Scott Cross (film director)
Encyclopedia
Scott Cross is an American
film director
, producer
, actor
, and writer
, and founder of the Vail Film Festival
, one of the top ten destination film festivals in the world, according to MovieMaker
magazine.
. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Anthropology. Scott has lived in Cape Town, South Africa, Los Angeles, California
, New York City
and Granada, Spain. He currently divides his time between New York City
and Vail, Colorado
.
, member of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
, former president of the South African Urological Association and a pioneering transplant surgeon who worked closely with legendary heart transplant surgeon Christian Barnard. Dr. Naude is a staunch advocate of racial equality, and during the apartheid era, became the first Urology department head at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, now Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, the first medical school in South Africa open to all races. Dr. Naude is the only South African ever elected to honorary membership of the British Association of Urological Surgeons.
Scott's mother is pioneering family therapist Dr. Judith Landau, founder of Link therapy and president of the International Family Therapy Association. Dr. Landau is Senior Consultant to the International Trauma Studies Program at Columbia University
, and a former Fulbright Scholar. Scott's grandfather is acclaimed South African author and playwright Johannes H. Naude, and his great-grandfather is Judah Landau, former head rabbi of South Africa, leading rabbinical author and scholar, and a vocal advocate for race and class equality in pre-apartheid South Africa. Scott is the brother of Sean Cross
, film director and Vail Film Festival
co-founder.
to serve as a platform to educate aspiring filmmakers, showcase unique artistic visions, and to ensure that powerful, creative independent films are seen by the movie-going public.
In 2005, Scott helped bring LA's acclaimed Hotel Cafe
, one of the music industry's premier venues for singer/songwriters, to the Vail Film Festival, a partnership that continues to this day. Hotel Cafe musicians include Ingrid Michaelson
, Sara Bareilles
, Cary Brothers
, Josh Radin, Joe Purdy
, Buddy
, Jay Nash
, Laura Jansen
, Holly Conlan, Meiko, and more.
In 2006, Scott spearheaded the Vail Film Festival partnership with Film Your Issue
, a national issue film contest, in partnership with the American Democracy Project (AASCU initiative), featuring 30 to 60-second films. Thirty-five semi-finalists were named by the competition, and five winners were selected through a combination of a jury including Walter Cronkite
, Brian Williams
, then Senator Barack Obama
, George Clooney
, Philip Seymour Hoffman
and others. The winning films from the Film Your Issue contest were screened at the Vail Film Festival.
In 2007, Scott initiated and oversaw a partnership between the Vail Film Festival and Product Red
. The Vail Film Festival became the only film festival to partner with Bono
and Bobby Shriver's Product Red, an initiative to raise money for the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in Africa.
Together, Product Red and the Vail Film Festival launched the RED Vision Contest, a worldwide film competition created by Scott. The winning films were screened at the Vail Film Festival.
The Vail Film Festival donated 25% of pass sales to the Global Fund.
By 2007 Scott and his brother Sean Cross
had grown the Vail Film Festival to become one of the top ten destination film festivals in the world, according to MovieMaker Magazine.
The Vail Film Festival has screened groundbreaking independent and studio films, including Before Sunset
, Forgetting Sarah Marshall
, Snow Cake
, The Wendell Baker Story
, House of D
, the directorial debut of David Duchovny
, and recognized some of the film industry's most talented actors and filmmakers, including legendary producer Edward Pressman (Wall Street, Reversal of Fortune, Hoffa, American Psycho, Bad Lieutenant, Thank You For Smoking, Fur), comedy icon Harold Ramis
, (Stripes, Caddyshack, Animal House, Ghostbusters, Groundhog Day), Luke Wilson
, Kevin Smith
, Michelle Monaghan
, Tim Daly, Jeremy Davies
, Olivia Wilde
, Hayden Panettiere
, Jesse Eisenberg
, Sophia Bush
, and Adrian Grenier
.
Scott co-founded Cross Hollar Films, a commercial and new media production company, in 2007 with Sean Cross
and Troy Hollar. Cross Hollar Films produces a range of new media, from Webisodes to digital shorts. Scott's production credits include one of the last video interviews with renowned broadcaster Walter Cronkite
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film director
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...
, actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, and founder of the Vail Film Festival
Vail Film Festival
The Vail Film Festival is a four-day film festival that has taken place annually in late March or early April in Vail, Colorado since 2004. The 2011 Vail film festival took place March 31 - April 3 in Vail, Colorado...
, one of the top ten destination film festivals in the world, according to MovieMaker
MovieMaker
“Moviemaker” redirects here. For the software, see Windows Movie Maker.MovieMaker is an American magazine focused on the art and business of making movies with a special emphasis on independent film....
magazine.
Background
Scott was born in Cape Town, South Africa and raised in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Anthropology. Scott has lived in Cape Town, South Africa, Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and Granada, Spain. He currently divides his time between New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and Vail, Colorado
Vail, Colorado
The Town of Vail is a Home Rule Municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,589 in 2005. The town was established and built as the base village to Vail Ski Resort, with which it was originally conceived...
.
Family
He is the son of world renowned surgeon Dr. Johan NaudeJohan Naude
Johan Naude is a surgeon and urologist. Naude was former president of the South African Urological Association and a pioneering transplant surgeon who worked closely with legendary heart transplant surgeon Christian Barnard.-Training:...
, member of the Royal College of Surgeons of England
Royal College of Surgeons of England
The Royal College of Surgeons of England is an independent professional body and registered charity committed to promoting and advancing the highest standards of surgical care for patients, regulating surgery, including dentistry, in England and Wales...
, former president of the South African Urological Association and a pioneering transplant surgeon who worked closely with legendary heart transplant surgeon Christian Barnard. Dr. Naude is a staunch advocate of racial equality, and during the apartheid era, became the first Urology department head at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, now Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, the first medical school in South Africa open to all races. Dr. Naude is the only South African ever elected to honorary membership of the British Association of Urological Surgeons.
Scott's mother is pioneering family therapist Dr. Judith Landau, founder of Link therapy and president of the International Family Therapy Association. Dr. Landau is Senior Consultant to the International Trauma Studies Program at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, and a former Fulbright Scholar. Scott's grandfather is acclaimed South African author and playwright Johannes H. Naude, and his great-grandfather is Judah Landau, former head rabbi of South Africa, leading rabbinical author and scholar, and a vocal advocate for race and class equality in pre-apartheid South Africa. Scott is the brother of Sean Cross
Sean Cross
Sean Cross is an American filmmaker, producer, actor, writer, and founder of Vail Film Festival.-Background:Sean was born in Cape Town, South Africa and raised in New York. He pursued undergraduate studies in Sociology at the University of Richmond and graduate studies in film at New York University...
, film director and Vail Film Festival
Vail Film Festival
The Vail Film Festival is a four-day film festival that has taken place annually in late March or early April in Vail, Colorado since 2004. The 2011 Vail film festival took place March 31 - April 3 in Vail, Colorado...
co-founder.
Career
In 2003, Scott co-founded the Colorado Film Institute and the Vail Film FestivalVail Film Festival
The Vail Film Festival is a four-day film festival that has taken place annually in late March or early April in Vail, Colorado since 2004. The 2011 Vail film festival took place March 31 - April 3 in Vail, Colorado...
to serve as a platform to educate aspiring filmmakers, showcase unique artistic visions, and to ensure that powerful, creative independent films are seen by the movie-going public.
In 2005, Scott helped bring LA's acclaimed Hotel Cafe
Hotel Café
The Hotel Café is a live music venue located off an alley on the Cahuenga Boulevard strip in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California that has become known for helping to establish the careers of new singer-songwriters in the 2000s...
, one of the music industry's premier venues for singer/songwriters, to the Vail Film Festival, a partnership that continues to this day. Hotel Cafe musicians include Ingrid Michaelson
Ingrid Michaelson
Ingrid Ellen Egbert Michaelson is a New York-based indie-pop singer-songwriter. Her music has been featured in episodes of several popular television shows, including Scrubs, Bones, Grey's Anatomy The Big C and One Tree Hill, as well as in Old Navy's Fall 2007 Fair Isle and Opel's/Vauxhall's...
