filmmaker
Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...
.
Education
Devlin is a B.A. graduate of the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
. While in high school he penned a now widely-shared - especially during the annual college admission season - 'I reject your rejection' letter to Harvard (and other colleges) that sent him rejections.
Tour de France
The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...
, Devlin's films include '' Power Trip'', which screened in 60 countries, theatrically across the United States and on PBS's Independent Lens, was nominated for an
Independent Spirit Award
The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glas ...
, and has won 10 film festival awards, including top prizes at Berlin, Hot Docs-Toronto, and Florida.
Devlin also made the award-winning film ''
SlamNation
''SlamNation'' is a documentary film by director Paul Devlin. The film follows the National Poetry Slam in Portland, Oregon.
It follows the 1996 Nuyorican Poetry Slam team ( Saul Williams, Beau Sia, muMs da Schemer and Jessica Care Moore) as th ...
'', which follows the fierce competition at the
National Poetry Slam The National Poetry Slam (NPS) is a performance poetry competition where teams from across the United States, Canada, and, occasionally, Europe and Australia, participate in a large-scale poetry slam. The event occurs in early August every year an ...
and helped popularize the dynamic genre with its release in theaters and on HBO/Cinemax and Encore/Starz. An interview with Devlin compromises an entire chapter in the book ''Words In Your Face: A Guided Tour through the New York City
Poetry Slam
A poetry slam is a competitive art event in which poets perform spoken word poetry before a live audience and a panel of judges. While formats can vary, slams are often loud and lively, with audience participation, cheering and dramatic delivery. ...
,'' which refers to the movie as "Slam's Second Bible."Aptowicz, Cristin O'Keefe. (2008). ''Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam.''
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
: Soft Skull Press. p. 137. .
His second film - '' Power Trip'' - captures a clash of culture that combusts, when an American energy company, AES, must transform the dysfunctional electricity distribution system in Tbilisi, capital of the former Soviet Republic of
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. Power Trip was nominated for the 2004 Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary. Power Trip is available on home and educational DVD, as well as for download on iTunes.
His film '' BLAST!'' follows a team of international astrophysicists led by Paul's brother, Dr. Mark Devlin, as they attempt to launch a telescope on a
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
high-altitude balloon. ''BLAST!'' is currently available on DVD for home and educational release. ''BLAST!'' is the first film to ever partner with the website
ArtistShare
ArtistShare is the internet's first commercial crowdfunding website.Crowd-Funding 101: What Every Musician Needs for a Successful Campaign It also operates as a record label and business model for artists which enables them to fund their projec ...
- a website that allows fans to support the work of their favorite artists.
Devlin's latest film, ''The Front Man'', is a documentary which follows the rock-and-roll career of the Loaded Poets, a band from North
Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat, seat of government of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New Brunswick music scene.
His other credits include his fiction film ''The Eyes of St. Anthony'' and his work as producing editor on the organic film ''FREESTYLE: The Art of Rhyme'', broadcast on VH1 and winner of the Special Jury Award for Documentary Filmmaking at the Florida Film Festival.
As an editor, Devlin's credits include commercials, music videos, television shows, and major sports broadcasts, including CBS's Super Bowls and
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
World Cup Soccer
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition between the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has been ...
.
Personal life
Devlin is married to Emily Raabe.
Director filmography
*''
SlamNation
''SlamNation'' is a documentary film by director Paul Devlin. The film follows the National Poetry Slam in Portland, Oregon.
It follows the 1996 Nuyorican Poetry Slam team ( Saul Williams, Beau Sia, muMs da Schemer and Jessica Care Moore) as th ...
''
*'' Power Trip''
*'' BLAST!''
*''Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme''
*''The Front Man''
*''Slammin': The Sport of Spoken Word''
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...