Jacob Viness

Jacob Viness took an interest in movies at a very early age, citing going to the theater to see The Lion King (1994) as one of his first memories. Growing up, he went to the theater whenever he could. In high school, he began to learn the craft of film making in his video productions class. This is where Viness began working with his frequent collaborator Justin McEver. Also in high school, he got a job at the local movie theater where he further studied films and what films the audiences seemed to enjoy. It was there where he met his frequent Director of Photography,Joey Kopanski. Viness, McEver, and Kopanski put together a crew of friends and started making short films for fun and for experience. Viness wrote and directed each film they made. Viness soon began writing scripts constantly and studying many of the technical aspects of film making on his own through books and the web, while also attending Georgia State University's film school and later a local technical college. In 2013, Jacob Viness wrote and directed Sexual Dysfunction (2013) a character drama that focused on sexual addiction, religious guilt and redemption. The film received and honorable mention at North Carolina's SkyFest in November of 2013. Also in November of 2013, the film won The People's Choice Award for best film at the Athens VHS Festival. Off the attention of Sexual Dysfunction (2013), Viness began working on multiple projects in 2014. He wrote and directed a short noir drama film, The Hit, a story focused on a business meeting between a hitman and his client. The film focuses on similar themes to Sexual Dysfunction, including religious guilt, and innate evil in man. He also wrote and directed Rear View Mirror, a dark comedy about a hitman and his client who accidently kill the wrong guy and must clean up their mistake. The film screened locally at Get Connected in Atlanta, GA to strong reviews. Also in 2014, Viness wrote and directed Pool Party, a Richard Linklater-esque short film that intervenes in many conversations at a pool party, channeling lost Generation X tropes, all in one long fifteen minute take. Viness's films often have longer takes, dolly shots, whip pans, long dialogue scenes, crime elements and religious themes. He cites Paul Thomas Anderson, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, Steven Spielberg and Richard Linklater as some of his biggest influences.