Dean Israelite (born September 20, 1984) is a South African film director, writer, and producer, best known for directing the found footage film '' Project Almanac'' (2015), the 2017 reboot of ''

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an American media franchise created by Haim Saban, Shuki Levy and Shotaro Ishinomori built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. It is currently ow ...

'', and the 2019 reboot of '' Are You Afraid of the Dark''.

Early life

Israelite was born and raised in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

, South Africa, and studied Dramatic Art at the

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), commonly known as Wits University or Wits, is a multi-campus Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg, South Africa. The universit ...

. He moved to Australia and graduated in Film and Television from

Curtin University Curtin University (previously Curtin University of Technology and Western Australian Institute of Technology) is an Australian public university, public research university based in Bentley, Western Australia, Bentley, Perth, Western Australia. ...

, then earned his MFA from 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 ...

. His cousin is director

Jonathan Liebesman Jonathan Liebesman (born 15 September 1976) is a South African film director and screenwriter. He is known for directing the films ''Darkness Falls (2003 film), Darkness Falls'' (2003), ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning'' (2006), '' ...

. He is of

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

background.

Career

Israelite started his career with writing and directing several short films, including ''Acholiland''. In 2015, Israelite made his feature film directing debut with the found footage science fiction thriller '' Project Almanac'', based on the script by Jason Pagan and Andrew Deutschman.

Michael Bay Michael Benjamin Bay (born February 17, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is best known for making big-budget high-concept action films with fast cutting, stylistic cinematography and visuals, and extensive use of special eff ...

produced the film, which was released on January 30, 2015 by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

, grossing more than $32 million with a budget of $12 million. Israelite directed

Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to: Gates *Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...

's ''

'' film (2017), based on the screenplay by John Gatins, with a story by Matt Sazama, Burk Sharpless, Michelle Mulroney and Kieran Mulroney, which was released on March 24, 2017 by

Lionsgate Films Lionsgate Films (spelled as Lions Gate until 2005, and formerly Cinépix Film Properties until 1998) is a Canadian-American film production and distribution company founded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on June 15, 1962. It was owned by Lionsga ...

, grossing $142.3 million against a production budget of $100 million. It was a box office failure, losing the studio an estimated $74 million, when factoring in all revenues and expenses.

Future and cancelled projects

In February 2014, Israelite was among the directors who were being eyed by the

Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC, formerly known as Marvel Films, is an American film and television production company. Marvel Studios is the creator of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a media franchise and shared universe of films and television ser ...

to direct the superhero film ''

Doctor Strange Dr. Stephen Vincent Strange is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #110 (cover-dated July 1963). Doctor Strange serves as ...

'', but later in June 2014

Scott Derrickson Scott Derrickson (born July 16, 1966) is an American filmmaker. He is known for his work in the horror genre, directing films such as ''The Exorcism of Emily Rose'' (2005), ''Sinister (film), Sinister'' (2012), and ''The Black Phone'' (2021). He ...

was confirmed as director. In June 2014, Israelite was set to direct the remake of the 1983 film '' WarGames'' for

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

, based on the script by Arash Amel. Israelite is set to direct
Unexplained Phenomenon
' from the screenplay by Andrew Deutschman & Jason Pagan, for

Amblin Entertainment Amblin' Entertainment, Inc., formerly named Amblin Productions, is an American film production company founded by director and producer Steven Spielberg, and film producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall in 1980. Its headquarters are lo ...

and

The Picture Company The Picture Company is an American entertainment company founded in 2014, by Andrew Rona and Alex Heineman, in Glendale, California. It specializes in film, starting off moderately in 2018 with Jaume Collet-Serra's '' The Commuter'' and Albert ...

Filmography

Short film Feature film * '' Project Almanac'' (2015) * ''

'' (2017) * '' Little Wing'' (2024) Television

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Israelite, Dean Living people Mass media people from Johannesburg South African film directors South African screenwriters South African film producers University of the Witwatersrand alumni Curtin University alumni AFI Conservatory alumni 1984 births South African Jews Jewish film people