Duffy Higgins has joined the directorial roster of Greencard, a New York-based creative studio headed by founder and EP Emily Wiedemann. Director, DP and photographer Higgins comes over from A76, his own production company through which he’s been turning out commercials, branded content and documentaries since 2006.
Higgins has already finished his first project under the Greencard banner: a voluminous campaign of 150 ultra-short videos for TikTok and digital agency Huge. Running on Snapchat, they’re designed to seamlessly integrate with native content while boosting engagement with the video sharing site. Shot on an iPhone over five days in Atlanta (and posted at Greencard as well), the work tapped Higgins’ ability to create on the fly, honed from his work in documentaries and shooting music and lifestyle assignments.
“One of our goals is to attract a director corps that represents a diverse group of talents, all of whom bring unique points of view to their work, and Duffy fits this description with ease,” said Wiedemann. “We want filmmakers who complement each other in terms of their approach to storytelling, and who simultaneously fill a range of niches when it comes to genres. Duffy’s background as a director, cinematographer and photographer–which is particularly evident in his docu-style work and his action and sports content–means he’ll occupy a vital role in terms of our client offering.”
A native of Miami, Higgins currently splits his time between there and New York, and his work reflects the style, attitude, fashion and swagger associated with both cities. Recent projects include content for ESPN, Google, Netflix and Anheuser-Busch, while his first feature documentary, Brooklyn Basketball, premiered at the Coney Island Film Festival and screened at the NYC Independent Film Fest.
“I was looking for a shop with great people to not just promote my work," said Higgins, "but also continue to push and guide me in the directions I want to move towards as a director, whether that’s in the narrative, commercial or documentary genres. Greencard was a perfect fit.”
Joining the roster will allow him to focus solely on directing while taking advantage of the studio’s one-stop, integrated production-through-post model. Higgins said he was also drawn to Wiedemann and her team, which includes EP Chazz Carfora and director of sales Dani Zeitlin.
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More