Ondi Timoner
Encyclopedia
Ondi Timoner is an American
film director
, producer
and editor.
, Timoner graduated cum laude from Yale University
, with a double major in American Studies (concentration in Film and Literature) and Theater Studies. Her 2004 Sundance
-winning doc, DIG!
about the collision of art & commerce through the lives of two bands, and her 2009 top prize-winner, We Live In Public
, about an internet visionary who showed by example how willingly we will trade our privacy and eventually sanity in the virtual age, were both acquired by the Museum of Modern Art
in New York
for their permanent collection. She also directed the socio-political feature documentaries, Join Us (2007), about the cult epidemic in America, and The Nature of the Beast
(1994), a hard-hitting look at the US prison system, and co-directed the short film Recycle, which premiered at Sundance
in 2005, and screened at Cannes
and in schools worldwide. Timoner just premiered her fifth feature-length documentary, Cool It
- a film that blasts through the polarizing logjam of the climate change debate to bring a solid plan for solutions - at the Toronto International Film Festival
in September 2010, and releasing it theatrically November 12 through Roadside Attractions
.
In any format, Ondi loves to use her camera as a bridge to bring herself and the audience deep into worlds they may never otherwise enter. In 2000, Timoner created, produced and directed the original VH-1 series Sound Affects
, about music’s effect at critical moments in people’s lives. She has directed commercials and web series for such companies as McDonalds, State Farm
, Ford, the US Army, and others, and is currently helming the next two short films for Honda
’s innovative series, entitled “Dream the Impossible,” which will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival
in 2011.
, which chronicles seven years of the lives of two neo-psychedelic
bands, The Dandy Warhols
and The Brian Jonestown Massacre
. After its release in 2004, the film won the Grand Jury Prize 2004 at the Sundance Film Festival, and is now part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in NYC.
Timoner has completed several other documentaries: Recycle (short), winner at the ICG Awards, and presented at Sundance
, Cannes
, and Silverdocs
; Join Us, a documentary about mind control in the United States; We Live In Public
, Cool It, a documentary about climate change, and Library of Dust (short), a documentary about thousands of canisters of cremated remains found at the Oregon State Hospital.
at the Sundance Film Festival
. The film considers some of the darker effects of modern media and technology on our personal identity through an examination of "the greatest internet pioneer you've never heard of", Josh Harris
. The dot-com millionaire had an affinity for expensive fascist-themed social experiments that eventually led to his mental breakdown. We Live In Public won the Grand Jury Prize award in the U.S. documentary category at the Sundance Film Festival
.
, reportedly starring James Franco
, which her company Interloper Films and Eliza Dushku
's Boston Diva are producing.
Ms. Timoner attended the Sundance
Director’s and Screenwriter’s Lab as a fellow in June to develop Mapplethorpe, and is preparing to shoot the film in late 2011.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
and editor.
History
Ondi Timoner is the only director to win the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival twice. Born in Miami, FloridaMiami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
, Timoner graduated cum laude from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, with a double major in American Studies (concentration in Film and Literature) and Theater Studies. Her 2004 Sundance
Sundance
Sundance Resort is a ski resort located northeast of Provo, Utah, spanning over on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos in Utah's Wasatch Range. Snow skiing began on the site in 1944...
-winning doc, DIG!
DiG!
Dig! is a 2004 documentary film directed by Ondi Timoner, and produced by Timoner, Vasco Nunes, and David Timoner. Compiled from seven years of footage, it contrasts the developing careers of the bands The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre and the bands' respective frontmen Courtney...
about the collision of art & commerce through the lives of two bands, and her 2009 top prize-winner, We Live In Public
We Live in Public
We Live in Public is a 2009 documentary by Ondi Timoner which profiles Internet pioneer Josh Harris. It has as its theme the loss of privacy in the internet age.- Synopsis :...
, about an internet visionary who showed by example how willingly we will trade our privacy and eventually sanity in the virtual age, were both acquired by the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
for their permanent collection. She also directed the socio-political feature documentaries, Join Us (2007), about the cult epidemic in America, and The Nature of the Beast
The Nature of the Beast
The Nature of the Beast is a 1995 horror mystery film written and directed by Victor Salva. It stars Eric Roberts and Lance Henriksen.- Plot :The story is set in Southern California...
