Dean Israelite

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Dean Israelite
Dean Israelite (cropped).jpg
Israelite in 2016
Born (1984-09-20) September 20, 1984 (age 39)
Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Occupation(s)Film director, writer, producer
Years active2006–present
Known for Project Almanac
Power Rangers
Relatives Jonathan Liebesman (cousin)
Jason Xenopoulos (cousin) [1]

Dean Israelite (born September 20, 1984) is a South African film director, writer, and producer, best known for directing the found footage film Project Almanac (2015), the 2017 reboot of Power Rangers , and the 2019 reboot of Are You Afraid of the Dark .

Contents

Early life

Israelite was born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, and studied Dramatic Art at the University of the Witwatersrand. [2] He moved to Australia and graduated in Film and Television from Curtin University, then earned his MFA from the American Film Institute. [2] His cousin is director Jonathan Liebesman. [3] He is of Jewish background. [4]

Career

Israelite started his career with writing and directing several short films, including Acholiland. [2]

In 2015, Israelite made his feature film directing debut with the found footage science fiction thriller Project Almanac , based on the script by Jason Pagan and Andrew Deutschman. [5] [6] Michael Bay produced the film, which was released on January 30, 2015 by Paramount Pictures, grossing more than $32 million with a budget of $12 million. [7] Israelite directed Lionsgate's Power Rangers film (2017), based on the screenplay by John Gatins, with a story by Matt Sazama, Burk Sharpless, Michelle Mulroney and Kieran Mulroney, [8] which was released on March 24, 2017 by Lionsgate Films, grossing $142.3 million against a production budget of $100 million. [9] It was a box office failure, losing the studio an estimated $74 million, when factoring in all revenues and expenses. [10]

Future and cancelled projects

In February 2014, Israelite was among the directors who were being eyed by the Marvel Studios to direct the superhero film Doctor Strange , [11] but later in June 2014 Scott Derrickson was confirmed as director. [12]

In June 2014, Israelite was set to direct the remake of the 1983 film WarGames for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, based on the script by Arash Amel. [2]

Israelite is set to direct Unexplained Phenomenon from the screenplay by Andrew Deutschman & Jason Pagan, for Amblin Entertainment and The Picture Company. [13]

Filmography

Short film

YearTitleDirectorWriter
2006MagicianYesYes
2007The Department of NothingYesYes
2009AcholilandYesYes

Feature film

Television

YearTitleDirectorExecutive
Producer
Notes
2008Die Jugendcops - Kommissariat 105 im EinsatzYesNo
2020-2021 The Astronauts YesYesDirected 5 episodes
2019-2022 Are You Afraid of the Dark?'YesYesDirected 7 episodes

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References

  1. IMDB Clint Warren Trivia , retrieved 1 May 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Fleming, Mike Jr. (24 June 2014). "MGM's 'WarGames' Reboot Lands Helmer Dean Israelite, Scribe Arash Amel". deadline.com. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  3. Thompson, Bill Desowitz,Anne. "Comic-Con 2014: 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' 3D Reboot vs. Low-Tech 'Project Almanac' | IndieWire". www.indiewire.com. Retrieved 21 November 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. "Jews in the Newz".
  5. "Power Rangers Movie Will Be "Mature but Still Playful," Says Director". ign.com. 5 June 2015. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  6. Kit, Borys (5 February 2014). "Paramount Postpones Michael Bay-Produced 'Welcome to Yesterday' (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  7. "Project Almanac (2015)". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  8. Alexander, Julia. "Watch the first teaser trailer for the Power Rangers movie". Polygon. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  9. "Power Rangers (2017)". boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
  10. "Biggest Money Losers, Based on Absolute Loss on Worldwide Earnings". The Numbers. Nash Information Services. Archived from the original on 26 October 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  11. Kit, Borys (20 February 2014). "'Doctor Strange' Heating Up as Marvel Vets Directors (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  12. Siegel, Tatiana; Kit, Borys (3 June 2014). "Scott Derrickson to Direct Marvel's 'Doctor Strange'". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  13. Crittenton, Anya (10 October 2017). "Amblin Acquires Supernatural Pitch "Unexplained Phenomenon" from "Paranormal Activity" Writing Duo". The Tracking Board. Retrieved 6 June 2019.