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Director Biography - Cole Johnson
Cole Johnson is a writer/director born and raised in North Alabama. After graduating with a B.F.A in Cinematic Arts and Theatre from the University of North Alabama, he moved to New York where he is currently pursuing his M.F.A in Film Production at New York University. Cole has won numerous festival awards for his short films, including: Best Student Film at the George Lindsey Film Festival, Asylum Horror Film Festival, and Southern Film Festival; Audience Choice Award at Sioux City International Film Festival and the Rising Tide Film Festival. In addition, his two most recent films, “Bless the Child” and “When Things Ended,” have been official selections of Orlando Film Festival, New York Shorts International Film Festival, and Sidewalk Film Festival. Cole strives to tell southern stories and bring unique characters to life that may otherwise never be seen. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
Director Statement
Before I began my graduate studies at New York University, I felt so ready to leave the American south and experience what the rest of the world had to offer. Having been born and raised in Alabama, I felt as though there was an untapped well of stories that existed beyond the state’s borders. However, once I got accepted into graduate school, a strange thing happened – all the stories that I conceived and longed to tell were set in the state that I grew up in. Now, in my second year of studies, I feel more eager and prepared than ever to come home and tell the stories I grew up seeing. To introduce the characters I grew up around. And to portray the region of the world that I have always known. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
In the story of “Cottonmouth,” I hope to convey universal, relatable themes through the nuanced world of the southeast United States. This is a story about love and the unrelenting need for it. In contrast, it is also an exploration in how we as humans tend to hurt those we love the most. I aim to explore how this hurt can eventually manifest itself and affect the characters and those around them. We all have done things in life we are not proud of. Sometimes, it’s as if life is a soda bottle and it is in the hands of somebody who can’t seem to stop shaking it. With this film, we aim to see what happens when that bottle finally bursts…
- DirectorCole Johnson
- ProducerKyrah Holley
- CastRyan Perich, Dylan Pitan, Rosalie Youngza,
Director Biography - Cole Johnson
Cole Johnson is a writer/director born and raised in North Alabama. After graduating with a B.F.A in Cinematic Arts and Theatre from the University of North Alabama, he moved to New York where he is currently pursuing his M.F.A in Film Production at New York University. Cole has won numerous festival awards for his short films, including: Best Student Film at the George Lindsey Film Festival, Asylum Horror Film Festival, and Southern Film Festival; Audience Choice Award at Sioux City International Film Festival and the Rising Tide Film Festival. In addition, his two most recent films, “Bless the Child” and “When Things Ended,” have been official selections of Orlando Film Festival, New York Shorts International Film Festival, and Sidewalk Film Festival. Cole strives to tell southern stories and bring unique characters to life that may otherwise never be seen. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
Director Statement
Before I began my graduate studies at New York University, I felt so ready to leave the American south and experience what the rest of the world had to offer. Having been born and raised in Alabama, I felt as though there was an untapped well of stories that existed beyond the state’s borders. However, once I got accepted into graduate school, a strange thing happened – all the stories that I conceived and longed to tell were set in the state that I grew up in. Now, in my second year of studies, I feel more eager and prepared than ever to come home and tell the stories I grew up seeing. To introduce the characters I grew up around. And to portray the region of the world that I have always known. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
In the story of “Cottonmouth,” I hope to convey universal, relatable themes through the nuanced world of the southeast United States. This is a story about love and the unrelenting need for it. In contrast, it is also an exploration in how we as humans tend to hurt those we love the most. I aim to explore how this hurt can eventually manifest itself and affect the characters and those around them. We all have done things in life we are not proud of. Sometimes, it’s as if life is a soda bottle and it is in the hands of somebody who can’t seem to stop shaking it. With this film, we aim to see what happens when that bottle finally bursts…
- DirectorCole Johnson
- ProducerKyrah Holley
- CastRyan Perich, Dylan Pitan, Rosalie Youngza,