Chris Brandt is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 filmmaker and cartoonist, director of the documentary "Independents".

Biography

Brandt, the son of a U.S. Diplomat, spent his youth in several countries, and studied at University of Maryland

University of Maryland

When the term "University of Maryland" is used without any qualification, it generally refers to the University of Maryland, College Park.University of Maryland may refer to the following:...

 and UC Santa Cruz. In 1993, after graduating college, he pursued cartooning on his own, eventually becoming associated with the comic book co-op Puppy Toss in Berkeley, California

Berkeley, California

Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...

. He turned his attentions to film making and video in 2000, creating the celebrated Dance, Voldo, Dance

Dance, Voldo, Dance

Dance, Voldo, Dance is a machinima-based music video produced in 2002 by Chris Brandt. The video, created using the fighting game Soulcalibur, features two players both controlling the character Voldo, using existing in-game animation to have the characters perform a synchronized dance to the song...

in 2003, the award winning short film Closing Time in 2005, and the critically acclaimed feature documentary Independents in 2007.

At one point he chauffeured for Karen Black

Karen Black

Karen Black is an American actress, screenwriter, singer, and songwriter. She is noted for appearing in such films as Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, The Great Gatsby, Rhinoceros, The Day of the Locust, Nashville, Airport 1975, and Alfred Hitchcock's final film, Family Plot...

 at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival

Sundance Film Festival

The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...

.

Created the Artfly mini-comics series with fellow cartoonist Jesse Reklaw

Jesse Reklaw

Jesse Reklaw is an American cartoonist and painter, author of the syndicated dream-based comic strip Slow Wave.-Biography:...

.

Awards

Brandt's short film, Closing Time, won "Best Narrative Short" at the 2005 Northampton Independent Film Festival, and "Best Short Film" at the 2006 Longbaugh Film Festival. The short film placed 2nd for "Best Short" in the 2006 East Lansing Film Festival.

Brandt's Dance, Voldo, Dance

Dance, Voldo, Dance

Dance, Voldo, Dance is a machinima-based music video produced in 2002 by Chris Brandt. The video, created using the fighting game Soulcalibur, features two players both controlling the character Voldo, using existing in-game animation to have the characters perform a synchronized dance to the song...

was nominated for "Best Virtual Performance" at the 2005 Machinima Film Festival.

Accepted the 2003 Eisner Award for Jason Shiga

Jason Shiga

Jason Shiga is an Asian American cartoonist who incorporates puzzles, mysteries and unconventional narrative techniques into his work.-Early life:...

.

Works

Films

• Independents: A Guide for the Creative Spirit
• Closing Time

Comic book series

• Bainst #1-6, 1996–2004, self-published minicomics
• Far Flung, 1999, comic book calendar
• Artfly #1-3, self-published minicomics

Television

• Comic Book Geeks (2007–present)

Machinima

• Dance, Voldo, Dance
  Dance, Voldo, Dance
  Dance, Voldo, Dance is a machinima-based music video produced in 2002 by Chris Brandt. The video, created using the fighting game Soulcalibur, features two players both controlling the character Voldo, using existing in-game animation to have the characters perform a synchronized dance to the song...
  
  

External links

• Bionic Comics
• L.A. Storyboard Artist
• Independents (Documentary Website)
• Atom Films, entire short film, Closing Time
• "Inkstuds", audio interview by Robin McConnell, broadcast May 14, 2009
• Indie Film Journal, review of Independents by David Walker, May 18, 2008
• DVD Talk, review of Independents by Jamie S. Rich, May 6, 2008
• The Comics Reporter, interview by Tom Spurgeon about Independents, published September 15, 2007
• Fat Free Film episode 41, Joel Marshall interviewed Brandt, broadcast September 4, 2006
• Fat Free Film episode 31, Brandt co-hosts interview with Paul Dinello
  Paul Dinello
  Paul Dinello is an American actor, comedian, writer, director, and an alumnus of Chicago-based The Second City, Improv Institute, and Annoyance Theatre...
  
  , broadcast June 24, 2006
• SMH, "Battle of the Dance" by Joanna McErvale, Review of Dance, Voldo, Dance
  Dance, Voldo, Dance
  Dance, Voldo, Dance is a machinima-based music video produced in 2002 by Chris Brandt. The video, created using the fighting game Soulcalibur, features two players both controlling the character Voldo, using existing in-game animation to have the characters perform a synchronized dance to the song...
  
  , published August 19, 2004
• Time, "The Art of the Con" by Andrew D. Arnold, published July 25, 2003
• Bookslut, documenting a personal experience of the Shiga impersonation, August 2003