Modi - Director Bio

The New Orleans Film Festival describes the work of this LA filmmaker as "a Warhol factory director on loan to Hal Roach studios." Her unique directing style has enabled Modi to parlay her personal love for music, film and video into a phenomenal success.

Modi began her film education under the guidance of director Penelope Spherris. In 1992 Modi founded her own production company Modivation Films and has been delighting festival judges, music and film fans ever since.

Her comedy short film "Rosa Mi Amor" has won best short at eight different film & video festivals world wide including The New Orleans Film & Video Fest., The Video Shorts Fest. in Seattle, The New Haven Film Fest, The Tortured Artist Film Fest in WA, The New York Underground Film Festival, The San Jose Film Fest. & The Hollywood Renaissance Film Fest. The celebrated Hollywood Renaissance Film Fest created the "Modi" award citing the director as the inspiration. "Rosa" has screened at over 38 different international festivals & microcinemas around the world.

Modi's other short films, music videos, documentaries and various digital projects have garnered her many awards, international press and fans at worldwide.

Her award winning talent and style has earned her trust among the many rock groups that she s put a camera in front of. Modi has successfully directed & photographed a multitude of noted rockumentaries, music videos, epks and live events for major record companies & recording artists including Henry Rollins, Iggy Pop, Smashing Pumpkins, L7, Keith Richards, Buckcherry, Jane's Addiction, Babes in Toyland, Butthole Surfers, Nine Inch Nails, Prince, George Clinton, Rage Against The Machine, Queen Latifah, Lenny Kravitz, Blink-182 and Stone Temple Pilots. Modi was also the senior documentary director for the Woodstock 99 official web cast.

Most recently Modi was again honored for her work in digital video. She was giving the prestigious Media Master Award at the DV Expo by the popular DV Magazine for best music video for her direction and production of "Get Some Go Again" for The Rollins Band on Dreamworks SKG Records.

Modi produced & directed the Billboard chart topping home video "Viewphoria" for Virgin Records recording artist The Smashing Pumpkins. She also directed the award winning home video "You Saw Me Up There" featuring Henry Rollins. This project produced by her company incorporates Rollins sold out comedy spoken word performance at Los Angeles s famed El Rey Theater. "You" includes comedy vignettes of Rollins as a door-to door Jehovah Witness trying to spread "The Spoken Word" to various reluctant customers including notorious singer Scott Weliand of The Stone Temple Pilots.

Modi directed The Chicago Film Festival award winning video "Pretend We're Dead" for the all-girl rock group L7 as well as the highly acclaimed groundbreaking Jane's Addiction music video "Mountain Song".

She then produced and directed the Henry Rollins spoken word performance video "Talking From The Box". It was soon thereafter chosen to represent the best of the A.F.I. Film & Video Festival and was exhibited at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. This program was also a finalist at The New York Film Festival and since then it has been screened at The Dallas Museum of Art, The Pacific Film Archive in Berkeley, The New Orleans Film Fest., The N.Y. Underground Film Fest., as well as The Chicago Underground Film Festival.

Modi also directed the now infamous "Meat Stinks" anti meat PSA by K.D. Lang for PETA. This PSA became so controversial that the meat industry tried unsuccessfully to ban Ms.Lang's music in her own hometown.

"Created Equal" is her award winning mini documentary that she completed for the ACLU. It is the story of how Cheryl Summerville, fired from her job for her sexual orientation, found that U.S. laws would not and did not protect her. This project went on to take 1st place at The Vermont International Film Festival for Justice & Human Rights.

Modi recently has turned her attention to sharing her knowledge and hands on experience by speaking at various panels on the subject of independent digital and traditional filmmaking, directing and new media production & distribution. She also teaches a course at The Learning Tree University in Chatsworth, CA. entitled "How To Make An Award Winning Short Film". Modi has also been a guest speaker The Learning Annex's Intro To Digital Film Making class and at the recent International Film Fest "Expression Corto" in Guanajuato, Mexico.

For more info or reel requests contact us via email at: modivationfilms@earthlink.net