Bicoastal Cultivate.Media, a commercial and content production company overseen by managing director/executive producer Mark Thomas and exec producer Stuart Wilson, has signed director Jon Schwartz for exclusive U.S. spot representation. Schwartz has helmed projects for AirBnb, ARIA, Google, and more. He recently completed his second assignment for Nevada Energy via R&R Partners/Las Vegas. Schwartz was previously repped by Tuff in LA.
“I love the challenge of storytelling within the constraints of a :30,” said Schwartz. “In particular, spots these days require an immediate immersion–we have to hit the ground running and get to the point.”
Schwartz’s filmmaking style has its roots in his western Connecticut upbringing: when his friends all took up skateboarding, he found himself in a situation where he was surrounded by amazing skateboarders and realized he had a choice to either get hurt trying to keep up, or simply film them and avoid throwing himself down staircases. He was immediately hooked and fell in love with the flashy, rough, handheld style that lends itself to skate videos. That rhythm and flow of skateboard videos spiraled into a love for music videos. He’d spend his high-school lunch periods watching one music video over and over, figuring out why the director was choosing certain shots, why they lit their scenes the way they did and more. He started shooting his own music videos for local artists. The creative freedom allowed him to elevate a song into something that was visually thrilling. Schwartz was taken by the work of Hiro Murai, among other filmmakers, whose work surfed from music videos, to commercial and longform..
After a few semesters of film school in Chicago, Schwartz began shooting social media spots for local clients. He left for Los Angeles, where the lower budget social media spots turned into larger budget broadcast spots.
“Jon is a smart and evolutionary filmmaker,” said Wilson. “He is attuned to the marketplace, while always striving to get someplace new.”
At Cultivate, Schwartz is excited to continue his evolution as a filmmaker, solving creative and technical puzzles within tight schedules. “The next challenge is always the most fun. I’ve been doing more with light VFX and motion control lately,” he concluded. “I enjoy solving the mathematical challenges of motion control and exploring emotion through different lenses. I hate math but love motion control. Who knew?”
