Filmmakers

Philip Leffingwell Spalding (1939–2023) was an independent documentary filmmaker whose work focused on American folk culture, traditional music, and regional life. Born May 17, 1939, he attended the Thacher School and graduated from Yale University in 1961. His life and career took him from the American West to London, New York, and Los Angeles, but his connection to the Bellota Ranch near Tucson, Arizona, provided the setting for one of his best-known films.

Spalding produced and directed Bellota: A Story of Round-Up (1969), a closely observed portrait of a traditional cattle roundup and vaquero culture in southern Arizona. He also made ’Til the Butcher Cuts Him Down (1971), a documentary portrait of New Orleans jazz musician and street singer Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. His films reflect an interest in documenting people, music, work, and traditions without imposing a strong explanatory narration.

Spalding was married to writer and editor Jill G. Weldon. He died on July 30, 2023, at the age of 84.