Andrew Swant (born 1976 in Madison, Wisconsin) is an American filmmaker best known for ''

William Shatner's Gonzo Ballet ''William Shatner's Gonzo Ballet'' is a 2009 American documentary film about a ballet by Margo Sappington called "Common People", which was set to the music of William Shatner and Ben Folds from their album '' Has Been''.http://www.nashvillecit ...

'', ''

The Jeffrey Dahmer Files ''The Jeffrey Dahmer Files'' (aka ''Jeff'') is an independent documentary film about serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer during the summer of his arrest. The film was directed by Chris James Thompson and stars Andrew Swant as Dahmer in fictionalized re ...

'', and '' What What in the Butt''. In 2012, Swant co-wrote and starred in ''

'', a feature film about serial killer

Jeffrey Dahmer Jeffrey Lionel Dahmer (; May 21, 1960 – November 28, 1994), also known as the Milwaukee Cannibal or the Milwaukee Monster, was an American serial killer and sex offender who killed and dismemberment, dismembered seventeen men and boys b ...

which premiered at the

SXSW South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

film festival. It received positive reviews and was a

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

Critic's Pick. Swant's portrayal of Dahmer was called "chillingly effective" by

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

and "dead-on creepy perfection" by

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

. The film was picked up by

IFC Films Independent Film Company (formerly IFC Films) is an American film production and distribution company based in New York City, New York. It is an offshoot of IFC (U.S. TV channel), IFC, owned by AMC Networks. It mainly distributes independent fil ...

and released in early 2013. In 2007, Swant and collaborator

Bobby Ciraldo Bobby Ciraldo (born 12 October 1974 in Skokie, Illinois, Skokie, Illinois) is a filmmaker and web-based artist whose works include ''Hamlet A.D.D.'', ''William Shatner's Gonzo Ballet'',What What (In the Butt)'', which immediately went viral. As of March 2020 their YouTube channel had over 82 million views. In 2009 the duo co-directed ''

'', a documentary starring

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1966 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

Ben Folds Benjamin Scott Folds (born September 12, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. After playing in several small independent bands throughout the late 80s and into the early 90s, Folds came to prominence as the f ...

, and

Henry Rollins Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, comedian, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1 ...

. Later that year they released Frankie Latina's ''

Modus Operandi A (often shortened to M.O. or MO) is an individual's habits of working, particularly in the context of business or criminal investigations, but also generally. It is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as . Term The term is often used in ...

'', an arthouse film which screened at the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...

Film Festival in Los Angeles and stars

Danny Trejo Danny Trejo (, ; born May 16, 1944) is an American actor. Known for his Danny Trejo filmography, large body of work as a character actor, films in which he has appeared in have grossed over $3.7 billion worldwide. A native of Los Angeles, Tr ...

. In 2014 they premiered a feature-length comedy called ''

Hamlet A.D.D. ''Hamlet A.D.D.'' is a 2014 American independent film and web series directed by Bobby Ciraldo and Andrew Swant and produced by Special Entertainment. It re-imagines William Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' as a bizarre and comical tour through the ag ...

'' at the

Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (MOCA) is a contemporary art museum with two locations in greater Los Angeles, California. The main branch is located on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, near the Walt Disney Concert Hall. MOCA's ori ...

. The partially animated film is based on Shakespeare's ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' and guest stars Majel Barrett Roddenberry,

Dustin Diamond Dustin Neil Diamond (January 7, 1977 – February 1, 2021) was an American actor and stand-up comedian. He is best known for portraying Samuel "Screech" Powers throughout the '' Saved by the Bell'' franchise. Early life and family Diamond was ...

, and

Gregg Turkington Gregg Turkington (born November 25, 1967) is an American comedian, entertainer, actor, musician and writer. He is known for his performances as Neil Hamburger, a stand up comedy, stand-up comedian persona he developed in the 1990s. Alongside Tim ...

Neil Hamburger Neil Hamburger is a standup comedy, standup comedian and singer character created and portrayed by American entertainer Gregg Turkington. Distinguished for his misanthropic jokes and anti-comedy style, Turkington has released a number of albums ...

