Jônatas "Joe" de Moura Penna (born May 29, 1987) is a Brazilian musician and filmmaker best known from both his YouTube channel MysteryGuitarMan and his feature films. He resides in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
.
YouTube
Penna maintains the YouTube channel MysteryGuitarMan. He registered the channel on June 16, 2006.
By January 2011, MysteryGuitarMan became the most subscribed channel in Brazil.
, his channel has garnered over 2.6 million subscribers, and his videos have accrued nearly 400 million views.
On September 11, 2005, Penna launched a second YouTube channel, where he uploads his
making-of
In cinema, behind-the-scenes (BTS), also known as the making-of, the set, or on the set, is a type of documentary film that features the production of a film or television program. This is often referred to as the EPK (electronic press kit) vid ...
videos and
vlogs
A video blog or video log, sometimes shortened to vlog (), is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in ...
. Within 6 hours, it became the third most subscribed channel in Brazil.
In 2007, Penna was one of the first YouTube channels to receive mainstream media coverage, including attention from DC Fox News,
after his video ''The Puzzle'' was featured on the front page of YouTube.
In 2009, Penna was again seen on the front page of YouTube with his video ''Guitar: Impossible'', which has been covered by ''De Wereld Draait Door'', the highest-rated
primetime
Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
show in the Netherlands.
On December 6, 2009, Penna was featured on
FM4
FM4 is an Austrian national radio station operated by the ORF. Its main target is the youth audience, and much of the music output is characterised by an alternative rock and electronic music slant.
Programmimg
The programming of ''FM4'' is als ...
, an Austrian national radio station.
Shortly after uploaded, his ''"Guitar: Impossible"'' video was featured on the MSN.com front page.
Best Buy announced Penna as the $15,000 winner of their Tech-U-Out Video Challenge. He was also a finalist in the "
Oreo
Oreo () (stylized as OREO) is a brand of sandwich cookie consisting of two biscuits or cookie pieces with a sweet creme filling. It was introduced by Nabisco on March 6, 1912, and through a series of corporate acquisitions, mergers and split ...
Global Moments" video competition.
Ford selected Penna as a Fiesta Agent for the 2009 Ford Fiesta Movement.
[
] Penna's ''"Guitar: Impossible"'' video was also featured by YouTube as one of the best videos of 2009.
In 2010, Penna's ''Root Beer Mozart"l'' was featured on
CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
's morning show ''
Morning Express with Robin Meade
''Morning Express with Robin Meade'' is a morning news program that aired on the HLN television network in the United States from 2005 to December 5, 2022.
About the show
''Morning Express with Robin Meade'' aired weekdays on HLN from 6:00 am ...
'' and on Germany's nationally broadcast ''Taff'' show.
Television
In 2009, Penna directed an ad in collaboration with
Rhett and Link
Rhett James McLaughlin (born October 11, 1977) and Charles Lincoln "Link" Neal III (born June 1, 1978) are an American comedy duo. Self-styled as "Internetainers" (a portmanteau of "Internet" and "entertainers"), they are known for creating and ...
titled ''T-Shirt War''. It garnered international attention.
[
] Shortly after, Penna was selected as one of the top 10 new directors at the 20th Cannes Lions Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors' Showcase.
Following the success of the original, Penna and the original cast were hired to produce a national television and cinema spot for
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
and
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...
.
[
] A year later, Penna directed and starred in yet another commercial for the two companies.
In June 2010, Penna was highlighted by
CNN Money
CNN Business (formerly CNN Money) is a financial news and information website, operated by CNN. The website was originally formed as a joint venture between CNN.com and Time Warner's ''Fortune'' and ''Money'' magazines. Since the spin-off of Time ...
on their ''Best Jobs'' series.
[
]
His stop-motion short film ''Guitar: Impossible'' was selected to be displayed at the Guggenheim museum.
[
][
]
In 2012, Penna co-wrote and directed an original interactive thriller series titled ''Meridian'' starring
Orlando Jones
Orlando Jones (born April 10, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He is known for being one of the original cast members of the sketch comedy series ''MADtv'', for his role as the 7 Up spokesman from 1999 to 2002, and for his role a ...
and
Rick Overton
Richard Overton (born August 10, 1954) is an American screenwriter, actor and comedian. His writing credits include ''Dennis Miller Live'', and his acting credits include ''Beverly Hills Cop'', ''Groundhog Day'' and ''Mrs. Doubtfire''.
Life and ...
in conjunction with
Fourth Wall Studios
Fourth Wall Studios is an entertainment studio founded in 2007 by Jim Stewartson, Elan Lee and Sean Stewart. Fourth Wall develops a wide range of entertainment properties, delivered via Internet browsers, smartphones, game consoles, TVs, movie sc ...
.
[
]
In August 2014, Penna was announced as the host of ''Xploration Earth 2050'', a technology-oriented television series.
''Xploration Station'' went on to receive eight
Daytime Emmy Award
The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...
nominations.
Film
In March 2016, his short film ''Turning Point'' was selected to play at the
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 ...
.
In February 2017, Penna began production of his directorial debut feature film, ''
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
''. It was shot in Iceland and stars
Mads Mikkelsen
Mads Dittmann Mikkelsen, (; born 22 November 1965) is a Danish actor. Originally a gymnast and dancer, he rose to fame in Denmark as an actor for his roles such as Tonny in the first two films of the ''Pusher'' film trilogy (1996, 2004), Det ...
. ''Arctic'' garnered enthusiastic reviews as an Official Selection for the
2018 Cannes Film Festival
The 71st annual Cannes Film Festival was held from 8 to 19 May 2018. Australian actress Cate Blanchett acted as President of the Jury. The Japanese film ''Shoplifters'', directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, won the Palme d'Or.
Asghar Farhadi's psycho ...
. Its theatrical premiere was on February 1, 2019.
In June 2019, Penna began shooting on the sci-fi movie ''
Stowaway
A stowaway or clandestine traveller is a person who secretly boards a vehicle, such as a ship, an aircraft, a train, cargo truck or bus.
Sometimes, the purpose is to get from one place to another without paying for transportation. In other cas ...
'' starring
Anna Kendrick
Anna Cooke Kendrick (born August 9, 1985) is an American actress. She has received various accolades, including a Satellite Award, five Teen Choice Awards, three MTV Movie Awards, and nominations for an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award a ...
and
Toni Collette
Toni Collette Galafassi (born Toni Collett; 1 November 1972) is an Australian actress, producer, singer, and songwriter. Known for her work in television and independent films, she has received various accolades throughout her career, includ ...
.
References
External links
MysteryGuitarMan YouTube homepageMysteryGuitarMan's Website*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penna, Joe
1987 births
21st-century guitarists
21st-century male musicians
Big Frame people
Brazilian expatriates in the United States
Brazilian film directors
Brazilian guitarists
Brazilian Internet celebrities
Brazilian male guitarists
Brazilian YouTubers
Living people
Male YouTubers
Music YouTubers
People from São Paulo
YouTube filmmakers