David Zellner

{{short description|American film director, screenwriter, and actor}}

{{Infobox person

| image = David Zellner in 2018.jpg

| caption = David Zellner at Berlinale 2018

| birth_date =

| birth_place = Greeley, Colorado, United States

| education =

| alma_mater =

| occupation = Film director, screenwriter, actor

| years_active = 1997–present

}}

David Zellner is an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He is best known for directing the films Kid-Thing (2012), Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (2014), and Damsel (2018).

Career

David Zellner started his career by studying at the University of Texas film school and then staged exclusively Independent feature films and short films. He always works together with his younger brother Nathan Zellner under the name Zellner Bros.[http://zellnerbros.com/ Zellner Bros.] – zellnerbros.com

Zellner's short film Sasquatch Birth Journal 2 (2010) got into the Sundance Film Festival in 2011 and was nominated for the Sundance Short Filmmaking Award that year.

{{cite web

| url = https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1885364/awards/?ref_=tt_awd

| title = Sasquatch Birth Journal 2 Awards

| last =

| first =

| date =

| website = Internet Movie Database

| publisher =

| access-date = March 22, 2023

| quote =Nominee: Short Filmmaking Award, US Fiction, David Zellner, Nathan Zellner }}

For his feature film, Kid-Thing (2012), which he directed and wrote, Zellner won a Best Film award from the 2012 Gen Art Film Festival.{{cite web

| url = https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2137818/awards/?ref_=tt_awd

| title = Kid-Thing (2012) Awards

| last =

| first =

| date =

| website = Internet Movie Database

| publisher =

| access-date = March 22, 2023

| quote = Winner - Best Feature - Best Film: Nathan Zellner, David Zellner }} Kid-Thing also received second place in the 2012 Village Voice Film Poll for "Best Undistributed Film."{{Cite news |title=Film Poll 2012: Undistributed Film |url=http://www.villagevoice.com/filmpoll/cat/undistributed_film/2012 |date=2012-12-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121223060953/http://www.villagevoice.com/filmpoll/cat/undistributed_film/2012 |archive-date=2012-12-23 |access-date=2024-01-27 |url-status=dead |work=Village Voice}}

For his feature film Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (2014), starring Oscar-nominated actress Rinko Kikuchi, which he directed and acted in, and co-wrote with his brother Nathan Zellner, he won a Best Director Jury Prize award at the 2014 Fantasia Film Festival. The film also won an Audience Award for Best Film and Special Jury Award at the 2014 Las Palmas Film Festival. At the 2014 Little Rock Film Festival, the film won the Golden Rock Narrative Award for Best Feature Film, and at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, the film won a U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award for Musical Score (by The Octopus Project) and was also nominated for the U.S. Grand Jury Dramatic Prize. Furthermore, at the 2014 Nantucket Film Festival, David and his brother Nathan won the Showtime Tony Cox Award for Best Screenwriting in a Feature Film for their screenplay Kumiko. Kumiko also won a "Most Original Film" award at the Toronto After Dark Film Festival. David was nominated for a Best Director Independent Spirit Award in 2014 for directing the film, with lead actress Rinko Kikuchi who was nominated for a Best Female Lead Actress Independent Spirit Award.

In 2018, Zellner released Damsel, a black comedy Western starring Robert Pattinson and Mia Wasikowska and codirected and cowritten with his brother.{{cite web

| url = https://collider.com/david-zellner-nathan-zellner-damsel-interview/

| title = ‘Damsel’ Directors David Zellner and Nathan Zellner on Their Unique and Eccentric Western

| last = Weintraub

| first = Steve

| date = July 6, 2018

| website = Collider

| publisher =

| access-date = March 22, 2023

| quote = }} It was their widest-release and highest-budget movie to date. The film tells the story of a pioneer on the American frontier seeking to rescue his would-be-bride from an apparent kidnapping. Damsel received largely positive reviews. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 68% based on 117 reviews, and an average rating of 6.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The beautifully filmed Damsel injects the western genre with a welcome dose of humor and some unexpected twists, although its stately pace may frustrate impatient viewers."{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/damsel|title=Damsel (2018)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango|access-date=March 22, 2023}}

Zellner then appeared as an actor in Riley Stearns' 2019 black comedy martial arts film The Art of Self-Defense, playing opposite Jesse Eisenberg.

