Justin Townsend at the premiere of Frank Miller - American Genius at the Rome Film Festival.
Justin Townsend at the premiere of Frank Miller - American Genius at the Rome Film Festival.
One of New Zealand's most successful creative exports, Justin Townsend, has completed his first movie.
Townsend is executive producer on Frank Miller: American Genius — a movie about the life of the famed comic-book creator.
Miller is known for his graphic novel hits such as Batman, Daredevil, Sin City, and300. Townsend and his creative partner, Rafael Grampa, alongside Miller and the film's director, Silenn Thomas, debuted the movie at the Rome Film Fest last weekend.
Townsend has spent more than a decade in Europe and tells Spy his love of music led him into the creative industries.
For five years he was head of global production for Adidas — a job which saw him work with artists including Stormzy, Pharrell Williams and Snoop Dogg. He also worked with footballers Lionel Messi, David Beckham and basketballer James Harden.
In 2013 he collaborated with Grampa on a short animated film called Dark Noir that led to them eventually becoming creative partners, working on projects with big brands such as Chanel.
The pair went to Miller's studio in the Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood of New York to talk shop and to kick off a collaborative project that they would end up working on for the next three years.
"The project was The Dark Knight Returns: The Golden Child, published by DC Comics. It's an extension of Frank's legendary Batman series The Dark Knight Returns," says Townsend.
Silenn Thomas and Frank Miller at the premiere of Frank Miller - American Genius at the Rome Film Festival.
"It was a great honour for us to work on a graphic novel with Frank and his producer Silenn, especially as DKR is considered Batman canon."
Thomas and Townsend developed a great working relationship as producers, which led to Townsend's involvement in the film.
"If you are a fan of Sin City, 300, and Batman, there is a lot of detail in the movie on how the stories were conceived and also how all the movies were made," Townsend tells Spy from his home in Amsterdam.
"The story is also told through contemporaries and collaborators of Franks: legendary directors, actors, and artists who give rare interviews about how he influenced them and how he works."
After premiering the movie in Rome, Townsend hopes to have it globally streaming before the end of the year. He hopes the film is the first of many and says they are now working on new ideas. Before the cameras roll again, he hopes to get back to New Zealand for a refresh.
"I used to come home every couple of years and luckily managed to be in New Zealand in February 2020 before all the travel restrictions. I really miss my friends and family, and of course the nature in New Zealand. I'm looking forward to visiting again next year."
