Today we’d like to introduce you to Peter Brant.
Hi Peter, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up and studied film in the Midwest. Had my first production experience in New Zealand before coming to LA. I ignored most everyone’s advice that I should focus on one career path. Instead, I continued to embrace all of my interests; music, film, and drawing. Together, those loves have let me build a dynamic range of skills that have made me useful and a unique identity.
When I look back, I am grateful for the times when things fell into place. Like when I first arrived in LA, my mom gave me her 2002 Honda Odyssey minivan. It became a de-facto production vehicle for my friends and me. We shot rolling dolly shots for a Rodarte fashion film, rumbled down CA-1 while shooting a Charlotte Gainsbourg music video, and carried all the equipment for my first film. I try not to get to attached to objects, but I do feel like that is one example of how something as unexpected and simple as a hand-me-down van allowed me to have more opportunities. Maybe things wouldn’t have worked out the same way if I had a compact instead. It was also pretty amazing for camping.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Like almost anyone that makes creative work their primary source of income without initial cache or connections… my path has been a bit of a grind, meandering and luck-driven. I have been fortunate to have proven myself to mentors and friends that have then helped me navigate the creative landscape and introduced me to potential opportunities.
The toughest challenges have always been at transition points where life is sort of telling me to go in a new direction, try a new place, or to eliminate something I care about in order to move forward. Alternatively, the other challenging moments are when I know I need to change something or find a new opportunity but haven’t identified the path forward yet.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a creative director, filmmaker, illustrator, writer, and musician. I have a background in commercial production and music videos. I have proudly worked with wonderful companies and directors over the years. That experience has helped me develop my abilities and hone my taste. I am always seeking out meaningful projects that have purpose with thoughtful collaborators.
I’m proud of the creative direction work I am doing with the LA-SF-based creative agency Even/Odd (https://evenodd.studio/), a tape re-release of an album I made in 2007 called “100 Grim Reapers” coming out through Issue Press (https://issue.press/), and these free of thought watercolors I have been producing ( https://www.etsy.com/shop/NouvelAmiStudio?refseller-platform-mcnav ).
I don’t really know how to quantify what sets me apart. I’ve never been super into competition or trying to convince people to like what I make. I make things to try and understand myself better, digest the intense world we live in, and connect with others.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
In the early 90s, my dad went door to door in our three-street neighborhood and petitioned to have city water run through our neighborhood instead of septic. Only our street agreed. That summer our road was dug up by all sorts of machinery, and ditches were dug for the water lines. It also happened to be a rainy summer, and the ditches became muddy rivers. To the horror of our neighbors, my siblings and I swam and played in the opaque tan water. At night we would sneak onto the machinery and usually get something running or spread lines of grease on the seats with the grease guns we found in the rigs. The smells of fresh asphalt and dug-up earth… the sound of cicadas echoing through the trees.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://pppjjjbbb.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peterjbrant/
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/your/shops/me/dashboard
Image Credits
Myles Pettengill