(1994), a hard-hitting look at the US prison system, and co-directed the short film Recycle, which premiered at Sundance
Sundance
Sundance Resort is a ski resort located northeast of Provo, Utah, spanning over on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos in Utah's Wasatch Range. Snow skiing began on the site in 1944...
in 2005, and screened at Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
and in schools worldwide. Timoner just premiered her fifth feature-length documentary, Cool It
Cool It (film)
Cool It is a 2010 documentary film based on the book of the same name. It stars Danish author Bjorn Lomborg, who wrote the book. It premiered in September in Canada at the Toronto International Film Festival by Maple Pictures, but didn't have a theatrical United States release with Roadside...
- a film that blasts through the polarizing logjam of the climate change debate to bring a solid plan for solutions - at the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
in September 2010, and releasing it theatrically November 12 through Roadside Attractions
Roadside Attractions
Roadside Attractions is a US film distributor based in Los Angeles, California, founded in 2003, specializing largely in independent films.Lionsgate bought a partial stake in Roadside in 2007.-List of films released by Roadside Attractions:...
.
In any format, Ondi loves to use her camera as a bridge to bring herself and the audience deep into worlds they may never otherwise enter. In 2000, Timoner created, produced and directed the original VH-1 series Sound Affects
Sound Affects
Sound Affects is the fifth studio album by British rock band The Jam. The cover art is a pastiche of the artwork used on various Sound Effects records produced by the BBC during the 1970s.-Influences:...
, about music’s effect at critical moments in people’s lives. She has directed commercials and web series for such companies as McDonalds, State Farm
State farm
State farm can refer to:*Sovkhoz, a type of state-owned farm in the Soviet Union*Volkseigenes Gut, a type of state-owned farm in East Germany*Państwowe Gospodarstwo Rolne, a type of state-owned farm in People's Republic of Poland...
, Ford, the US Army, and others, and is currently helming the next two short films for Honda
Honda
is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...
’s innovative series, entitled “Dream the Impossible,” which will premiere at the 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...
in 2011.
DIG!
While filming music videos and documentaries for Interloper, Timoner simultaneously produced, directed, and edited DIG!DiG!
Dig! is a 2004 documentary film directed by Ondi Timoner, and produced by Timoner, Vasco Nunes, and David Timoner. Compiled from seven years of footage, it contrasts the developing careers of the bands The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre and the bands' respective frontmen Courtney...
, which chronicles seven years of the lives of two neo-psychedelic
Neo-psychedelia
Neo-psychedelia is music that emulates or is heavily influenced by the psychedelic music of the 1960s. It began to be revived among British post-punk bands of the later 1970s and early 1980s and was taken up by groups including bands of the Paisley Underground and Madchester scenes, as well as...
bands, The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols
The Dandy Warhols are an American alternative rock band formed in Portland, Oregon in 1994. The band was founded by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström, with keyboardist Zia McCabe and drummer Eric Hedford later joining. Hedford left in 1998 and was replaced by...
and The Brian Jonestown Massacre
The Brian Jonestown Massacre
The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American eclectic musical group led by Anton Newcombe, whose music spans multiple genres including psychedelia, electronica, folk music, blues, experimental music, and many others....
. After its release in 2004, the film won the Grand Jury Prize 2004 at the Sundance Film Festival, and is now part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in NYC.
Timoner has completed several other documentaries: Recycle (short), winner at the ICG Awards, and presented at Sundance
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...
, Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
, and Silverdocs
Silverdocs
AFI-Discovery Channel Silverdocs Documentary Festival is an American international film festival created by the American Film Institute and Discovery Channel. It is held every year in Silver Spring, Maryland near Washington, D.C.. Started in 2003, the festival is held for eight days in June at...
; Join Us, a documentary about mind control in the United States; We Live In Public
We Live in Public
We Live in Public is a 2009 documentary by Ondi Timoner which profiles Internet pioneer Josh Harris. It has as its theme the loss of privacy in the internet age.- Synopsis :...
, Cool It, a documentary about climate change, and Library of Dust (short), a documentary about thousands of canisters of cremated remains found at the Oregon State Hospital.
We Live in Public
Timoner debuted We Live In PublicWe Live in Public
We Live in Public is a 2009 documentary by Ondi Timoner which profiles Internet pioneer Josh Harris. It has as its theme the loss of privacy in the internet age.- Synopsis :...
at the Sundance Film Festival
2009 Sundance Film Festival
The 2009 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 15, 2009 until January 25 in Park City, Utah. It was the 25th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival.-Award winners:*Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - We Live in Public...
