American Masters and Firelight Media today announced the digital premiere of the fourth season of the documentary short series In the Making. The new season focuses on eight artists across a variety of disciplines whose work explores and influences American culture today. The series will premiere on Thursday, March 5, on the PBS YouTube channel, pbs.org/americanmasters, and the PBS app, with subsequent films in the series streaming biweekly on Thursdays.
Watch the trailer and check out the full list of films and their descriptions below.
Ani Liu: Eye Heart Womb
Directed by Miao Wang
Explore the work of New York-based artist Ani Liu as she creates provocative artifacts at the intersection of art, science, and technology. From neuroscience to motherhood, her practice challenges understandings of bodies and gender. Premieres March 5, 2026.
Alsarah: The Sonic Historian
Directed by Roopa Gogineni & Wael Gzoly
Follow Sudanese musician and ethnomusicologist Alsarah as she leads Alsarah and the Nubatones, a band of immigrants exploring migration’s impact on culture through music — an essential venture amid displacement and an enduring conflict. Premieres March 19, 2026.
Hannah Mayree: Songs of Reclamation
Directed by Ebony Marie Bailey
Follow Hannah Mayree, musician, banjo maker, and founder of the Black Banjo Reclamation Project, as she organizes workshops and performances celebrating the banjo’s Black history. Premieres April 2, 2026.
Lani B. Supreme: Legacy
Directed by Sabaah Folayan
Enter the world of trumpeter, composer, educator, and storyteller Lani B. Supreme (Jelani Akil Bauman) as he carries forward a musical legacy that began with his great-great-grandfather before emancipation. Driven by his family’s craft, Bauman’s music celebrates Black creative expression. Premieres April 16, 2026.
Aliah Irvine & Kēhau Kapua’a: Kūkulu
Directed by Aukai Ligairi
Follow Aliah and Kēhau as they take on the male-dominated practice of building Hawaiian hale, traditional thatched structures — a personal and political effort as they reclaim cultural traditions nearly lost to colonial erasure. Premieres April 30, 2026.
Cindy Tran: From Here to Here
Directed by Xinyan Yu
Poet Cindy Tran creates works that bridge personal memories and shared experiences, reflecting on childhood, parental expectations, and societal stigmas around an Asian-American identity. Premieres May 14, 2026.
Warren King: King of Cardboard
Directed by Curtis Chin
Follow Warren King as he transforms cardboard into intricate sculptural reflections of his Chinese-American family’s immigration and his path from engineer to artist. Preparing for a Wisconsin homecoming show, King explores belonging through art. Premieres May 28, 2026.
Stankface Standing Soldier: The Rise of Mato Wayuhi
Directed by Josiah Jones
Watch as Oglala Lakota artist, musician, and composer Mato Wayuhi, known for his work on Reservation Dogs, draws on ancestral knowledge to inform his present artistic processes and visions for the future. Premieres June 11, 2026.
