Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead

Last updated

Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead
Justin Benson, Festival de Sitges 2017.jpg
Aaron Scott Moorhead, Festival de Sitges 2017.jpg
Benson (left) and Moorhead (right) at the Sitges Film Festival in 2017.
Born
Justin Benson
(1983-06-09) June 9, 1983 (age 40)
San Diego, California, US
Aaron Scott Moorhead
(1987-03-03) March 3, 1987 (age 37)
Tampa, Florida, US
Occupations
  • Film and television directors
  • producers
  • editors
Years active2012–present

Justin Benson (born June 9, 1983) and Aaron Scott Moorhead (born March 3, 1987) are an American filmmaking duo. Both have served in directing, producing, editing, and acting roles in their projects, while Moorhead is also a cinematographer and Benson is a writer.

Contents

Personal lives

Justin Benson was born on June 9, 1983, in San Diego, California, United States. [1] Aaron Moorhead grew up in Tarpon Springs, Florida and attended Palm Harbor University High School. [2]

As a child, Benson was a fan of the Marvel Comics character Daredevil which later informed his contributions to several Marvel television series, notably Daredevil: Born Again . [3]

Careers

Both directed shorts and commercials early in their careers, with Moorhead directing his first film at 19 years old. [4] In 2017, Benson and Moorhead, alongside their producing partner David Lawson Jr., founded the film production company Rustic Films. [5] [ better source needed ]

Their first film, the 2012 horror film Resolution, was screened at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival. [6] They described their partnership as purely collaborative, and cast the lead actors after working with them in previous commercials they had worked on. [7] [8] Their follow up, the 2014 romantic body horror film Spring , premiered at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. [9] [10] The film was publicly praised by both Richard Linklater and Guillermo del Toro. [11] [12] The pair's work can also be found in the horror anthology film V/H/S: Viral in the segment entitled "Bonestorm". [13] [14] Their film The Endless premiered in competition at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2017, and was theatrically released in 2018 by Well Go USA Entertainment. [15] [16] [17] The Endless, alongside their 2019 film Synchronic which premiered at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival, are in the same shared universe as Resolution. [18] [19] [20] Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the duo created and starred in Something in the Dirt which was shot in Benson's apartment due to restrictions on the film industry at the time. [21] [22]

In television, Benson and Moorhead have contributed to multiple Marvel Cinematic Universe television series. After directing two episodes of Moon Knight , the duo were recruited as lead directors of the second season of Loki. [23] After a significant creative reshuffle on Daredevil: Born Again , the two were hired to direct most of the episodes. [24]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleDirectorProducerWriterEditorDoPNotes
2010A Glaring EmissionMoorheadNoMoorheadMoorheadNo
2012 Resolution YesYesBensonYesMoorhead
2014 V/H/S: Viral YesYesBensonYesMoorheadSegment "Bonestorm"
2014 Spring YesYesBensonYesMoorhead
2017 The Endless YesYesBensonYesMoorhead
2019 Synchronic YesYesBensonYesMoorhead
After Midnight NoYesNoNoNo
2020 She Dies Tomorrow NoYesNoNoNo
2022 Something in the Dirt YesYesBensonYesMoorhead
2024 Things Will Be Different NoExecutiveNoNoNo

Television

YearTitleDirectorExecutive
producer
Episode(s)
2020 The Twilight Zone YesNo"8"
2022 Archive 81 YesNo"Terror in the Aisles"
"Spirit Receivers"
Moon Knight YesNo"Summon the Suit"
"The Tomb"
2023 Loki YesYes"Ouroboros"
No"Breaking Brad"
"1893"
Yes"Heart of the TVA"
"Science/Fiction"
"Glorious Purpose"
2025 Daredevil: Born Again YesNoTBA

Acting roles

YearTitleRoleNotes
BensonMoorhead
2012 Resolution JustinAaron
2014 V/H/S: Viral Rollerblading marineRollerblading marine's buddy
2015 Contracted: Phase II Handsome officerLess handsome officer
DementiaNurse Hollings
2017 The Endless JustinAaron
2019 After Midnight Shane
2022 Something in the Dirt LeviJohn
Breathing Happy Lotus
Sooting yoga voice
The golden door
2023 Loki John AnglinClarence AnglinEpisode: "Science/Fiction"

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ti West</span> American film director

Timon C. West is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, cinematographer, and occasional actor, best known for his work in horror films. He directed the horror films The Roost (2005), Trigger Man (2007), The House of the Devil (2009), The Innkeepers (2011), The Sacrament (2013), X and its prequel Pearl, and the Western In a Valley of Violence (2016). He has also acted in a number of films, mostly in those directed by either himself or Joe Swanberg.

