Russ Emanuel
American filmmaker
Russell "Russ" Emanuel is an American director, producer, and independent filmmaker.
Emanuel founded Russem Productions, a Los Angeles based production company in 2002, through which he has produced and directed short and feature-length films.
01Early life
Emanuel was born in San Francisco, California and grew up in both Japan and the United States.
Emanuel attended the University of Southern California in Los Angeles with an emphasis in film studies, international relations, and Japanese.
02Films
Emanuel's first films were shorts, including Her Knight (2003) and Girl with Gun (2006). In 2007, Emanuel produced his first feature film, P.J.. Emanuel subsequently directed the feature film Chasing the Green (2009), starring William Devane, and The Legends of Nethiah (2012) starring John Heard and Robert Picardo. His 2015 horror feature film Occupants, also starring Picardo and Briana White, screened at film festivals including Shriekfest 2016. He was recently inducted into the International Indie Filmmakers Hall of Fame for the year 2025. The International Indie Filmmakers Hall of Fame recognizes and honors individuals who have shown significant contributions and achievements in their field, and an outstanding dedication to the independent filmmaking community as a whole.
03Documentaries
Emanuel directed and produced the documentary film Restoration of Paradise (2014), about the history of the Bolsa Chica wetlands, which has at different times been a Native American settlement, President Teddy Roosevelt's Gun Club, and a World War II home for artillery batteries. The documentary was narrated by Robert Picardo.
04Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | The Failures | Assistant to Producer (feature film) | |
| 2003 | Her Knight | Producer, Director, Writer (short film) | |
| 2004 | The Diary | Producer (short film) | |
| 2005 | Mavet | Producer (short film) | |
| 2006 | Girl with Gun | Producer, Director (short film) | |
| 2007 | The Rapture | Associate Producer (feature film) | |
| Perfect Red | Producer (short film) | ||
| 2008 | Heaven's Messenger (original title P.J.) | Producer, Director (feature film) | |
| 2009 | Chasing the Green (new title Big Shots) | Director (feature film) | |
| 2010 | Cult 11 | Producer - 4 episodes, Director - 2 episodes: "Nurse Janet's Happy Place", "Make-Up Time, Mr. President" (web series) | |
| 2012 | The Legends of Nethiah | Director (feature film) | |
| 2013 | The Meeting | Director, Editor - 2 episodes: "Tales from the Curbside: A Prairie Homeless Companion", "A Savage Meeting" (web series) | |
| 2014 | Restoration of Paradise | Producer, Director, Writer, Cinematographer, Editor (documentary) | |
| 2015 | Alterverse (original title Occupants) | Director (feature film) | |
| 2017 | Collar | Producer, Director (short film) | |
| 2018 | The Assassin's Apprentice | Director (short film) | |
| Allegedly | Producer (short film) | ||
| The Meeting | Director, Editor - 2 episodes: "A Not So Funny Meeting", "Meeting Clapit" (web series) | ||
| 2019 | American Wisper (original title Wisper) | Director (feature film) | |
| 2020 | Lighter Than Air | Producer (short film) | |
| Routine | Director (short film) | ||
| 2022 | The Assassin's Apprentice 2: Silbadores of the Canary Islands | Director (short film) | |
| 2024 | Apocalypse Death Party (original title Staycation) | Producer, Director (feature film) | |
| 2025 | Quarantine | Producer, Director (short film) | |
| 2026 | Round the Corner | Producer, Director (short film) | |
| 2027 | All For Tomorrow | Producer, Director (feature film) |
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Russ Emanuel”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Russ Emanuel.jpg by Russ Emanuel, CC0
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