Narrative, documentary, commercial, music video.

The Street Where We Live

“Vivid and haunting in its realistic depiction of Los and the future, the film is a beautiful portrait of America on the fringe.” – Mark Pellington, Director of Nostalgia, The Last Word, Blindspot, Arlington Road, The Mothman Prophecies, and U2-3D.“

Set during the financial crisis of the late 2000s, The Street Where We Live depicts the all-to-familiar story of working-class Americans whose lives were thrown into a tailspin, and were abandoned by a system driven by the bottom line.

Synopsis: Mary, a single mother with two, living paycheck to paycheck, is thrown into crisis after losing her job when the factory where she works shutters its doors. She is at the crossroads, just two paychecks away from being on the street. Providing for her children, keeping the family together, getting their lives back on track, and maintaining some form of dignity in the process, proves to be the hardest job that Mary will ever have.

Producers: Phil Garrett, Dino Tripodis
Director: John Whitney
Written by John Whitney and Dino Tripodis
Cinematographer: Gil Whitney

**East Lansing Film Festival, 2017**
**Buffalo International Film Festival, 2017**
**Outside the Loop Film Festival, 2017**
**Columbus International Film & Video Festival, 2017** (premiere)

Star and the Snowman

“Star and the Snowman is the story of two people searching for ‘normal’ in a world of death, betrayal, and revenge.”

On the surface, Star and the Snowman is a crime drama, but like the characters themselves, the film is determined to tear beneath that surface. It’s a tale of the depths to which the human soul can fall, and of the courage and strength needed to climb into the light again. The filmmakers’ intent is to transcend the conventions of genre, creating a universally potent drama whose bedrock will be the authenticity of its lead characters: two people struggling against a cruel world, armed only with the same hopes and dreams all of us share.  Star and the Snowman is a feature film in development.

Synopsis: Star and the Snowman is the story of two people searching for “normal” in a world of death, betrayal, and revenge. Snowman is a killer born into a family of violence; he knows no other way of life. Star is a woman out of control in a whirlwind of drugs and sex, unable to focus a damaged mind long enough to find an exit. When Snowman’s latest job threatens to rip open some very old wounds for them both, they find themselves torn between the opportunity to escape this hellish life, and the need to finally learn the truth about a decades-old secret which began the whole nightmare. But in their world, learning the truth always comes with a heavy price, and such debts can only be paid in blood..

Star and the Snowman – Sample Scenes

Producers: Phil Garrett, Dino Tripodis
Director: John Whitney
Writer: William Farmer
Cinematographer: Gil Whitney

Eroded

“When left unhealed, the past will destroy our lives.”

Synopsis: When Billy Reid and his sister Sheila lose loved ones in a horrific accident, they must face the aftermath together. For Billy, that aftermath and the secrets that lie within could devastate what’s left of his family. As he struggles to find his way forward, he is left with only memories. But memories are sometimes tricky things and have the power to conceal the truth.

Producer/Writer: Phil Garrett
Writer/Director: John Whitney
Cinematography: Al Laus

**Winner, Harmony Ridge Film Festival, 2011** Best Film
**Winner, Underneath Cincinnati Film Festival, 2011** Best Actor, Jon Osbeck; Best Cinematography, Al Laus; Best Composition/Musical Score, Dan Haguist; Best Visual Effects, Brad Clapper; Best Editing, John Whitney.

Eroded – Trailer 1

Eroded – Trailer 2
Music by Jessica Lea Mayfield, used in the trailer and the film with permission of the artist.

INTERVAL

Would you change the past if you could?
INTERVAL is a short low-tech science fiction drama created in collaboration with professional colleagues Ben Brown, John Whitney and Dino Tripodis.

Director/Writer: John Whitney
Producer/Writer: Phil Garrett
Executive Producer/Writer: Ben Brown
Cinematography: Gil Whitney

Meet the Phantods

Meet the Phantods is a feature-length rockumentary profiling the Columbus-based independent rock band, Phantods. “If one chooses to wander from the beaten path, they will be drawn to the sounds of Phantods, drifting over from the dark side of the hill. Phantods’ haunting melodies, driving guitars, and masterful songwriting conjure a dynamic, unique brand of music that is palatable to the widest ranges of listeners.”
– Quoted from the Phantods bio.

Produced and Written by Phil Garrett and John Whitney
Directed by John Whitney
Conceived by Phil Garrett

Trailer, 2 min TRT

“The Promising” by Phantods – Music Video

Measured Sacrifice

Synopsis: In a dystopian future America embroiled in an unending “war on terror,” a young woman named Terry, haunted by an immutable past, faces an impossible decision that will forever change her uncertain future. “Measured Sacrifice” is a dramatic low-tech science fiction film that follows the story of a young woman named Terry who faces a desperate situation and an impossible decision in a dystopian future America embroiled in an unending “war on terror”.

Producer/Visual Effects Producer by Phil Garrett, Story by John Whitney and Phil Garrett, Directed by John Whitney, Cinematographer by Gil Whitney, Associate Producers Chip Kocel and Frank Purtiman, Sound Design by Tim Dutton, Production Design by Leyna Haller, Visual Effects by Frank Purtiman, Music Score and Original Songs by Gretchen King.

Measured Sacrifice – Short Film, 18 min 

Measured Sacrifice – Visual Effects Demo Reel, 1 min 

Commercial Work Examples

e-Play Teasers
These teasers were produced in 2007 for the now-defunct company e-Play. The spots feature actress Jennifer Schaaf Osbeck. Three teasers are cut together in this video.
Writer/Director: Phil Garrett
Agency/Production: SOS.

Columbus Blue Jackets/Huntington Bank Spot
The Columbus Blue Jackets/Huntington Bank spots were produced with Engauge and Planetary Media in 2010. Variations of this spot were broadcast and ran on the jumbo-tron at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Producer/AD/Editor/VFX: Phil Garrett
Producer: Dave Lee, Planetary Media
Director/DP: Wayne Sells
VFX/Digital Painter: Don Drennan
Additional VFX: Evan Cooksey
Models: Leyna Haller
Production: Planetary Media
Agency: Engauge

NATO/Pilobolus Animatic
This animatic was created for a pitch to NATO for a new campaign. The concept of the piece is, in essence, bringing the world together, visualized by the choreographer/dancer company Pilobolus. The action of the piece is that the dancers would spring “on-stage”, then come together to represent Earth, and finally they would morph into the NATO logo.
Producer, editor: Phil Garrett
Producer: Dave Lee, Planetary Media
Storyboard Artist: Leyna Haller
Co-editor: Evan Cooksey
Agency: Engauge

Lyle Divinsky’s “Hit Man”

Lyle Divinsky is a New York-based performer/songwriter. This shot guerilla-style performance music video was shot 14th Street station on the 6th Avenue line
Produced/Shot/Edited by Phil Garrett