Paul Hunter is an American film director, screenwriter, and music video director. He has directed over 100 music videos,
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
advertisements
Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...
and was nominated for an
Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
for Nike's Freestyle commercial. In 2004, the ''
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...
'' called Hunter one of "most seminal names among black hip-hop directors."
Hunter graduated from
Cal State Northridge with a degree in Radio, TV & Film.
Hunter has worked with musical artists including
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Voice", she is Whitney Houston albums discography, one of the bestselling music artists ...
,
Aaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...
,
Pharrell,
Dr. Dre
Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and w ...
,
TLC,
Tyrese Gibson
Tyrese Darnell Gibson (born December 30, 1978) is an American actor and singer. He released his self-titled debut album in 1998, which featured the single " Sweet Lady", peaking at number twelve on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His second ...
,
Beyoncé
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
,
LL Cool J
James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...
,
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...
,
Lenny Kravitz
Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. His style incorporates elements of rock, blues, soul, R&B, funk, jazz, reggae, hard rock, psychedelic, pop and folk.
Kravitz won the Grammy Award for Best Male R ...
,
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...
,
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the w ...
, and
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...
.
Hunter made his feature-length directorial debut with ''
Bulletproof Monk'', starring
Chow Yun Fat and
Seann William Scott
Seann William Scott (born October 3, 1976) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Steve Stifler in the '' American Pie'' franchise, and also for his role as Doug Glatt in both '' Goon'' and '' Goon: Last of the Enforcers''. He has al ...
.
Hunter's directed the music video of Michael Jackson's come-back single, '
You Rock My World' and the award-winning "Lady Marmalade" video for the soundtrack to the film ''
Moulin Rouge!
''Moulin Rouge!'' (, ) is a 2001 jukebox musical romantic drama film directed, co-produced, and co-written by Baz Luhrmann. It follows a young English poet, Christian, who falls in love with the star of the Moulin Rouge, cabaret actress and co ...
'' (2001).
While working with Prettybird, Hunter has also done commercial work including a spot for
Bacardi
Bacardi Limited (; ) is one of the largest privately held, family-owned spirits companies in the world. Originally known for its Bacardi brand of white rum, it now has a portfolio of more than 200 brands and labels. Founded in Cuba in 1862 a ...
he co-directed with actor
Michael B. Jordan.
Selected music video credits
Filmography
Film
* ''
Bulletproof Monk'' (2003)
Awards
Commercials
* 2010 - London International Advertising Awards - Bronze Television/Cinema/ Digital/Web/Mobile - Axe: "Destiny" (Director)
* 2010 - Cannes Lion International Festival of Creativity - Bronze Award: Product & Service/Cosmetics & Beauty - Axe: "Destiny" (Director)
* 2013 - Samsung Galaxy Note 3 TV Commercial / Digital Short Film (Director)
Music videos
* 2007 - MVPA Awards - Best Direction of a Male Artist - Justin Timberlake: "My Love" (Director)
* 2006 - MVPA Awards - R&B Video of the Year - Stevie Wonder: "So What the Fuss" (Director)
* 2002 - MVPA Awards - Hollywood Digital Award for Rap Video of the Year - Jay-Z: "Guilty Until Proven Innocent" (Director)
*
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...
-
MTV Video Music Award
The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video categor ...
s -
Best Video of the Year and
Best Video From a Film - Mya, Pink, Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim: "Lady Marmalade" (Director)
* 2000 - MVPA Awards - Best Direction of a Male Video - D'Angelo: "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" (Director)
*
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
- MTV Video Music Awards -
Best Cinematography in a Video - Marilyn Manson: "The Dope Show" (Director)
* 1999 - MVPA Awards - Rock Video of the Year and Best Direction of a Music Video - Marilyn Manson: "The Dope Show" (Director)
*
1997
File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of ...
- MTV Video Music Awards -
Best Rap Video - The Notorious B.I.G.: "Hypnotize" (Director)
* 1997 - MVPA Awards - Best Urban/R&B Video - Erykah Badu: "On & On" (Director)
Notes
External links
PRETTYBIRD*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Paul
Living people
Television commercial directors
American music video directors
African-American film directors
Film directors from Los Angeles
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century African-American people