Director/cinematographer Peter Rodger has joined Bandito Brothers for exclusive U.S. spot representation. Among his credits is having served as director, cinematographer and producer of the documentary feature Oh My God, which explores people’s diverse opinions and perceptions of God. The film entailed two-and-a-half years of filming across 23 countries and featured Hugh Jackman, Seal, Ringo Starr, Sir Bob Geldof, Princess Michael of Kent, David Copperfield and Jack Thompson.
The docu-feature had its world premiere in July, 2009 at the Jerusalem International Film Festival, and is being distributed on DVD Hay House, and will be available as a Video-on-Demand release via Lionsgate in early 2011. That release will coincide with the release of a book by the director based on his experiences making the film.
“We all have a responsibility to live our lives with tolerance and understanding for our fellow man,” Rodger said of his life lessons. “I also learned that hostility is manufactured by power-seeking humans and has nothing to do with God. The world is way more united than divided, even though most of us are conditioned to believe otherwise. You only have to look into children’s eyes to see the spark of this ‘thing’ that is common to all of us. It is the glue that binds us all together.”
Rodger grew up looking through a camera lens. As a teenager, the British director honed his skills by assisting his father, George Rodger, a renowned photojournalist and co-founder of Magnum Photos. “My dad taught me not to shoot, but to see,” he recalled. After completing his education at England’s Maidstone College of Art, his skill with the lens made him a sought-after talent in the European and American advertising industry, shooting numerous car, clothing and cosmetics companies’ print and commercial campaigns in over 40 different countries. His directorial credits include Natural Resources Defense Council’s “The Earth’s Best Defense,” University of Houston’s “Dr. Paul Chu” and “Dr. Bowen Loftin,” and Mark McGwire Foundation for Children’s “Help.” Rodger’s previous production house roosts over the years have included Limelight UK, Fletcher Sanderson, Redback Films, and Cucoloris.
“Peter’s world-class photography and ability to canvass the globe are more arrows in our quiver,” said Bandito Brothers exec producer Jeff Rohrer. “Quite frankly, we are tired of shooting ‘in the zone’ and are designing teams that can deliver production in any location in the world for the same cost. Peter is one of the few directors who can do just that.”
Rodger said several factors drew him to Bandito Brothers, including the association forged between the company and recently launched VFX house Cantina Creative. “Much of my work involves visual effects, and it’s great to have this resource so close at hand,” related Rodger.
Rodger rounds out a Bandito Brothers roster comprised of partners/directors Mouse McCoy and Scott Waugh, directors Stewart Hendler and Sinuhe Xavier, directing duos Gentlemen and The Polish Brothers, and director/cinematographers Shane Hurlbut, Mitchell Amundsen, Matt Goodman, and Vic Huber.
Writers of “Conclave,” “Say Nothing” Win Scripter Awards
The authors and screenwriters behind the film โConclaveโ and the series โSay Nothingโ won the 37th-annual USC Libraries Scripter Awards during a black-tie ceremony at USCโs Town and Gown ballroom on Saturday evening (2/22).
The Scripter Awards recognize the yearโs most accomplished adaptations of the written word for the screen, including both feature-length films and episodic series.
Novelist Robert Harris and screenwriter Peter Straughan took home the award for โConclave.โ
In accepting the award, Straughan said, โAdaptation is a really strange process, youโre very much the servant of two masters. In a way itโs an act of betrayal of one master for the other.โ He joked that โYou start off with a book that you love, you read it again and again, and then you end up throwing it over your shoulder,โ crediting author Robert Harris for being โso kind, so generous, so open throughout.โ
In the episodic series category, Joshua Zetumer and Patrick Radden Keefe won for the episode โThe People in the Dirtโ from the limited series โSay Nothing,โ which Zetumer adapted from Keefeโs nonfiction book about the Troubles in Ireland.
Zetumer referenced this yearโs extraordinary group of Scripter finalists, saying โprojects like these reminded me of why I wanted to become a writer when I was sitting in USCโs Leavey Library dreaming of becoming a screenwriter. If you fell in love with movies, or fell in love with TV, chances are you fell in love with something dangerous.โ
Special guest for the evening, actress and producer Jennifer Beals, shared her thoughts on the impact of libraries. โIf ever you are at a loss wondering if there is good in the world,โ she said, โyou have only to go to a... Read More