Five Directors to Discover Online
15 Jul 2013
By Catherine Clinch
Hollywood loves to discover new talent. Breaking new talent means cheaper movies (paying smaller fees) and hopefully lasting loyalty for when that talent becomes big. Take a chance on them now and own them when they are successful. Universal took a chance on the then unproven director Judd Apatow when making 40 Year Old Virgin and is now home to his overhead deal and the proud beneficiary of his subsequent hits.
But new talent can be hit and miss; the trick is to know where to discover it. Common breeding grounds include film schools (student film festivals are widely attended by industry executives), film festivals, conventions, pitch fests, curated lists (such as The Black List) and cross mediums such as TV or music videos. Young agents sending out samples and word of mouth is the best way for this new talent to garner attention. But there is a new breeding ground – online.
The amount of creativity you can find online is astounding and you don’t even have to leave your desk. Hollywood is already savvy to this trend; Fox 2000 hired Ken Marino and Erica Oyama who created the Burning Love web series, to adapt their Go the F**ck to Sleep book, Pixels, a short created and directed by Patrick Jean, sold to Sony for Adam Sandler in 2010 after the you tube link ended up in the inbox of every exec in town. The trick to finding new talent online is simply knowing where to look and having time to sift through it all.
That’s why we’re here. SSN is culling together the best from online so you have a head start. We start our series today with directors. In an era when Hollywood directors are judged by their ability to deliver an action- and CGI-packed tentpole franchise, mobile and online content is redefining the role in a completely opposite way. Given the intimacy of the viewing format—on a laptop or a smart phone–an online director is charged with telling compelling—even grand—stories through an intimate viewing experience. In this brave new world of digital assets, the director faces a unique storytelling challenge. When you have to tell a big story in a small way, dialogue and performance replace stunts and moments of personal discovery trump pyrotechnics.
SSN selects five directors who’ve put their authorial stamp in the online space.
Lauren Patrice Nadler
Film, TV, new media—no matter where you look, you’ll find women directors are grossly underrepresented. That a woman is also one of today’s five foremost new directors is particularly exciting. Nadler has spent most of her career teaching acting, using her classes to explore the full spectrum of performance. Hence, she understands the power of a single flicker of the eye to convey a lifetime of emotion. Her short film, “One Last Shot“, is a moving portrayal of a young boy, the victim of relentless bullying, who must finally take definitive action against his oppressors. Nadler’s direction enables the viewer to glean subtle clues to her tale’s resolution, yet her style maintains a proverbial poker face all the way to its emotionally charged climax. As the final moments of her story unfold, Nadler’s mastery of craft is evidenced by the way she brings a young actor through a series of extraordinary beats. Clearly, Nadler is ready for the big leagues—most definitely in the world of character-driven television series. It is interesting to note that “One Last Shot” was produced in partnership with Inclusion Films, a company that enables adults with developmental disabilities to gain production experience.
Contact Info: LaurenNadler@me.com, Repped by Richardson Hamrick & Voss, rhvpro@gmail.com. For her reel, click here.
Christopher A. Guerrero
Although still a graduate student in USC’s film production program, Chris Guerrero has already scored a hit in online video. Make that 2.3 million hits. That’s how many views his commercial parody of Apple’s Siri technology garnered in its first 3 days on YouTube. “The Hipster Games”—his parody to The Hunger Games—was picked up by The Huffington Post and earned nearly a million hits when it went viral. Guerrero has adopted an interesting philosophy, citing the great authors—Faulkner, Chandler and Steinbeck—whose body of work centered around a sense of place and personal experience. Believing that this crucial element is missing in contemporary pop culture, Guerrero seeks to use place as a character in his work. His upcoming thesis film is located in Santa Cruz, echoing his experiences as an undergraduate at UCSC. In partnership with the exceptionally talented emerging producer Caitlyn Durkin, he is developing a series that goes one step beyond “The Hipster Games” to expose the real life of Silver Lake hipsters, “Off Sunset.” Guerrero believes that media creators must abandon what is considered traditional wisdom in the entertainment industry. “As a director,” he affirms, “I want to give people what they don’t know they want yet.”
Contact Info: Chris@Wyomafilms.com. You can also message Guerrero through his Vimeo and/or YouTube pages which also house his reel.
