JR Heffelfinger

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JR Heffelfinger
JR Heffelfinger.jpg
Born (1980-07-09) July 9, 1980 (age 43)
Manhattan, New York
NationalityAmerican / Puerto Rican
CitizenshipUnited States
Occupation
OrganizationRunaway Horses (Director)
AwardsWebby Award Winner
Websiterunawayhorses.com/mentor-team

Jonathan Heffelfinger, professionally known as J.R. Heffelfinger, is an American filmmaker, writer, director, producer, artist and musician.[1] He was born on July 9, 1980, in Manhattan, New York.[2] He is best known for his debut film, "Niji No Shita Ni," “Segundos” and "8:15 Hiroshima."[3] He aims to give a voice to the voiceless, make the invisible visible, unveil hidden truths about the human condition.[4] He won the Webby Award in 2013 and has been featured in prominent industry publications and magazines such as Variety, NHK World News,[5] Finance Yahoo,[6][7] AP News,[8] Modern Times,[9] Philippine Times,[10] and Cultural News.[11]

Early life and education

J.R. Heffelfinger grew up in Williamsburg, Brooklyn and is of Puerto Rican heritage. He was accepted into the P.S.6 gifted program in Manhattan, and invited to attend The Juilliard School from 1994-1996, where he studied trumpet, world music, music theory, cinema, classical performance, and jazz performance. In 1998 he then graduated from the F.H. LaGuardia High School for Music, Art, and the Performing Arts. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston University, where he studied film theory, production, and English literature.

Career

Before beginning his career as a director and producer, Heffelfinger worked as a story development assistant at Spike Lee’s 40 Acres & A Mule Fireworks Inc., a language teacher at Noval Language School in Tokyo, and a writer’s assistant for Hope & Faith season 3 at ABC/Touchstone.[12]

In 2002 J.R.Heffelfinger moved to Tokyo, Japan and taught English at the Nova School. While there he wrote the screenplay for “Niji No Shita Ni” (Under The Rainbow).[13] “Niji No Shita Ni” had its world premiere at the 28th Mill Valley Film Festival and was reviewed as "being touched by the spirits of Kurosawa and Imamura and resonating with the resilient glow of life.” The film was reviewed by Variety where JR was noted as "an emerging talent".

In 2007 he was a founding member of Saber Seven Inc. / dorthy.com, a social network to connect like-minded dreamers to realize their goals. While there he served as a multimedia producer documenting the life of the start-up. He later joined Moving Pictures in 2009 as a producer, where he created and directed videos and other media content for Pfizer and Wyeth, two pharmaceutical companies that merged in 2009.[14]

In 2011 J.R. Heffelfinger joined Howcast Media where we worked as a script-to-screen producer / director / editor. Howcast was listed as Time Magazine’s Top 50 Website from 2011-2014. While there he directed and produced over 2,000 video titles which have generated over +250 Million Views to date and won a 2013 Webby Award for "How to Kiss" series which went viral.[15]

In 2014 JR Heffelfinger produced segments for Al Jazeera America “America Tonight” program. Most notable is a segment on Fredrick Brennan which aired on 9/12/14.

In 2015, J.R. Heffelfinger also worked as a senior producer/director for About.com, where he directed and produced "Brooke Alexander: The Best Job For You," and as a senior producer for online video at B&H Photo Video, where he researched, booked, filmed, and interviewed the world's best professional photographers, filmmakers, audio engineers, and storytellers to create engaging, insightful, and informative content for the "Prospectives" and "Behind The Scenes" series.

He founded Runaway Horses in 2016,[16] a story-driven creative development and production company that creates branded content and films that blur the lines between nonfiction and fiction.[17] He has worked as a director with many well-known companies and groups such as Disney, Facebook, Moderna, Marotta Controls, Alex Woo, Sephora, Amazon Aid, Hope to Haiti, and Avenues The World School.[18]

In 2020, J.R. Heffelfinger directed the film "8:15 Hiroshima," produced by Akiko Mikamo, the daughter of a hibakusha (nuclear bomb survivor).[19] The movie tells the true story of a Japanese man who survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945 and the subsequent discrimination he faced.[20] The film won the audience award at the academy award qualifying Nashville Festival in 2020,[21] released theatrically by Shin Nippon Film and will air on PBS in 2023.[22]

References

  1. ↑ "J.R. Heffelfinger. Creative executive, director, editor, producer and writer | Slated". www.slated.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  2. ↑ "J.R. Heffelfinger". Medium. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  3. ↑ "Documentary Film "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Online Screening Free Event (August 6-9) For The 77th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki - PR Newswire APAC". en.prnasia.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  4. ↑ "8月だから見たい 心に焼き付いた、後世に伝えたい「戦争を描いた映画」20作 : 映画ニュース". 映画.com (in 日本語). Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  5. ↑ "Japanese filmmaker depicts her father's Hiroshima survival story | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News". NHK WORLD. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  6. ↑ "Documentary Film "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Online Screening Free Event (August 6-9) For The 77th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  7. ↑ "Hiroshima Watch, Stolen From UN, Remains Missing - Daughter of Survivor Makes Documentary To Call Out To World "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Screening Event (Free, August 6-9)". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  8. ↑ "Documentary Film "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Online Screening Free Event (August 6-9) For The 77th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki". AP NEWS. 7 July 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "Finding the power to forgive". MODERN TIMES REVIEW. 1 September 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  10. ↑ "Documentary Film "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Online Screening Free Event (August 6-9) For The 77th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki". Philippine Times. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  11. ↑ "2020 /U.S. premiere of new film about Hiroshima atomic-bombing experience "8:15" at virtual Nashville Film Festival, Oct. 1-7 – Japanese Art & Culture in LA". culturalnews.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  12. ↑ "Documentary Film "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Online Screening Free Event (August 6-9) For The 77th Anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki". The Official Guide to Hiroshima - Travel and Tour Information. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  13. ↑ Harvey, Dennis (21 February 2006). "Under The Rainbow". Variety. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  14. ↑ "American History Spree". International Documentary Association. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  15. ↑ "「核の脅威」と「許す心」をメッセージに 被爆2世制作の映画配信へ：朝日新聞デジタル". 朝日新聞デジタル (in 日本語). 23 July 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  16. ↑ "JR Heffelfinger / Runaway Horses". JR Heffelfinger / Runaway Horses. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  17. ↑ Aug 03, Runaway Horses. "Daughter Of Hiroshima Survivor, Looking for Watch Stolen From UN, To Show At G7 Summit - Documentary To Call Out To World "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Screening Event (Free, August 5-9)". kron4.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  18. ↑ "Runaway Horses - Overview, News & Competitors | ZoomInfo.com". ZoomInfo. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  19. ↑ "Hiroshima Watch, Stolen From UN, Remains Missing - Daughter of Survivor Makes Documentary To Call Out To World "8:15 Hiroshima | From Father To Daughter" First Global Screening Event (Free, August 6-9)". www.yahoo.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  20. ↑ Horses, Runaway. "On 76th Anniversary of Atomic Bombings, Documentary by American Filmmaker Captivates Japan". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  21. ↑ "2020 Nashville Film Festival". nashfilm2020.eventive.org. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  22. ↑ "Global virtual screening of "8:15 Hiroshima From Father To Daughter"". Get Hiroshima. 2 August 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.

External links

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