Director X

Last updated
Director X
LittleXFeb07.jpg
Director X in October 2005
Born
Julien Christian Lutz

(1975-10-31) October 31, 1975 (age 48)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Other names
  • X
  • Little X
  • Mr. X
Occupations
  • Music video director
  • film director
  • producer
Years active1998–present
Website directorxfilms.com

Julien Christian Lutz (born October 31, 1975), known professionally as Director X, is a Canadian music video director. Having trained under Hype Williams, Lutz has been credited for directing over a hundred music videos spanning various genres since 1998, including Jay-Z, Drake, Future, John Mayer, Kanye West, DJ Khaled, Usher, Ice Cube, Fabolous, Mystikal and Akon. In film, he directed the crime thriller Superfly in 2018, which saw mixed reception. In television, he created the short-lived action drama Robyn Hood in 2023.

Contents

Early life

Lutz was born and raised in the Greater Toronto Area, mostly in and around Brampton, and is of mixed Trinidadian and Swiss descent. [1]

Career

Early work

Lutz began his career working on several productions; he was a visual consultant on Hype Williams' 1998 film Belly . Lutz was slated to direct Disney's horror feature Razorwire, though the film never moved into production. [2]

Music videos

Lutz worked on several projects and trained under Hype Williams. [3] Since the late 1990s, Lutz has directed dozens of music videosand been noted for his high-budget, visually distinctive music videos, including for The Wanted, R. Kelly, Usher, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Korn, David Guetta, Nelly Furtado, Sean Paul, Justin Bieber, Drake, Nicki Minaj, T.I., Little Mix, Rihanna, Union J, Fifth Harmony, Miguel, One Direction, Zayn Malik and Iggy Azalea.[ citation needed ] In 2004, Lutz appeared in Mya Baker's documentary film Silence: In Search of Black Female Sexuality in America. [4]

In 2015, Lutz founded his own production company, Popp Rok, in Toronto. [5] In 2017, he appeared on episode 7 of Cycle 23 of America's Next Top Model ("X Marks The Spot") as the director for a Gypsy Sports-themed music video. [6]

Films

In addition to music video directing, Lutz has directed two feature films and one television film; he made his feature directorial debut in 2015 with Across the Line. The film starred Stephan James and the storyline was inspired by the 1989 Cole Harbour District High School race riots. [7] Across the Line was set and shot in Nova Scotia. The first screening of Across the Line was 19 September 2015 at the Atlantic Film Festival where it won the award for "Best Atlantic Feature". [8] [7]

In 2016, he directed the teen drama television film Center Stage: On Pointe . The film stars Nicole Muñoz, Barton Cowperthwaite, Maude Green, Chloe Lukasiak, [9] Kenny Wormald and Peter Gallagher. It premiered on Lifetime on June 25, 2016. [10] [11] The official DVD was released in September 6, 2016. [12] Variety critic Sonia Saraiya noted of Lutz's direction, "...though it is frustrating that the film feels like 15-odd low-budget music videos strung together, the dance in those segments, and the way it's filmed, are some of the best parts of the movie." [13]

In 2018, Lutz directed Superfly , a remake of the 1972 blaxploitation film of the same name. [14] Superfly was released in the United States on June 13, 2018 and received mixed reviews from critics. Variety's Owen Gleiberman wrote: "Shot in a functional, slammed-together manner that's less sensually stylish than you'd expect from a music-video auteur, the film is a competent yet glossy and hermetic street-hustle drug thriller, less a new urban myth than a lavishly concocted episode. It holds your attention yet leaves you with nothing." [15]

Filmography

Television series

Feature films

Music videos

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

Commercials

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References

  1. ↑ "Director X". www.directorxfilms.com. Retrieved 2018-06-28.[ non-primary source needed ]
  2. ↑ "The Little X. Picture Pages". Celebrity Profiles. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  3. ↑ Official Little X website "About" Archived 2005-06-16 at the Wayback Machine [ non-primary source needed ]
  4. ↑ "African American Film Marketplace - Film Showcase Lets Talk about Sex TOO". www.bherc.org. Black Hollywood Education & Resource Center. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2017.
  5. ↑ "Director X - Popp Rok". Popp Rok. Archived from the original on 2018-06-28. Retrieved 2018-06-28.[ non-primary source needed ]
  6. ↑ "The Models Film a Video Vixen Shoot w/ Director X - America's Next Top Model". YouTube. 24 March 2018. Retrieved 2023-09-28.[ non-primary source needed ]
  7. 1 2 Barnard, Elissa (18 September 2015). "Atlantic filmfest: Undone finds hope amid racial tension". Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  8. ↑ Nemetz, Andrea (20 September 2015). "Undone wins best Atlantic feature at Atlantic Film Festival Awards". Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Petski, Denise (November 2, 2015). "'Dance Moms' Alum Chloe Lukasiak Joins 'Center Stage' Threequel On Lifetime". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 22, 2016.
  10. ↑ Connolly, Kelly (June 21, 2016). "Center Stage: On Pointe hits the dance floor in exclusive clip". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on June 24, 2016. Retrieved June 25, 2016. Center Stage: On Pointe premieres June 25 at 8 p.m. ET on Lifetime.
  11. ↑ "Center Stage: On Pointe: First Look". Lifetime. May 4, 2016. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved May 22, 2016– via YouTube.
  12. ↑ Briones, Isis (July 18, 2016). "Watch 'Center Stage: On Pointe's Most Intense Trailer Yet" . Retrieved July 18, 2016.
  13. ↑ Saraiya, Sonia (June 25, 2016). "TV Review: 'Center Stage: On Pointe'". Variety . Retrieved June 25, 2016.
  14. ↑ Howell, Peter (12 June 2018). "Opinion - Superfly gets a 21st century update from Director X". BramptonGuardian.com.
  15. ↑ Gleiberman, Owen (June 12, 2018). "Film Review: 'Superfly'". Variety . Penske Business Media . Retrieved June 12, 2018.

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