Richard martini
Encyclopedia
Richard Martini is an award-winning American film director
, producer
, screenwriter
and free lance journalist
. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Boston University with a degree in Humanities, attended USC Film School and is a 2008 graduate of the Master of Professional Writing Program
at USC.
Martini grew up in Northbrook, Illinois
. His first documentary film "Special Olympians" won the 1980 Mexico City International Film Festival. He then made his feature film directorial debut with the “quintessential 80’s comedy” (TNT
) "You Can't Hurry Love
," which featured the debut of Bridget Fonda
. Martini was a Humanities Major at Boston University, attended USC Film School. His student short film "Lost Angels" was the film debut of fellow Chicago native Daryl Hannah
.
Martini left USC to work for writer/director Robert Towne
("Chinatown," "Ask The Dust") where he did everything from typing up Towne’s notes to walking Towne's Oscar nominated dog Hira. (Hira has the distinction of being the only dog ever nominated in the writing category; when Towne's script for "Greystoke" was nominated, he used the pseudonym P.H. Vazak, his dog's official name). It was after that Martini wrote his first feature “My Champion” which starred Christopher (son of Robert) Mitchum and Yoko Shimada (Shogun). He then wrote the Charlie Sheen
comedy “Three For the Road” for Vista Films.
Martini directed a comedy short “Video Valentino” shot by fellow USC alum John Schwartzman
(DP of “Seabiscuit
”) and produced by Jonathan D. Krane
. The short led to a deal with Vestron Pictures, where he made "You Can’t Hurry Love" starring Bridget Fonda
, Charles Grodin
and Kristy McNichol
based on the short.
Martini then co-wrote and directed two films for Producer Jonathan D. Krane
("Look Who's Talking
", "Face/Off
"): Chicago-set Faustian comedy Limit Up
," starring Nancy Allen
and blues icon Ray Charles
, and "Point of Betrayal," starring Dina Merrill
, Rod Taylor and Rebecca Broussard
. Martini then co-wrote and directed "Cannes Man
" (also released as "Con Man" at Netflix
) starring Francesco Quinn
and Seymour Cassel
, with appearances by Johnny Depp
and the "cast of characters who inhabit the film festival each year."
Martini wrote and directed the Dogme 95
film "Camera – Dogme #15," shot on digital video; it follows the life of a video camera around the world.
He's also directed documentaries; "Tibetan Refugee" explores the Tibetan community in Dharamsala, "White City/Windy City" explores the relationship between Chicago and Casablanca in the Eisenhower "Sister Cities" program, and "Journey Into Tibet", follows Buddhist scholar and author Robert Thurman
on a sacred journey around Mt. Kailash in Western Tibet.
He co-wrote and produced “My Bollywood Bride
” starring Jason Lewis and Kashmera Shah (released as "My Faraway Bride.") Among Martini’s television credits include producing segments and appearing on the award-winning “Charles Grodin Show” on CNBC
and writing an upcoming miniseries for HBO about the notorious House of Medici. He's also written freelance articles for Variety
, Premiere
, Inc.com, edited and wrote Epicurean Rendezvous' "Best 100 Restaurants in Los Angeles" and appeared in USA Today
as a commentator about "American Idol
." He also contributed a chapter to Charles Grodin
's book "If I Only Knew Then... Learning from our mistakes." (Springboard Press
.)
He worked on the films "Amelia
" and "Salt" as a digital media curator, pioneering a method of previsualizing a film online, film director Phillip Noyce
hired him to work on both films. As an actor, he's made numerous appearances in bit parts in various films, including "Salt" as the driver who drives Angelina Jolie
out of North Korea.
Based on his documentary about life between lives regression and Michael Newton's work, he's published his first book on Kindle, "Flipside: A Tourist's Guide on How To Navigate the Afterlife."
He's taught film directing at Loyola Marymount University
, the Maine Media Workshops
and the John Felice Rome Center
. He's married and has two children, lives in Santa Monica, California
.
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
, screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and free lance journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Boston University with a degree in Humanities, attended USC Film School and is a 2008 graduate of the Master of Professional Writing Program
Master of Professional Writing Program
The Master of Professional Writing Program is a graduate creative writing program which offers a variety of courses at the University of Southern California's College of Letters, Arts & Sciences....
at USC.
