Hold Up

TITLE

Hold Up

DIRECTOR

Alex Rollins Berg

COUNTRY

USA

YEAR

2021

DURATION

15′

GENRE

Fiction

Overview

Hold Up

Graham (Philip Ettinger) is in a rush to get home. But when Hashim (Renrick Palmer), a homeless East African man, approaches him on the subway platform, his night takes an unexpected turn.

DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHY​ - Alex Rollins Berg

ALEX ROLLINS BERG is an award-winning writer and director, specializing in visceral character-driven thrillers and dramas. The son of two journalists, Alex is drawn to contemporary stories that explore uncomfortable truths in order to humanize, not moralize. Based in New York City, Alex is a director in residence at NYU Tisch studio Stonestreet, where he has written and directed 24 new short films since January 2022. Alex received the Blacklist and Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Fellowship for social commentary. His feature screenplay, i, placed in the top 50 of the Academy Nicholl Fellowships and was a winning finalist in the BlueCat Screenplay Competition. As a director, he has made commercials for some of the world’s top brands, including Nokia, Smirnoff, Procter & Gamble and McDonald’s. His previous short film, Ruth, features a stunning final performance by Lynn Cohen (Munich, The Hunger Games). It screened at the New Renaissance Film Festival in London, where it won a Best of Fest award and was nominated for Best International Short. Alex started his film career annotating the script for the Academy Award-winning film Capote. He has since worked as a storyboard artist, title card designer, cinematographer, editor and agency producer. An enthusiastic explorer, he shot helicopter search-and-rescue missions with the Coast Guard in Alaska, and is currently developing projects in Brazil and Nepal. Last year, he co-produced an ambitious feature film, I’m An Electric Lampshade, shot in Mexico and the Philippines, which KQED San Francisco called “one of the more jaw-dropping debuts you’ll ever see” and On Magazine named “easily one of the best documentaries of the year.” It is currently on the festival circuit. Alex is represented by Greenberg Traurig and managed by the Muraviov Company.

Credits

Specifications

Alex Rollins Berg

ALEX ROLLINS BERG is an award-winning writer and director, specializing in visceral character-driven thrillers and dramas. The son of two journalists, Alex is drawn to contemporary stories that explore uncomfortable truths in order to humanize, not moralize. Based in New York City, Alex is a director in residence at NYU Tisch studio Stonestreet, where he has written and directed 24 new short films since January 2022. Alex received the Blacklist and Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Fellowship for social commentary. His feature screenplay, i, placed in the top 50 of the Academy Nicholl Fellowships and was a winning finalist in the BlueCat Screenplay Competition. As a director, he has made commercials for some of the world’s top brands, including Nokia, Smirnoff, Procter & Gamble and McDonald’s. His previous short film, Ruth, features a stunning final performance by Lynn Cohen (Munich, The Hunger Games). It screened at the New Renaissance Film Festival in London, where it won a Best of Fest award and was nominated for Best International Short. Alex started his film career annotating the script for the Academy Award-winning film Capote. He has since worked as a storyboard artist, title card designer, cinematographer, editor and agency producer. An enthusiastic explorer, he shot helicopter search-and-rescue missions with the Coast Guard in Alaska, and is currently developing projects in Brazil and Nepal. Last year, he co-produced an ambitious feature film, I’m An Electric Lampshade, shot in Mexico and the Philippines, which KQED San Francisco called “one of the more jaw-dropping debuts you’ll ever see” and On Magazine named “easily one of the best documentaries of the year.” It is currently on the festival circuit. Alex is represented by Greenberg Traurig and managed by the Muraviov Company.

SELECTIONS & AWARDS

Group 1579

Romford Film Festival

Audience Award for Best Short Film, 2022

Group 1579

Ignite Film Festival

Best Short Film, 2022

Group 1579

New Renaissance Film Festival

Best International Short Film, 2022

Still Photos