In 2022, IndieWire described the Zellner brothers as having two projects in development: an as-yet-untitled sasquatch film (later revealed to have been titled Sasquatch Sunset{{cite web|title=‘Sasquatch Sunset’: Bleecker Street Acquires Zellner Bros Pic Starring Riley Keough & Jesse Eisenberg|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Matt|last=Grobar|date=5 December 2023|access-date=5 December 2023|url=https://deadline.com/2023/12/sasquatch-sunset-movie-zellner-brothers-bleecker-street-1235652700/}}) that would star Jesse Eisenberg as Bigfoot, and a science fiction film titled Alpha Gang starring Nicholas Hoult and Jon Hamm, about aliens deciding whether to invade Earth.{{cite web

| url = https://www.indiewire.com/2022/08/jesse-eisenberg-sasquatch-zellner-brothers-1234754296/

| title = Jesse Eisenberg Teases Wordless Sasquatch Role for Zellner Bros. Comedy: ‘I Grunt, but No Lines’

| last = Bergeson

| first = Samantha

| date = August 22, 2022

| website = IndieWire

| publisher = IndieWire

| access-date = March 22, 2023

| quote = }}

Personal life

David Zellner and his brother Nathan have been based in Austin, Texas for more than 20 years.{{cite web

| url = https://www.austinmonthly.com/the-zellner-brothers-ride-again/

| title = The Zellner Brothers Ride Again

| last = Heid

| first = Jason

| date = July 2018

| website =

| publisher = Austin Monthly

| access-date = March 22, 2023

| quote = }}

Filmography

= Film =

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Director ! Writer ! Notes
1997 \| Plastic Utopia \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \| Also producer and editor
2001 \| Frontier \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \|
2008 \| Goliath \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \|
2009 \| Cinemad Mix Tape #1 \| {{yes}} \| {{no}} \|
2010 \| Hexadecagon \| {{yes}} \| {{no}} \|
2011 \| Slacker 2011 \| {{yes}} \| {{no}} \| Segment "Boyfriends"
2012 \| Kid-Thing \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \|
2014 \| Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \|
2018 \| Damsel \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \|
2024 \| Sasquatch Sunset \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \|

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Director

! Writer

! Notes

1997

| Plastic Utopia

| {{yes}}

| Also producer and editor

2001

| Frontier

| {{yes}}

2008

| Goliath

| {{yes}}

2009

| Cinemad Mix Tape #1

| {{yes}}

| {{no}}

2010

| Hexadecagon

| {{yes}}

| {{no}}

2011

| Slacker 2011

| {{yes}}

| {{no}}

| Segment "Boyfriends"

2012

| Kid-Thing

| {{yes}}

2014

| Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

| {{yes}}

2018

| Damsel

| {{yes}}

2024

| Sasquatch Sunset

| {{yes}}

Acting roles

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes
1997 \| Plastic Utopia \| James \|
1998 \| The Curve \| Deadhead #1 \|
2001 \| Frontier \| Officer \|
2002 \| I Love You \| Man \|
rowspan=2\| 2004 \| Dear Pillow \| Phone Man #1 \| Voice
Oh My God \| Witness \|
2006 \| The Cassidy Kids \| Cat Burglar \|
rowspan=2\| 2008 \| Untitled (Thanks, Get in...) \| The Star \|
Baghead \| Festivalgoer \|
rowspan=2\| 2009 \| Cinemad Mix Tape #1 \| Australian Priest \|
Beeswax \| Scott \|
rowspan=2\| 2010 \| Tug \| Geno \|
Shit Year \| Hal Ashland \|
2011 \| Slacker 2011 \| Kid with Soda #1 \| Segment: "Boyfriends"
2012 \| Kid-Thing \| Caleb \|
rowspan=2\| 2013 \| Ain't Them Bodies Saints \| Zellner \|
Love & Air Sex \| Cab Driver \|
rowspan=3\| 2014 \| Dignity \| Lamb \|
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter \| Deputy \|
Faults \| Restaurant Manager \|
2015 \| There \| Thrill \|
rowspan=2\| 2018 \| Damsel \| Parson Henry \|
Ghostbox Cowboy \| Jimmy Van Horn \|
2019 \| The Art of Self-Defense \| Henry \|

