Larry Brand
Writer/Director
Larry Brand’s first job in the film industry was as driver and production assistant to the legendary Orson Welles. Following his first feature film, the psychological thriller Backfire (co-written with frequent collaborator Rebecca Reynolds), he went on to write, direct, and co-star in The Drifter, Masque of the Red Death, and Overexposed for indie producer Roger Corman. Over the past two-and-a-half decades, with budgets ranging from $15 thousand to $15 million, his films have included the award-winning independents Paranoia and Christina, and studio productions Hard Luck (starring Wesley Snipes) and Halloween: Resurrection (starring Jamie Lee Curtis), which went on to become the second most profitable sequel in the franchise's history. In 2008 he formed 8180 Films with partners Rebecca Reynolds (with whom he co-produced HBO's Assume the Position With Mr. Wuhl) and James Carpenter. Their first feature,Christina, went on to win major awards on
the film festival circuit, including Best Film, Best Director (Brand), Best Actress (Nicki Aycox), Best Actor (Stephen Lang) Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking, Outstanding Achievement in Acting (Lang) and Outstanding Achievement in Writing (Brand), and is available from Indican Pictures. 8180's The Coexist Comedy Tour (directed and edited by Brand)
is 2013's recipient of Best Documentary Feature at New York's Visionfest, and was released through Starz and Cinedigm.
A Perfect Man, starring Liev Schreiber (X-Men, Ray Donovan) and Jeanne Tripplehorn (Big Love, Criminal Minds), from a script by Brand and Peter Elkoff, was released in theatres by IFC/AFC in December 2013.. 8180 Films' noir thriller, The Girl on the Train, written and directed by Brand and starring Henry Ian Cusick (Lost), Nicki Aycox (Christina,The X-Files), and Stephen Lang (Avatar) was in theatres in July, 2014. 8180's, Beyond Glory, directed by Brand and starring Stephen Lang and Gary Sinise (executive produced by James Cameron and Jon Landau) was released across all platforms by Gravitas
in October, 2016. In November, 2017, Young Charlie by Hollywood & Crime, written and directed by Brand (produced by Reynolds and Carpenter), became the #1 podcast in the English-speaking world. In May 2018, The Wonderland Murders
by Hollywood & Crime, written, directed, and narrated by Brand, was the #1 podcast in America for nine days.
On February 9, 2019, Brand died unexpectedly and peacefully of natural causes at his home in Hollywood. He was in the middle of writing, directing, and editing the next Hollywood & Crime podcast series, The Dating Game Killer, for Wondery. The Dating Game Killer will be completed by his partners at 8180 Films and Hollywood and Crime.
Larry Brand – Born December 16, 1949 in New York City
Died February 9, 2019 in Hollywood, California
Rebecca Reynolds
Producer
Rebecca Reynolds has in film, television and theatre in New York City, Los Angeles and points in between. Reynolds is the co-creator/producer for the hit true crime podcast Hollywood and Crime on the Wondery audio network. All four podcast series for the podcast reached #1 on the iTunes podcast charts. They are The Black Dahlia Serial Killers, which Reynolds co-wrote and directed; Young Charlie, The Wonderland Murders, and The Dating Game Killer written and directed by Larry Brand; and Death of a Starlet, co-produced by Reynolds and Jim Carpenter.
For 8180 Films Reynolds served as Executive Producer for the company’s award-winning first feature, Christina, starring Nicki Aycox, Jordan Belfi and Stephen Lang. Along with her husband and fellow producer, Jim Carpenter, she produced 8180 Films’ comedy documentary, The Coexist Comedy Tour, which debuted on Starz. Reynolds and Carpenter took home the Best Documentary award for The Coexist Comedy Tour at VisionFest13 at the Tribeca Cinemas in June 2013 in New York City.
Reynolds’ third producing project for 8180 Films was the noir suspense thriller, The Girl on the Train, starring Henry Ian Cusick, and Nicki Aycox. The film played at film festivals around the country, and was released theatrically by Monterey Media and is available on Amazon Prime Video. Her fourth producing project was Beyond Glory starring award-winning actor Stephen Lang.
