Doug Pray

Bio: SURFWISE director Doug Pray has made a wide variety of documentary films, music videos and commercials, but he is best known for his four feature-length films that have explored popular American subcultures.

His first film was HYPE!, a candid look back at the emergence and explosion of the Seattle rock music scene. The award-winning documentary premiered… More Bio: SURFWISE director Doug Pray has made a wide variety of documentary films, music videos and commercials, but he is best known for his four feature-length films that have explored popular American subcultures.

His first film was HYPE!, a candid look back at the emergence and explosion of the Seattle rock music scene. The award-winning documentary premiered at Sundance, was released theatrically coast-to-coast, and went on to receive international distribution in all media (now Lions Gate/Artisan). A major critical success, HYPE! received "Two Thumbs Up!" from Siskel & Ebert, and was called, "A brilliant synthesis of social anthropology and entertainment," by the Los Angeles Times.

A few years later, SCRATCH debuted at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival. It was a dynamic exploration of the world of hip-hop DJs and "turntablism." Premiere magazine called it "...an amazing, life-affirming movie." SCRATCH was released domestically in 2002 by Palm Pictures and worldwide by Intermedia Films. It was nominated for an IFP Independent Spirit Award, and the best-selling DVD is still widely available.

Last year, Image Entertainment released INFAMY into stores nationwide after it played in 35 global cities with RESfest as well as a US tour sponsored by Scion. Filmed with a handheld camera by Doug, this low-budget, underground film is an intense exploration of the world of illegal graffiti and six of America's most notorious vandals. Raw and revealing, it's been unanimously embraced by the international graffiti community and described by Vapors Magazine as being "unrivaled by any graffiti film to date." (visit: www.infamythemovie.com)

His most recent feature documentary is BIG RIG, which is being released nationwide in June 2008 by Screen Media Films (Universal) and a multi-city truckstop tour sponsored by Sirius Satellite Radio. A broad portrait of America told through the eyes of long-haul truck drivers, "BIG RIG" premiered at SXSW and won the AFM Market award at Silverdocs. Directed, shot and edited by Doug (who teamed again with SCRATCH producer Brad Blondheim), this massive road film portrays 25,000 miles of U.S. highways, 45 states, and a fiercely independent group of truck drivers who defend their role as America's "last cowboys." The Washington Post said, "Watch this movie, meet these very real people, and you'll never look at a passing 18-wheeler the same way again."

Check out: www.bigrigmovie.com

Other projects include: LAUNCH (working title, a/k/a THE ALCHEMISTS currently in production), an exploration of the greatest minds in advertising and the cultural impact they've had (a project of The One Club); RED DIAPER BABY, a feature-length performance film of Josh Kornbluth's hysterical and emotional stage monologue (Sundance Channel), and SUNDANCE 20, which was the first ever look-behind-the-scenes at the Sundance filmmakers lab (with Robert Redford, Sigourney Weaver, and others). Earlier in his career, Doug directed numerous music videos and has edited them for everyone from Eazy-E to Steve Earle. In 1999, he also edited the feature AMERICAN PIMP for directors Albert and Allen Hughes.

In the commercial world, Doug won an Emmy Award in 2006 for an HIV-AIDS awareness campaign he shot and directed in El Salvador. He also directed a highly regarded series of short films about London workers for Dr. Martens and a national TV campaign for gay rights in the workplace for the Gill Foundation, which won a Bronze Clio and a Bronze Lion at the Cannes Advertising Festival. He is repped by the Oil Factory for whom he has directed ads and short films for PBS, Ford, Kodak, Adidas, Nike, Sprite, AT&T, and Kaiser Permanente, among others.