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Luiz DeBarros is
an award-winning filmmaker, writer, photographer, designer and
creative
director.
He is a respected, multi-talented
creative, working both in the entertainment and marketing fields,
with considerable experience across multiple media; including
film, television, internet, print and other platforms.
A CONCISE BIOGRAPHY
- Graduated from the University
of the Witwatersrand with an Honours Degree in Drama
and Film.
Has undergraduate majors
in Psychology and English (1990 - 1995).
- Edited various independent “zines”,
including Lolita 17 and New
Edge, while
at University.
- Worked as a freelance writer and
televison director.
- Co-founded Underdog
Productions in 1993, in the role of creative
director.
- With Underdog,
wrote, directed and produced many of the company’s
award-winning short films, documentaries and corporate
films.
- As creative director,
designed, copywrote and oversaw most of the company’s
web, print and interactive projects for a wide range of clients.
- Luiz now works on a freelance and consultancy basis as a writer, copywriter and designer.
- Luiz is also publisher and editor of Mambaonline.com and publisher of Mambagirl.com.
- He has been interviewed a number of times on television and profiled by publications such as Maverick magazine, the Mail & Guardian, Marketing Mix and The Pink Tongue.
- In 2009 he was honoured as one of the "300 Young South Africans you have to take to lunch" by the Mail & Guardian.
TELEVISION / FILM - ENTERTAINMENT
- In 2004 executive-produced
and directed two television documentaries, Flush (SABC
3) and Two
Moms (SABC
2).
- Conceived, executive-produced
and wrote the hit late-night television series Below
the Belt. He was key in its
highly successful
marketing campaign (SABC 3 - 2002 / 2003).
- Over the years, developed a network of contacts in the television
and film industry in South Africa and around the world
(UK, Canada) including broadcasters, distributors and producers.
- He has developed an excellent understanding of television
commissioning and distribution norms and procedures in South
Africa and
internationally.
- Was an on-air judge for the 2002 Quickies television reality
show broadcast on SABC 3.
- Wrote, directed and drove the
marketing strategy for the two-part documentary By
Night,
which was a ratings success on SABC
3 in November 2002.
- Wrote and directed the acclaimed, award-winning
documentary Metamorphosis: The Remarkable
Journey of Granny Lee. Screened
at festivals
across the world and broadcast in Canada, it was chosen as one of the
two best television films produced in South Africa
in 2000 by the international Input Television Conference.
- Received
three Avanti Awards for Death (a
two-part, two-hour documentary series broadcast on SABC 3,
which he directed,
co-edited and wrote), including a Gold Award in the documentary category
(1998).
- Was awarded scriptwriting and production
grants by the Department of Arts and Culture to develop the
feature film Pressure (1997
/ 1998).
- His short film Hot Legs was
selected for screening at festivals such as the Austin Film
Festival (USA) and Mix
Brazil. He
was flown to London by the British Council to attend the British
Short Film Festival (1996)
- Worked as a freelance director / writer for One
Step Beyond (1996) and Health Files.
- Other short films / documentaries
he has directed include Clubbing, Different
Strokes and Pretty
Boys.
TELEVISION
/ VIDEO – MARKETING
- As creative director
at Underdog, Luiz produced, wrote and directed corporate
and television films for clients
such as: Blue Ribbon TV campaign, 21st
Century Funerals infomercial,
Lovelife fund-raising films (director
/ scriptwriter), Nelson
Mandela Human Rights Award video, Excitement
Stores TV campaign
and the 2005 and 2006 Shoprite
Checkers / SABC 2 Woman of the Year TV
promos and inserts (in positions including director and writer).
- In 2005, 2006 and 2007 he wrote the insert and nominee profile scripts for the Community Builder of the Year Awards.
- Luiz has written the 2006, 2007 and 2008Shoprite Checkers / SABC 2 Woman of the Year Televeision promos and inserts.
- In 2010 Luiz wrote and produced a 10 minute corporate film for OUT LGBT Well-being
OTHER MEDIA & DESIGN – PRINT
/ INTERNET
- Luiz has overseen
design, production and strategy work for a number of notable
clients over
the years, in media such as
print, internet and multimedia:
Hollard Insurance, loveLife, CTI, Rand
Show, SABC, Endemol, M-Net,
DetNet, Pride
2003, Deloitte and Touche, Sasol
Polymers and MTN
Business Masterminds.
- Luiz has also produced freelance print and web design projects for various clients including Pirelli, Business Day and the Johannesburg 2010 Gay Games Bid.
- In 2005 his photographs were published
in Design Times / Itch Monthly, JHB Live and the Mail and Guardian newspaper.
- He was a movie reviewer on the Tuesday Night Show on Radio 2000 in 2005 for three months before the show was cancelled.
- In 2004 he launched his
solo photography exhibition on the Internet, entitled Digitalizm,
to critical acclaim,
receiving considerable media attention.
- In 2003 he was
a Loerie Finalist: Digital Website Content Driven for www.mambaonline.com.
- Consulted for loveLife
on editorial, marketing and interactive elements for the
2002 teen reality
TV series S’camto
GroundBreakers.
- In 2001 Luiz was Head of Interactive
Content Editorial for the first Big
Brother South Africa (responsible
for all content across
internet, telephony and interactive TV platforms) as
well as Taskmaster for the series. Luiz was also Executive
Producer for
Big Brother South Africa
2’s interactive
platforms, overseeing a team of 20. Through Underdog
he also consulted
on Big Brother
Africa.
- Visited Big Brother 'houses' in the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal to research the interactive and production requirments of the show.
- In 2001 Luiz received an Avanti Silver Award
for his design of the Comfort
Creations website.
OTHER WRITING / EDITING
- Contracted through Praekelt since 2011, Luiz has been writing website and other online copy for Telkom Mobile, the South African mobile service provider.
- Aside from his considerable copywriting
and scriptwriting experience, Luiz has written feature
articles for a variety of
publications including: SL Magazine, The
Sunday Times Magazine,
Big Screen, Film
and TV Production Review (UK), Outright,
New Edge, Screen
Africa,
Futurniture (Sweden), Mambaonline.com,
the S.A Film Website and JHB
Live.
- Has interviewed personalities as varied as supreme court of appeals judge Edwin Cameron, Dion Chang, Nicole Fox and Olympic gold medallist Ryk Neethling.
- Created
and is editor of Mambaonline.com -
South Africa’s
premier gay lifestyle website. Commissions features, devises
marketing and sales strategies for the portal, and manages
relationships with various partners.
DEVELOPMENTAL WORK
- Luiz is a founding board member of the Joburg Pride Festival and served on the board from 2006 - 2010.
- In 2005 he Served as co-chair of the Johannesburg 2010 Gay Games Bid Marketing and Publicity Committee, overseeing the bid presentation video and working with the City of Johannesburg and other partners. The city was chosen as the runner up against Paris and cologne.
- Was co-chair of SASWA, the largest
body representing writers in the film, television,
theatre and radio fields in
2002/2003. (Also Vice-Chair for 2001/2002.) Engaged in developmental / training
initiatives, lobbying of government bodies and driving the adoption
of internationally competitive terms of trade in the industry.
- Luiz mentored aspirant director Andile Genge during the
production of the critically acclaimed documentary Two
Moms in 2004.
- Through Underdog, assisted
mentoring of young Vuka! PSA
filmmakers in 2003 and 2004, including Fanney Tsimong,
who won
the “Raw
Talent” Vuka! Award in 2003.
- Founded and edited
the South African Film Website,
which provided filmmakers with training resources, information
and news (1997 - 2004).
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