Wikipedia

Collin Schiffli

Collin Graham Schiffli is an American film director, producer and editor. He has directed the independent films Animals, All Creatures Here Below and Die in a Gunfight.

Collin Schiffli
Born
Collin Graham Schiffli

Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States
Alma materColumbia College Chicago
Occupation(s)Film director, producer, film editor
Years active2008–present
Websiteschifflifilms.com

Early life

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Schiffli was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He is the middle of three sons; his older brother, Brandon, is a screenwriter and script supervisor. Schiffli attended Carroll High School (Fort Wayne, Indiana) and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Film from Columbia College Chicago in 2009. Soon after, Schiffli moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film.[1][2]

Career

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Schiffli began his career writing and directing the short film Johnny Appleseed, Johnny Appleseed (2008). His next two shorts, Head Case (2009) and Band (2010), starred his good friend and frequent collaborator, actor David Dastmalchian.[3] Schiffli directed two more short films, Shortcake (2012) and Elias the Ant (2013).

Schiffli made his feature directorial debut with Animals (2014). The film was written and produced by David Dastmalchian and stars him and Kim Shaw as two heroin addicts in Chicago.[4] Animals won the Special Jury Award for Courage in Filmmaking at the SXSW Film Festival,[5] and received positive reviews from critics following its release in theaters and on video on demand platforms; A. O. Scott of The New York Times stated that Schiffli "shoots in a fluid style, tweaking colors and focus to register changes in perception and feeling".[6] Steve Dollar of The Wall Street Journal praised the director for keeping "a tight focus on character, as the couple's plight becomes increasingly dire".[7]

Schiffli's next feature, All Creatures Here Below (2018), is about a runaway couple (Dastmalchian and Karen Gillan) heading towards their hometown of Kansas City.[8] After its world premiere at the Downtown Film Festival Los Angeles,[9] the film was released theatrically by Samuel Goldwyn Films in the spring of 2019,[10] and garnered a positive reception; Dennis Harvey of Variety opined that "Schiffli directs with a nice balance between momentum and naturalism",[11] while Katie Walsh of the Los Angeles Times appreciated the director's "beautiful and unobtrusive style".[12]

Schiffli's latest film, Die in a Gunfight (2021), starring Alexandra Daddario, Diego Boneta, Justin Chatwin and Travis Fimmel, is described as an updated version of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.[13] Released in the summer by Lionsgate,[14] the film received mostly negative from critics; Christy Lemire of RogerEbert.com gave the film 0.5 out of 4 stars and stated, "Schiffli's snarky and snide self-aware tone quickly grows wearisome, and his action sequences have a cheapness about them that's distancing".[15] In contrast, Mark Hughes of Forbes gave the film a positive review and stated, "[A] sleek, subversive, lushly fun action-crime thriller. One of the better films inspired by Romeo and Juliet, its a welcome addition to the director's résumé and deserves to find an audience".[16]

Filmography

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As director

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Year Title Notes
2008 Johnny Appleseed, Johnny Appleseed Short film
2009 Head Case Short film
2010 Band Short film
2012 Shortcake Short film
2013 Elias the Ant Short film
2014 Animals Feature directorial debut
2018 All Creatures Here Below
2021 Die in a Gunfight

As producer

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Year Title Notes
2012 Shortcake Short film
Oscar's Escape Short film
2013 This Thing with Sarah associate producer
To Hell with a Bullet co-producer
2014 Animals
Following the Golden Arrow documentary; executive producer
2015 Play Faire

As editor

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Year Title Notes
2010 Band Short film
2011 Alice Wants Dessert Short film
2012 Shortcake Short film
2013 Premature the Show video
Elias the Ant Short film
2014 Following the Golden Arrow documentary

As screenwriter

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Year Title Notes
2008 Johnny Appleseed, Johnny Appleseed Short film
2009 Head Case Short film

Awards and nominations

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Name of the award ceremony, year presented, work(s) nominated, category, and the result of the nomination
Award ceremony Year Work(s) Category Result Ref.
Downtown Film Festival Los Angeles 2018 All Creatures Here Below Best Film Won [17]
Flagler Film Festival 2016 Animals Best Feature Won [18]
Best Director Won
Midwest Independent Film Festival 2014 Animals Best Feature Won [19]
Best Director Won
South By Southwest 2014 Animals Narrative Feature Nominated [20]
Virginia Film Festival 2014 Animals Narrative Feature Won [21]

References

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  1. ^ Hackett, Kara (January 23, 2019). "From Fort Wayne to Hollywood: Meet 4 talented residents (or ex-residents) in the film industry". Input Fort Wayne. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  2. ^ Rickinson, Steve (March 2, 2014). "2014 SXSW Filmmaker Profile: Collin Schiffli (Director – 'Animals')". IndieNYC.com. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  3. ^ Hughes, Mark (July 16, 2021). "Interview: 'Die In A Gunfight' Collin Schiffli Talks Violence, Love, And 1990s Cinema". Forbes. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  4. ^ Metz, Nina (May 8, 2014). "Actor, screenwriter David Dastmalchian on his new film 'Animals'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  5. ^ "ANIMALS Opens Nationwide". Screen Magazine. May 15, 2015. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  6. ^ Scott, A.O. (May 14, 2015). "Review: In 'Animals,' a Couple in Love With Heroin". The New York Times. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  7. ^ Dollar, Steve (May 13, 2015). "Argentina's New Wave, Plus Cinematic Selfies". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  8. ^ Hipes, Patrick (May 9, 2016). "David Dastmalchian To Star In 'All Creatures Here Below'". Deadline. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  9. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (October 10, 2018). "'All Creatures Here Below' Trailer: Karen Gillan & David Dastmalchian Are On The Run In Indie Drama". Deadline. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  10. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 13, 2019). "Karen Gillan & David Dastmalchian Thriller 'All Creatures Here Below' Snapped Up By Samuel Goldwyn". Deadline. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  11. ^ Harvey, Dennis (May 16, 2019). "Film Review: 'All Creatures Here Below'". Variety. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  12. ^ Walsh, Katie (May 16, 2019). "Review: Karen Gillan takes a stark turn in dark indie 'All Creatures Here Below'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  13. ^ Lang, Brent (September 6, 2019). "Toronto: Alexandra Daddario, Diego Boneta Starring in 'Die In A Gunfight' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  14. ^ Lane, Carly (June 14, 2021). "Exclusive: 'Die in a Gunfight' Trailer Reveals a Star-Crossed and Stylized Love Story Starring Alexandra Daddario and Diego Boneta". Collider. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  15. ^ Lemire, Christy (July 16, 2021). "Die in a Gunfight". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  16. ^ Hughes, Mark (July 15, 2021). "Review: 'Die In A Gunfight' Offers Hip Action Spectacle And Emotional Surprises". Forbes. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  17. ^ "10th Annual DTLA Film Festival Announces 2018 Filmmaker Awards". DTLA Film Festival. 22 October 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  18. ^ Ney, Sareth (January 18, 2016). "3rd Annual Flagler Film Festival takes place at Hilton Garden Inn". A Quarter and a Dream Pictures. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  19. ^ L Ratny, Ruth (December 4, 2014). "MIFF displays indie "Bests" at annual awards night". Reel Chicago. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  20. ^ Nadler, Becca (April 7, 2015). "Watch: Collin Schiffli Shows the Pain of Addiction in Trailer for 'Animals'". IndieWire. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
  21. ^ "2014 VFF In Photos". Issuu.com. 13 April 2015. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
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