Dan Braun
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Dan Braun (born circa 1962) is an American musician, composer, writer, editor, art director, and film producer.


Early music career

Dan Braun and his twin brother
Josh Josh is a masculine given name, frequently a diminutive (hypocorism) of the given names Joshua or Joseph, though since the 1970s, it has increasingly become a full name on its own. It may refer to: People A–J * "Josh", an early pseudonym of S ...
have performed, separately and together, in bands including Circus Mort with singer
Michael Gira Michael Rolfe Gira (; born February 19, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, author and artist. He is the main force behind the New York City musical group Swans and fronted Angels of Light. He is also the founder of ...
; T-Venus (with Julia Heyward and Pat Irwin);
The Del-Byzanteens The Del-Byzanteens was a New York-based no wave band active in the early 1980s. The band comprised Phil Kline (vocals, guitar); Jim Jarmusch (vocals, keyboards); Philippe Hagen (bass); Josh Braun (percussion, drums); and Dan Braun (drums, percuss ...
(with future filmmaker Jim Jarmusch); and the Spinal Root Gang (with the future Madonna on lead vocals). After recording one EP on Labor Records in 1981, Circus Mort broke up. Braun joined with Gira in the band
Swans Swans are birds of the family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Someti ...
for a short stint in 1982, and was on the album ''
Body to Body, Job to Job ''Body to Body, Job to Job'' (stylized on the cover as ''Body To Body Job To Job.'') is the third compilation album by the American experimental rock band Swans. It was released simultaneously on LP, CD and audio cassette in 1991. It present ...
'' (1991). He went on to play with a myriad of New York bands and musicians including Robin Crutchfield, performance artist Julia Heyward, composer
Pat Irwin Pat Irwin (born May 17, 1955) is an American composer and musician who was a founding member of two bands that grew out of New York City's No Wave scene in the late 1970s, the Raybeats and 8-Eyed Spy. He joined The B-52s from 1989 through 200 ...
, and with producer Lefferts Brown in the band Radio Firefight. The Braun brothers then joined The Del-Byzanteens, with Dan on drums. They recorded one album, ''Lies to Live By'', and one single, "Draft Riot". Braun also toured and recorded with composer
Glenn Branca Glenn may refer to: Name or surname * Glenn (name) * John Glenn, U.S. astronaut Cultivars * Glenn (mango) * a 6-row barley variety Places In the United States: * Glenn, California * Glenn County, California * Glenn, Georgia, a settleme ...
on his ''Symphony #5''. The Braun brothers formed their own band in 1982, Deep Six, with Rick Oller, Trey Sabitelli, and Tony Braun, their younger brother. Tony left the band and
Phil Kline Phil Kline (born 1953) is an American composer, sound artist, and performer most recognized for his '' Unsilent Night'' (1992) and ''Zippo Songs'' (2004). Beginning as a guitarist and singer in the New York City art punk scene, Kline has since ...
from The Del-Byzanteens joined on guitar. The band recorded one album, ''Garage D'or'', on Twin Tone/Coyote Records in 1987 and in 1993 released one single on #1 Records, "Pretty White/Looking for a Reason".


Advertising career

While still pursuing his musical career, Braun became a graphic designer in the world of advertising. He went on to become an art director, working on the
Absolut Vodka Absolut Vodka is a brand of vodka, produced near Åhus, in southern Sweden. Absolut is a part of the French group Pernod Ricard. Pernod Ricard bought Absolut for €5.63 billion in 2008 from the Swedish state. Absolut is one of the largest brands ...
campaign. Following the merger of TBWA and Chiat/Day, he was made creative director, overseeing Absolut's early internet experiments including "Absolut Panushka", an experimental animation site; "Absolut Kelly", focusing on the work of Kevin Kelly; and "Absolut DJ", a custom online DJ application that let consumers create "visual music" and interact with musical theorists like
DJ Spooky Paul Dennis Miller (born September 6, 1970), known professionally as DJ Spooky, That Subliminal Kid, is an American electronic and experimental hip hop musician whose work is often called by critics "illbient" or "trip hop". He is a turntabli ...
and
Coldcut Coldcut are an English electronic music duo composed of Matt Black and Jonathan More. Credited as pioneers for pop sampling in the 1980s, Coldcut are also considered the first stars of UK electronic dance music due to their innovative style, ...
.


