Skip to content
MovieCove
Mark Samels

Mark Samels

Producer

Mark Samels is an American documentary producer native of Wisconsin. He is executive producer of American Experience, PBS's longest-running history series.

Biography from TMDB.

Works as
Producer
Titles
13 on MovieCove · 38 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Down 16% in 30 days

What are Mark Samels' films like?

Across their 11 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Morality.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
26%
Morality
23%
Power
16%
Survival
14%
Self
8%
Ideas
7%
Bonds
5%
Community4 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression2 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFreedom2 titles, browse their movies with this themeHope2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 9 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 1 · Dark 7

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 9 · Stylized 0 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 2 · Charged 3 · Intense 4

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 6 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 9 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 1 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 4

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 5

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 5 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative
7
Tense
6
Dread
4
Hopeful
5
Elegiac
3
Other
5

How their films linger

Thought-provoking10 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet6
  • Ambiguous4

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Mark Samels' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 12 of their 13 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Mark Samels' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

38 credits, 13 with a MovieCove page.

  • The Vote (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Show 2 episodes · Executive Producer

  • Mr. Tornado (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Executive Producer

  • George W. Bush (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Show 2 episodes · Executive Producer

  • McCarthy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    Executive Producer

  • Chasing the Moon(2019)

    Show 3 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows

  • Woodstock: Three Days That Defined a Generation(2019)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • The Swamp (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    Executive Producer

  • The Gilded Age (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2018)

    Executive Producer

  • Grand Coulee Dam (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Executive Producer

  • The Great War (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

    Show 3 episodes · Executive Producer

  • Oklahoma City(2017)

    Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Bonnie & Clyde (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    Executive Producer

  • Command and Control(2016)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • Walt Disney(2015)

    Show 2 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all shows

  • Last Days in Vietnam(2014)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • JFK (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Show 2 episodes · Producer

  • Henry Ford (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Executive Producer

  • Billy the Kid (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Producer

  • Freedom Riders (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Executive Producer

  • God in America(2010)

    Show Producer

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all shows

  • Stonewall Uprising(2010)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Executive Producer

  • Earth Days(2009)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • Walt Whitman (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Executive Producer

  • The Trials of J. Robert Oppenheimer(2009)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • The Massie Affair (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Executive Producer

  • The Rise & Fall of Penn Station (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Executive Producer

  • Tupperware! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Executive Producer

  • Guerrilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst(2004)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • A Brilliant Madness (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Director · Writer

  • Miss America (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Producer

  • Marcus Garvey: Look for Me in the Whirlwind (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Producer

  • Scottsboro: An American Tragedy(2000)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • Surviving the Dust Bowl (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)

    Executive Producer

  • Reagan (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)

    Producer

  • Nixon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)

    Producer

  • American Experience(1988)

    Show 45 episodes · Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all shows

  • The Great San Francisco Earthquake (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Executive Producer

Career shape

A full career of 31 titles from 1988 to 2020.

Biggest box office

Last Days in Vietnam (2014)

$466K worldwide

Highest rated

Last Days in Vietnam (2014)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

Chasing the Moon (2019)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing1 of 31: 0 only directing, 1 with another roleWriting1 of 31: 0 only writing, 1 with another roleProducing30 of 31: 30 only producing, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score88th

By decade

1980s2 · crew1990s3 · crew2000s9 · crew2010s13 · crew2020s4 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Mark Samels' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 86th percentile, the median of all 9; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 83rd percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

83rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 9

Approval · how many liked their films

87thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 9

Reach · how many have seen their films

48thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 9

Midcredits score across 13 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up11
  • 50th to 74th2

Shape of the crowd

7 of their 13 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved3
  • Crowd Pleaser7
  • Mixed3

Most divisive · producer

Earth Days (2009)

70th percentile spread · 15% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · producer

Chasing the Moon (2019)

Midcredits 98th · 93% liked

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Mark Samels work with?

People who share at least 2 of Mark Samels' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Don Kleszy shares the most, 5.

Directors

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles