James "Maz" Shani
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| James "Maz" Shani | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 10, 1988 |
| 💼 Occupation | Film and music video producer |
| Notable work | Gully (film), Lady Gaga "The Power of Kindness" documentary special, H.E.R. "Fight for You" music video |
| 🌐 Website | www.asylum.tv |
| Twitter= | |
James “Maz” Shani (born September 10, 1988) is an Iranian-American film and music video producer based in Los Angeles, California. Known for collaborating with directors and artists with unique, often marginalized perspectives, he's been featured in several high-profile media rankings, including the 2017 Forbes “30 under 30” list. Shani has produced music videos for some of the world's most talented pop and hip-hop artists, including Lady Gaga, John Legend, H.E.R., Nas, Snoh Aalegra, and Janelle Monáe. He's also worked with and nurtured many first-time directors who have gone on to breakout fame.
Shani’s debut feature film GULLY was directed by acclaimed hip-hop music video director Nabil and premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2019. The film stars Amber Heard, Terrance Howard, Jonathan Majors, and Charlie Plummer and was distributed by Paramount Pictures.
Early life and education[edit]
James Shani was born in the San Fernando Valley to Persian parents, who immigrated from Iran. As a child, Shani was passionate about both hip-hop music and film, particularly Spike Lee's film He Got Game and John Singleton's films Poetic Justice and Boyz n the Hood.[1] After applying to several film schools without getting accepted, Shani enrolled in The University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business, where he spent his free hours in the film department.[2][3] In 2012, Shani co-founded collective, think-tank-inspired digital film studio Everdream Pictures with college friends, and in 2013 produced his first music video for hip-hop artist Nick Cannon, which went viral online.[4][5][6][7][8] By his senior year at USC, Shani was established as a figure in the film department, mentoring new directors and cold-calling record labels and managers on behalf of Everdream to produce music videos for their artists.[3]
Early career[edit]
Shani's first break came in 2014, when he and several friends at Everdream wrote, directed, and produced a commercial on spec for Tesla.[8][9] Working with a budget of less than two thousand dollars, Shani borrowed his college roommate's father's car for filming, one of only several hundred Teslas on the road at the time.[3] Shani emailed their "Modern Spaceship" commercial to Tesla's V.P. of Marketing.[9] Tesla shared the commercial via Twitter to its 215,000 followers, calling it "a stunning video" in a tweet that quickly went viral.[10][9] A week later, Shani got a call from Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who praised the unsolicited commercial and invited Everdream's founders to his office to discuss future work.[10][11][12][7][13][9]
After the Tesla commercial, Shani approached Columbia Records, who hired his team to create a lyric video for John Legend's 2013 hit single "All of Me."[12][14] Through the commercial and lyric video, Shani met Legend's then-manager Troy Carter, who agreed to form a first-of-its-kind joint venture production partnership between Shani and Everdream and Carter's management firm, Atom Factory.[8][14][12] From 2014 to 2016, Shani and Everdream produced over thirty music videos in collaboration with Troy Carter and Atom Factory, including work for John Legend, Lady Gaga, Meghan Trainor, John Mayer, and other major musical icons.[12][8][14] Shani and Everdream made the music video for John Legend's female-empowerment-themed single "You & I (Nobody in the World)" featuring actress and transgender activist Laverne Cox, which won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Music Video in 2015.[15][16][17][14][18][12] Through the collaboration with Troy and Atom Factory, Shani met and became good friends with Lady Gaga's current manager, Bobby Campbell, which eventually led to an ongoing, close, creative relationship between Shani and Lady Gaga.[19][12]
During his time working with Atom Factory, Shani focused on cultivating directors and filmmakers straight from local film schools at USC, NYU, and Chapman University, providing rare opportunities for new talent to hone their skills directing lower-budget music videos.[8] Everdream ultimately launched a formal filmmaker-in-residence program at their Culver City-based digital studio to support and spotlight fresh voices in the industry.[8] Shani also produced a short documentary titled "Growth," working with VIZIO to secure funding for one of the first ever brand-sponsored films screened at South by Southwest. "Growth" won the award for Best Short Documentary at the 2015 SXSW Film Festival.[20][21]
The Everdream/Atom Factory partnership ended when Carter took a position as global head of creator services for the streaming giant Spotify and Shani moved on to found Madison+Vine, a creative studio representing directors for branded entertainment work.[4][14][22] Madison+Vine specialized in creating out-of-the-box commercial work, including a four-part documentary series produced by Shani for Gatorade called "Win from Within," which was nominated for a Clio Award.[23][24][22][25] Under Shani's direction as CEO, the company hired multi-hyphenates, creating memorable brandwork for a range of major clients including Samsung, Gatorade, Apple, Nike, and Pepsi as well as a nationwide back-to-school PSA for Staples featuring Lady Gaga.[19][22][26][27][28] Madison+Vine also created branded, narrative entertainment content like Taco Bell's Taco Tales, one of the first ever scripted shows for a brand, released weekly as a YouTube video series that lasted two seasons.[29][30]
Career cont'd[edit]
In 2015, Shani started working closely with Lady Gaga and her manager Bobby Campbell to produce visual content for Gaga's Coachella performance as well as her 2016 album Joanne and corresponding 2017 Joanne World Tour.[31][32][33][34] Shani produced the music video for the album's debut single "Perfect Illusion," which was praised for Gaga's raw appearance, as well as the visually cohesive follow-up video for the album's second single "Million Reasons."[35][36][37]
Working closely with Gaga and her team reignited Shani's passion for music and film, and in 2019 he returned to producing music videos and more creative, hands-on work with artists. That same year, Shani met fellow Iranian-American artist Snoh Aalegra and her manager/director Izabelle P. Wilson, and the three began working together. Shani produced Aalegra's 2019 music video "Whoa," which features actor Michael B. Jordan, and the video for her 2021 single "DYING 4 YOUR LOVE."[38][39][40][41] Around the same time, Shani produced two well-received, narrative music videos in collaboration with talented up-and-coming director child.: "Fight for you" by H.E.R., a track which was featured in the 2021 Black Panther film Judas and the Black Messiah, and Grammy-winning artist Janelle Monáe's emotional track "Turntables," which was praised for its use of historical protest footage exploring racial inequality in America.[42][43][44]
In 2019, Shani executive-produced his first feature-length film, GULLY, directed by frequent collaborator and acclaimed hip-hop music video director Nabil. The film follows the lives of three L.A. friends navigating intense personal and socio-economic drama. Starring Jacob Latimore, Charlie Plummer, Jonathan Majors, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Amber Heard, and Terrence Howard, the film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April, 2019. GULLY was sold to Paramount Pictures and released in Spring 2021.[45][46][47][48] GQ Magazine editors included GULLY on their June 2019 list of "The Best Movies of the Year So Far," calling the film "Moonlight meets Mid-90s meets Dope" and praising its "bright, surreal, and chaotic" character-driven narrative.[49]
In 2021, Shani founded Asylum Films, an independent film studio specializing in supporting distinctive storytellers and artists from diverse cultural backgrounds and under-represented perspectives.[50]
Philanthropy and activism[edit]
Over the course of his long creative relationship with Bobby Campbell and Lady Gaga, Shani directed and produced a number of films advocating mental health awareness on behalf of Gaga's Born This Way Foundation. In November 2021, Shani teamed up again with Bobby Campbell, Lady Gaga, and Born This Way Foundation to release a 30-minute documentary special on Facebook Watch for World Kindness Day. Created and executive-produced by Shani, "The Power of Kindness" features Lady Gaga, psychologist and mental health expert Dr. Alfiee Breland-Noble, and a group of young adults in a candid discussion about destigmatizing mental health awareness and the impact of kindness on ourselves and our communities.[51][52][53]
Filmography[edit]
Films[edit]
| Year | Title | Role/Credit |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Gully | Executive Producer |
| 2021 | Power of Kindness with Lady Gaga | Creator/Executive Producer |
Music videos[edit]
| Year | Song | Artist | Role/Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | "You & I (Nobody in the World)" | John Legend | Executive Producer | |
| 2014 | "Dragon Age" | Lindsey Stirling | Executive Producer | |
| 2014 | "Shatter Me Featuring Lzzy Hale" | Lindsey Stirling ft. Lzzy Hale | Executive Producer | |
| 2015 | "My Melody" | Nico & Vinz | Executive Producer | |
| 2016 | "Million Reasons" | Lady Gaga | Executive Producer | |
| 2016 | "Perfect Illusion" | Lady Gaga | Executive Producer | |
| 2017 | "2017 Coachella Intro" | Lady Gaga | Executive Producer | |
