Aaron Blanton
{{Short description|American producer and director}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Aaron Blanton
| image = Aaron Blanton - Samantha Stendal - Kelsey Jones 3 (14291276315).jpg
| caption = Blanton at the 2013 Peabody Awards, with Samantha Stendal and Kelsey Jones
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1991|03|06}}
| birth_place = Eugene, Oregon
| occupation = Producer • Director
| awards = Peabody Award
Telly Award
Ambie Award
}}
Aaron Blanton (born March 6, 1991) is an American producer and director.
His work has gained tens of millions of views online, and he has earned a Peabody Award, a Telly Award, and an Ambie Award.{{Cite web |title=43rd Annual Telly Awards winners announced |url=https://magazine.shots.net/news/view/43rd-annual-telly-awards-winners-announced |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=shots Magazine |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Porter |first=Rick |date=2025-04-01 |title=Ambie Awards Winners, Presenters Make Case for Truth and Facts |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/ambie-awards-2025-winners-list-best-podcasts-1236177079/ |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}
Early life
Blanton grew up in Eugene, Oregon, where he spent high school acting in and directing plays. He attended the University of Oregon, where he majored in Cinema Studies and Journalism.
Career
As a student at the University of Oregon, Blanton co-produced the anti-rape PSA A Needed Response, which subsequently went viral after being featured on Upworthy.{{Cite web |last=Oregonian/OregonLive |first=Yuxing Zheng {{!}} The |date=2013-03-30 |title=University of Oregon students' anti-rape video goes viral |url=https://www.oregonlive.com/education/2013/03/university_of_oregon_students_2.html |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=oregonlive |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2013-03-28 |title=Two College students' Anti-rape video "A Needed Response" goes viral |url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/03/28/tv/two-college-students-anti-rape-video-a-needed-response-goes-viral/index.html |access-date=2022-03-11 |website=CNN |language=en}} In 2013, it became the first viral video ever to win a Peabody Award.{{Cite web |last=Jacobs |first=Peter |title=University Of Oregon Students' Viral Anti-Rape Video Wins Peabody Award |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/oregon-students-viral-anti-rape-video2014-4 |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=A Needed Response |url=https://peabodyawards.com/award-profile/a-needed-response-youtube-samantha-stendal/ |access-date=2022-03-11 |website=The Peabody Awards |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Andreeva |first=Nellie |date=2014-04-02 |title='House Of Cards', 'Scandal', 'Breaking Bad', 'The Bridge', 'Key & Peele', 'Orphan Black', 'Orange Is The New Black' Win Peabodys |url=https://deadline.com/2014/04/house-of-cards-scandal-breaking-bad-the-bridge-key-peele-orphan-black-orange-is-the-new-black-win-peabody-awards-708340/ |access-date=2022-03-13 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}} Blanton then went on to work on The Hunting Ground, and the PBS series Poetry in America with Elisa New.
File:What Happened in Skinner wins Best Indie Podcast at the 2025 Ambies.jpg for What Happened in Skinner]]
In 2021, Blanton co-created the ARG / fiction podcast What Happened in Skinner. Season 1 was nominated for Best Indie Podcast at the 2022 Ambie Awards.{{Cite web |last=Chan |first=J. Clara |date=2022-02-16 |title=‘Song Exploder,’ ‘9/12’ & More Among 2022 Ambie Awards Nominees |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/2022-ambie-awards-nominations-1235032659/ |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=Billboard |language=en-US}} In 2025, Season 2 was again nominated, and subsequently won Best Indie Podcast.{{Cite web |last=Porter |first=Rick |date=2025-04-01 |title=Ambie Awards Winners, Presenters Make Case for Truth and Facts |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/ambie-awards-2025-winners-list-best-podcasts-1236177079/ |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}} The project also incorporated a short film and an alternate reality game.{{Cite web |last=Dunn |first=Lindsey |date=2021-07-18 |title=North Bend Film Festival: Ninjababy & Skinner 1929 |url=https://www.1ofmystories.com/2021/07/north-bend-film-festival-ninjababy.html |access-date=2022-03-13}}{{Cite web |last=Sancton |first=Julian |date=2022-03-08 |title='What Happened in Skinner' and the Art of Podcast World-Building |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/what-happened-in-skinner-podcast-ambies-2022-1235101931/ |access-date=2022-03-11 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}