Caleo Productions was founded in 2016 by Joseph Puleo and Steve Cakouros.
Joseph Puleo graduated from Lindenwood University’s School of Film in 2014. His short film Top Son (2016) was a Top 5 finalist in Kevin Hart’s LOL Network's "Eat My Shorts" competition and screened at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal.
His debut feature documentary, America’s Last Little Italy: The Hill (2020), about St. Louis's historic Italian neighborhood, aired on PBS stations nationwide. His second feature documentary, A New Home (2022), examines the experiences of Bosnian War refugees in St. Louis, home to the largest community of displaced Bosnians outside Bosnia and Herzegovina. The film won the Mid-America Emmy Award for Best Documentary – Cultural and was nominated for Outstanding Regional Documentary at the 2024 News & Documentary Emmy Awards.
In 2025, Puleo was awarded the Better Angels Society Lavine Fellowship in support of his documentary Brothers in Blood: Black in Vietnam (2026). In 2026, his documentary Percy Green: Man of ACTION (2025) received two Gold Telly Awards for General Documentary and General Biography.
His films explore overlooked stories from American history and communities whose experiences have shaped the nation's cultural landscape.
Steve Cakouros is an award-winning producer, editor, and audio engineer. Originally from Summit, New Jersey, he relocated to St. Louis, Missouri, at the age of ten. After pursuing a career in music and audio engineering in Los Angeles, Steve returned to St. Louis and graduated Summa Cum Laude at Lindenwood University's School of Film.