Other projects for Reynolds include co-writing/directing the comedy play "Breathing Space" with McAdoo Greer. The play was commissioned for the 100th Birthday of the Old Art Building in Leland, Michigan. She also produced “Hit-Lit,” a comedy by actor/comedian Robert Wuhl in 2013 which played at the Queens Theatre, NYC. Reynolds and Wuhl co-wrote the stage version of "Assume the Position,” which has played around the country, including at the Ars Nova in New York City, the El Portal Theatre in North Hollywood and the La Jolla Playhouse in California. The stage show was based on two HBO Comedy Specials, which Reynolds co-wrote/produced. The first special, Assume the Position With Mr. Wuhl, earned her and Wuhl a nomination for a prestigious Writers Guild of America Award for Best Comedy and Variety.
Before that, Reynolds served as writer/producer for the long-running hit HBO comedy series Arli$$. Screenwriting credits for Reynolds include the psychological thrillers Backfire and Overexposed, both co-written with long-time collaborator, the late Larry Brand. With a partnership spanning over three decades, Reynolds and Brand developed projects for Paramount Pictures, MGM, New Horizons, and HBO, and shared a history of working together and separately supporting each other’s individual projects. Their first collaboration was for a hit ABC television show in the early 80s. Their last collaboration was in 2019 for the true crime podcast Hollywood & Crime.
Jim Carpenter
Producer
Jim Carpenter co-founded the Michigan-based indie film company in 2008 with his wife Rebecca Reynolds and writer/director Larry Brand. He went on to executive produce the company’s award-winning first feature, Christina, starring Nicki Aycox, Jordan Belfi and Stephen Lang. A post World War II drama, Christina premiered in July 2010 at Traverse City’s State Theatre to a sell-out crowd with all three stars, the producers and the writer/director in attendance.
His most recent project is the hit true crime podcast series Hollywood & Crime for the Wondery audio network. Hollywood & Crime debuted in January 2017. All four seasons of the show have reached #1 on the iTunes podcast charts, the most recent being The Dating Game Killer, which told the story of prolific serial killer and Dating Game contestant, Rodney Alcala.
In 2013, Carpenter accepted the Best Documentary Award at VisionFest13 in New York City, on behalf of himself and fellow producer Rebecca Reynolds, for their comedy documentary, The Coexist Comedy Tour, starring John Fugelsang, Tissa Hami, Keith Lowell Jensen, Moshe Kasher, Sammy Obeid and Tapan Trivedi. Carpenter was also on hand, along with filmmaker Brand, comedian Fugelsang and producer Reynolds when The Coexist Comedy Tour screened at the February 2013 Winter Comedy Arts Festival in Traverse City, Michigan.
Carpenter was one of three producers on the company’s third indie feature, The Girl on the Train. A noir suspense thriller, The Girl on the Train had its West Coast Premiere at the Newport Beach Film Festival and was an official selection at the 2013 Traverse City Film Festival. The Girl on the Train played select film festivals from Oaxaca, Mexico to Napa Valley, California, and was released in theatres in summer 2014 by Monterey Media.
Carpenter served as executive producer on the indie drama, Beyond Glory, starring Stephen Lang, which tells the stories of eight Medal of Honor recipients from World War II, Korea and Vietnam.
Having served on several non-profit boards in both Kentucky and Michigan, Carpenter co-founded and co-managed the popular “Beyond the Bay” Film Series at the Bay Theatre in Suttons Bay. In addition, Carpenter has spearheaded many successful annual and capital fundraising campaigns for art-related projects. He is also the author of a short story collection, Surviving My Happy Childhood.
Ross Satterwhite
Executive Producer
As a Principal of 8180 Films, Ross Satterwhite brings decades of investment, marketing and management experience to the film company. He is an accomplished executive who has had successful careers in the advertising business (New York City), finance and banking (Citicorp), and in the commercial real estate industry as an investor, operator and senior executive of a large public company. He has deep experience in finance, investments, strategic planning, developing teams and managing organizations. Ross brings years of business experience to the 8180 team and leads the fund raising, investor relations, financial and other business aspects of the film company.
He was a stage performer as a child, and hails from a family with a long lineage of performance - including a mother who was an accomplished actress in television and film, and a grandmother who was a world-recognized concert pianist.
Recent Films by Our Independent Film Company