| 2019 | "Whoa" | Snoh Aalegra | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2019 | "Can't Let Go" | Frank Walker ft. Harry Hudson | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2020 | "DYING 4 YOUR LOVE" | Snoh Aalegra | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2020 | "Like It Is" | Kygo ft. Tyga and Zara Larsson | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2020 | "Turntables" | Janelle Monáe | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2021 | "LOST YOU" | Snoh Aalegra | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2021 | "NEON PEACH ft. Tyler, the Creator" | Snoh Aalegra | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2021 | "EPMD" | Nas | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2021 | "I Don't Wanna Die" | G Herbo | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2021 | "Hold Us Together" | H.E.R. | Executive Producer + Producer | |
| 2021 | "Fight For You (from Judas and And The Black Messiah)" | H.E.R. | Executive Producer + Producer | 2021 VMA Nomination // Academy Award for Best Original Song |
| 2021 | "Come Thru ft. Chris Brown" | H.E.R. | Executive Producer + Producer | 2021 VMA Nomination |
| 2021 | "Wonder: The World Tour Trailer" | Shawn Mendes | Executive Producer + Producer |
National commercials[edit]
| Year | Title | Subject | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Modern Spaceship | Tesla | Made on Spec and promoted by Elon Musk |
| 2014 | The World Is Ours | World Cup/Coca-Cola | World Cup Anthem |
| 2015 | Win from Within | Gatorade | Webby Award Winner |
| 2016 | Taco Tales | Taco Bell | YouTube's first branded scripted series |
| 2016 | Create with Gear 360 | Samsung | Karlie Kloss, Casey Neistat |
| 2017 | Substitute Teacher: Lady Gaga | Staples | |
| 2017 | Tiffany & Co + Lady Gaga | Tiffany & Co | |
| 2020 | Dear Chicago | NBA All-Star | |
| 2021 | LifeWTR Lifeunseen | LifeWTR |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ Mantz, Annalise (2012-03-23). "Experts say Muslim Americans politicized". Daily Trojan. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "20 in their 20s: James Shani | Los Angeles Business Journal". labusinessjournal.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Hu, John (2014-03-26). "USC alumnus creates Tesla commercial". Daily Trojan. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "James Shani". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "James Shani". www.magzter.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "James Shani, 28". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 AlcántaraDecember 4, Ann-Marie; 2018. "This Creative Head Is Bridging the Gap Between Hollywood and Madison Avenue". Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 Jarvey, Natalie; Jarvey, Natalie (2015-04-21). "Digital Studio Everdream Formalizes Filmmaker-in-Residence Program (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Beer, Jeff (2014-03-19). "How To Impress Elon Musk With Your Unofficial Tesla Commercial". Fast Company. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Taube, Aaron. "Everyone Is Raving About This Fan-Made Tesla Ad, Including Elon Musk". Business Insider. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Moglen, Laurel. "PODCAST: From Struggling College Student To Making Ads For Giant Brands". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 Brown, Harley; Brown, Harley (2015-03-25). "Troy Carter's Atom Factory Appoints Everdream as Studio of Record". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Everdream Pictures backed by Tesla | The Marketing World". Le Monde Marketing. 2014-03-20. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 "Meet Troy Carter, one of Fast Company's Most Creative People". Fast Company. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Gerstein, Julie. "John Legend's Latest Video Will Give You All The Feels". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ July 10, C. Molly Smith Updated; EDT, 2014 at 12:00 PM. "John Legend's 'You and I' music video reveals his feminist side". EW.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Berman, Eliza (2014-07-10). "John Legend's New Video Celebrates All Kinds of Female Beauty, Might Make You Cry". Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Themes, Studio. "Music Xray's Blog - Troy Carter's Atom Factory Appoints Everdream as Studio of Record". Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Staples Unveils Public Service Announcement with Lady Gaga to Support Education and Inspire Positive Classroom Experiences Nationwide". www.businesswire.com. 2017-06-28. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ MonllosMarch 10, Kristina; 2016. "Why South by Southwest—in Its 30th Year and More Branded Than Ever—Still Matters". Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Growth | SXSW 2015 Event Schedule". SXSW Schedule 2015. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Rice, Catherine. "A 28-year-old startup CEO named to Forbes 30 Under 30 explains how 'compassion culture' is good for business". Business Insider. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Gatorade : Gatorade Win From Within Series". gatorade.newsmarket.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Gatorade Product Site". Gatorade.