, Sara Bareilles
Sara Bareilles
Sara Beth Bareilles is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She achieved mainstream success in 2007 with the hit single "Love Song", which brought her into the number one spot on the Billboard Pop 100 chart. She has sold over 1 million records in the United States alone and has been...
, Cary Brothers
Cary Brothers
Cary Brothers is an American indie rock singer-songwriter originally from Nashville, Tennessee. After moving to Los Angeles and becoming a regular performer at the influential Hotel Cafe venue, Brothers first gained national attention with his song "Blue Eyes" on the Platinum-selling,...
, Josh Radin, Joe Purdy
Joe Purdy
Joe Purdy is an American folk singer-songwriter who has recorded and released ten albums in eight years.- The band :Joe Purdy's band members have included: Chris Seefried, Brian Wright, Willy C. Golden, , and .- Career :...
, Buddy
Buddy
Buddy may refer to:* A friend or a partner for a particular activity* Buddy , pet of former U.S. President Bill Clinton* Buddy memory allocation, a dynamic memory allocation system for computers...
, Jay Nash
Jay Nash
Jay Nash is an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League .-Early career:Nash began his career in South Australia, where he played for the Central District Football Club...
, Laura Jansen
Laura Jansen
Laura Jansen is a Dutch-American singer-songwriter based in Los Angeles. Jansen established herself as a regular at the Los Angeles live music venue the Hotel Cafe before gaining fame in her native country, The Netherlands...
, Holly Conlan, Meiko, and more.
In 2006, Scott spearheaded the Vail Film Festival partnership with Film Your Issue
Film Your Issue
Film Your Issue is a national issue film contest featuring 30 to 60-second films by U.S. residents from the ages of 18 to 26. Spearheaded by Heathcliff Rothman, in partnership with The American Democracy Project, the contest had its first "beta" round in 2005....
, a national issue film contest, in partnership with the American Democracy Project (AASCU initiative), featuring 30 to 60-second films. Thirty-five semi-finalists were named by the competition, and five winners were selected through a combination of a jury including Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
, Brian Williams
Brian Williams
Brian Douglas Williams is the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News, the evening news program of the NBC television network, a position he assumed in 2004...
, then Senator Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Philip Seymour Hoffman is an American actor and director. Hoffman began acting in television in 1991, and the following year started to appear in films...
and others. The winning films from the Film Your Issue contest were screened at the Vail Film Festival.
In 2007, Scott initiated and oversaw a partnership between the Vail Film Festival and Product Red
Product Red
Product Red, styled as RED, is a brand licensed to partner companies such as Nike, American Express , Apple Inc., Starbucks, Converse, Bugaboo, Penguin Classics , Gap, Emporio Armani, Hallmark and Dell...
. The Vail Film Festival became the only film festival to partner with Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
and Bobby Shriver's Product Red, an initiative to raise money for the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in Africa.
Together, Product Red and the Vail Film Festival launched the RED Vision Contest, a worldwide film competition created by Scott. The winning films were screened at the Vail Film Festival.
The Vail Film Festival donated 25% of pass sales to the Global Fund.
By 2007 Scott and his brother Sean Cross
Sean Cross
Sean Cross is an American filmmaker, producer, actor, writer, and founder of Vail Film Festival.-Background:Sean was born in Cape Town, South Africa and raised in New York. He pursued undergraduate studies in Sociology at the University of Richmond and graduate studies in film at New York University...
had grown the Vail Film Festival to become one of the top ten destination film festivals in the world, according to MovieMaker Magazine.
The Vail Film Festival has screened groundbreaking independent and studio films, including Before Sunset
Before Sunset
Before Sunset is a 2004 American romantic drama film and the sequel to Before Sunrise . Like its predecessor, the film was directed by Richard Linklater. However, this time Linklater shares screenplay credit with both actors from the movies, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy...
, Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Jason Segel, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis and Russell Brand...
, Snow Cake
Snow Cake
Snow Cake is a 2006 independent drama film directed by Marc Evans and starring Alan Rickman, Sigourney Weaver, Carrie-Anne Moss, Emily Hampshire, and Callum Keith Rennie...
, The Wendell Baker Story
The Wendell Baker Story
The Wendell Baker Story is a 2005 American film. It is the first film directed by Luke Wilson and his eldest brother Andrew Wilson, which premiered at the 2005 South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas in March 2005...
, House of D
House of D
House of D is 2005 drama film directed by David Duchovny as his directorial debut in film, having previously directed an episode of The X-Files for television. The film stars Erykah Badu, Frank Langella, Téa Leoni, Zelda Williams, Anton Yelchin, and Robin Williams...
, the directorial debut of David Duchovny
David Duchovny
David William Duchovny is an American actor, writer and director. He has won Golden Globe awards for his work as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files and as Hank Moody on Californication.-Early life:...
, and recognized some of the film industry's most talented actors and filmmakers, including legendary producer Edward Pressman (Wall Street, Reversal of Fortune, Hoffa, American Psycho, Bad Lieutenant, Thank You For Smoking, Fur), comedy icon Harold Ramis
Harold Ramis
Harold Allen Ramis is an American actor, director, and writer, specializing in comedy. His best-known film acting roles are as Egon Spengler in Ghostbusters and Russell Ziskey in Stripes , both of which he also co-wrote...
, (Stripes, Caddyshack, Animal House, Ghostbusters, Groundhog Day), Luke Wilson
Luke Wilson
Luke Cunningham Wilson is an American film actor known for his roles in Old School, Bottle Rocket, The Royal Tenenbaums, Legally Blonde, Idiocracy and Death at a Funeral.-Early life:...
, Kevin Smith
Kevin Smith
Kevin Patrick Smith is an American screenwriter, actor, film producer, and director, as well as a popular comic book writer, author, comedian/raconteur, and internet radio personality best recognized by viewers as Silent Bob...
, Michelle Monaghan
Michelle Monaghan
Michelle Lynn Monaghan is an American actress known for her roles in Mission: Impossible III, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Gone Baby Gone, Made of Honor, The Heartbreak Kid, Eagle Eye, and Source Code.-Early life:...
, Tim Daly, Jeremy Davies
Jeremy Davies
Father Jeremy Davies , an English Roman Catholic priest whose parish is based around Old Hall Green, is a former doctor and also a leading exorcist....
, Olivia Wilde
Olivia Wilde
Olivia Wilde is an American actress and fashion model. She began acting in the early 2000s, and has since appeared in a number of film and television parts, including roles in the serial-drama The O.C. and The Black Donnellys. She portrayed Dr...
, Hayden Panettiere
Hayden Panettiere
Hayden Leslie Panettiere is an American actress and singer, best known as cheerleader Claire Bennet on the NBC television series Heroes. She began her acting career by playing Sarah Roberts on One Life to Live , and Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light , before starring at age 10 as Sheryl Yoast in...
, Jesse Eisenberg
Jesse Eisenberg
Jesse Adam Eisenberg is an American actor. He made his screen debut with the comedy-drama television series Get Real from 1999 to 2000...
, Sophia Bush
Sophia Bush
Sophia Anna Bush is an American actress, director and spokesperson. She currently stars in the CW television series One Tree Hill where she portrays Brooke Davis. Bush is additionally known for her film portrayals in the 2007 remake The Hitcher, John Tucker Must Die and The Narrows.-Early...
, and Adrian Grenier
Adrian Grenier
Adrian Grenier is an American actor, musician and director. He is best known for his lead role on the HBO original series, Entourage, as Vincent Chase.-Early life:...
.
Scott co-founded Cross Hollar Films, a commercial and new media production company, in 2007 with Sean Cross
Sean Cross
Sean Cross is an American filmmaker, producer, actor, writer, and founder of Vail Film Festival.-Background:Sean was born in Cape Town, South Africa and raised in New York. He pursued undergraduate studies in Sociology at the University of Richmond and graduate studies in film at New York University...
and Troy Hollar. Cross Hollar Films produces a range of new media, from Webisodes to digital shorts. Scott's production credits include one of the last video interviews with renowned broadcaster Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
.