Martini grew up in Northbrook, Illinois
Northbrook, Illinois
Northbrook is a village located at the northern edge of Cook County, Illinois, which is also a North Shore suburb of Chicago. The population was 33,170 at the 2010 census....
. His first documentary film "Special Olympians" won the 1980 Mexico City International Film Festival. He then made his feature film directorial debut with the “quintessential 80’s comedy” (TNT
Turner Network Television
Turner Network Television is an American cable television channel created by media mogul Ted Turner and currently owned by the Turner Broadcasting System division of Time Warner...
) "You Can't Hurry Love
You Can't Hurry Love (film)
You Can't Hurry Love is a 1988 comedy film written and directed by Richard Martini. A guy who moonlights as a low-budget director of commercials is looking for someone to love, so he pays a dating service and is videotaped on several occasions...
," which featured the debut of Bridget Fonda
Bridget Fonda
Bridget Jane Fonda is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in films such as The Godfather Part III, Single White Female, Point of No Return, It Could Happen to You, and Jackie Brown...
. Martini was a Humanities Major at Boston University, attended USC Film School. His student short film "Lost Angels" was the film debut of fellow Chicago native Daryl Hannah
Daryl Hannah
Daryl Christine Hannah is an American film actress. After making her screen debut in 1978, Hannah starred in a number of Hollywood films throughout the 1980s, notably Blade Runner, Splash, Wall Street and Roxanne and Kill Bill.-Early life:Hannah was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of Susan...
.
Martini left USC to work for writer/director Robert Towne
Robert Towne
Robert Towne is an American screenwriter and director. His most notable work may be his Academy Award-winning original screenplay for Roman Polanski's Chinatown .-Film:...
("Chinatown," "Ask The Dust") where he did everything from typing up Towne’s notes to walking Towne's Oscar nominated dog Hira. (Hira has the distinction of being the only dog ever nominated in the writing category; when Towne's script for "Greystoke" was nominated, he used the pseudonym P.H. Vazak, his dog's official name). It was after that Martini wrote his first feature “My Champion” which starred Christopher (son of Robert) Mitchum and Yoko Shimada (Shogun). He then wrote the Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen
Carlos Irwin Estevez , better known by his stage name Charlie Sheen, is an American film and television actor. He is the youngest son of actor Martin Sheen....
comedy “Three For the Road” for Vista Films.
Martini directed a comedy short “Video Valentino” shot by fellow USC alum John Schwartzman
John Schwartzman
John Schwartzman A.S.C. is an American cinematographer for numerous films.He is the son of Jack Schwartzman and stepson of Talia Shire. He is best known for his collaborations with director Michael Bay...
(DP of “Seabiscuit
Seabiscuit (film)
Seabiscuit is a 2003 American biographical film based on the best-selling non-fiction book Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand...
”) and produced by Jonathan D. Krane
Jonathan D. Krane
Jonathan D. Krane is an American movie Producer behind such fare as Blind Date , Look Who's Talking and its sequels, Limit Up , and various John Travolta films including Face/Off , Primary Colors , and Swordfish .-References:Jonathan D...
. The short led to a deal with Vestron Pictures, where he made "You Can’t Hurry Love" starring Bridget Fonda
Bridget Fonda
Bridget Jane Fonda is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in films such as The Godfather Part III, Single White Female, Point of No Return, It Could Happen to You, and Jackie Brown...
, Charles Grodin
Charles Grodin
Charles Grodin is an American actor, comedian, author and former cable talk show host. Grodin began his acting career in the 1960s appearing in TV serials including The Virginian. He had a small part as an obstetrician in Roman Polanski's Rosemary's Baby in 1968...
and Kristy McNichol
Kristy McNichol
Christina Ann "Kristy" McNichol is an American actress.McNichol is best known for her roles as Leticia “Buddy” Lawrence on the television drama series Family and as Barbara Weston on the sitcom Empty Nest. She is also the sister of former child actor Jimmy McNichol...
based on the short.