- ↑ "Meet The Teen Born With One Hand Defying Odds On The Softball Field". HuffPost. 2015-10-29. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "A 28-year-old CEO named to Forbes 30 Under 30 shares his favorite question to ask in a job interview". finance.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "A startup CEO explains why he uses $2,000 a year to help employees meet goals that have nothing to do with work". Business Insider. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Staples Unveils Public Service Announcement With Lady Gaga To Support Education". Look to the Stars. 2017-06-29. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Taco Bell Tells 'Taco Tales' in New Branded Content Approach". Ad Age. 2016-12-08. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Taco Bell Retells Stories From The Internet In Part One Of Branded Video Push". Tubefilter. 2016-12-08. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Joanne - Lady Gaga | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved 2022-02-05
- ↑ Powers, Ann (2016-10-21). "On Lady Gaga's 'Joanne,' All Of Pop Is A Stage". NPR. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ NJ.com, Bobby Olivier | NJ Advance Media for (2017-08-29). "We just went Gaga for the best concert of the summer". nj. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Atkinson, Katie; Atkinson, Katie (2017-07-04). "Pop Shop Podcast: Lady Gaga Talks 'A Star Is Born,' New Music, Joanne Tour & More in All-Gaga Episode". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Sep 21, Lara Walsh. "Watch Lady Gaga Get Down in the "Perfect Illusion" Music Video". InStyle.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ December 14, Joey Nolfi Updated; EST, 2016 at 08:30 PM. "Lady Gaga Celebrates Sisterhood in Emotional 'Million Reasons' Music Video". EW.com. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Spanos, Brittany; Spanos, Brittany (2016-12-14). "Watch Lady Gaga's Dramatic 'Million Reasons' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Nast, Condé (2019-12-14). "Snoh Aalegra and Michael B. Jordan's Steamy "Whoa" Video Sparks Dating Rumors". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Snoh Aalegra Gets Intimate With Michael B. Jordan in New "Whoa" Music Video". HYPEBEAST. 2019-12-13. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Check out Snoh Aalegra's new single and visual for "Dying 4 Your Love"". REVOLT. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Snoh Aalegra Releases New Song 'Dying 4 Your Love'". Rated R&B. 2020-07-10. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Aniftos, Rania; Aniftos, Rania (2020-09-16). "Janelle Monae Shares Powerful 'Turntables' Video for 'All In: The Fight for Democracy' Film". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Romack, Coco. "Janelle Monáe Leads The Revolution In Stirring 'Turntables' Video". MTV News. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "H.E.R. Drops the Music Video to the Track "Fight For You," Featured in "Judas and the Black Messiah"". Arts + Culture. 2021-03-19. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Gleiberman, Owen; Gleiberman, Owen (2021-06-05). "'Gully' Review: Like 'Boyz n the Hood' as an Indie Art Film". Variety. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "'Gully' Review: An Aesthetically Rich Debut From Director Nabil". Cinemacy. 2021-06-07. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Nicholas, Lynnette (2019-05-02). "'Gully' is Gritty, Honest, and Visually Unforgettable". Black Girl Nerds. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "Gully | 2019 Tribeca Festival". Tribeca. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Nast, Condé (2019-06-07). "The Best Movies of the Year So Far". GQ. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ "H.E.R. x FIGHT FOR YOU". MIRMADE. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Tangcay, Jazz; Tangcay, Jazz (2021-11-13). "Lady Gaga, Born This Way Foundation Release 'Power of Kindness' Short for World Kindness Day". Variety. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Gularte, Alejandra (2021-11-13). "Lady Gaga Releases The Power of Kindness Documentary". Vulture. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ↑ Blistein, Jon; Blistein, Jon (2021-11-12). "Lady Gaga Talks Kindness and Overcoming Mental Health Stigmas in New Short Film". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
External links[edit]
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