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Welcome

Welcome…. SHOOT’s 21st Annual New Directors Showcase offers a total of 35 directors – 31 individuals and 2 directing duos. Seventeen of the Showcase directors are women and two are nonbinary. Seventeen of the directors are unaffiliated with a production company. 

The NDS Class of 2023 includes directors from varied backgrounds such as editing, production design, photography, acting, writing, live theater and serving in advertising agency capacities. The Showcase directors’ body of work spans commercials, PSAs, branded content, short films, a music video, a docuseries, documentary shorts and a feature film. 

Ad agency pedigree
On the agency score, director Sergii Shevtsov, who recently signed with production company Institute for U.S. representation and is handled in Canada by Radke, was raised in Ukraine and is now based in North America. Over the course of Shevtsov’s agency career, working his way up from copywriter to creative director, he honed his storytelling instincts.  Another example of a Showcase director with an agency pedigree is Cameron Carr who’s currently unaffiliated with a production company. He continues to work at Wieden+Kennedy NY in commercialmaking and on the account side. 

DNA
This year’s Showcase includes three directors with notable directorial DNA: Ben Brady of production house True Gentleman whose dad is comedy director Jordan Brady; Eli Snyder of Believe Media, son of feature filmmaker Zack Snyder; and Merawi Gerima of Serial Pictures. Gerima’s father is legendary Ethiopian filmmaker Haile Gerima, who influenced LA’s Rebellions film movement, and his mother is Shirikiana Aina, an American film director, DP, producer, and writer.

Unaffiliated 
Seventeen of this year’s Showcase directors are unaffiliated with a production company.  In addition to the aforementioned Carr, the unaffiliated crop of up-and-coming filmmaking talent consists of: Calvin Callins, Jr., Jacqueline Christy, MG Evangelista, Stacy Pascal Gaspard, Jennifer Greco, Daniel Kreizberg, The Kummerl Twins, Jessica Makinson. Anthony Marinelli, David Nixon, Jr., Alex Ramsey,  Danielle Shapira (whose agent is The Directors Network), Megan Stowe, Sophie Tabet  and Boson Wang. 

Company ties
Eighteen Showcase directors (16 individuals and a duo) have production company affiliations. Besides Brady, Gerima, Shevtsov and Snyder mentioned above, Showcase filmmakers affiliated with production houses are:  Mia Barnes of RadicalMedia, Elda Broglio of 1stAveMachine Buenos Aires,  McKenzie Chinn of Tessa Films, Leslie Cunningham of Diagonal Media, Daisy Ifama of Tinygiant,  Luke Jaden of ONE at Optimus, Somayeh Jafari of Magnetic Field, Justice Jamal Jones of Valiant Pictures, Nathalie Lamb of Emerald Pictures, Chelsea Odufu of Chromista TV, C.T. Robert of Partizan, Anthony Jamari Thomas of Scheme Engine and  Julien & Justen Turner of Invisible Collective. 

Reel value
Annual highlights for us include conducting the the SHOOT New Directors Search, compiling the SHOOT New Directors Showcase Reel and producing the New Directors Showcase Event. After the Reel debuts at the Event, the Reel is posted on this NDS website as a means of continued exposure for the directors in the Showcase. 

The NDS Reel is a force for connecting as agencies seek new collaborators, and production companies reach out to directors who can enhance their rosters. The Reel also is a platform for new voices to be heard as diverse storytelling perspectives are more valuable and relevant than ever in helping to better society through fostering more empathy and deeper understanding of others, including those often underrepresented in the media landscape.

SHOOT was pleased to debut this year’s reel to a live industry audience at the SHOOT 21st Annual New Directors Showcase Event at the DGA on October 26, 2023.

You can now view the Reel online. A special Thank You goes to charlieuniformtango for once again compiling the SHOOT New Directors Showcase Reel.  We hope you enjoy the Reel, spread the word to your colleagues and friends to check out the work and take a look at each director’s profile page. Helping to enable new voices to be heard is most gratifying for us at SHOOT. We wish all the NDS filmmakers a long and successful career, and we are excited to play some small part in bringing them to your attention.

You can now view the Reel online. A special Thank You goes to charlieuniformtango for once again compiling the SHOOT New Directors Showcase Reel.  We hope you enjoy the Reel, spread the word to your colleagues and friends to check out the work and take a look at each director’s profile page. Helping to enable new voices to be heard is most gratifying for us at SHOOT. We wish all the NDS filmmakers a long and successful career, and we are excited to play some small part in bringing them to your attention.

Our Editors

Robert Goldrich

EDITOR

Roberta Griefer

Publisher & Editorial Director

Pandemic project

The 2021 NDS body of work included several pieces with pandemic themes. For example director Zeke Anders earned Showcase inclusion on the strength of “When the Motor Stops,” a spot he helmed in-house at Detroit agency Doner. Shot in black and white, the piece–first recognized by SHOOT in its “The Best Work You May Never See” gallery last year– features typically populated portions of Detroit cleared …

Backgrounds

NDS filmmaker backgrounds are far ranging from acting to photography to an ad agency pedigree, work in the art department on theatrical movies, film school educated and self-taught, even feature film producing.
An example of the latter is Oge Egbuonu who earlier this year joined the roster of production studio m ss ng p eces for commercials, branded content and music videos…..

Unaffiliated talent

Fourteen of the Showcase directors this year are unaffiliated with a production company. In addition to the aforementioned Anders, Compton, Lee, Pollins and Rosenthal, the unaffiliated crop of up-and-coming filmmakers consists of: Eric Almond for the short film Requiem For Black Love; Josh Banks with the short titled M; Henry Behel for Reyka Vodka’s “Made of Iceland” commercial;
 

Company ties

Seventeen of the Showcase directors are affiliated with production companies. Besides Bethencourt, Egbuonu and Hill, the NDS filmmakers affiliated with production houses are: Tyler Davis of Tessa Films, recognized for the Images Med Spa spot “So What?”; Ewurakua Dawson-Amoah of Greenpoint Pictures for the short film To the Girl that Looks Like Me; Abraham Felix of Curfew……
 

Can’t wait to see you

Compiling the SHOOT New Directors Showcase and producing the New Directors Showcase Event represent one of our great annual pleasures. But for last year and this, the in-person event at the DGA Theatre in New York didn’t come to pass due to the pandemic.

While the industry cannot convene at the DGA Theatre to debut the Showcase in 2021, the NDS reel remains a major means of exposure for new worthwhile talent and is scrutinized by the advertising and entertainment communities which continue to become increasingly interconnected. A special Thank You goes to charlieuniformtango for once again compiling the SHOOT New Directors Showcase Reel.

We hope you enjoy the reel, spread the word to your colleagues and friends to check out the work and take a look at each director’s profile page. We look forward to seeing everyone in person next year!