Hi, I’m Drue.  

 

I'm a writer, director, and creative gun for hire. Sometimes.  

 

I've been writing and directing film and videos my entire life, so here's a long story, semi-short:

 

I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and lived in 10 homes before 10 years old.  I wasn't good at school because family finances kept us moving around a lot.  A poor kid with ADHD, dyslexia, loving parents but no stability, I sought refuge in creative writing, film and television.  

 

I got the ‘film bug’ at age 9 when I stole my mother’s Hi-8 Video Camera and made my very first film. It was a stop-motion movie using my action figures and a miniature set that I built from cardboard boxes and legos. Basically, I was “Andy” from TOY STORY.

 

I grew up American NEW New wave – independent filmmaking in the digital revolution. The advent of tape, digital cameras, pro-sumer editing software made making movies accessible and possible. I developed mad skills with iMovie on my Mom's candy shelled iMac -- which I stole too.  The kid who once had a 1.6 GPA and struggled to graduate high school soon graduated with a 3.6.  What happened? The idea of making movies changed my life. It got me focused.  I realized that to be a good filmmaker I needed to become a good student.  And so I hustled.

 

I chased my passion from high school to Los Angeles, where I put myself through college 3 times, just because I obsessed with filmmaking, writing, television and everything in between.  

 

I started at Cal State Long Beach where I learned the discipline of shooting on motion picture film, sometimes twice a week. I continued to UCLA, where I honed my love for screenwriting. I even got a cool award for my very first feature screenplay - an animated family musical.  I did this to quench my love for Pixar, Disney, Nickelodeon and well... musicals.

 

Then finally, I went to USC, the school of my dreams, where I received my MFA for writing/directing/doing a bunch of other cool stuff, like co-directing James Franco's feature film DON QUIXOTE, directing a billion viewed Apple campaign, acquiring the James Bridges ("Urban Cowboy" 1980) Directing Fellowship, and some other cool stuff.

 

You might be able to tell I’m a colorful dude but let me tell you what I’m not:  I’m not the Director that just directs visuals. I direct meaningful stories, actors, and thematic messages, for every screen. I know, sounds silly right?  Well I feel like the state of industry is saying that cool images and artificial intelligence are more important than character, storytelling and theme. That they're more important than people. They're not. 

 

It's aways people over things and stories in the name of service. I don't own a director's chair nor have I ever sat in one on set. First off, they're not comfortable and they're bad for your back. Secondly, when I’m on set I’m always standing. I took this ritual from director Robert Butler, who even at age 84 sat only once after 18 hours straight on a set I worked on with him.  Baller.

 

When I write or direct, I'm about the work. I'm about real, motivated characters and performances (a la Jeremy Kagan, DGA). I'm about the essence of the story (a la Helaine Head, DGA). I'm about the hustle, a la Jay-Z. (HOV)

 

I say this because what drives me is my love for characters, storytelling, and human experiences that are relatable to our lives and relationships.  Characters that must face realistic, quenchable flaws in order to achieve their dreams.  And above all, stories that say something.  I care deeply about what our words and motion pictures say and how they make us feel. And that's because I believe cinema and stories can change the world. I know this, because they changed mine. 

My diverse writing and films reflects that, and they always say something personal and meaningful. Whether film, video, commercial, documentary, music video, branded media, treatments, pitch decks, novel writing or ghosting - no matter what the project is, it needs to matter to me and to others, because everything in life matters. Especially what we do as storytellers.

 

My style in directing comes from my background in directing dramatic improv (See Derek Cianfrance/Blue Valentine) documentary-realism, and my love for story and character arc. I take from the many secrets, training and philosophies that I learned while working at Apple. Trust me... they got their own kool aid.

 

My writing extends from screenplays, to short stories, essays, blogs, obituaries, wedding speeches, copy, ghostwriting, consulting and my debut novel THE INCREDIBLE EXISTENCE OF YOU. And I do all my writing without artificial intelligence. I prefer actual intelligence and my own voice. But no shame in that game, it's just not me. I'm an artist.

 

I've been been lucky enough to have written, re-written, directed, shot or produced over 100 films and videos by now.  I've had a few awards, article publishings, a lot of funding, and a ton of festival nods for my writing and directing. That Apple campaign I mentioned has been viewed on billions of Apple devices around the world, in-stores, and throughout the Apple website.

I approach every project with a child's wonder and a hungry wolf's belly. And I'm always hungry. I work hard, play hard, and people have fun with me. Creating strong collaborations is something that's made me successful in my life.  

 

Now... I say all of this, and candidly so, because you should know what to expect. You should know what I'm going to bring to the table. It's too easy to hide behind 3rd person bios, egos, images, reels, laurels, resumes, selfies or cool instagram accounts (but mine's dope.)

 

I tell you who I am, what I believe, and what I'm going to do - because I'm doing it, and I take pride in that. "We're doing it!", is something I'm often quoted yelling and smiling aloud on set. I only work with movers and shakers who want to change the world with cinema, storytelling and mental health advocacy. Because we can.

 

I'm directing cinematic stories for clients around the world. My film THE LOVE EFFECT has been screened around the globe and won the Grand Jury Prize and Best Director at the Santa Monica International Film Festival - including 3 other nominations and a Best Original Screenplay Award at the Malibu International Film Festival. What started as a short film quickly turned into a social awareness movement on depression, suicide and love. With over 1 million views, shares and digital interactions, we raised over $60,000, started an organization, created mental health partnerships worldwide, and now, developed an interactive presentation designed to inspire and promote positive discussion for schools and adults. We even partnered with MENTAL HEALTH AMERICA, the oldest and largest mental health organization in the country and were keynote speakers for their Annual Conference on “Media, Messaging and Mental Health.”

 

I'm currently in development to direct an original feature film screenplay that I wrote 10 years ago. Spoiler alert, it's called LOST IN LOS ANGELES. I'm constantly on the hunt for great clients and artists to create cinematic stories with and I'm incessantly writing and consulting on various projects such as Warner Bros. movie campaign content, even designing a car for IBM.

 

I think I mentioned that I hustle, right?

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My name, whichever you know, comes from the reflection of a few of these stories, but honestly, so many more that I'll save for another platform.

 

So... that long semi-short story basically sums up like this:  I steal cameras, I make things happen, I can write anything and everything, I love living life and sharing what I learn about it. I believe cinema and words can change the world, because they certainly have changed my life. I'm a pretty lucky guy to do what I love and above all:

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I believe in the power of words, cinema, and love. I'm a writer, director, a filmmaker with an attitude, and I'm gonna change the world.

 

A BIO

WRITTEN BY DRUE GRIT

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