Ante Novakovic

Born in the Bronx to immigrant parents, this DGA director-writer-producer’s got grit in his DNA and a killer filmography to back it up. Fresh off the horror/thriller “Bloodline Killer” (yeah, the one with Shawnee Smith from Saw X, Tyrese Gibson, Taryn Manning, and Bruce Dern—talk about a wild cast), he’s not exactly new to the game. If you’ve caught “Sanctioning Evil” with Tobias Truvillion and Zach McGowan, or maybe “Last Call” (2021), “Fright Fest” (2018), “Little Ukraine” (2022), “Christmas vs. The Walters” (2021), “The Fix” (2013), “Leaves of the Tree” (2015), or “Fire Island” (2023), you’ve seen his style: intense, character-driven, and never afraid to get a little messy. His early days were shaped by a love for art and books—classic Bronx upbringing, really. At New School University, he was already writing and directing plays like “The Immigrant’s Son,” “A Room Full of Nothing,” and “Poems Taught,” all staged off-Broadway and all about digging deep into what makes people tick. No cookie-cutter stories here. Then there’s the Hollywood hustle—he started out working side-by-side with legends Harvey Keitel and Colin Farrell in their production companies, which meant hands-on experience on over 70 feature films. That’s not just paying dues; that’s getting a crash course in what makes movies actually work. Passion, hustle, and a serious knack for telling stories that stick with you—he’s got it in spades.