Kern Saxton


Director – Writer – Producer – Editor

 

Kern received his BFA in Filmmaking with an emphasis on Directing from the illustrious University of North Carolina School of the Arts, where he studied under numerous industry professionals, including producers Dale Pollock and Nicole LaLoggia, author and assistant cameraman David Elkins, sound editor David Yewdall, director Dan McKinney, screenwriter Ron Stacker Thompson, and producer/director Wayne Crawford. Throughout his four-year stint at NCSA, Kern also worked on over 25 short films in various positions, directing a total of 5 short films of his own. His work has been seen at many film festivals and on television. Roadside Convenience, Kern’s junior year effort, has screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, the Riverrun International Film Festival, on UNC-TV as part of the North Carolina Visions program, and has won several awards, including Best Student Short at the Emerald Eye Film Festival and a Bronze Award at Houston WorldFest. 

 

Throughout his four-year stint at NCSA, Kern also worked on over 25 short films in various positions, directing a total of 5 short films of his own. His work has been seen at many film festivals and on television. Roadside Convenience, Kern’s junior year effort, has screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, the Riverrun International Film Festival, on UNC-TV as part of the North Carolina Visions program, and has won several awards, including Best Student Short at the Emerald Eye Film Festival and a Bronze Award at Houston WorldFest.

 

Upon graduation, Kern relocated to Los Angeles. He has worked on many projects in Hollywood, most notably for Sony Pictures Entertainment on the Lifetime Television show Strong Medicine, shadowing producer/director John Flynn and directing for the show’s second unit. Kern has developed the feature films Slay Day and Bloodlust with acclaimed producer Paul Aaron and Blizzard Entertainment writer James Waugh, and has co-produced the internet comedy miniseries Porntourage with Waugh and writer Destin Pfaff. His short film Deader Living Through Chemistry was chosen by master of horror George A. Romero for inclusion on the DVD version of Diary of the Dead, which has been distributed by Dimension Films.

 

Most recently, Kern directed genre legends Tony Todd, Noah Hathaway, James Duval, Jeff Fahey, Danny Trejo, Michael Biehn and Mark Hamill in the feature film Sushi Girl, which he co-wrote with Destin Pfaff and produced with Pfaff, Neal Fischer and Suren M. Seron. Sushi Girl was a success on the festival circuit, selling out tickets to its premiere in Montreal within 24 hours, and is currently being distributed in North America by Phase 4 Films and Magnet Releasing, and in numerous foreign territories around the globe.