About

Dubbed a “Wonderkind” by The Hollywood Reporter, Ashton Gleckman is an award-winning composer, filmmaker, and founder of Blackbird Pictures, based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Known for blending his passions for music and storytelling, Ashton’s work spans feature documentaries, television series, and YouTube content, earning praise from outlets like The Los Angeles Times and recognition from luminaries like composer Hans Zimmer and filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro.

Ashton’s directorial debut, We Shall Not Die Now (2019), is a Holocaust documentary featuring interviews filmed across the U.S., U.K., and Poland, including visits to Auschwitz and Treblinka. The film premiered at the Heartland International Film Festival, winning the Audience Choice Award, and is available on Amazon Prime. He followed this with The Hills I Call Home (2021), an intimate portrait of a small Appalachian town, released by Gravitas Ventures. In 2023, Ashton directed Kennedy, an 8-part docuseries on The HISTORY® Channel (now streaming on Hulu). Featuring 70+ interviews with historians, biographers, and public figures like Conan O’Brien, the series was narrated by Emmy Award-winner Peter Coyote and praised by The Los Angeles Times as “fresh and exhaustive.” Ashton served as director, editor, and co-composer, collaborating with Michael Frankenberger and Cameron Moody on the series’ musical score. Following the series’ success, Ashton became a member of the Director’s Guild of America.

Ashton is currently directing The Quiet Village, a 4-part documentary about the first Nazi extermination camp, Kulmhof. Filming began in May 2024 and wrapped in February 2025, spanning locations in Poland, Germany, the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. The documentary is narrated Liev Schreiber, known for his roles in films like Defiance and Spotlight, and is planned for a 2026 release.

Before cultivating his interest in composition and filmmaking, Ashton had a rock n’ roll calendar that featured frequent gigs with three bands. He recorded his debut EP in Nashville at the Dark Horse Institute when he was 13 years old. At age 15, Ashton scored his first film, Once Upon a Family, a Holocaust documentary by Gi Orman of BiG Productions, and later collaborated on Orman’s Hidden (2017).

Since 2015, he has released eight albums of original music, including Fragments, Discovery, and Memories, as well as two volumes of A Night at the Movies, featuring original film music arrangements. His scores have been featured in productions like Netflix’s WWII: The Road to Victory and Avatar: The Deep Dive on Disney+.

Since 2016, Ashton has hosted the YouTube series Behind the Score, where he deconstructs iconic film scores and recreates them using virtual instruments. Episodes have covered films like Interstellar, Inception, Oppenheimer, and The Shape of Water. His arrangement of Hans Zimmer’s Interstellar score has surpassed 13 million views, and Guillermo Del Toro shared Ashton’s The Shape of Water episode on social media. In Winter 2021/2022, Ashton’s rendition of Danny Elfman’s Ice Dance reached #1 on TikTok, amassing over 400,000 track uses.

Ashton has also interviewed composers such as Harry Gregson-Williams (The Chronicles of Narnia), Simon Franglen (Avatar: The Way of Water), Nathan Johnson (Knives Out), and Justin Hurwitz (La La Land).

Ashton’s work has garnered recognition from prestigious outlets and organizations. In 2024, he was honored by the Indianapolis Business Journal as one of their “Twenty in Their Twenties.” His films, music, and content have left a mark across industries, blending artistry and historical storytelling.

As Ashton continues his creative journey, he remains dedicated to telling meaningful stories that resonate with audiences, embracing new challenges and exploring new worlds as both a filmmaker and composer.