Seith Mann

Seith Mann (born 1973)Cite web|url=http://www.blackenterprise.com/cms/exclusivesopen.aspx?id=2620&p=0|title=Mann on the Move|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Black Enterprise|year=2007-03-14|author=George Alexander"March 14, 2007...At 33, the D.C. native is one of the youngest African Americans directing television dramas"] is an African-American film and television director. He directed the award-winning "Five Deep Breaths" and has gone on to direct for "The Wire" and "Grey's Anatomy".

Biography

Mann was inspired to become a director when he saw the Spike Lee film "Do The Right Thing".Cite web|url=http://www.blackenterprise.com/cms/exclusivesopen.aspx?id=2620&p=0|title=Mann on the Move|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Black Enterprise|year=2007-03-14|author=George Alexander] Mann graduated from Morehouse College and later earned an MFA in film at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.Cite web|url=http://www.filmmakermagazine.com/summer2003/features/25_faces1-5.php|title=25 NEW FACES OF INDIE FILM 2003|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Film Maker Magazine|year=2003]

Five Deep Breaths

Mann's thesis at New York University was the short film "Five Deep Breaths". It was awarded the Spike Lee fellowship while in development in 2002.Cite web|url=http://www.floridafilmfestival.com/archive2004/films_shorts.html|title=American Independent Competition: Short Films|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Florida Film Festival|year=2003] The film is set an all-black college and deals with the aftermath of a physical assault upon a young woman by her boyfriend, and the actions of the victim's secret lover and his friends.Cite web|url=http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2008/01/see_the_short_that_landed_filmmaker_seith_mann.html |title=See the Short That Got Filmmaker Seith Mann a Job on ‘The Wire’ |accessdate=2008-03-10|publisher=Vulture Picture Palace|year=2008] Mann has commented that he likes morally ambiguous situations. The short starred Jamie Hector and the score was composed by jazz musician Jason Moran.

The film premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. It won first place in the Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation award (for Best Short Film), and The Carl Lerner Award for Film with Social Significance at the 2003 New York University First Run Festival. It was selected to screen at the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival and one of four American shorts to screen at the Cinefondation Competition at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. It won a Gold Plaque for Narrative Short Film at the 2003 Chicago International Film Festival.Cite web|url=http://www.chicagofilmfestival.org/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CIFFSite.woa/wa/pages/Fest_winners03|title=39th Chicago International Film Festival Winners|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Chicago International Film Festival|year=2003] It also won the Best Narrative Short Film award at the 2003 Los Angeles IFP/West Film Festival.Cite web|url=http://www.moviecitynews.com/Notepad/2003/030622_pr.html|title=NINTH ANNUAL IFP LOS ANGELES FILM FESTIVAL|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Movie City News|year=2003]

Film maker magazine named Mann one of their 25 new faces of independent film in 2003. They praised his direction of "Five Short Breaths" as "skillful". The IFP gave Mann the Gordon Parks Awards for Emerging African-American Filmmakers following the film's release.Cite web|url=http://www.ifp.org/ifpnews/newsitem.php?archive=1&id=253&chapter=1|title=Rosie Perez Hosts IFP Market Awards|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=IFP|year=2003]

Television

Television producer Robert F. Colesberry saw "Five Deep Breaths" and introduced the other producers of HBO drama "The Wire" to it. The producers approached Mann and asked him to shadow their directors during production of the third season in 2004. Show runner David Simon recalls that Colesberry wanted Mann to direct a third season episode but Colesberry's untimely death left the other producers reeling and they felt unable to risk a directorial debut in their first season withou him.Cite web|url=http://members.aol.com/TheWireHBO/exclusive4-5.html|title=3rd Exclusive David Simon interview|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=The Wire at AOL|year=2003|author=Jim King Page 5] Simon recalls Mann shadowing director Ernest R. Dickerson and showing a "careful interest in the process."

In 2006 Mann joined the directing crew of "The Wire"'s fourth season.Cite web|url=http://www.hbo.com/thewire/cast/crew/season_4.shtml|title="The Wire" season 4 crew|accessdate=2007-10-14|publisher=HBO|year=2007] Simon felt obligated to give Mann a chance after his dedication to shadowing Dickerson. Mann made his television directing debut with the third episode of the season, "Home Rooms".cite episode
title = Home Rooms
episodelink = Home Rooms (The Wire episode)
series = The Wire
serieslink = The Wire (TV series)
credits = Seith Mann
writers = Richard Price (story and teleplay), Ed Burns (story)
network = HBO
station =
city =
airdate = 2004-09-24
season = 4
number = 03] cite web
year = 2006
title = Episode guide - episode 40 Home Rooms
publisher = HBO
accessdate = 2006-09-25
url = http://www.hbo.com/thewire/episode/season4/episode40.shtml] Simon was pleased with the episode and described it as "beautifully covered."

Mann also was an ABC DGA Fellow class of 2005, a fellowship aimed at encouraging "diversity of race, gender and spirit in the filmmaking community."Cite web|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20060209abc01|title=DISNEY/ABC WRITING AND DIRECTING PROGRAMS REACH MILESTONE WITH MORE THAN 200 PARTICIPANTS TO DATE|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=ABC|year=2003] In 2007 Mann was nominate for an NAACP Image Award in the category Outstanding Directing in a Dramatic Series for his work on episode "Home Rooms".Cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/features/e3i1df4dfd4706f9fc31fefc3974392be1d|title=2007 Image Award nominees and winners|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Hollywood Reporter|year=2007] Mann has commented that he was "excited" to receive the nomination and grateful to the NAACP for their work.

After "The Wire" Mann worked on "Grey's Anatomy" directing two episodes in 2006, "Name of the Game" and "Don't Stand So Close to Me". In 2007 Mann was nominated for a DGA Award in the category Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for his work on the "Name of the Game".Cite web|url=http://www.variety.com/awardcentral_article/VR1117957187.html?nav=news&categoryid=1985&cs=1|title=DGA nominates TV favorites|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Variety|year=2007|author=Dave McNary] Cite web|url=http://www.variety.com/awardcentral_article/VR1117958446.html?nav=eoodirdga|title=Directors guild award nominees|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=Variety|year=2007] Mann has also directed episodes of "Cold Case", "Lincoln Heights", "Jericho", "Entourage", "Friday Night Lights", "Men in Trees", and "Shark".

Future projects

Mann is working on a feature film script entitled "Come Sunday". The script won two development awards (the Emerging Narrative Screenwriting Award and the Gordon Parks Award for Screenwriting) from the IFP in 2004.Cite web|url=http://www.indiewire.com/ots/onthescene_040924ifp.html|title=IFP/New York Presents Six Awards At Annual IFP Market|accessdate=2007-11-05|publisher=IndieWIRE|year=2003|author=Brian Brooks]

Filmography

Director

Editor

*"All We Know of Heaven" (2004)
*"Where to Find God on Sunday" (2000)
*"Kiss It Up to God" (2000)

Writer

*"Five Deep Breaths" (2003)
*"Apology" (2001)

Assistant Director

*"The Living Silence" (2003)

References

External links

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