Multidisciplinary creative studio Los York has added filmmaker Matt Vega to its roster for U.S. commercial representation.
Born and raised in New York City, Vega is passionate about telling underrepresented stories that reflect a diverse range of people and perspectives. In his collaboration with Sapporo Beer, Vega creates an honest portrait of Japanese dancer Koharu Sugawara, delivering a universal emotional message. Vega’s docu-style camera movements are intimate and unrestrained, matching the freedom of expression Sugawara discovers through dance.
Working his way through different roles in the entertainment industry helped Vega shape a multi-disciplined approach to directing, As he learned the ins and outs of the ad world at various New York agencies, Vega spent nights and weekends honing his creative skills as an editor and photographer. He launched his filmmaking career at VICE Media, where he learned to tell relevant, cutting-edge stories with a clear point of view.
Vega has since directed commercials, branded content, and documentaries for international brands that include Nike, Barclays, Cisco, Asics, Google, Sapporo and T-Mobile. Prior to joining Los York, Vega was with production house Wildchild Content.
“Hustle is in my DNA, and I’ve never been one to rest on my laurels,” said Vega. “I always push to deliver the best, most exciting ideas possible alongside the most talented collaborators in all of my work. It’s essential that my representation shares these values, too. When I met the team at Los York, we clicked right from the start. Everyone here is so committed to the craft of film, its artistry, and process. I’m excited to embark on this next chapter with them.”
Review: Writer-Director Andrea Arnold’s “Bird”
"Is it too real for ya?" blares in the background of Andrea Arnold's latest film, "Bird," a 12-year-old Bailey (Nykiya Adams) rides with her shirtless, tattoo-covered dad, Bug (Barry Keoghan), on his electric scooter past scenes of poverty in working-class Kent.
The song's question — courtesy of the Irish post-punk band Fontains D.C. — is an acute one for "Bird." Arnold's films ( "American Honey," "Fish Tank") are rigorous in their gritty naturalism. Her fiction films — this is her first in eight years — tend toward bleak, hand-held verité in rough-and-tumble real-world locations. Her last film, "Cow," documented a mother cow separated from her calf on a dairy farm.
Arnold specializes in capturing souls, human and otherwise, in soulless environments. A dream of something more is tantalizing just out of reach. In "American Honey," peace comes to Star (Sasha Lane) only when she submerges underwater.
In "Bird," though, this sense of otherworldly possibility is made flesh, or at least feathery. After a confusing night, Bailey awakens in a field where she encounters a strange figure in a skirt ( Franz Rogowski ) who arrives, like Mary Poppins, with a gust a wind. His name, he says, is Bird. He has a soft sweetness that doesn't otherwise exist in Bailey's hardscrabble and chaotic life.
She's skeptical of him at first, but he keeps lurking about, hovering gull-like on rooftops. He cranes his neck now and again like he's watching out for Bailey. And he does watch out for her, helping Bailey through a hard coming of age: the abusive boyfriend (James Nelson-Joyce) of her mother (Jasmine Jobson); her half brother (Jason Buda) slipping into vigilante violence; her father marrying a new girlfriend.
The introduction of surrealism has... Read More