Biography

On set with Coleman Hughes and Neil deGrasse Tyson

- The Huffington Post

“sexy” and “risqué” by The Wall Street Journal; “poignant” and “notable” by Buzzfeed; “bold” by Mashable; “raw” and “heartbreaking” by The Los Angeles Times; “groundbreaking” and “viral gold” by The Daily Beast; “riveting” by Bustle; “gorgeous” by Film Threat; “intelligent” by Metro Weekly; and “very good” by Larry King.

I have reached tens of millions of viewers through 150+ film festival screenings, 25,000,000+ online views, and numerous spots on broadcast television (E!, CNN, Fox, Lifetime, ESPN, and OWN). My work has been featured across television, including Good Morning America, Larry King Live, CNN, ABC News, and Fox News. It’s been screened in more than a dozen countries, been included in a museum installation, won the top prize at an art gallery exhibition, and been utilized in postsecondary curriculum.

Commercially, I’ve helmed projects for dozens of clients ranging from Fortune 100/500 companies to iconic cultural institutions to disruptive startups. Clients include Beam Suntory, Phillip Morris, Biogen, Canon, Amtrak, The Joffrey Ballet, Interior Define, and Subway. I’ve filmed in Scotland, Ireland, England, Italy, Vatican City, Israel, Palestine, Canada, and 35+ states in the US.

My film festival awards include Best Film, Best Feature, Audience Award, Jury Award, Best Music Video, Best Documentary, Best Short, and Best Screenplay. Other honors include Buzzfeed’s “24 of the Most Brilliant Music Videos of 2013”, The New York Times’s “Top 10 Films of the Year” (producer), InStyle Magazine’s “The Pop Culture Moments That Made 2013”, and multiple Regional Emmys. I have twice been named the “Best Filmmaker” in Chicago by the Chicago Reader, was called “soon-to-be-famous” and “multi-talented” by WBEZ (Chicago Public Radio), and was profiled in a Michigan Avenue Magazine cover story about top Chicago filmmakers.

I hold an MFA in Independent Filmmaking. I have taught dozens of courses and given guest lectures at numerous colleges and universities, spoken at national conferences about filmmaking and entrepreneurship in the arts, and served on screening committees and juries of international film festivals.

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