Todd Sklar

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Todd Sklar
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, actor
Years active2008–present

Todd Sklar is an American film director, screenwriter and actor. His feature directorial debut, Box Elder , gained national attention after being self-distributed around the country. [1] [2] Sklar's most recent film, Awful Nice , premiered in competition at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival and was released theatrically in 2014. [3] [4]

Contents

Career

Todd Sklar grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He studied at the University of Missouri, but dropped out to make his first feature film, Box Elder . [5] After getting into no film festivals and being unable to get the film in front of buyers, Sklar took to the road with some of the film's cast, self-distributing it on a four-month cross-country tour that featured pre-screening panels, workshops, and Q&A's, as well as post-screening concerts and after-parties. [6] [7]

Due to the tour's success, Sklar and his crew continued touring for the next several years, building a cult following for the film and launching Range Life Entertainment, a marketing company centered on doing the same thing for other films. [8] [9] Filmmakers that have gone on Range Life tours include, Damien Chazelle, Alex Ross Perry, Donald Glover, Adrian Grenier, Casey Affleck, Banksy, Dan Lindsay & T. J. Martin, Alex Karpovsky, Todd Rohal, J. J. Lask, Bart Layton, Oren Moverman, Brett Simon, Billy Corben, Ari Gold, Bob Byington, and Chris Jaymes. [10]

In 2011, Sklar stepped away from Range Life to return to filmmaking with the short film, 92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card, which premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. '92 Skybox eventually turned into his second feature, Awful Nice , which starred Christopher Meloni, Laura Ramsey, Henry Zebrowski, and Keeley Hazell, and played in competition at SXSW, AFI Fest, and Rooftop Films in 2013. [11] [12] [13]

Sklar has also written and directed television and commercials, most notably on Legendary Dudas , and the 2018 Heisman House campaign for Nissan. [14]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
2008 Box Elder Writer, directorAlso producer
2012'92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie CardWriter, directorShort film
2013 Awful Nice Writer, directorAlso producer
2014FoodshowWriter, directorTV film
2014 TakePart Live Director1 Episode
2015Let's Do ItWriter, directorTV film
2016 Legendary Dudas Director2 episodes
2016 Viralocity DirectorTV film
2017On The FenceWriter, directorTV film
2020 Dick Move DirectorPre-production [15]

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References

  1. ↑ "D.I.Y. Music Labels Embrace D.I.Y. Film". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ August, John. "JohnAugust.com: Self-distributing an indie-feature". johnaugust.com. Retrieved July 6, 2008.
  3. ↑ "Screen Media Films Acquires SXSW Comedy 'Awful Nice'". Deadline Hollywood.
  4. ↑ "Todd Sklar's 'Awful Nice' Gets U.S. Distribution". Variety.
  5. ↑ "Notable Alumni". theatre.missouri.edu.
  6. ↑ West, Lindy. "Film Concessions". The Stranger.
  7. ↑ "The Range Life Entertainment Film Tour". THE FADER.
  8. ↑ "Dogfish Helps Get 8 Cutting-Edge Film Companies Off the Ground with $18,000 Accelerator Grants". indiewire.com. Indiewire.
  9. ↑ "On The Road With Range Life's Todd Sklar". blogs.mprnews.org. MPR.
  10. ↑ "Range Life Films". Rangelifeentertainment.com.
  11. ↑ "TODD SKLAR BEGINS PRODUCTION ON HIS NEW FILM 'AWFUL NICE'". Filmmaker Magazine.
  12. ↑ "Rooftop Films Episode 155". rooftopfilms.com. Rooftopfilms.
  13. ↑ "Watch Sundance Winner '92 Skybox". shortoftheweek.com. Short of the Week.
  14. ↑ "5 Questions With Todd Sklar". Filmmaker Magazine.
  15. ↑ "IFT to launch Berlin sales on Olivia Munn comedy 'Dick Move'". Screen Daily.
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