Martin Desmond Roe
Martin Desmond Roe | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | British, American |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California (MFA, Cinema-Television, 2008) Somerville College, Oxford (B.A., Classics, 2001) |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, film producer, screenwriter |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Known for | Buzkashi Boys, Tom vs Time, Breaking2, Kobe Bryant's Muse[1] |
| Website | dirtyrobber |
Martin Desmond Roe is a British-American film and television director, writer, and producer.[2][3][1] He is best known for Buzkashi Boys (2012),[4][5] Kobe Bryant's Muse (2015),[6][3] Breaking2 (2017),[2][7][8] Tom vs Time (2018),[9] and We are the Champions (2020).[10][11][12] Roe is the founder and Creative Director of Dirty Robber, a Los Angeles–based production company.[3]
Martin Roe's short film Two Distant Strangers was met with critical acclaim; at the 93rd Academy Awards, it received the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film.[13][14]
Education
Born in Bristol, England,[15] Roe studied Latin and Ancient Greek at Somerville College, Oxford,[16] graduating in 2001 with a BA in Classics. He moved to Los Angeles and entered the USC School of Cinematic Arts, earning an MFA in Cinema and Television in 2008.[17][18]
Career
Roe became interested in filmmaking and storytelling while staging plays during his time at Oxford. After finishing USC film school he founded Dirty Robber, a production company.[16] His first major success came in 2012 when Roe co-wrote the screenplay for Buzkashi Boys, a short film that was directed by Sam French.[5] Written in a week, on location in Kabul, Afghanistan, the film was inspired by the true life story of Fawad Mohammidi,[19] a homeless 14 year old street vendor and explored his friendship with another boy and their love for the traditional horse sport Buzkashi.[5] Buzkashi Boys gained critical acclaim[20][21] winning numerous film festival awards,[22][23][24] and was nominated for the 2013 Best Live Action Short Film at the Academy Awards.[4]
In 2017, after directing a number of commercials for Nike, Inc.,[25] Roe was invited as creative lead on Breaking2 sports documentary, a joint project of Nike and National Geographic in association with Dirty Robber.[26] The documentary short followed three world class athletes, Eliud Kipchoge, Lelisa Desisa, and Zersenay Tadese as they attempted to run a marathon in under two hours.[8][27] Breaking2 won several awards in advertising industry[28][29] including a Gold Lion at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.[30] Roe also took part as an executive producer of 6 episodes for Tom vs Time, a collaborative web television series project directed by Gotham Chopra, which won Emmy Award for Outstanding Serialized Sports Documentary (NBC Sports).[9] In 2020, he co-directed the short film Two Distant Strangers, about police killings in the United States, which stars Joey Bada$$ and Andrew Howard, and which won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short in 2021.[31]
In 2023, Roe co-directed alongside Travon Free, BS High a documentary for HBO, revolving around the Bishop Sycamore High School scandal.[32][33]
Roe is an owner and creative director of Dirty Robber Productions, a Los Angeles-based company with the focus on documentaries, T.V series, shows and sports events. Among Dirty Robber's most notable productions are Religion of Sports,[34][35] Tom vs Time,[36] Kobe Bryant’s Muse (in collaboration with Kobe Inc.),[37][38] Why We Fight (ESPN+), Wiz Khalifa: Behind the Cam (DIRECTV),[39] and We are the Champions, a documentary series about various contests and sports traditions.[3][40]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | BS High | Co-director | Documentary film |
| 2020 | Two Distant Strangers | Co-director | Short[41] |
| 2020 | We are the Champions | Executive producer (6 episodes) Director (2 episodes) |
TV documentary series[2] |
| 2019 | Wiz Khalifa: Behind the Cam | Director (5 episodes) |
TV documentary mini-series[2] |
| 2019 | Why We Fight | Executive producer (15 episodes) |
TV documentary series[27] |
| 2018 | Shut Up and Dribble | Executive producer (3 episodes) |
TV documentary series[42] |
| 2018 | Tom vs Time | Executive producer (6 episodes) |
Documentary web television series (Emmy Award Winner)[9] |
| 2017 | Breaking2 | Director | TV movie documentary Cannes Gold Lions Winner Co-production of National Geographic Studios and Dirty Robber Productions[8][43] |
| 2017 | Uninterrupted Presents | Executive producer (2 episodes) |
TV series documentary |
| 2016 | Religion of Sports | Executive producer (18 episodes) Director Writer |
TV series documentary[44][45] |
| 2015 | Kobe Bryant's Muse | Producer | TV movie documentary[6] |
| 2012 | Buzkashi Boys | Co-producer Co-writer |
Short |
References
- ^ a b "Martin Roe's Filmography". IMDb.