Martini then co-wrote and directed two films for Producer Jonathan D. Krane
Jonathan D. Krane
Jonathan D. Krane is an American movie Producer behind such fare as Blind Date , Look Who's Talking and its sequels, Limit Up , and various John Travolta films including Face/Off , Primary Colors , and Swordfish .-References:Jonathan D...
("Look Who's Talking
Look Who's Talking
Look Who's Talking is a 1989 romantic comedy film written and directed by Amy Heckerling and stars John Travolta and Kirstie Alley. Bruce Willis plays the voice of Mollie's son, Mikey. The film features George Segal as Albert, the illegitimate father of Mikey.-Plot:Mollie Jensen is an accountant...
", "Face/Off
Face/Off
Face/Off is a 1997 action thriller film directed by John Woo, starring John Travolta and Nicolas Cage. The two both play an FBI agent and a terrorist, sworn enemies who assume the physical appearance of one another....
"): Chicago-set Faustian comedy Limit Up
Limit Up (film)
Limit Up is the title of a 1989 film starring Nancy Allen as Chicago commodities trader Casey Falls. The film was directed by Richard Martini and produced by Jonathan D. Krane...
," starring Nancy Allen
Nancy Allen (actress)
Nancy Anne Allen is a Golden Globe nominated American actress and cancer activist.Allen began an acting and modelling career as a child, and from the mid-1970s appeared in small film roles, most notably the anchor of Robert Zemeckis's ensemble comedy I Wanna Hold Your Hand...
and blues icon Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
, and "Point of Betrayal," starring Dina Merrill
Dina Merrill
-Early life:Merrill was born Nedenia Marjorie Hutton in New York City, New York, the only child of Post Cereals heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post and her second husband, Wall Street stockbroker Edward Francis Hutton...
, Rod Taylor and Rebecca Broussard
Rebecca Broussard
Rebecca Broussard is an American actress and model.-Private life:She was born in Louisville, Kentucky and has two children with actor Jack Nicholson: Lorraine Nicholson and Raymond Nicholson .-Filmography:...
. Martini then co-wrote and directed "Cannes Man
Cannes Man (film)
Cannes Man is a 1996 independent comedy film directed and composed by Richard Martini. The film stars Seymour Cassel and Francesco Quinn. The film also features more than 15 famous Hollywood actors including Johnny Depp, Jon Cryer, Benicio del Toro, John Malkovich, Dennis Hopper, Kevin Pollak, Jim...
" (also released as "Con Man" at Netflix
Netflix
Netflix, Inc., is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media in the United States, Canada, and Latin America and flat rate DVD-by-mail in the United States. The company was established in 1997 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California...
) starring Francesco Quinn
Francesco Quinn
Francesco Daniele Quinn was an Italian-born actor. The third son of Oscar winner Anthony Quinn and Jolanda Addorlori , Francesco is perhaps best known for his breakout role as Rhah in Oliver Stone’s Academy Award-winning Platoon...
and Seymour Cassel
Seymour Cassel
Seymour Joseph Cassel is an American actor.He first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering independent films of writer/directorJohn Cassavetes...
, with appearances by Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
and the "cast of characters who inhabit the film festival each year."
Martini wrote and directed the Dogme 95
Dogme 95
Dogme 95 was an avant-garde filmmaking movement started in 1995 by the Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, who created the "Dogme 95 Manifesto" and the "Vow of Chastity". These were rules to create filmmaking based on the traditional values of story, acting, and theme, and...
film "Camera – Dogme #15," shot on digital video; it follows the life of a video camera around the world.
He's also directed documentaries; "Tibetan Refugee" explores the Tibetan community in Dharamsala, "White City/Windy City" explores the relationship between Chicago and Casablanca in the Eisenhower "Sister Cities" program, and "Journey Into Tibet", follows Buddhist scholar and author Robert Thurman
Robert Thurman
Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman is an influential and prolific American Buddhist writer and academic who has authored, edited or translated several books on Tibetan Buddhism. He is the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at Columbia University, holding the first endowed chair...
on a sacred journey around Mt. Kailash in Western Tibet.
