Granthon family serves as executive producers of award-winning documentary about double life of artist Kermit Oliver

By Jennifer Amato

Over the course of his 82 years, Kermit Oliver lived a double life: by night, he worked the overnight shift as a U.S. Postal Service employee in Waco, Texas, sorting mail. By day, he was an esteemed painter — yet quite reclusive — designing million-dollar scarves for Hermès, the only American hired by the luxury design house in its 185-year history.

The documentary “A Portrait of a Postman,” released in 2025, may seem like a fantastical story, but part of its roots lie in Siesta Key, where restaurateur and entrepreneur Mike Granthon and his wife, Tina, served as executive producers.

The Granthons initially got involved because a friend was producing the film, and they “fell in love with the idea,” Mike said. They saw a parallel between Oliver’s career path and Mike’s own experience: a humble man joining a larger company but shying away from the limelight and giving credit to others.

“It’s like how I got involved in the restaurant business; I started washing dishes,” Mike recalled. “And the way we compose some of our dishes in the restaurants is artful. That’s our connection.”

They joined the project in summer 2024, about 18 months after production began, and viewed the full-length film in March 2025.

The film was screened at the Dallas International Film Festival, where it won a record-breaking three awards; the Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival, where former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama were in attendance; the Boulder International Film Festival in Colorado; and the Gasparilla International Film Festival in Tampa. On April 11, it was shown as part of the Sarasota Film Festival. As of press time, any additional awards were unknown.

“There were a lot of expressions coming from the crowd,” said Tina Granthon about the Sarasota Film Festival, where the Granthons brought their 14-year-old daughter, Emma. The couple did not attend the other film festivals. “It’s very touching, for sure,” she said.

Mike Granthon said that after a film screening and Q&A session, typically half the audience walks out. But at the Sarasota screening, “nobody got up and left. Everyone sat for 35 minutes after an hour-and-a-half documentary,” he said.

Since Oliver shies away from most interviews and gallery showings, the Granthons met only his daughter and relatives, but through the film, “We got a chance to hear his voice and see some of his pictures,” Mike Granthon said. “It’s a beautiful story and he’s a lovely man.”

“Every single time I watch it, I get goosebumps on my arm because the story is so well told,” he said.

Mike Granthon’s own story is complex as well. He and his mother left their native Peru when he was 9 years old because he needed treatment for a broken leg that could not be safely provided in his home country. After selling all they had, they relocated to Washington, D.C., where they lived for a decade. His mother later remarried and moved to Texas, while Mike eventually found his way to Sarasota and began working as a meat cutter.

Tina Granthon, born and raised in Sarasota, and Mike have been married for almost 25 years.

Now a part owner of Above the Bar Hospitality Group, Mike Granthon has involvement in The Beach Club, Summer House Steak & Seafood, The Hub Baja Grill, The Cottage Restaurant, Mad Moe’s Sports Bar & Grill and MVP (My Village Pub & Grill), as well as several commercial real estate ventures. Tina Granthon is the chapter president of a local nonprofit that serves mothers and daughters.

With their schedules full — especially as they spend time with Emma at their ranch in the Old Malloray area, at the Sarasota Yacht Club or at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall — they do not have a new film project in the works but said they would consider future projects that could have a meaningful impact.

They also support local arts in other ways, having executive produced “Man of La Mancha” at Asolo Repertory Theatre and sponsoring other local productions.

“A Portrait of a Postman” is currently being sold for wider distribution and is only available at film festivals.