Robert Mann

Robert Mann, President and founder of Mannatee Films, earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre and Visual Arts from the University of California, San Diego. He subsequently worked on credits towards a master's degree at the American Conservatory Theater (ACT) in San Francisco. He also completed the Program in the Art of Independent Film Making, Producing, and Directing at the Hollywood Film Institute. Mr. Mann began his professional career in the 1990's performing stand-up comedy as a member of the comedy team Piper & Tupper. Mitzi Shore, owner of The Comedy Store in Hollywood, hired the duo and immediately booked them, showcasing their unique brand of comedy in her clubs. Piper & Tupper performed for over 13 years with thousands of live, television, internet and film performances across the globe. In late 1997 Mr. Mann founded the independent film company, Mannatee Films, writing, directing, producing and starring in the company's first feature film Trapped. The award nominated film was released in 1999. His next feature film writing and directing was The Pumpkin Karver, distributed by First Look Studios in 2006. The horror classic currently can be seen on Netflix, Amazon, SyFy, Showtime, The Movie Channel and other media streams and traditionally plays on SyFy's 31 Days of Halloween. In the winter of 2004 Mr. Mann directed his first Off-Broadway play in New York-Harold Pinter's Ashes to Ashes. From 2004-2005 Mr. Mann taught professional acting classes in Los Angeles. In '06 Mr. Mann directed the independent feature film, Shades of Love, staring Beverly Hills 90210's Brian Austin Green. In '2008 the filmmaker directed, acted, co-wrote, and was executive producer of Piper and Tupper: Hands Free Born to be Wild, an independent comedy. Piper and Tupper: Hands Free Born to be Wild won the 2009 "Audience Choice Award" at the SoCal Film Festival. Mr. Mann, also an accomplished dramatic actor, portrayed a grieving father in the 2010 festival winning film, Goliath. In '11 Mr. Mann worked on the independent feature film Crossroad as its Script Consultant. The filmmaker also wrote, directed, acted and produced a surrealistic drama entitled, The Soldier: The Search for Existence. The film was nominated for "Best Dramatic Short" at the Melbourne Independent Filmmakers Festival. A 2019 "Director's Cut" of the film is currently being screened at various film festivals in the U.S and recently won "Best Twist" and "Best Sci-Fi Short" at the Independent Shorts Awards film festival. The film also secured distribution through Shorts TV for their 2020/21 programming. In the winter of 2013/14 Mr. Mann portrayed a Private Eye on the television show Loredona, ESQ for the Sundance Channel. In February 2015 he was a production consultant on the feature film, Revival! Later that year the indie filmmaker was invited by Motorola to participate in their Moto X Filmmakers Experience directing a short film narrated by Shamless', Emmy Rossum. In 2015/16, Mr. Mann was cast as the lead in the dramatic feature, Steps. The independent film was released in the fall of 2017, screening at various film festivals. In 2018/19, Mr. Mann wrote, directed and acted in the acclaimed independent thriller, The Cassie Confession. The film has appeared in 7 film festivals receiving over 15 nominations, winning 8 awards. Including "Best Narrative Short," "Best Film Noir," "Best Writing," "Audience Choice Award," "Best Crime Thriller," and "Best Actress." The film also secured distribution through Shorts TV for their 2020/21 programming. The "award-winning" filmmaker is currently in development with two new dramatic features, a heart-felt drama entitled, Beloved Wife and the gritty suspense thriller, The Projected. A dedicated nature lover, Robert is an active member of Greenpeace, World Wildlife Federation, The National Resources Defense Council, Defenders of Wildlife and others. One day he hopes to shoot his first documentary film about endangered wildlife animals, helping shed more awareness on how all of us can help save them from extinction.