He co-wrote and produced “My Bollywood Bride
My Bollywood Bride
My Bollywood Bride is a 2006 English and Indian film, released in 2007 theatrically and will release as new title "My Faraway Bride", on DVD in August 2008 and also due to premiere on Showtime and Starz in 2008. Written by Richard Martini and Kashmera Shah, story and produced by Brad Listermann,...
” starring Jason Lewis and Kashmera Shah (released as "My Faraway Bride.") Among Martini’s television credits include producing segments and appearing on the award-winning “Charles Grodin Show” on CNBC
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
and writing an upcoming miniseries for HBO about the notorious House of Medici. He's also written freelance articles for Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, Premiere
Premiere (magazine)
Premiere was an American and New York City-based film magazine published by Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., published between the years 1987 and 2007. The original version of the magazine, Première , was started in France in 1976 and is still being published there.-History:The magazine originally...
, Inc.com, edited and wrote Epicurean Rendezvous' "Best 100 Restaurants in Los Angeles" and appeared in USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
as a commentator about "American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
." He also contributed a chapter to Charles Grodin
Charles Grodin
Charles Grodin is an American actor, comedian, author and former cable talk show host. Grodin began his acting career in the 1960s appearing in TV serials including The Virginian. He had a small part as an obstetrician in Roman Polanski's Rosemary's Baby in 1968...
's book "If I Only Knew Then... Learning from our mistakes." (Springboard Press
Springboard Press
Springboard Press was an imprint of Grand Central Publishing, which is a part of Hachette Book Group USA, that published non-fiction from authoritative and celebrated authors on topics that relate to and interest Baby Boomers....
.)
He worked on the films "Amelia
Amelia (film)
Amelia is a 2009 English-language biographical film of the life of Amelia Earhart, starring Hilary Swank as Earhart along with a cast that includes Richard Gere, Christopher Eccleston and Ewan McGregor. It is directed by Mira Nair based on a script initially written by Ronald Bass...
" and "Salt" as a digital media curator, pioneering a method of previsualizing a film online, film director Phillip Noyce
Phillip Noyce
Phillip Noyce is an Australian film director.-Life and career:Noyce was born in Griffith, New South Wales, attended Barker College, Sydney, and began making short films at the age of 18, starting with Better to Reign in Hell, using his friends as the cast...
hired him to work on both films. As an actor, he's made numerous appearances in bit parts in various films, including "Salt" as the driver who drives Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie is an American actress. She has received an Academy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards, and was named Hollywood's highest-paid actress by Forbes in 2009 and 2011. Jolie is noted for promoting humanitarian causes as a Goodwill Ambassador for the...
out of North Korea.
Based on his documentary about life between lives regression and Michael Newton's work, he's published his first book on Kindle, "Flipside: A Tourist's Guide on How To Navigate the Afterlife."
He's taught film directing at Loyola Marymount University
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola Marymount University is a comprehensive co-educational private Roman Catholic university in the Jesuit and Marymount traditions located in Los Angeles, California, United States...
, the Maine Media Workshops
Maine Media Workshops
The Maine Media Workshops is an international non-profit educational organization offering year-round workshops for photographers, filmmakers, and media artists...
and the John Felice Rome Center
John Felice Rome Center
The John Felice Rome Center is a campus of Loyola University Chicago in Rome, Italy. The center was originally founded as CIVIS in January 1962, hosted on premises originally built for the Olympic Village of the 1960 Summer Olympics, and leased from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs...
. He's married and has two children, lives in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
.
Filmography
- Salt http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0944835/ - 2010 - Curated content, digital flashback sequences, Associate to Mr. Noyce. Sony. Angelina Jolie, Liev Schrieber. Phillip Noyce directed thriller.
- Amelia (film)Amelia (film)Amelia is a 2009 English-language biographical film of the life of Amelia Earhart, starring Hilary Swank as Earhart along with a cast that includes Richard Gere, Christopher Eccleston and Ewan McGregor. It is directed by Mira Nair based on a script initially written by Ronald Bass...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1129445/ - 2009 - Curated content, Researcher. Fox 2000. Hilary Swank, Richard Gere. The aviatrix's journey from 1928-1937.
