Jovan Todorović
Serbian–American film director and artist (born 1979)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jovan Branislav Todorović (Serbian: Јован Бранислав Тодоровић; born 1979) is a Serbian–American film director and multidisciplinary artist based in New York and Belgrade.
- Film director
- photographer
- musician
Jovan Todorović | |
|---|---|
Јован Тодоровић | |
| Born | Jovan Branislav Todorović 1979 (age 46–47) |
| Education | |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Organization | Directors Guild of America |
| Father | Branislav Todorović |
Early life and education
Todorović was born in Belgrade in 1979. He studied film at Columbia College Chicago in 1999, and then earned a degree in Film and TV Directing at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade in 2010. Later, Todorović earned his MFA from the same institution.[1][2] He is a member of the Directors Guild of America.[3]
Career
Documentary and shorts
Todorović wrote and directed The Belgrade Phantom (2009), a documentary recounting a 1979 folk tale about a stolen Porsche that drove through Belgrade at night. The film premiered at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), and later screened at the Centre Pompidou within the Hors Pistes program in 2011.[4][5] Beginning in 2015, he occasionally lived inside a juvenile correctional facility in southern Serbia, filming daily life inside. The short Juvenile (2016) premiered on Dazed, which discussed the ethics and aims of the project.[6] He later expanded the material into a feature-length film, completed in 2022, which appeared on the Energa CAMERIMAGE 2022 programme in Toruń.[7] Todorović also directed You're Dead, America (2017), a short film for Motionpoems based on a text by poet Danez Smith, released by Nowness.[8]
Music videos
Todorović's music-video credits include Jessie Ware’s "Spotlight" (2020), shot on Tito's Blue Train, which received significant coverage in the music press.[9][10][11] His other credits include Major Lazer & Anitta's "Make It Hot" (2019),[12] SOHN’s "Hard Liquor" (2017),[13] Rosie Lowe’s "Birdsong" (2019), Paul Kalkbrenner’s "Schwer" (2023), and Inhaler's "Your House" (2024).[14][15] Recent coverage has highlighted the technological and aesthetic character of his work: Schwer was described as ground-breaking for its fusion of volumetric capture and live action.[16][17][18] Your House was framed as a stylized, fractured-love portrait with tight editorial rhythm.[15]
Commercials
Todorovic's has made commercials for GM — "Crafting the One / See You on the Road" (Droga5/Smuggler) and Tissot — "Focus Forward" (Le Pub/Smuggler). He is represented commercially by Smuggler.[19][20][21][2] His 2020 film The Future Isn’t Waiting for Nike Japan explored bullying and discrimination. The piece was mentioned in The Guardian and The Asahi Shimbun.[22][23] For Diesel — Hate Couture (2018), he collaborated with Publicis Italy and Stink Films on a campaign which turned real online insults into couture pieces modeled by high-profile figures (including Nicki Minaj, Gucci Mane and Bella Thorne); Shots profiled the staging and reception, and the campaign went on to win multiple awards including Lions at Cannes.[24] In 2024 he directed Find Your Pace for Experience Abu Dhabi, a tourism campaign shot on 65mm with cinematographer Oliver Millar.[25]
He also directed the global Adidas film See My Creativity, spotlighting women in sports.[26][27][28]
ZNTNDR (music project)
Todorović is the founder, producer, and lead vocalist of ZNTNDR, an electronic music and video project based between Belgrade and New York.[29] ZNTNDR's Untitled Us (2022) was featured by Nowness and covered by Promonews, and was shortlisted at the UK Music Video Awards 2022 for Best Alternative Video – International and Best Cinematography (Oliver Millar).[30][31][32] ZNTNDR's Wonderful Time (2022) is among his recent directorial credits; Serbian outlet Before After profiled the project in detail.[33][34]
Photography
Todorović's editorial and personal work has appeared in Flaunt, Interview, Teeth Magazine, ODDA, Escape into Life, and Fubiz, and his portfolio is catalogued on Models.com.[35][36][37][38][39][40][41] He has also photographed and directed elements of the Katy Perry INDI fragrance campaign.[42][43][44]
Recognition and exhibitions
- 2009: Silver Eye Award – Jihlava Documentary FF (The Belgrade Phantom); Best Documentary Film – Gotham Screen FF (The Belgrade Phantom); FIPRESCI Award – FIPRESCI Serbia (The Belgrade Phantom).