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Role

! Notes

1997

| Plastic Utopia

| James

1998

| The Curve

| Deadhead #1

2001

| Frontier

| Officer

2002

| I Love You

| Man

rowspan=2| 2004

| Dear Pillow

| Phone Man #1

| Voice

Oh My God

| Witness

2006

| The Cassidy Kids

| Cat Burglar

rowspan=2| 2008

| Untitled (Thanks, Get in...)

| The Star

Baghead

| Festivalgoer

rowspan=2| 2009

| Cinemad Mix Tape #1

| Australian Priest

Beeswax

| Scott

rowspan=2| 2010

| Tug

| Geno

Shit Year

| Hal Ashland

2011

| Slacker 2011

| Kid with Soda #1

| Segment: "Boyfriends"

2012

| Kid-Thing

| Caleb

rowspan=2| 2013

| Ain't Them Bodies Saints

| Zellner

Love & Air Sex

| Cab Driver

rowspan=3| 2014

| Dignity

| Lamb

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

| Deputy

Faults

| Restaurant Manager

2015

| There

| Thrill

rowspan=2| 2018

| Damsel

| Parson Henry

Ghostbox Cowboy

| Jimmy Van Horn

2019

| The Art of Self-Defense

| Henry

=Short film=

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Director ! Writer
2003 \| Rummy \| {{yes}} \| {{no}}
rowspan=2\| 2004 \| The Virile Man \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}
Quasar Hernandez \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}
rowspan=3\| 2005 \| Foxy and the Weight of the World \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}
Flotsam/Jetsam \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}
Who Is On First? \| {{yes}} \| {{no}}
2006 \| Redemptitude \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}
2007 \| Aftermath on Meadowlark Lane \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}
2010 \| Sasquatch Birth Journal 2 \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}}

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Director

! Writer

2003

| Rummy

| {{yes}}

| {{no}}

rowspan=2| 2004

| The Virile Man

| {{yes}}

Quasar Hernandez

| {{yes}}

rowspan=3| 2005

| Foxy and the Weight of the World

| {{yes}}

Flotsam/Jetsam

| {{yes}}

Who Is On First?

| {{yes}}

| {{no}}

2006

| Redemptitude

| {{yes}}

2007

| Aftermath on Meadowlark Lane

| {{yes}}

2010

| Sasquatch Birth Journal 2

| {{yes}}

Acting roles

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Role
rowspan=2\| 2003 \| The Meat Market \| Maynard Rollins
Rummy \| Sam
2004 \| The Virile Man \| Gary
2006 \| Redemptitude \| Preacher
2008 \| Pardon My Downfall \|

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Role

rowspan=2| 2003

| The Meat Market

| Maynard Rollins

Rummy

| Sam

2004

| The Virile Man

| Gary

2006

| Redemptitude

| Preacher

2008

| Pardon My Downfall

= Television =

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Note
2023	The Curse	3 episodes

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Note

2023

The Curse

3 episodes

= Web series =

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Director ! Writer ! Notes
2009 \| FIDDLESTIXX \| {{yes}} \| {{yes}} \| 3 episodes

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Director

! Writer

! Notes

2009

| FIDDLESTIXX

| {{yes}}

| 3 episodes

Acting roles

class="wikitable"
Year ! Title ! Role ! Notes
2004 \| The Strangerhood \| Sam \|rowspan=3\| Voice
2005 \| P.A.N.I.C.S. \| Frank
2008 \| Red vs. Blue: Reconstruction \| PFL Troop
2010 \| Rooster Teeth Shorts \| Businessman \|

class="wikitable"

Year

! Title

! Role

! Notes

2004

| The Strangerhood

| Sam

|rowspan=3| Voice

2005

| P.A.N.I.C.S.

| Frank