Johannes Roberts is a British filmmaker, screenwriter and producer. He is known for directing horror films such as The Other Side of the Door, 47 Meters Down and its sequel, The Strangers: Prey at Night and Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Lynch (director)</span> American film director

Joe Lynch is an American film and music video director, film producer, cinematographer, and actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Wingard</span> American filmmaker (born 1982)

Adam Wingard is an American filmmaker. He has served as a film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, cinematographer, actor, and composer on numerous American films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sujata Day</span> American actress

Sujata Choudhury, credited professionally as Sujata Day, is an American actress, model and screenwriter. She is best known for her roles as CeeCee in the Issa Rae web series, The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl (2011-2013) and Sarah in Insecure. Day made her directorial debut with the 2020 comedy-drama, Definition Please.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregg Bishop</span> American film director

Gregg Bishop is an American film director, producer and writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dread Central</span> American website

Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers horror films, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Best Website four times and was selected as AMC's Site of the Week in 2008.

<i>Resolution</i> (film) 2012 film directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead

Resolution is a 2012 American horror film directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Scott Moorhead, written by Benson, and starring Peter Cilella and Vinny Curran. Cilella plays a graphic designer and father-to-be named Michael who, after receiving a troubling email video of his drug-addicted best friend Chris, travels to a remote cabin to save him. The 2017 film The Endless shares the same creative universe as Resolution, and may be interpreted as a partial sequel.

<i>Creep</i> (2014 film) 2014 film by Patrick Brice

Creep is a 2014 American found footage psychological horror film directed by Patrick Brice, his directorial debut, from a story by Brice and Mark Duplass, who both star in the film. Filmed as found footage, Brice portrays a videographer assigned to record an eccentric client, played by Duplass. Creep was inspired by Brice's experiences on Craigslist and the movies My Dinner with Andre, Misery, and Fatal Attraction. Brice and Duplass refined the film's story during filming, which resulted in multiple versions of each scene and several alternate end scenarios.

<i>Spring</i> (2014 film) 2014 film

Spring is a 2014 romantic body horror film directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead and starring Lou Taylor Pucci and Nadia Hilker. The film follows Evan, a young man who travels to Italy and pursues a woman named Louise who, unknown to Evan, is not entirely human.

Kate Gordon Siegelbaum, known professionally as Kate Siegel, is an American actress and screenwriter. She is known for her collaborations with her husband, filmmaker Mike Flanagan, appearing in his films Oculus (2013), Hush (2016), which she also co-wrote, Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016), and Gerald's Game (2017), as well as in his television series The Haunting of Hill House (2018), The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020), Midnight Mass (2021), and The Fall of the House of Usher (2023). She has been dubbed a "scream queen" due to her work in horror films and television.

<i>The Endless</i> (film) 2017 film by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead

The Endless is a 2017 American science fiction horror film directed, produced by and starring Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. Benson wrote the film, while Moorhead was the cinematographer; both also acted as editors. It premiered on April 21, 2017, at the Tribeca Film Festival, before being released nationwide on April 6, 2018.

<i>Terrifier</i> 2016 slasher film by Damien Leone

Terrifier is a 2016 American slasher film written and directed by Damien Leone. The film stars Jenna Kanell, Samantha Scaffidi, David Howard Thornton, and Catherine Corcoran. The plot centers on partygoer Tara Heyes (Kanell) and her sister Victoria (Scaffidi), who become targets of the enigmatic serial killer only known as Art the Clown (Thornton) on Halloween night.

