Ari Gold (filmmaker)

Ari Gold
Gold at the 43rd KVIFF
Born	San Francisco, California, United States
Occupation	Filmmaker, actor, musician

Ari Gold is an American filmmaker, actor and musician. His short film Helicopter, about the aftermath of his mother's death, won him a Student Oscar.^[1] His feature debut Adventures of Power premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and made its European debut at the 2008 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. The film was released in North America by Variance Films/Phase 4 Films. Gold is the son of writer Herbert Gold.

Career

Adventures of Power (2008) is an all-star cult comedy about a mine worker who discovers an underground subculture of air-drummers that has the power to change the world. The film was written and directed by Ari Gold, starring Ari Gold, Michael McKean, Jane Lynch, Shoshannah Stern, Chiu Chi Ling, and Adrian Grenier and featuring Steven Williams, Jimmy Jean-Louis, Annie Golden and Nick Kroll, with a cameo performance by Rush drummer Neil Peart. The film features a soundtrack with original music written by Gold's brother, Ethan Gold, and hits by Rush, Mr. Mister, Judas Priest, Phil Collins, Dazz Band, Loverboy, Bow Wow Wow, and Woody Guthrie. Although the film was not released by a studio, it was influential to several Hollywood comedies such as The Hangover and I Love You, Man. Upon the film's DVD release, Gold collaborated with the VH1 Save the Music Foundation to create Power Saves the Music, a charity auction with rock and roll memorabilia donated by Rush, Aerosmith, Phish, Ringo Starr, Styx, Ween, Weezer, Wilco, and others, to raise funds for school music programs for children.

Helicopter (2001)(copyrighted 2000) is a short film dealing with the aftermath of the death of Gold's mother, Melissa Gold, in the helicopter crash that also took the life of rock impresario Bill Graham and pilot Steve Kahn. An experimental narrative combining animated sequences and live action, the film was awarded a Student Oscar^[2][3] and also won awards at SXSW Film Festival and a number of other film festivals.

Culture (1999), which Gold directed and starred in, is a 60-second short film, shot entirely in one take with no rehearsal.^[4] Gold followed set of self-imposed rules while making the film, including “only black, white, & primary colors may be used” and “the camera must not move.” Culture premiered in the United States at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, and Reel.com called it “the best sixty seconds of film” at that festival.^[5] Although Culture has no dialogue, it offers a commentary on contemporary film and television.

The comedic short Frog Crossing (1996), which Gold co-directed with Jamie Babbit (But I'm a Cheerleader), has screened at Sundance Film Festival and was named Best Short at San Antonio Underground Film Festival. In the film, Gold plays a hippie standing by the side of a road, trying to protect the frogs crossing the road during their mating season. Gold's sister Nina also stars in the film.^[6]

Filmography

Feature Films

Short Films

Music

Gold is a member of two bands. The Gold Brothers is Gold's newest project. Joined by his brother Ethan Gold on guitar, he sings and plays ukulele.^[7]

Gold also sings in the new wave folk band The Honey Brothers. The Honey Brothers started small in 2001 by singing for people on the street corners of New York. Since then, they have released 2 studio albums, 1 live album, and even made a guest appearance on the TV show 90210. The other members of The Honey Brothers are Andrew Vladeck, Daniel Posner, Dan Green, and Adrian Grenier, star of the HBO series Entourage. (It is rumored that Gold's name was borrowed for the character Ari Gold in the HBO series Entourage.) Gold's brother Ethan Gold is a former member of the band.

References

External links

• Official site
• Ari Gold at the Internet Movie Database
• The Honey Brothers
• The Gold Brothers