Submarine

In 1998, Braun and two partners launched Submarine, self-described as a "convergence programming studio". The studio's first project was "Absolut Director", which allowed users to create their own rescripted movies online.
Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...
,
Mary Harron Mary Harron (born January 12, 1953) is a Canadian filmmaker and screenwriter, and former entertainment critic. She gained recognition for her role in writing and directing several independent films, including '' I Shot Andy Warhol'' (1996), ''Am ...
, and Chris Smith were three of the directors who participated. The site won numerous advertising and web design awards. Submarine Entertainment, formed in 2001, expanded the entertainment activities of the previous company and reunited the Braun twins as working partners. The company, which produces and develops feature films and documentaries, has represented and sold for distribution movies, including '' Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in his own words'', ''
Blackfish Blackfish is a common name for the following species of fish, dolphins, and whales: Fish * Alaska blackfish, (''Dallia pectoralis''), an Esocidae from Alaska, Siberia and the Bering Sea islands * Black fish ('' Carassioides acuminatus'') a cypri ...
'', '' Yo Yo Ma, The Music of Strangers'', '' Life Animated'', ''
Danny Says "Danny Says" is a ballad written by Joey Ramone. The song was originally released as the third track on the Ramones' 1980 album, ''End of the Century''. The 2002 Expanded Edition CD of the album includes a demo version of "Danny Says" among the b ...
'', '' The Witness'', ''
Winter's Bone ''Winter's Bone'' is a 2010 American coming-of-age mystery drama film directed by Debra Granik. It was adapted by Granik and Anne Rosellini from the 2006 novel of the same name by Daniel Woodrell. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence as a povert ...
'', '' Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You'', '' The Wrecking Crew'', '' Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me'', '' NAS:Time is Illmatic'', ''
Muscle Shoals Muscle Shoals is the largest city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. It is located along the Tennessee River in the northern part of the state and, as of the 2010 census, the population of Muscle Shoals was 13,146. The estimated popu ...
'', ''
Cutie and the Boxer ''Cutie and the Boxer'' is a 2013 American documentary film produced, shot, and directed by Zachary Heinzerling. The film focuses on the chaotic 40-year marriage of two artists, Noriko Shinohara and her husband the boxing painter Ushio, featu ...
'', ''
Chasing Ice ''Chasing Ice'' is a 2012 documentary film about the efforts of nature photographer James Balog and his Extreme Ice Survey (EIS) to publicize the effects of climate change. The film was directed by Jeff Orlowski. It was released in the United Sta ...
'', ''
Super Size Me ''Super Size Me'' is a 2004 American documentary film directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. Spurlock's film follows a 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 2003, during which he ate only McDonald's f ...
'', '' Spellbound'', '' The Cove'', ''
Tiny Furniture ''Tiny Furniture'' is a 2010 American comedy-drama film written, directed by, and starring Lena Dunham. The film premiered at South by Southwest, where it won the award for Best Narrative Feature, screened at such festivals as Maryland Film Festiv ...
'', and '' Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work'', as well as several
Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
winners, including ''
20 Feet From Stardom ''20 Feet from Stardom'' is a 2013 American documentary film directed by documentary filmmaker Morgan Neville and produced by Gil Friesen, a music industry executive whose curiosity to know more about the lives of background singers inspired the ...
'', ''
Man on Wire ''Man on Wire'' is a 2008 documentary film directed by James Marsh. The film chronicles Philippe Petit's 1974 high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of New York's World Trade Center. It is based on Petit's 2002 book, ''To Reach the Clouds'', ...
'', '' Searching for Sugarman'' and ''
Citizenfour ''Citizenfour'' is a 2014 documentary film directed by Laura Poitras, concerning Edward Snowden and the NSA spying scandal. The film had its US premiere on October 10, 2014, at the New York Film Festival and its UK premiere on October 17, 2014, ...
''. In 2011, the company began Submarine Deluxe as a theatrical releasing division of Submarine. Braun was executive producer of the 2006 film ''
Kill Your Idols Kill Your Idols is an American hardcore punk band from New York, active from 1995 through 2007 and again from 2013 to the present. They were signed to SideOneDummy Records. Their releases on SideOne were Funeral for a Feeling (2001), a split w ...
'', which won Best NY Documentary at the 2004
Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...
; the 2010 film ''Blank City'', about 1970s experimental and no wave filmmakers; the 2014 film ''Sunshine Superman'', about base jumping; and was a producer of the 2015 film '' Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict'', about art collector
Peggy Guggenheim Marguerite "Peggy" Guggenheim ( ; August 26, 1898 – December 23, 1979) was an American art collector, bohemian and socialite. Born to the wealthy New York City Guggenheim family, she was the daughter of Benjamin Guggenheim, who went down with t ...
. Braun will executive produce the upcoming feature adaptation of "Batkid Begins" starring Julia Roberts. Braun also produced and created
web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single i ...
''The Instant Talk Show'', with host Nick Scoullar, from 2005 to 2008.


