Stone Lantern Films is a Washington, D.C. non-profit corporation with a distinguished record of thought-provoking cultural documentaries. Filmmakers Sarah Mondale and Sarah B. Patton founded the company in 1986. SLF’s award-winning work includes SCHOOL: The Story of American Public Education, a four-hour PBS documentary series narrated by Meryl Streep. Presented by KCET/Hollywood, SCHOOL was funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the

National Endowment for the Humanities, MacArthur, Ford and other major foundations.
The Emmy-nominated ASYLUM: A History of Mental Institutions in America, and MARCEL PROUST: A Writer’s Life (co-produced with Wolfe Carter Productions) also aired nationally on PBS. In 2009, MEGAMALL (co-produced with Turnstone Productions) premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Two new SLF films-in-progress are: HAVERSTRAW and SPEED SKATE (co-produced with Hunt Avenue Productions.)

WHO WE ARE:
Sarah Mondale has worked as a filmmaker for over 25 years. She recently co-directed, co-produced and co-wrote MEGAMALL, an 80-minute verité film which was nominated for the Social Justice Award at the 2009 Santa Barbara International Film Festival. She is currently co-directing the one-hour documentary, HAVERSTRAW, about the impact of a huge riverfront development on a tiny, multicultural community. She directed and co-produced the four-hour series SCHOOL (2001) narrated by Meryl Streep, as well as MARCEL PROUST and ASYLUM, all award-winning films shot in 16mm that aired on primetime PBS. Mondale earned an Emmy nomination as Director (ASYLUM). She wrote and directed a 35mm dramatic short film called OLD ACQUAINTANCES (HBO-Cinemax, WETA, FrenchTV-3) and worked as Assistant Director and Associate Producer on numerous documentary series and feature films in Europe where she lived for 12 years. Ms. Mondale is co-director of Stone Lantern Films with her sister-in-law Sarah B. Patton. She also works as a teacher in the New York area.

Sarah Patton is currently co-producing a one-hour documentary on the hyper-competitive world of young speed skaters. SPEED SKATE gives viewers a rare look at the making of these elite athletes and the toll taken on two former speed-skating Olympians who now coach these kids for a living. Patton served as a consultant on Hunt Avenue Production’s recent film, PINK STATE POLITICS which was nominated for a local Emmy. In addition, Patton served as Co-Producer of the 2001 PBS series SCHOOL: The Story of American Public Education for which she supervised fundraising involving over a dozen foundations and public entities as well as the promotional campaign. She coordinated the production and program management for this highly acclaimed award-winning series, and helped to fundraise and supervise the nationwide public engagement campaign. She co-produced other full–length documentary films for national PBS including MARCEL PROUST: A Writer’s Life and ASYLUM. In 1986, Ms. Patton co-founded Stone Lantern Films with her sister-in-law Sarah Mondale.