<i>Synchronic</i> (film) 2019 American science fiction thriller film

Synchronic is a 2019 American science fiction horror film directed and produced by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead. Written by Benson, the film shares continuity with other films by Benson and Moorhead, following Resolution and The Endless. Synchronic stars Anthony Mackie and Jamie Dornan as paramedics who investigate a series of inexplicable deaths and their connection to a new designer drug.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duane Graves</span> American film director, screenwriter, and editor

Duane Graves is an American film director, writer, producer, cinematographer and editor who has produced a body of work spanning multiple genres. In 2023, Deadline Hollywood announced he was named one of Coverfly's best up and coming screenwriters. His career began with the documentary Up Syndrome, which premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival in 2001. A portrait of his childhood friend born with Down syndrome, Up Syndrome won numerous awards, including the National Media Award from the National Down Syndrome Congress in 2002, and the Grand Prize at the 2006 Movies Askew Film Festival hosted by Clerks (film) director Kevin Smith. He formed Greeks Films with film school peer, actor and filmmaking partner Justin Meeks in 2001.

Vinny Curran is an American actor who starred in the films Resolution (2012), Everybody Dies by the End (2022) and appeared in Spring (2014), The Endless (2017), Something in the Dirt (2022) and Machine Head (2011).

References

  1. Debruge, Peter (January 2, 2015). "10 Directors to Watch: 'Spring' Duo Benson and Moorhead Break the Mold". Variety . Retrieved March 21, 2015.
  2. "St. Petersburg Times - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  3. "Daredevil: Born Again Directors Discuss Approach to Disney+ Series (Exclusive)". TV Shows. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
  4. Marrone, John (March 22, 2012). "[Tribeca '12] A Look At 'Resolution', A Film That Defies Genre Classification". Bloody Disgusting!. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  5. Wiseman, Andreas (December 1, 2022). "Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead's Rustic Films Teams With V Channels & XYZ On Genre Slate". Deadline. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
  6. Pattern, Dominic (August 15, 2012). "Tribeca Film Picks Up 'Resolution'" . Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  7. bug, ambush. "AICN HORROR talks with Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead, directors of RESOLUTION! + Contes winners!". Aint It Cool News. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  8. "Meet the 2012 Tribeca Filmmakers #10: 'Resolution' Directors Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead". Indiewire . April 7, 2012. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
  9. Barton, Steve (August 15, 2012). "Spring Sprung in March" . Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  10. "Spring – Comment On this New Video". Dread Central. March 24, 2015. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  11. Kroll, Justin (August 31, 2016). "'Spring' Filmmakers Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead to Direct and Star in Indie 'The Endless'". Variety. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
  12. Gupta, Shipra Harbola (July 29, 2014). "TIFF Adds Ethan Hawke, Robert Kenner Docs, Announces Masters, Midnight Madness and Vanguard Programs". Indiewire.com. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  13. Disgusting, Bloody (April 28, 2017). "'The Endless' Directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead Talk About Returning to Their Roots - Bloody Disgusting!". Bloody-disgusting.com. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
  14. Pattern, Dominic (August 15, 2012). "TIFF Adds Ethan Hawke, Robert Kenner Docs, Announces Masters, Midnight Madness and Vanguard Programs" . Retrieved June 26, 2014.
  15. Patten, Dominic (August 15, 2012). "Tribeca Film Picks Up 'Resolution'". Deadline.com. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  16. Busch, Anita (May 1, 2017). "'The Endless' Acquired For Distribution Out Of Tribeca By Well Go USA". Deadline. Retrieved July 30, 2017.
  17. Picurro, Allison (April 21, 2017). "'The Endless' Exclusive Tribeca Promo | IndieWire". Indiewire. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
  18. Mancuso, Vinnie (April 16, 2021). "Synchronic Explained: Benson & Moorhead's Time-Travel Shared Universe". Collider . Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  19. Millican, Josh (April 18, 2018). "Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead Discuss The Endless, Resolution, and Red Marijuana". Dread Central . Dread Central Media. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  20. Mobarak, Jared (May 2, 2018). "Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson on Creating the World of 'The Endless'". The Film Stage. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  21. Small, Katie (January 23, 2022). "Exploring Paranoia and the Paranormal with "Something in the Dirt"". Sundance Film Festival. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  22. Frank, Michael (February 1, 2022). "Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead on Digging Up Something in the Dirt". The Film Stage. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  23. Petski, Denise (July 31, 2023). "'Loki' Season 2 Trailer: Watch Tom Hiddleston's Chaotic Time Travels & Ke Huy Kwan's Series Debut". Deadline. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  24. Kit, Borys (October 27, 2023). "'Daredevil' TV Series Lands New Showrunner, Directors (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 27, 2023.