Why Unencumbered
Unencumbered is a big word and while it may not roll off the tongue, there was never any question that it would be the name of this company. Here’s the story.
Growing-up, NPR’s “Car Talk” with Click and Clack (the Tappet Brothers) was a favorite radio program in the house. We loved listening to callers as they asked questions about cars and life. The brothers answered with humor, compassion and they laughed. A lot.
In 1998, they gave a commencement address at MIT that is unwieldy and hysterical and the message of that speech has been a north star, guiding principle for life and work ever since.
What does being "Unencumbered by the thought process..." mean?
And, here’s the CliffsNotes if you don’t have 43:21 to spare:
"If you repeat this mantra, what happens is everything slows down. Life slows down. Being unencumbered by the thought process allows you to identify and hear and see defining moments in your life, things that will change your life. Unencumbered by the thought process.”
In doing this work, we ask people to let us tell their stories and to be unencumbered in sharing their truth. That takes slowing down, not over-thinking and finding joy and meaning, whenever possible, in the human condition.
Matthew Slutsky, Director/Producer
Matthew hails from Philadelphia, PA which is where he first fell in love with storytelling. For almost 20 years, Matthew has worked in U.S. politics, on various issue advocacy campaigns and in technology as a founding member of the social change website Change.org.
Since attending the New School’s Documentary Media Studies program, Matthew has been a full-time producer, director and storyteller managing projects large and small.
A few of Matthew’s recent credits include: "Sister Cities" (USA Today), “The Time Is Now,” (Acreage Holdings) a Super Bowl ad that promoted medical marijuana; “High Stakes: America’s Journey to the Affordable Care Act,” (Commonwealth Fund) a 2020 short documentary about equity in the American healthcare system; and the digital Food Network series “Fix Me a Plate,” starring chef Alex Guarnaschelli.
Most recently, Matthew worked as a Senior Producer at Blue Chalk Media (amazing people!) and launched Unencumbered as a way to continue making beautiful stories alongside the talented network of collaborators he's built over the past twenty years.
Matthew lives in Philadelphia, PA with his wonderful wife, Patty, his smart kids Henry and Louisa and an excitable sheepdog named Clara.