- My Bollywood BrideMy Bollywood BrideMy Bollywood Bride is a 2006 English and Indian film, released in 2007 theatrically and will release as new title "My Faraway Bride", on DVD in August 2008 and also due to premiere on Showtime and Starz in 2008. Written by Richard Martini and Kashmera Shah, story and produced by Brad Listermann,...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0397551/ – 2006 – Co-Writer, Associate Producer. DreamTeam Pictures. Jason Lewis, Kashmira Shah, Sanjay Suri, Golshen Grover. Hollywood meets Bollywood in a romantic comedy.
- Cowboy Uphttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0186202/ - Second Unit Dir. 2000 Xavier Koller, Kiefer Sutherland, Daryl Hannah. Orchid Prods. Championship Bull Riding.
- Camera – Dogme #15 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0278380/– Director, Writer. Odyssey Pictures Prod. 2001 Carol Alt, Angie EverhartAngie EverhartAngela Kay "Angie" Everhart is an American actress and former fashion model.-Early life:Everhart was born in Akron, Ohio, the daughter of homemaker Ginnie and engineer Bob Everhart. The first of three children, she has a younger brother and a younger sister...
, Rebecca BroussardRebecca BroussardRebecca Broussard is an American actress and model.-Private life:She was born in Louisville, Kentucky and has two children with actor Jack Nicholson: Lorraine Nicholson and Raymond Nicholson .-Filmography:...
. Designated Dogme #15 by the Danish film group.
- Cannes Man (film)Cannes Man (film)Cannes Man is a 1996 independent comedy film directed and composed by Richard Martini. The film stars Seymour Cassel and Francesco Quinn. The film also features more than 15 famous Hollywood actors including Johnny Depp, Jon Cryer, Benicio del Toro, John Malkovich, Dennis Hopper, Kevin Pollak, Jim...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115818/ - Director, Co-Writer, Music. Rocket Pictures. 1997. Tom Coleman Prod. Seymour Cassel, Francesco Quinn. Guest appearances by Johnny Depp, John Malkovich. (“Hilarious” Hollywood Rep. “Fast, furious, fun satire” NY Post)
- Point of Betrayal http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0121647/- Director, Music. Trident/Dove International. 1996. Jonathan Krane Prod. Rod Taylor, Dina Merrill, Rebecca Broussard. Paramount Home Video (Rod Lurie - Buzz Magazine; “a terrific film” )
- Limit UpLimit Up (film)Limit Up is the title of a 1989 film starring Nancy Allen as Chicago commodities trader Casey Falls. The film was directed by Richard Martini and produced by Jonathan D. Krane...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097755/ - Writer/Director. MCEG. 1989 Jonathan Krane Prod. Nancy Allen, Dean Stockwell, Ray Charles. (Ent. Weekly - “Splendid, delightful, with good cast, good script, tidy direction.”)
- You Can’t Hurry LoveYou Can't Hurry Love (film)You Can't Hurry Love is a 1988 comedy film written and directed by Richard Martini. A guy who moonlights as a low-budget director of commercials is looking for someone to love, so he pays a dating service and is videotaped on several occasions...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096483/ - Writer/Director. Vestron 1988 J.D. Krane Prod. Bridget Fonda, Charles Grodin. (`Three stars’ Chicago Sun Times.)
- Three for the RoadThree for the RoadThree For the Road is a 1987 road trip themed comedy starring Charlie Sheen, Alan Ruck, Kerri Green, Sally Kellerman and Blair Tefkin.-Plot:...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094140/ - Co-Writer, Story. Vista 1987 Charlie Sheen, Kerri Green. (“A jolly good time” NY Post “Charming” Newsday)
- My Champion http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0087764/ - Writer. Chris Mitchum, Yoko Shimada. Directed by Gwen Arner.
Documentaries
- Journey into Tibet http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001RCTJ70- Director. Tibet House NY. Trip around Mt. Kailash (2006)
- Sister Cities - http://www.layalina.tv/programming/sistercities.asp Director. Layalina Productions. Chicago and Casablanca. (2005)
- Tibetan Refugee http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00016XNWK - Director. Story of 50 new arrivals in Dharamsala. (2001)