By Robert Goldrich
Welcome to the Special Fall 2014 Edition of SHOOT’s Directors Series. Our mix of profiles includes: Bennett Miller, this year’s Best Director winner at the Cannes Film Festival for Foxcatcher, a feature generating Oscar buzz; Theodore Melfi, whose theatrical motion picture directing debut, St. Vincent, premiered to rave reviews and a measure of Oscar-related speculation at last month’s Toronto International Film Festival; Debra Granik, who’s diversified into the documentary discipline after seeing her Winter’s Bone garner four Oscar nominations, including for Best Picture, in 2011; and Rory Kennedy, an accomplished documentarian whose Last Days in Vietnam recently went into wide theatrical release and is slated to run on PBS as part of the American Experience series.
Interestingly all these directors have a spotmaking connection. Miller made his first mark in commercials and continues to be repped for spots and branded content by production house Smuggler. Melfi recently teamed with long-time colleague, exec producer Rich Carter, to launch commercial/branded entertainment production company brother. Granik is represented for ad assignments via SPLENDID & Co. And Kennedy recently secured her first spot representation via Nonfiction Limited.
Rounding out our lineup of profiles is director Lance Acord of Park Pictures. Acord directed Apple’s “Misunderstood” which back in August won the primetime commercial Emmy Award. Acord has a feature film in development at Disney based on a Jack London novel; he also is partnered in Park Pictures’ feature film division which has in recent years turned out three movies, all of which have debuted at the Sundance Film Festival.
Meanwhile our lineup of promising, up-and-coming directorial talent includes: a helming duo whose pedigree includes five Emmy Awards between them; a copywriter who has settled successfully into the director’s chair; a music video director who’s made a major ad splash with a tug-at-the-heartstrings spot that has scored online and on air; a director who put his creative touch on an agency’s over-the-top self-promotional short which went on to score a Cannes Bronze Lion; and a still photographer who has extended his creative filmmaking reach to food/tabletop videos and spots.
In our Cinematographers & Cameras Series, we meet three DPs who all scored impressively at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.
Also in this e.dition are a pair of Chat Room columns–one featuring Miguel Arteta, an indie filmmaker who reflects on his first studio feature, Disney's Aleander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day; the other on director Jesse Moss whose documentary The Overnighters won a Special Jury Prize for Intuitive Filmmaking at Sundance.
Plus we have coverage of stuntmen Chad Stahelski and David Leitch who teamed to direct the action thriller John Wick, and a wrap-up of the recently concluded London Film Festival.
So read on and enjoy. As always, we welcome your feedback.
Fall 2014 Directors Intro
Lance Acord
Debra Granik
Rory Kennedy
Theodore Melfi
Bennett Miller
Director Michael Middelkoop Joins Production House 100% For Global Representation
Director Michael Middelkoop is joining Amsterdam-based 100% (formerly HALAL) for commercial representation worldwide. The signing comes after Middelkoop’s upcoming film Dit Is Geen Kerstfilm (This is not a Christmas movie) won big at this year’s Nederlands Film Festival, garnering three “Golden Calves” (the Dutch equivalent of the Academy Awards)--for Best Director, Best Screenplay (Lotte Tabbers) and Best Supporting Actor (Laura Baker). The absurdist ensemble comedy was produced by 100% and will be released on December 19 exclusively on Prime Video.
Prior to coming aboard 100% for U.S. and international representation spanning spots and branded content, Middelkoop was repped in the Netherlands by Czar. The former advertising creative director likes to play with the familiar and the unexpected, imbuing his work with authenticity and multiculturalism. Middelkoop’s body of work encompasses commercials (including a Cannes Bronze Lion winner in 2015), short films, features, TV and web series. His credits include Netflix & Chill, a horror comedy; Snor, a surrealist story about accepting a lost love; and the TV series Zina.
After studying Film in Amsterdam, the Rotterdam-born Middelkoop started his career as an art director at agencies such as Saatchi & Saatchi, Happiness Brussels, Achtung! and Dawn, before finally directing for brands such as adidas, Tele2, Lego and Asics--experimenting with new techniques to connect with youth culture.
Gijs Determeijer, partner and executive producer of 100%, said, “We have really loved working with Michael on his feature film over the past year. The whole process went so smoothly--and working with Michael truly felt like one big party. We are... Read More