Rob McKinnon

The Houston Chronicle called McKinnon a Renaissance man, and that was before directing his debut feature film, _Mr. Hell (2004)_. A Boston native and cum laude graduate of Boston University with a degree in film and broadcasting, this multi-talented silver Telly award-winning veteran writer/director/composer has had a career directing major corporate/commercial film and video. After graduating from B.U., Texas called, University of Texas at Austin offered him a fellowship to continue his communication studies in a graduate program; however after successfully completing a semester, Rob opted for that real world experience and was hired by KTBC-TV in Austin. As head writer he worked directly for the station's owner, President Lyndon Baines Johnson, and soon became head of the Creative Department directing and producing. Most of his career he has primarily worked as a film director, though he has written scripts, shot and edited several dramatic projects for Texas television including award-winning dramatic action films on organized crime in Texas, also drawing upon his natural musical talents by writing the scores for many of these films. To enhance his directing skills in every way possible, he was for many years a member of S.A.G., and acted in a number of major made-for-television movies including _Without Warning: The James Brady Story (1991)_ starring Beau Bridges, and _A Triumph of the Heart: The Ricky Bell Story (1991)_, starring Mario Van Peebles. In the mid-90s, Rob also hosted and co-produced with Jolene McMaster, a 3-hour morning drive time talk show on Houston's AM-1070 KENR radio. The incredible working relationship that grew from that endeavor as well as a confluence of interests and beliefs regarding motion picture production, lead to the recent formation of Pure Horror Films, Inc., with McMaster, where the focus is producing psychological horror films in Texas with budgets not exceeding five million. In the summer of 2004, McKinnon, with characteristic enthusiasm and indefatigable energy, took the helm directing the horror/thriller _Mr. Hell (2004)_, starring Tracy Scoggins, for 'Jack Rhodes Productions', in the genre that he has been drawn to since boyhood, when he'd sneak off to the scary movies so he could later enjoy nightmares about them. After spending years in preparation McKinnon says the time is now. Next on the agenda is his own script, 'Creek County', that will be produced under McKinnon and McMaster's Pure Horror Films banner.