. The film considers some of the darker effects of modern media and technology on our personal identity through an examination of "the greatest internet pioneer you've never heard of", Josh Harris
Josh Harris (internet)
Josh Harris is the founder of JupiterResearch and Pseudo.com, a live audio and video webcasting website founded in 1993, which filed for bankruptcy following the end of the dot-com bubble in 2000....
. The dot-com millionaire had an affinity for expensive fascist-themed social experiments that eventually led to his mental breakdown. We Live In Public won the Grand Jury Prize award in the U.S. documentary category at the Sundance Film Festival
2009 Sundance Film Festival
The 2009 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 15, 2009 until January 25 in Park City, Utah. It was the 25th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival.-Award winners:*Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - We Live in Public...
.
Upcoming projects
Having made dramatic documentaries with strong narratives (and witnessed many documentaries that fit this bill) Ondi likes to call her next directorial effort a “pre-scripted actor film.” She is slated to direct a narrative feature film, entitled Mapplethorpe, and it will be about the life of photographer Robert MapplethorpeRobert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, known for his large-scale, highly stylized black and white portraits, photos of flowers and nude men...
, reportedly starring James Franco
James Franco
James Edward Franco is an American actor, film director, producer, screenwriter, author, painter, performance artist and instructor at New York University. He left college in order to pursue acting and started off his career by making guest appearances on television series in the 1990s...
, which her company Interloper Films and Eliza Dushku
Eliza Dushku
Eliza Patricia Dushku is an American actress known for her television roles, including recurring appearances as Faith on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spinoff series Angel. She starred in two Fox series, Tru Calling and Dollhouse...
's Boston Diva are producing.
Ms. Timoner attended the Sundance
Sundance
Sundance Resort is a ski resort located northeast of Provo, Utah, spanning over on the slopes of Mount Timpanogos in Utah's Wasatch Range. Snow skiing began on the site in 1944...
Director’s and Screenwriter’s Lab as a fellow in June to develop Mapplethorpe, and is preparing to shoot the film in late 2011.
Filmography
- Library of Dust (2011)
- Cool ItCool It (film)Cool It is a 2010 documentary film based on the book of the same name. It stars Danish author Bjorn Lomborg, who wrote the book. It premiered in September in Canada at the Toronto International Film Festival by Maple Pictures, but didn't have a theatrical United States release with Roadside...
(2010) - We Live in PublicWe Live in PublicWe Live in Public is a 2009 documentary by Ondi Timoner which profiles Internet pioneer Josh Harris. It has as its theme the loss of privacy in the internet age.- Synopsis :...
(2009) - Join Us (2007)
- Recycle (2004)
- DIG!DiG!Dig! is a 2004 documentary film directed by Ondi Timoner, and produced by Timoner, Vasco Nunes, and David Timoner. Compiled from seven years of footage, it contrasts the developing careers of the bands The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre and the bands' respective frontmen Courtney...
(2004) - Switched!Switched!Switched is a TV series that ran from 2003 through 2004 in which two teens from different cities in the United States were given a chance to swap lives to see how the other one lived. Teens were able to experience the lives of others and experiment with new families and cultures...
(TV Series) (2003) - Sound Affects (TV) (2000)
- The Nature of the BeastThe Nature of the BeastThe Nature of the Beast is a 1995 horror mystery film written and directed by Victor Salva. It stars Eric Roberts and Lance Henriksen.- Plot :The story is set in Southern California...
(TV) (1994)
External links
- http://www.interloperfilms.com/
- Biography on indieWireIndieWireindieWIRE is a daily news site for the independent film community. It covers indie, documentary and foreign language films, as well industry news, film festival reports, filmmaker interviews and movie reviews...
- Interview in the Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle Post-IntelligencerThe Seattle Post-Intelligencer is an online newspaper and former print newspaper covering Seattle, Washington, United States, and the surrounding metropolitan area...
- Interview on SuicideGirlsSuicideGirlsSuicideGirls is a website that features softcore pornography and text profiles of goth, punk and indie-styled young women who are known as the "Suicide Girls"...
- Filmmaker Profile on SnagfilmsSnagFilmsSnagFilms is a website that offers advertising-supported documentary films. Films are streamed on the website, which contains a library of around 2,000 films. Filmmakers can submit documentaries for consideration as well...