. Swant co-created a broadcast television show with Bobby Ciraldo and David Robbins called '' Something Theater'', which aired sporadically from 2009 through 2011. In 2017, he directed ''Silently Steal Away'', a documentary about an obscure radio personality named

Jack Raymond Jack Raymond (1886–1953) was an English people, English actor and film director. Born in Wimborne, Dorset in 1886, he began acting before the First World War in ''A Detective for a Day''. In 1921, he directed his first film and gradually he wo ...

and the small radio station, WCFW, which has been playing his show for over 50 years. The film, which screened at

Hot Docs The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and June ...

International Documentary Festival (Toronto) and

Eaux Claires Eaux Claires, also known as the Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival, was a two-day music and arts festival that took place for four years in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The festival took what was to be a year-long hiatus in 2019 but was expected to r ...

Festival of Music & Art, stars musician

Justin Vernon Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon (born April 30, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best-known as the primary songwriter and Lead vocalist, frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. He is also a member o ...

Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Vernon had originally formed Bon Iver as a solo project, but it eventually became a band consisting of Vernon (vocals, guit ...

and features narration by

Mark Borchardt Mark Borchardt (born August 20, 1966) is an American independent filmmaker. He is best known as the subject of the 1999 film '' American Movie'', which documented three years he spent writing, shooting and editing his horror short ''Coven'' (1997 ...

of ''

American Movie ''American Movie'' is a 1999 American documentary film directed by Chris Smith, produced by Smith and Sarah Price, and edited by Jun Diaz and Barry Poltermann. Filmed between September 1995 and August 1997, ''American Movie'' documents the ...

''. He also produced ''The Dundee Project'', a documentary directed by Mark Borchardt which premiered at Slamdance in Park City, Utah and later screened at

Fantastic Fest Fantastic Fest is an annual film festival in Austin, Texas, focused on fantasy, horror, sci-fi, action and cult films, the largest genre festival in the United States. It was founded in 2005 by Tim League of Alamo Drafthouse. Lisa Dreyer ...

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. In 2019, he directed ''Bon Iver: Autumn'', a short documentary about the creation of Bon Iver's 2019/2020 world tour. He also co-produced '' Give Me Liberty'', which screened at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

, the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

, and the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

(New York). The film won the 2020

John Cassavetes John Nicholas Cassavetes (December 9, 1929 – February 3, 1989) was an American filmmaker and actor. He began as an actor in film and television before helping to pioneer modern American independent cinema as a writer and director, often self- ...

Spirit Award and ranked #11 on

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

’s "Best Movies of 2019" list. He attended film school at

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a Public university, public Urban university, urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropo ...

, and art school at

University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire The University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire (UW–Eau Claire, UWEC or simply Eau Claire) is a public university in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and offers Bachelor's degree, bachelor's and ...

where he majored in Fine Art and minored in

Women's Studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on Feminism, feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining Social constructionism, social and cultural constructs of gender; ...

. Swant and Ciraldo (as the collaborative

Special Entertainment Special Entertainment (formerly Fortress Productions) is a Milwaukee based media production company established in 2003 by Bobby Ciraldo and Andrew Swant. MKE Online, By Lilledeshan Bose (November 15, 2007), "The who who behind the ''What What' ...

) were awarded the Mary L. Nohl Fellowship for Established Artists in 2013. Other awards include the Best Documentary award at the

Marbella International Film Festival The Marbella International Film Festival ''(Festival Internacional de Cine de Marbella)'' has been held in Marbella on the Costa del Sol The Costa del Sol (; literally "Coast of the Sun") is a region in the south of Spain in the Autonomo ...

, first place at

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

's 24-hour Film Festival in 2005 and 2007, a Brico Award in 2019, and he was a

Sundance A Sun Dance is a Native American ceremony. Sun dance or Sundance may also refer to: Places ;Canada * Sundance, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * Sundance, Manitoba, a ghost town ;United States * Sundance, New Mexico, a census-designated pl ...

TV Lab finalist in 2003.

Filmography

References

External links

*
Volume One Magazine article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swant, Andrew Living people Filmmakers from Milwaukee Artists from Madison, Wisconsin 1976 births University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire alumni University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee alumni