Multidisciplinary creative studio Los York has added director Nico Poalillo to its roster.
Poalillo’s versatile approach to filmmaking fuses visceral, gritty realism with modern, innovative storytelling. Hailing from California, Poalillo cut his teeth and honed his craft with agencies including Publicis Groupe, McCann Worldgroup, Doner, Conscious Minds, and Leo Burnett. Poalillo draws upon his deep love for art history to inform his filmmaking, and he has studied communication and creative design at the University of Michigan and global business at Harvard Business School.
Poalillo’s experience as both agency creative and producer enable him to understand and bridge the unique perspectives of agency, client, and production company. He has helmed campaigns for brands such as Cadillac, Marvel, Pepsi, Chevy, Nike, Logitech, Opendoor, FCA, Vodafone, and many more. In addition to commercial work, Poalillo has directed an eclectic set of music videos and films for artists including The Goo Goo Dolls, Anderson East, Almost Monday, Chloe Moriondo, and The Aces, among others.
His recent film for Marvel and Allegheny Health Network, “The Vitals,” honored the dedicated nurses who were frontline heroes in the fight against COVID-19. Poignant and life-affirming, the docu-style film was recently recognized at the Effie, Clio, and D&AD Awards. “Call Me Out,” a campaign Poalillo helmed for Chevy that allows friends and family to remind drivers to keep their eyes on the road, was shortlisted at both the Cannes Lions and Clio competitions in 2019. Prior to joining Los York, Poalillo had been directing as a freelancer.
“As I director, I strive to build a seamless creative process that aligns the interests of all parties,” says Poalillo. “Los York is the perfect mix of vibrancy, innovation, and inspiration.”
“Nico is a rapidly emerging talent,” says Los York Studio executive producer Leticia Gurjao. “His finely attuned sense of story enables him to craft deeply resonant films that take the viewer on an unforgettable and thrilling journey.”
Full Lineup Set For AFI Fest; Official Selections Span 44 Countries, Include 9 Best International Feature Oscar Submissions
The American Film Institute (AFI) has unveiled the full lineup for this year’s AFI Fest, taking place in Los Angeles from October 23-27. Rounding out the slate of already announced titles are such highlights as September 5 directed by Tim Fehlbaum, All We Imagine As Light directed by Payal Kapadia, The Luckiest Man in America directed by Samir Oliveros (AFI Class of 2019), Zurawski v. Texas from executive producers Hillary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton and Jennifer Lawrence and directors Maisie Crow and Abbie Perrault, and Oh, Canada directed by Paul Schrader (AFI Class of 1969). A total of 158 films are set to screen at the 38th edition of AFI Fest.
Of the official selections, 48% are directed by women and non-binary filmmakers and 26% are directed by BIPOC filmmakers.
Additional festival highlights include documentaries Architecton directed by Victor Kossakovsky; Cheech & Chong’s Last Movie directed by David Bushell; Devo directed by Chris Smith about the legendary new wave provocateurs; Gaucho Gaucho directed by Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw; Group Therapy directed by Neil Berkeley with Emmy® winner Neil Patrick Harris and Tig Notaro; No Other Land directed by a Palestinian-Israeli team comprised of Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor and Hamdan Ballal; Pavements directed by Alex Ross Perry; and Separated directed by Errol Morris. Notable narrative titles include Black Dog (Gou Zen) directed by Guan Hu; Bonjour Tristesse directed by Durga Chew-Bose with Academy Award® nominee Chloë Sevigny; Caught By The Tides directed by Jia Zhangke; Hard Truths directed by Mike Leigh with... Read More