Jeremy Weiss
Another student ready to burst onto the scene, Weiss is saddled with an awkward creative challenge; he is “the other Jeremy Weiss” who directs. It’s not going to take long for the industry to discover the potential of this latest Weiss’ skills. His short film, “Riff Raf” is a heady adventure about a jazz musician who accidently ends up in a classical orchestra and wreaks havoc until the combination inspires a wonderful harmony. Restricted by submission requirements to some of the major festivals, only portions of this work are included in his demo reel. But it’s definitely enough of an opportunity to glimpse his potential. Weiss hopes to direct small, character-driven stories and to infuse them with a sense of immediacy and raw appeal. His work has a quality of “reality” that feels motivated by actual events. He references The Fugitive and Good Will Hunting when describing the kind of films he aspires to create. We eagerly await his surely imminent big break.
Contact Info: directedbyjeremy@gmail.com, for his reel click here.
Max Dionne
There are two indicators of a strong voice in directing. First, the work demonstrates a consistent style regardless of the subject matter. Second, you remember their work long after you’ve seen it. The latter is what drove me to seek out Dionne: His first video goes on automatic playback every time I wind up on the phone with a “Hollywood A.S.S.T.” This project led to a series of music video parodies, including the infamous lament of a budding rock star—“My Mom Is on Facebook”—which received nearly 2 million hits. But there’s a lot more to Dionnethan music parodies. Most recently, Dionne and his ensemble of actors/friends were hired to produce a series pilot for Nick Moms, based on their viral videos about a legendary/imaginary boy band from the 90’s, “Sonz II Moms.” Dionne is a sort-of-insider who, by breaking out of the mold of his early Hollywood jobs, found his groove. Lucky for us.
Contact Info: Max.Dionne@gmail.com, for his reel, click here.
Michael Salomon
Given MTV’s push into reality programming, music videos are now considered online content. And Salomon is one of the best undiscovered music video directors out there.If you’ve ever wandered through the world of country music videos, you’ve most likely seen Salomon’s work. Toby Keith, Trace Adkins, Reba McIntyre, Garth Brooks and countless others (even the decidedly non-country Metallica!) have turned to Salomon to visualize their hits into award-winning videos. Salomon has been one of the most influential voices in the development of country music videos—a genre both underestimated and overlooked by the Hollywood community. He considers himself an editor who directs, which is probably why his beautifully crafted videos also offer up such remarkable morsels of story. Even when there isn’t a narrative inherent in the song, once Salomon spins his video magic, the song is irrevocably tied to his story. Each video could be a stand-alone cinematic work. To acquaint yourself with Salomon’s work, you can Google the 125-plus videos he has directed or you can watch his director reel. I promise you, though, that you’ll want to watch both of his reels to appreciate the full spectrum of his skills.
Contact Info: michaelsalomon@triggerfishproductions.com, his Triggerfish Productions website. Also, Mark Kalbfeld, exec. producer at Frames Per Second Productions Inc. at info@framespersecond.tv.
Online and mobile media have ushered in a surge of creativity similar to what we witnessed in the early 1970s, when Coppola, Bogdanovich, Lucas, Spielberg, De Palma and Scorsese burst onto the scene with their revolutionary visions, talents and techniques. Their timing couldn’t have been better; the old guard was on the verge of retirement, and we were ready for the next generation of filmmakers. This time around, the creators are working in a whole new space, one in which the crucial ingredient in winning an audience is sheer talent rather than luck and connections. It’s a world in which the most talented and resourceful will thrive. And these five are already leading the pack. Check back for actors, actresses, comedians, writers, and more. And let us know if you find an undiscovered gem online. We want to know about it!
Written by Catherine Clinch
Catherine Clinch is a pioneer on the digital frontier. She attends 30-50 conferences, summits and panels every year so you don’t have to. Catherine began her career writing for successful network series like HUNTER and JAKE & THE FATMAN. Opting to become a SAHM (Stay At Home Mom) with three sons, she wrote for Creative Screenwriting Magazine and worked her way up to the position of Associate Publisher. When the boys were all in high school, she left the magazine to build Nuclear Family Films – a production company dedicated to telling compelling stories with No More Dead Mommies.
JEREMY WEISS 