents. We met you at the food court. It was outside and there was like food trucks. I don't know if you remember this, but you met my dad.
Jp: mean, and that's just the amazingness of these events. Like you can meet people that then you're, we're able to stay in contact and then able to be a part of each other's vision
Lauren: Project you now [00:40:00] you're in the film.
Jp: Exactly. All
Lauren: that crazy? Yeah,
Jp: of a conference and all because of just like you said, random conversations at a food court.
Lauren: yeah. Yeah. It's pretty cool how things work out. Yeah.
Jp: Then got to share a little bit of Bitcoin Day in Nebraska and then also back in Austin. So, it's been a journey and I'm so glad to hear that you're still like so active in the Bitcoin space. 'cause we need more people that are empowered or sharing their voice and especially women in Bitcoin to, and the add to the diversity of just of thought. 'cause we can definitely be an eco-chamber of nerds sometimes talking in the Bitcoin space.
Lauren: I think that's hard though. It's like, you know, when we started this film it was kind of like, how do we break this away from the echo chamber and we get other people to see this. Like, how do we speak to people that are not already into Bitcoin? I think that's so important. And I think I encourage people in the Bitcoin space to support artists and support people that wanna create stories and reach these people outside of, you know, just our group on X, I think it's really important and I do think it matters. I think art is super [00:41:00] important in storytelling, especially for Bitcoin. I think it's what, how we help relate to the everyday person and it speaks to people. So I'd say like if you're definitely look to support artists, I think it is so important.
Jp: Well, thank you Lauren, for coming on. I really appreciate it. And you remember guys, if you are listening in, there's a few ways you can support Lauren as an artist. The on x easy follow easy retweet button there. Hosting a show, renting the movie, , or even hosting the movie for other people don't be afraid to say hi to her at a conference the next time you see heror say digitally hi on Twitter. She loves to connect with people, as you can tell. And, you might be in her next film. You never know.
Lauren: You never know.
Jp: Well, thanks again guys and mine on.