- ^ a b c d "Brands like HP and Apple try film to reach young consumers who skip commercials". Los Angeles Times. 11 June 2019.
- ^ a b c d "US Focus: Dirty Robber". Shots Insight.
- ^ a b "Buzkashi Boys shoots for Oscar with tale of Afghan child dreamers". The Guardian. 15 February 2013.
- ^ a b c "Sam French on Buzkashi Boys, his Oscar-Nominated Short About Afghanistan's Brutal National Sport". Vanity Fair. 23 January 2013.
- ^ a b "New Film Imagines Being Kobe". Below the Line News. 17 April 2015.
- ^ "This Documentary Takes You Inside the 2-Hour Marathon Pursuit". Runners World. 14 September 2017.
- ^ a b c "Breaking2 by National Geographic and Dirty Robber for Nike". Cannes Lions.
- ^ a b c "'Tom vs. Time' is now an Emmy Award-winning show". Boston.
- ^ "'We Are the Champions' EPs on Documenting Niche Sports, Including Dog Dancing". Variety. 17 November 2020.
- ^ "Rainn Wilson's We Are The Champions Is a Docuseries With Heart". PrimeTimer. 17 November 2020.
- ^ "'We Are the Champions' Review: Netflix Doc Series Is a Lighthearted Celebration of Human Achievement". IndieWire. 17 November 2020.
- ^ "Short "Two Distant Strangers makes Oskar History. Here's why it's controversial". The Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "Oscars 2021: The Complete Winners List". Variety.
- ^ "Former Bristol Boy, Oscar nominee Martin Roe". Visit Bristol. 18 February 2016.
- ^ a b "Pro Video Coalition". Fueling creativity at Coyote Post. 29 May 2014.
- ^ "Martin Roe's Education". Personal LinkedIn profile.
- ^ "SCA In Motion - Fall 2015". University of Southern California.
- ^ "Oscars 2013: Afghan boy's astonishing journey to the Academy Awards". The Telegraph.
- ^ "Afghan Dreams: In New Film, Nation's Untold Stories". NPR.org. NPR.
- ^ Holden, Stephen (31 January 2013). "Movie Review: Far From Epic Length, but on the Shortlist for Oscar Glory". The New York Times.
- ^ "Buzkashi Boys Makes Oscar Shortlist". 30 November 2012.
- ^ "2012 Film Festival Award Winners Announced". Rhode Island International Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
- ^ "ECU Filmfestival 2013". Retrieved 21 January 2021.
- ^ "Martin Desmond Roe's Profile". AdAge.
- ^ "Nike Found an Unlikely Partner in National Geographic to Co-Produce a Marathon Documentary". AdWeek.
- ^ a b "Rep Sheet Roundup: ICM Partners Signs 'The Chi' Star Tiffany Boone". THR. 22 January 2018.
- ^ "AICP Awards - Breaking2". AICP Awards Archive.
- ^ "2018 One Show - Breaking2". The One Club.
- ^ "National Geographic Partners Takes Home Total of 9 Awards in Cannes Lion 2018 Wins First-Ever Gold Lion with "Breaking2"". National Geographic Partners. 26 June 2018.
- ^ Thorpe, Isha (2021-04-25). "Joey Badass, Travon Free and Diddy win Oscar for 'Two Distant Strangers'". REVOLT. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
- ^ Carey, Matthew (August 29, 2022). "HBO Launches Production On 'BS High,' Doc About Football Team From "Fake" School That Got Drubbed On National TV". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "HBO Original Documentary BS HIGH Debuts August 23". Warner Bros. Discovery. August 3, 2023. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "AT&T Audience Network Renews Docuseries 'Religion Of Sports' For Season 3". Deadline. 26 June 2018.
- ^ "One of the greatest MMA documentaries ever made is available to watch on Netflix right now". Sports Joe.
- ^ "Tom Brady Is Getting His Own Facebook Watch Reality Series". Variety. 9 January 2018.
- ^ "TV Review: 'Kobe Bryant's Muse'". Variety. 17 February 2015.
- ^ "Kobe Bryant's Muse". Clio Awards.
- ^ "Wiz Khalifa Gets Candid in New Documentary Series Behind the Cam". Billboard. 17 April 2019.
- ^ "Dirty Robber Production: Works". Official Website.
- ^ "Behind the Scenes of New Short Film, 'Two Distant Strangers,' About Police Killings in America". The Hollywood Reporter. 19 January 2021.
- ^ "'Shut Up and Dribble': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. November 2018.
- ^ "Breaking2: A Nike Brand Film by Martin Desmond Roe". Africa Film. 27 August 2018.
- ^ "Religion of Sports". The Futon Critic.
- ^ "AT&T Audience: Network To Debut Original Series "Religion of Sports" Nov. 15". AT&T.