Reto Salimbeni
Encyclopedia
Reto Salimbeni in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) is a filmmaker and director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
known for his features and commercials
Television advertisement
A television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product...
. His films include Urban Safari
Urban Safari
Urban Safari is a 1996 comedy film directed by Reto Salimbeni starring David Naughton....
, The Day I Was My Father and One Way
One Way (film)
One Way is a crime drama/psychological thriller, written and directed by Reto Salimbeni and produced by Til Schweiger. The film stars Schweiger, Michael Clarke Duncan, Lauren Lee Smith and Eric Roberts...
.
Salimbeni grew up in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, Switzerland and Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. He enjoyed watching films from early on. He graduated from the Business School of Zurich in 1979 and immediately pursued a career in film.
Commercials
Salimbeni started in the industry production managing on several commercial and television productions. By the age of 24 he produced the feature film Ready to Murder by Lesly Darbon for Swiss Television. The same year Salimbeni directed a no-budget music video for local top-act Trampolin. The video gained top airplay status during that year and the exposure opened doors for Salimbeni into the prestigious commercial arena. Directing over 500 commercials he built his reputation for "visual storytelling with a human twist" (SHOOTSHOOT
SHOOT magazine, founded in 1960 as Back Stage, provides news and information about advertising agencies, executives, and creative professionals in the advertising industry...
magazine). His work has included spots for brands such as Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
, IKEA
IKEA
IKEA is a privately held, international home products company that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture such as beds and desks, appliances and home accessories. The company is the world's largest furniture retailer...
, MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, Chevron
Chevron Corporation
Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...
, Panasonic
Panasonic
Panasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation, which was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd...
, UEFA
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
and Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
. He has won over 50 international awards for his commercials – among them the New York Festival, the IAFF Cannes, the Art Directors Club N.Y. and the Art Directors Club Europe. His campaign for MTV "Headbanger" was nominated for the Grand Prix at the 1996 New York TV & Film Awards.
During the 1990s, already an established director in Europe, he expanded into the US market, directing nationwide campaigns for prominent agencies including J. Walter Thompson
JWT
JWT is one of the largest advertising agencies in the United States and the fourth-largest in the world. It is one of the key companies of Sir Martin Sorrell's WPP Group and is headquartered in New York. The global agency is led by Worldwide Chairman and Global CEO Bob Jeffrey who took over the...
and Foote, Cone & Belding in San Francisco.
In 2001, Salimbeni created Manifesto Films with its main office in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
and offices in Zürich and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
In October 2010, Salimbeni signed to New York-based production company COLLECTIVE for commercial representation.
Features
Urban SafariUrban Safari
Urban Safari is a 1996 comedy film directed by Reto Salimbeni starring David Naughton....
As writer and director, Salimbeni shot this independent comedy in 1995 starring Barry Pepper
Barry Pepper
Barry Robert Pepper is a Canadian actor. He is best known for playing roles like Sergeant Michael Strank in the Clint Eastwood film, Flags of Our Fathers, Private Daniel Jackson in Saving Private Ryan, Roger Maris in 61*, Ned Pepper in True Grit and for his recent role as Robert F...
, Linda Kash
Linda Kash
Linda Kash is a Canadian actress.An alumna of Second City, she played Trudy Weissman in the 1998 Jean Smart sit-com, Style & Substance...
and David Naughton
David Naughton (actor)
David Walsh Naughton is an American actor and singer best known for his starring roles in the 1981 horror film An American Werewolf in London, the 1980 Walt Disney comedy, Midnight Madness, the 1984 comedies Hot Dog.....
. The film was picked up for distribution by Universal International Pictures and sold to over 80 territories, opening theatrically in the US in 1997, after a successful European run.
The Day I Was My Father / Was ist bloß mit meinen Männern los? (German title)
In 2001, Salimbeni wrote and directed this family comedy for German Studio Bavaria Films and Pro7, starring Christian Tramitz
Christian Tramitz
Christian Tramitz is a German actor, comedian, voice actor and author.- Life :Christian Tramitz is the grandson of Austrian actor Paul Hörbiger and nephew of actress Christiane Hörbiger. His parents are film producer Rudolf Tramitz and Monica, née Hörbiger...
, Thomas Heinze and Sidonie von Krosigk. The film was nominated for "best German children movie".
One Way
One Way (film)
One Way is a crime drama/psychological thriller, written and directed by Reto Salimbeni and produced by Til Schweiger. The film stars Schweiger, Michael Clarke Duncan, Lauren Lee Smith and Eric Roberts...
In 2007, Salimbeni wrote and directed this thriller/drama starring Til Schweiger, Michael Clarke Duncan, Lauren Lee Smith and Eric Roberts that sparked a controversy by tackling the sensitive subject of rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
and delving into the dark side of humanity. Co-produced and distributed by Universal International Pictures, One Way is currently in worldwide distribution.