- 2011: Screening – Hors Pistes, Centre Pompidou (The Belgrade Phantom).
- 2018: Eurobest — Gold (Film Craft – Licensed/Adapted Music, Hate Couture), Bronze (Film Craft – Direction, Hate Couture); CICLOPE Festival – Bronze (Adapted Music, Hate Couture); Cannes Lions — Bronze (Social Film), Silver (Innovative Use of Influencers), Silver (Consumer Durables), Bronze (Integrated Brand Experience, all for Hate Couture); Grand Prix – Golden Drum (Digital & Mobile, Hate Couture), plus multiple Golden Drum awards (Activation, Engagement, Use of Music).
- 2019: Silver Clio (Fashion & Beauty, Hate Couture); Gold Clio (Social Media, Hate Couture); D&AD Wood Pencil (Integrated Digital Campaigns, Hate Couture); Silver Shots Award (Online Commercial of the Year, Hate Couture); Recognised – APA Showcase (Hate Couture); LUX Awards – Grand Prix (Cinematography, adidas Alpha Edge).
- 2020: Vimeo Staff Pick (Dec, The Future Isn't Waiting); YouTube Works Grand Prix & Force for Good (The Future Isn't Waiting); Adweek Campaign of the Year (Content Marketing, The Future Isn't Waiting); MVF Awards – Best Lockdown Music Video (Fukakouryoku); Webby Awards – People's Voice Winner (Best Use of Video, Bacardi Beat Machine), Webby Honoree (Social – Best Use of Video, Bacardi Beat Machine); Bronze Clio (Social Media – Single Platform, Bacardi Beat Machine); YouTube Works US – Grand Prix & Creative Innovation (Bacardi Beat Machine); ADC Silver Cube (Video/Online Video, Bacardi Beat Machine).
- 2021: Shark Music Video Awards – Best Choreography (Fukakouryoku).
- 2022: CICLOPE Festival – Silver (Cinematography, Untitled Us), Bronze (Production Design, Untitled Us), Bronze (Editing, Untitled Us); UK Music Video Awards – Shortlist (Best Alternative Video – International, Untitled Us; Best Cinematography, Untitled Us); London International Awards – 3× Gold (Best Music Video, Cinematography, Direction, Untitled Us), Silver (Cinematography, Wonderful Time); Berlin Commercial Awards – Winner (Cultural Impact, Don't Wait Reach Out), Winner (Craft: Casting, Wonderful Time); Clio Gold (Editing, Don’t Wait Reach Out); D&AD Graphite Pencil (Casting, The Future Isn’t Waiting); Exhibition — Fukakouryoku in The World of Music Video, Völklinger Hütte (UNESCO World Heritage).
Interviews and podcasts
- The Nourish Podcast — “Being Present in Your Own Creativity.”[45][46]
- Good Podcast — S5E5.[45][47]
- 360 Yourself! — Episode 92.[45][48]
- Boiler Room 4:3 – JOVAN TODOROVIC & CLAYTON VOMERO ON '3OHA'.[45][49]
- Shots Magazine Interview | Vaundy Music Video.[45][50]
- Shots Magazine Interview | Hate Couture.[45][51]
- Dazed Interview – Juvenile.[45][52]
- Dazed Interview – Generation Insta.[45][53]
- Nowness Interview – You're Dead, America.[45][54]
- LBB Online – Experience Abu Dhabi.[45][54]
Selected filmography
Documentary and shorts
Music videos
Commercials / branded films
- Diesel — Hate Couture (2018).[24]
- Adidas — See My Creativity (2018).[26][27][28]
- Nike Japan — The Future Isn't Waiting (2020).[22][23]
- General Motors — Crafting the One / See You on the Road (2025).[19]
- Tissot — Focus Forward (2021).[20][21]
- Experience Abu Dhabi — Find Your Pace (65mm, 2024).[55][56]
Affiliations
- Member, Directors Guild of America.[3]
Representation
- Commercial representation: Smuggler (global).[2]