Production company Mothership announced that director Patrick Jean has joined the roster. Mothership, which operates as a sister company to Digital Domain, will represent the Paris-based director exclusively for commercial work in the United States. Jean joins Mothership on the heels of winning several industry awards for his short film "Pixels," which has become an Internet sensation after its release April 7th, with over seven million views to date.
"Pixels" garnered the young director Hollywood attention, with Adam Sandler's production company Happy Madison picking up the rights and starting discussions with several Hollywood studios to turn the short into a feature length movie.
"There is immense buzz around Patrick, which points not only to his talent as a young filmmaker, but also to his media savvy," said Mothership President Ed Ulbrich. "He's elevated himself in a short period of time to someone that Hollywood has its eye on. We're very excited he's decided to join Mothership."
In Jean's previous short film work, he's shown an ability to expertly meld the worlds of digital and live-action with wit, a strong narrative and conceptual bent and an expert eye for what resonates in pop culture. In "Pixels," produced through Paris' OneMoreProduction, familiar 8-bit videogame characters from the 1980s invade New York City. Jean leveraged social media, blogs and video-sharing websites to promote the short, and within 24 hours, the official film on DailyMotion had one million views. Jean's previous directing experience includes the short "Theo" and the title sequence for the French science TV program "La Recherche" on France 5. Jean hails from a visual effects background and has held stints at BUF Compagnie in Paris and OneMoreProduction. He graduated from the prestigious French digital arts school Supinfocom in 2002.
"I had been talking to several production companies about representing me stateside, and Mothership and its studio model really resonated with me," said Jean. "It's a young company and I'm a young director, and we share the same creative philosophy. Plus, having Ed Ulbrich and Executive Producer Tanya Cohen guide my career into its next phase is a great opportunity. I've spent several years as a CG artist, so I know a lot of VFX companies by reputation, or because I've worked with them, so I can honestly say that Digital Domain is like a god to CG artists. Being affiliated with them through Mothership means I'll be able to collaborate closely with their creative teams. Having that direct access is very exciting."