Samantha Hart, co-founder of Wild Bill Creative Agency and an entertainment industry veteran whose work spans independent film, music, creative marketing and advertising, now adds book author to her list of credentials with the March 15th release of “Blind Pony: As True A Story As I Can Tell.” The memoir reveals her heart-wrenching childhood of abuse that she endured by her own grandfather, which led to life as a runway team and landed her in 1970s Los Angeles. This coming-of-age story chronicles the author’s journey into her 20s as she navigates various abusive relationships, toxic Hollywood characters and ultimately how she finds her inspirational North Star, leading to a successful career.
Hart has collaborated with Grammy-winning artists at Geffen, including Cher, Aerosmith, Nirvana and Guns ‘N Roses, later transitioning into the role of film industry creative director. Her creative marketing campaigns helped bring high-profile attention and Oscars to features such as Fargo, Dead Man Walking and Boys Don’t Cry while earning cult status for indie films such as Four Weddings and A Funeral, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and Dazed and Confused. Hart also built Foundation, an ad industry shop with more than 40 employees and offices in Chicago and Los Angeles. The company earned distinction as an early adopter of combining production and post under one roof.
Hart's aforementioned campaign–with its iconic stoned happy face and irreverent copy–for Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused became synonymous with indie film marketing and is detailed in the new book, “Alright Alright Alright: The Oral History of Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused” from New York Times bestselling author Melissa Maerz.
Fittingly Maerz will interview Hart to discuss “Blind Pony” during a virtual book signing at Los Angeles’ mainstay shop, Book Soup, which will take place on Friday, March 19, from 6-7pm PT. Maerz recalled reaching out to Hart several years ago to gain insights for “Alright Alright Alright.” Maerz said of Hart, “I knew she had created the iconic smiley face poster for the movie, and I wanted to talk to her about the way the film was marketed. But once we started talking about her background, and how she went from running away from home as a teenager to building a successful career in Hollywood, I began to sense that she had a much bigger story to tell— one that would make a great movie itself. I’m very excited to talk to her about her memoir, ‘Blind Pony.’”
