We Believe Good Conversations Are a Learnable Skill

How we started

frost-drive began in 2019 when three documentary filmmakers found themselves having the same conversation over coffee. Each of us had just wrapped projects where the interviews—the foundation of everything—had been frustrating. Subjects gave surface answers. Interesting people somehow became boring on camera. Hours of footage yielded minutes of usable material.

We realized we'd never actually been taught how to interview. We'd absorbed techniques by osmosis, copied what we saw others do, developed personal habits through trial and error. But there was no methodology. No framework. Just hope that this time would be different.

The research phase

We spent eighteen months studying master interviewers across disciplines. Therapy. Journalism. Documentary film. Oral history. Investigative reporting. We analyzed transcripts. Watched hundreds of interviews. Interviewed the interviewers themselves about their process.

Patterns emerged. Techniques that appeared across contexts. Principles that worked whether you were documenting war crimes or asking someone about their childhood. A grammar of effective conversation that could be codified, taught, practiced.

Testing the approach

Our first workshop had twelve participants. All experienced professionals who wanted to level up. We focused entirely on practical exercises—no theory without immediate application. The feedback was unanimous: this should have been taught years ago.

Since then, we've refined the curriculum through over 200 masterclasses. Tested new techniques. Dropped what doesn't work. Built a system that produces consistent results regardless of someone's starting point.

What makes us different

We don't teach tips and tricks. We teach systems. Not "here are ten questions that work" but "here's how to construct questions that unlock genuine responses in any context." Not "use this particular structure" but "here's how structure itself creates meaning."

Every session is small. Usually eight to twelve participants. Always hands-on. You'll spend more time practicing than listening to us talk. Because knowing something intellectually and being able to execute it under pressure are entirely different skills.

Who teaches

Our facilitators come from documentary film, investigative journalism, and narrative podcasting. What they share is not just expertise but the ability to articulate why certain approaches work. To demonstrate technique, then help you adapt it to your specific context.

We don't believe in one right way. Different personalities need different tools. What we offer is a comprehensive toolkit and the judgment to know when to use each piece.

The philosophy

Great interviews happen when both people are genuinely curious about what they'll discover together. When the interviewer creates space for unexpected responses rather than steering toward predetermined conclusions. When questions open doors instead of demanding specific answers.

This requires technical skill—question design, active listening, reading nonverbal cues. But it also requires a particular mindset. A willingness to be surprised. To follow threads you didn't anticipate. To value discovery over control.

Both aspects can be developed. That's what our masterclasses do.