Cat Bird Pictures was founded in 2007 and is helmed by Brooklyn-based filmmaker and video designer, Kaz Phillips Safer. The company produces narrative film projects, and creates video and live-feed installations for theatrical productions and other spectacles. Kaz’ work has been developed and presented in Denmark, Russia, Poland, France, Belgium, Canada, Australia, Ghana, and across the United States.
Aug ’11 Director/ Editor, Drinking Buddy
Music Video for musical artist, David Clement
•Starring Mary Louise Burke (Rabbit Hole, Sideways, Meet Joe Black)
•Choreography by Dan Safer
Apr ’11 Writer/ Director, Jolly Friends Forever More
A Cinereach REACH Film Fellowship Project
•16mm narrative short (6 min)
•Recipient of an Eastman Kodak film grant
Aug ’10 Recipient of Cinereach 2010/2011 Reach Film Fellowship.
May ’10Recipient of 2010 Jerome Foundation Travel & Study Grant for research and development of feature film project, Wilhelmina Vandereen Takes Revenge
Sept ‘09Writer/ Director, Megafauna
Produced in conjunction with the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women (DWW)
•HD narrative short (14 min)
•Shot by Reed Dawson Morano (Frozen River)
•Starring 2009 Tony-nominee Marin Ireland
• WINNER 2010 JPF Award for Excellence (AFI)
• Distributed by IndiePix, NYC
[OFFICIAL SELECTION 2010 BROOKLYN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL; LA WOMEN’S INTERNAT’L FILM FEST; BRUSSELS INTERNAT’L IND. FILM FEST; POST ALLEY FILM FEST; CITIZEN JANE FILM FEST.]
Sept ’08Writer/ Director, Fugue
Shot by Reed Dawson Morano (Frozen River)
Choreographed by Dan Safer
•HD narrative short (24 min)
[OFFICIAL SELECTION: ST. JOHNS WOMEN’S FILM FEST; PALM SPRINGS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL; TACOMA FILM FESTIVAL]
Feb – July ‘08Head Writer, Rock & Roll Acid Test (8 episodes)
Produced by FUSE TV & Superfine Films, NYC
Jul ’07 – PresentFreelance Development and Series Writer, Superfine
Jan ’06 – Jul ‘07Director of Development, Superfine Films, NYC
•Generated concepts, wrote project treatments and regularly produced short (1-5min) video pitch pieces.
•Conceived, wrote and co-produced pilots and development reels.
•My work developing new non-scripted show concepts directly led to inked deals with FUSE TV, A&E and Animal Planet.
Apr ’07Writer/ Producer, Danger Game
•Television Pilot for A&E; Developed in association with UK-based artists’ group, Blast Theory.
Jul ’06Writer/ Producer, The Adam Thick Project
•Television Pilot for FUSE TV
Nov ’05Co-Producer, Psychic Detectives (5 episodes)
•Documentary Crime series on TruTV
Mar ’05Associate Producer, Hallmark: RESCUE
•Re-enactment-based documentary series for the Hallmark Channel.
Aug ’04Associate Casting Director, Day Night Day Night
Directed by Julia Loktev
[WINNER, PRIX REGARDS JEUNE, CANNES 2007]
Jan ’04 Producer, What I Want
•Independent feature
•Produced by Wolfgang Pictures, LLC
[OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2005 NY INDEPENDENT FILM FEST]
Jun ‘01Producer, The Ghanalogue
Shot by Andrij Parekh (Half Nelson, Sugar, Cold Souls)
•DV/ Super-8mm
•Short documentary
[Best Short Documentary nominee: 2003 International Festival of Cinema and Technology.]
EDUCATION
American Film Institute Directing Workshop for Women
2009-2010 Fellow
Princeton University- Princeton, NJ: Graduated Cum Laude. AB English, Certificate in Creative Writing.
Charles Wright Academy- Tacoma, WA: Graduated Cum Laude.