''Creepy'' and ''Eerie'' relaunch

In 1999, the Braun brothers started pursuing rights to
Warren Publishing Warren Publishing was an American magazine company founded by James Warren (publisher), James Warren, who published his first magazines in 1957 and continued in the business for decades. Magazines published by Warren include ''After Hours (magazin ...
's defunct
horror-comics Horror comics are comic books, graphic novels, black-and-white comics magazines, and manga focusing on horror fiction. In the US market, horror comic books reached a peak in the late 1940s through the mid-1950s, when concern over content and the ...
magazines ''
Creepy Creepiness is the state of being wikt:creepy, creepy, or causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or wikt:unease, unease. A person who exhibits creepy behaviour is called a creep. Certain traits or hobbies may make people seem creepy to others. The ...
'' and ''
Eerie ''Eerie'' was an American magazine of horror comics introduced in 1966 by Warren Publishing. Like '' Mad'', it was a black-and-white magazine intended for newsstand distribution and did not submit its stories to the comic book industry's voluntar ...
''. With two partners, they formed the New Comic Company, which completed the acquisitions after a seven-year negotiation. In 2008, New Comic collaborated with
Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...
to release the reprint book series ''Creepy Archives''. The first volume reached #2 on ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' Bestsellers list for graphic novels. In 2009, Braun and editor Shawna Gore won the
Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...
for Best Archival Collection. In July 2009, New Comic and Dark Horse launched the quarterly color comic book ''Creepy'' with new material. Braun, the series' consulting editor, wrote the story "Hell Hound Blues" in issue #1. Soon after, a new ''Eerie'' comic-book series began. Braun announced at the 2013 San Diego Comic Con that he and his brother, Josh, were developing a ''Creepy'' anthology movie with Chris Columbus and
1492 Pictures 1492 Pictures is an American film production company founded by Chris Columbus, Mark Radcliffe and Michael Barnathan in 1994. The name is a play on Columbus's more famous namesake, Christopher Columbus, and his 1492 landing in the Americas. In a ...
.Fleming, Mike (July 12, 2012)
"Comic-Con: Chris Columbus, Braun Brothers Plot CREEPY Magazine Feature"
''
Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with ...
''.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Braun, Dan Musicians from New York City American male composers 21st-century American composers Writers from New York (state) American editors American art directors Film producers from New York (state) Noise rock musicians 1961 births Living people 21st-century American male musicians No wave musicians