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).

David Zellner
David Zellner at Berlinale 2018
Born
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, actor
Years active1997–present

Career

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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.[1]

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.[2][3]

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.[4] Kid-Thing also received second place in the 2012 Village Voice Film Poll for "Best Undistributed Film."[5]

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.[6] It was their widest-release and highest-budget movie to date.[7] The film tells the story of a pioneer on the American frontier seeking to rescue his would-be-bride from an apparent kidnapping.[6] 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."[8]

Zellner then appeared as an actor in Riley Stearns' 2019 black comedy martial arts film The Art of Self-Defense, playing opposite Jesse Eisenberg.[2]

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[9]) 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.[2]

Personal life

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David Zellner and his brother Nathan have been based in Austin, Texas for more than 20 years.[7]

Filmography

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Film

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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

Acting roles

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

Short film

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Year Title Director Writer
2003 Rummy Yes No
2004 The Virile Man Yes Yes
Quasar Hernandez Yes Yes
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

Acting roles

Year Title Role
2003 The Meat Market Maynard Rollins
Rummy Sam
2004 The Virile Man Gary
2006 Redemptitude Preacher
2008 Pardon My Downfall

Television

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Year Title Note
2023 The Curse 3 episodes

Web series

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Year Title Director Writer Notes
2009 FIDDLESTIXX Yes Yes 3 episodes

Acting roles

Year Title Role Notes
2004 The Strangerhood Sam Voice
2005 P.A.N.I.C.S. Frank
2008 Red vs. Blue: Reconstruction PFL Troop
2010 Rooster Teeth Shorts Businessman

Music video

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Director

Cinematographer

References

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  1. ^ Zellner Bros. – zellnerbros.com
  2. ^ a b c Bergeson, Samantha (August 22, 2022). "Jesse Eisenberg Teases Wordless Sasquatch Role for Zellner Bros. Comedy: 'I Grunt, but No Lines'". IndieWire. IndieWire. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  3. ^ "Sasquatch Birth Journal 2 Awards". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved March 22, 2023. Nominee: Short Filmmaking Award, US Fiction, David Zellner, Nathan Zellner
  4. ^ "Kid-Thing (2012) Awards". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved March 22, 2023. Winner - Best Feature - Best Film: Nathan Zellner, David Zellner
  5. ^ "Film Poll 2012: Undistributed Film". Village Voice. 2012-12-19. Archived from the original on 2012-12-23. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  6. ^ a b Weintraub, Steve (July 6, 2018). "'Damsel' Directors David Zellner and Nathan Zellner on Their Unique and Eccentric Western". Collider. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Heid, Jason (July 2018). "The Zellner Brothers Ride Again". Austin Monthly. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  8. ^ "Damsel (2018)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved March 22, 2023.
  9. ^ Grobar, Matt (5 December 2023). "'Sasquatch Sunset': Bleecker Street Acquires Zellner Bros Pic Starring Riley Keough & Jesse Eisenberg". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
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