Michael D'Anna (born February 16, 1972,

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

, United States) is an American film director, best known for his work in

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apo ...

Biography

D'Anna began his filmmaking career in the early 1990s editing commercials and documentaries for clients throughout the southeastern United States. He then made the move into documentary filmmaking in 1998 with the television series ''Religions of the World'', hosted by

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...

winner

Ben Kingsley Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, and tw ...

. A lifelong devotee of the

genre, he made his feature directorial debut in 2007 with the

Lionsgate Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian- American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquarter ...

release ''

Side Sho ''Side Sho'' is a 2007 horror film directed by Michael D'Anna. The film was shot in and around Savannah, Georgia, and won the awards for Best Feature Film and Best Original Score at the 2007 Terror Film Festival. It was released on DVD July 29, 20 ...

'', taking home the award for Best Feature Film at the 2007

Terror Film Festival Terror(s) or The Terror may refer to: Politics * Reign of Terror, commonly known as The Terror, a period of violence (1793–1794) after the onset of the French Revolution * Terror (politics), a policy of political repression and violence Emotio ...

. As of 2011, D'Anna teaches directing and documentary filmmaking at the Nashville Film Institute in

Franklin, Tennessee Franklin is a city in and county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. About south of Nashville, it is one of the principal cities of the Nashville metropolitan area and Middle Tennessee. As of 2020, its population was 83,454 ...

. He is also a dealer & collector of rare movie posters and memorabilia, with one of the largest collections in the southeastern United States.

Filmography

*''Religions of the World'' (1998) – Director, film editor *''The Shelter (2005 film) – Editor *''

'' (2007) – Director, editor *''Chainsaw Cheerleaders'' (2009) – Editor *''

Dogheads The characteristic of cynocephaly, or cynocephalus (), having the head of a canid, typically that of a dog or jackal, is a widely attested mythical phenomenon existing in many different forms and contexts. The literal meaning of "cynocephaly" is ...

'' (2010) – Director, writer *''

Dark as a Dungeon "Dark as a Dungeon" is a song written by singer-songwriter Merle Travis. It is a lament about the danger and drudgery of being a coal miner in a shaft mine. It has become a rallying song among miners seeking improved working conditions. The so ...

'' (2011) – Director, writer

References

External links

* 1972 births Living people Mass media people from Nashville, Tennessee Horror film directors Film directors from Tennessee {{US-film-director-1970s-stub