Christopher Renz
Christopher Renz is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Since 2012, he has collaborated with husband Gerard Bush via the directing/screenwriting duo Bush Renz, whose work includes the 2020 Lionsgate film Antebellum – featured in Variety’s top 10 films of 2020[1] – the upcoming HBO Max TV Series Inkwell, and the documentary All Deliberate Speed.[2]
Bush Renz were named “Hollywood’s new power directing duo” by The Hollywood Reporter,[3] and also appeared on the Out100 2020 list of the most influential LGBTQ+ people in America.[4]
Film career[edit]
Bush Renz collaborated with Harry Belafonte in 2016 to produce a PSA about police brutality entitled “Against the Wall”.[5] The work starred Michael B. Jordan, Michael K. Williams, and Danny Glover. In 2017, they wrote and directed a short film for the song “Kill Jay Z”, from Jay Z’s album 4:44,[6] followed by a music short for Maxwell (“The Glass House”) and music videos for Khalid and Normani.
In 2020, Bush Renz released their first feature-length work, the high-concept horror thriller film Antebellum. Starring Janelle Monáe, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, Kiersey Clemons, and Gabourey Sidibe, Antebellum follows a 21st Century African-American woman who mysteriously finds herself in a Southern slave plantation. In an NPR interview, Renz said of the film, “we feel that horror is a great way in for general audiences who may not . . . normally receive a message like this. So we kind of want to hide the medicine inside this - what seems to be a horror film so that you walk away a different person.”[7]
Antebellum received a polarized response upon release. David Ehrlich of IndieWire wrote, "An artful and provocative movie about the enduring horror of America's original sin, Antebellum can't follow through on its own concept."[8] Conversely, Out called Antebellum one of the year's most innovative films,[9] while Peter Debruge of Variety called the film a “wickedly effective horror-movie metaphor for white supremacy’s enduring grip on American society,” and included it on his list of the ten best films of 2020.[10]
Projects in development include an HBO Max TV drama series entitled Inkwell,[11] and a second feature film called Rapture.[12]
Additional activism[edit]
In June 2020, amidst the protest movement following the murder of George Floyd, Renz and Bush took the reins of Lionsgate's Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook feeds, posting an image of a Confederate monument overlaid with Black Lives Matter protest art. Subsequent posts included short videos of James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, and Nina Simone discussing racism, and a biographic-themed post on the killing of Breonna Taylor. “We want to educate,” said Renz, remarking on the Taylor post. “So many people are speaking about [these issues] on social media, but a large percentage of the population doesn’t know who [Taylor] is, so we thought it was important to highlight that.”[13]
Personal life[edit]
Renz was born and raised in Connecticut. He now lives in Malibu, California with husband Bush.
References[edit]
- ^ Debruge, Peter; Gleiberman, Owen (2020-12-08). "The Best Films of 2020". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
- ^ "Antebellum Filmmaker Gerard Bush on Black Lives Matter". Vanity Fair. 10 June 2020.
- ^ Abramovitch, Seth (2020-09-21). "From Social Action Campaigns to 'Antebellum': Meet Hollywood's Power Directing Duo". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "See the Full 2020 Out100 List Here". www.out.com. 2020-11-19. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Roshanian, Arya (October 12, 2016). "Michael B. Jordan, Danny Glover, Others Star in Chilling Police Violence PSA".
- ^ "JAY-Z Shares Music Video For "Kill Jay Z"". The FADER. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "'Antebellum': A Movie That Uses Horror To Process America's Racial Problems". NPR. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Ehrlich, David (2020-08-31). "'Antebellum' Review: Janelle Monáe's American Horror Story Trips on Its Own Wild Twists". IndieWire. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ "Meet the Gay Couple Behind 2020's Most Polarizing Film, 'Antebellum'". www.out.com. 2020-11-16. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Debruge, Peter; Gleiberman, Owen (2020-12-08). "The Best Films of 2020". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Petski, Denise (2020-12-21). "'Inkwell' Drama From Gerard Bush & Christopher Renz in Works At HBO Max". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ Vlessing, Etan (2020-05-01). "Lionsgate Lands 'Rapture' From Directors Gerard Bush, Christopher Renz". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
- ^ LaPorte, Nicole (2020-06-29). "These filmmakers turned their studio's social media into a platform for Black Lives Matter". Fast Company. Retrieved 2021-08-11.