Damon Packard

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Damon Packard (b. May 4, 1967) is an underground American film director. He currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California.

Packard's mother, Akron actress Frances Pollock, was the daughter of long-time trade union leader Sam Pollock. She died in 1968 when Damon was a year old.[1][2]

Packard began to become seriously involved with film began at the age of 11. His biggest inspiration was director Steven Spielberg.[3]

Packard spent his teens and twenties working on experimental shorts while supporting himself variously as a movie theatre usher and wrist-watch salesman. His early Super8 efforts included [["The Afterlife and Amazing Stories, 1982-84]]" starring his friend/collaborator Paul Trainor, son of producer/casting director Chris Trainor, who was partners with Miles 'O Keeffe for infamous epics such as Ator, The Blade Master and Lone Runner. His first notable effort was Dawn of an Evil Millennium (1988) which he partly produced as a 30min short for a film class and featured Miles O Keeffe in small role.[3] This was followed by other shorts such as Apple(1992), an elfquest-inspired fantasy film made on the big isle of Hawaii while living in a tent for 2 years. In 1998, he made "The Early 70's Horror Trailer"

After struggling for years to complete films with no money, living in cars and tents, when his grandmother died, Packard received a large inheritance. He spent the inheritance on Reflections of Evil (2002), a long treatise on contemporary American paranoia. The film is intercut with B movie footage and television promos from the early 1970s. The film featured Packard himself as an obese, overwrought watch salesman growing larger with each reel. Packard pressed 23,000 DVD copies of the film and made them available for free. He also sent thousands of them to celebrities, whose reactions were hilariously recorded on his website.[4][1] In the January/February 2006 issue of Film Comment, "Reflections of Evil" made the Editor's List for Best of 2005.

His Reflections spoof of a young Steven Spielberg, a director he claimed to admire, was matched by his later assault on George Lucas in Packard's film The Untitled Star Wars Mockumentary (2003). The film intercut actual footage of Lucas with staged shots of disgruntled Lucasfilm employees.

A cult film hero to underground film devotees, Packard remains relatively obscure to the public. He continues to turn out odd pastiches that some reviewers regard as genius but others simply don't get. Packard is known for his sharp and highly pessimistic view of the movie business, claiming directors having no control of their work and that artistic vision is sacrificed for profit. He also claims that creativity in film largely vanished after the end of the 1970s. Nevertheless, Packard says he admires the recent work of Lars Von Trier and Alexander Sokurov among others.[5]

As of May 2007, Packard completed his latest opus "SpaceDisco One", made desperately for no money. "SpaceDisco One" was screened at the New York Film Festival on October 6, 2007. "SpaceDisco One" was also selected for the Hollywood Film Festival, The Lausanne Fest Switzerland, Lincoln Film Center NY, Berkeley Fest, Tulsa Overground, The Dark Room San Francisco, Il Corral L.A., Union Gallery London, and many other through 2007. It will be released officially by the OtherCinema label (with Lost in Thinking and other assorted Packard shorts) in 2008.

A profile of Packard will appear in Film Comment in early 2008.

Recent exhibitions and screenings include

Art residency Grizedale England 2004

‘The Thinking’, Sketch Gallery, London (2007);

‘Best of 2005’, Lincoln Film Center, New York (2005);
Redcat Disney Auditorium, Los Angeles;
CineSpace Hollywood, Fantasia Fest, ‘Christian Jankowski, Damon Packard, Antoine Prum,’
Art Sheffield 05: Spectator T, Site Gallery, Sheffield (2005); ‘

Biennale!’ BizArt, Shanghai & Temporary Contemporary, London (2005); Filler Gallery,

Northampton (2005) and ‘Romantic Detachment’, PS1, New York & Grizedale Arts, London (2004). and two current ehibitions at Union Gallery London (2007) As well as dozens of festivals around the world. His epic feature ‘Reflections of Evil’ has won a multitude of awards at the Fantasia Festival Montreal, Berkeley, Cleveland, Seattle, Chicago, NY and Michigan Underground Films Fests. In addition to an abundance of press, interviews and reviews worldwide he is also featured books such as “Frozen Tears II”


[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b McKinney, Casey. "Lost In The 70's: The Art of Damon Packard." Frozen Tears 2. John Russell, ed. 2004.
  2. ^ "Samuel Pollock." Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. 2nd ed. David D. Van Tassel and John J. Grabowski, eds. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 1996. ISBN 0253330564
  3. ^ a b Brian Kidd. "Damon Packard Interview." Tablet. #92 (2005). Extended interview available online at http://www.tabletmag.com/92/arts/92_damon_packard.shtml
  4. ^ Others Have Seen The Evil
  5. ^ Brian Frye. "Underground Features of Yesterday and Today: Palmer & Weisman, Fotopoulos, Jolly, Packard." Senses of Cinema. April 2003; Eric Henderson. "DVD Reviews: 'Experiments in Terror.'" Slant Magazine. August 2005.


Filmography (also see IMDB) 1982/84 "Afterlife Amazing Stories" 1986 "The Werewolf Hunters" (incompleted) 1988 "Dawn of an Evil Millennium" 1992 "Apple" 1996 "Rollerboogie III" 1999 "The Early 70's Horror Trailer" 2002 "Reflections of Evil" 2003 "Untitled Star Wars Mockumentary" 2004 "Lost in the Thinking" (Grizedale Arts UK) 2005 "Chemtrails" 2005 "Grizzly Redux" 2005 "Al's Techno Bar" 2005 "Sage Stallone: Portrait of a Madman" 2006 "Bugnuts" (Bob Ellis revamp) 2007 "SpaceDisco One"

Art residency Grizedale England 2004 Recent exhibitions and screenings include ‘The Thinking’, Sketch Gallery, London (2007);

‘Best of 2005’, Lincoln Film Center, New York (2005);
Redcat Disney Auditorium, Los Angeles;
CineSpace Hollywood, Fantasia Fest, ‘Christian Jankowski, Damon Packard, Antoine Prum,’
Art Sheffield 05: Spectator T, Site Gallery, Sheffield (2005); ‘

Biennale!’ BizArt, Shanghai & Temporary Contemporary, London (2005); Filler Gallery,

Northampton (2005) and ‘Romantic Detachment’, PS1, New York & Grizedale Arts, London (2004). and two current ehibitions at Union Gallery London (2007) As well as dozens of festivals around the world. His epic feature ‘Reflections of Evil’ has won a multitude of awards at the Fantasia Festival Montreal, Berkeley, Cleveland, Seattle, Chicago, NY and Michigan Underground Films Fests. In addition to an abundance of press, interviews and reviews worldwide he is also featured books such as “Frozen Tears II”


[edit] External links