Bio

Karl Shefelman is a New York based filmmaker who has worked in the industry for over fifteen years. Two of his short films toured the festival circuit and won awards. "Bill's Seat", a fifteen minute psychological thriller won Best Live Action Short at the 2003 St. Louis International Film Festival. It was also screened at a SlamDunk showcase at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. Karl's half-hour period drama, "Elysian Fields" won a Gold Prize at the Worldfest Houston, a Mobil Prize for excellence in film making at the NYU First-Run Film Festival and a grant from the New York Academy of Film and Television Arts and Sciences. It was distributed by Tapestry International and sold to several foreign Cable Networks including BBC-2. Karl has also directed several music videos and commercials.

In addition to directing his own work, Karl has worked professionally in many facets of production from art direction to lighting and cinematography. Most notable is his vast experience as a professional storyboard artist on numerous major movies, working one-on-one with such directors as Francis Ford Coppola, Ridley Scott, Jonathan Demme, Martin Scorcese, and Barry Levinson to name a few. This experience has given Karl a uniquely deep understanding of visualizing from script to screen, shot by shot.

To round out his directorial skills, Karl studied acting with the late great Fred Kareman and the Barrow Group. He directed a one-act play for the Atlantic Theater Company. He has participated in the Writer’s Boot Camp and the Bob Mckee Screenwriting Seminar. Karl received a Master’s Degree from the NYU Graduate Film School and an undergraduate degree with a major in studio art at Kenyon College. He is originally from Austin, Texas.

For storyboard samples and credits, please click the following link: