Film Maker Spotlight - Jonathan Ade

Writer/Director Jonathan Ade

I need to start this entry of by saying how excited I am about presenting this particular spotlight article.  IndieHouse Rentals is all about celebrating independent film makers that are doing incredible work and there are few artists I have seen as remarkable as writer/director, Jonathan Ade. I had the privilege of meeting Jonathan at the 2012 No Budget Film Festival where I saw a screening of his short The Alchemist's Guide to Getting Over It which premiered at the opening night party. With absolutely no budget, he confidently told a beautifully intimate story through some of the most stunning cinematography I have ever seen in a short film. The thing that amazes me the most about Jonathan's films are how insanely simple the stories are, yet they are rich with hundreds of powerful moments.

Jonathan Ade on set of Meditations: ItsOkayItsOkay

You should immediately go to his website right now and watch his Meditations series of short films. My favorite of the series is Supper. One thing you will notice about Jonathan's style of directing is his astonishing attention to detail in every single shot. The lighting is always perfect. He allows his actors to live and breath in the moments. There is a constant sense of ease in all of the actors performances as well as the flow of the editing. Sometimes he just lets a shot sit there so you can really soak in the arresting beauty of that moment. It takes a lot of confidence as a director to just trust your shots and not fill the story with any extraneous distractions. Jonathan is amazing at capturing everyday life and transcending it to a magical place.



Meditations: Supper from Jonathan Ade on Vimeo.

Jonathan just completed an insanely successful Kickstarter campaign for his upcoming film, Lay in Wait. Lay in Wait is about a young married women named Maggie, who awakens to the final morning of an extramarital camping trip with her lover. During the drive back home, she is shocked to discover her wedding ring is lost. The couple returns to the forest, and in the entangled thicket of nature, Maggie desperately searches for the symbol of her matrimony. As the day yields into night, the search becomes more and more punishing. 

Lay in Wait 35mm film test with DP Alexander Paul

This film has already been on an incredible journey. Jonathan's team began pre-production on Lay in Wait over a year ago, just days after wrapping production on their latest Meditation, ItsOkayItsOkay. The script was written specifically for Elizabeth Olin, a phenomenal new talent set to appear in Killing Season, a new thriller starring Robert De Niro and John Travolta, to be released this year.

Then they spent the last year methodically gathering the immense resources necessary for this film. In the summer of 2012, they partnered with the production company Infinite Lives Entertainment and designed their fundraising promotional packets with accomplished designer and filmmaker Brad Champagne. I had the privilege of seeing these packets and they were amazing!

Jonathan used these packets to promote Lay in Wait at numerous festivals that were already showcasing his team's work. In January of 2013, his team toured the Northeast with their Meditations films, hitting Connecticut, Manhattan, Brooklyn and Northern Virginia.

In February of 2013, award-winning playwright Lucas Neff, star of Fox’s Raising Hope, signed on to be our Executive Producer, taking this project to the next level. You can see Lucas make a hilarious appearance in their promotional video below.

You are definitely going to want to follow Jonathan Ade and keep up to date on everything that his happening with Lay in Wait. Go to www.JonoKino.com . You can also follow along with our own campaign at IndieHouse Rentals.