Martin Desmond Roe
NationalityBritish, American
Alma materUniversity of Southern California (MFA, Cinema-Television, 2008)
Somerville College, Oxford (B.A., Classics, 2001)
Occupation(s)Film director, film producer, screenwriter
Years active2009–present
Known forBuzkashi Boys, Tom vs Time, Breaking2, Kobe Bryant's Muse[1]
Websitedirtyrobber.com

Martin Desmond Roe is a British-American film and television director, writer, and producer.[2][3][1] He is best known for Buzkashi Boys (2012),[4][5] Kobe Bryant's Muse (2015),[6][3] Breaking2 (2017),[2][7][8] Tom vs Time (2018),[9] and We are the Champions (2020).[10][11][12] Roe is the founder and Creative Director of Dirty Robber, a Los Angeles–based production company.[3]

Martin Roe's short film Two Distant Strangers was met with critical acclaim; at the 93rd Academy Awards, it received the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film.[13][14]

Education

Born in Bristol, England,[15] Roe studied Latin and Ancient Greek at Somerville College, Oxford,[16] graduating in 2001 with a BA in Classics. He moved to Los Angeles and entered the USC School of Cinematic Arts, earning an MFA in Cinema and Television in 2008.[17][18]

Career

Roe became interested in filmmaking and storytelling while staging plays during his time at Oxford. After finishing USC film school he founded Dirty Robber, a production company.[16] His first major success came in 2012 when Roe co-wrote the screenplay for Buzkashi Boys, a short film that was directed by Sam French.[5] Written in a week, on location in Kabul, Afghanistan, the film was inspired by the true life story of Fawad Mohammidi,[19] a homeless 14 year old street vendor and explored his friendship with another boy and their love for the traditional horse sport Buzkashi.[5] Buzkashi Boys gained critical acclaim[20][21] winning numerous film festival awards,[22][23][24] and was nominated for the 2013 Best Live Action Short Film at the Academy Awards.[4]

In 2017, after directing a number of commercials for Nike, Inc.,[25] Roe was invited as creative lead on Breaking2 sports documentary, a joint project of Nike and National Geographic in association with Dirty Robber.[26] The documentary short followed three world class athletes, Eliud Kipchoge, Lelisa Desisa, and Zersenay Tadese as they attempted to run a marathon in under two hours.[8][27] Breaking2 won several awards in advertising industry[28][29] including a Gold Lion at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.[30] Roe also took part as an executive producer of 6 episodes for Tom vs Time, a collaborative web television series project directed by Gotham Chopra, which won Emmy Award for Outstanding Serialized Sports Documentary (NBC Sports).[9] In 2020, he co-directed the short film Two Distant Strangers, about police killings in the United States, which stars Joey Bada$$ and Andrew Howard, and which won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short in 2021.[31]

In 2023, Roe co-directed alongside Travon Free, BS High a documentary for HBO, revolving around the Bishop Sycamore High School scandal.[32][33]

Roe is an owner and creative director of Dirty Robber Productions, a Los Angeles-based company with the focus on documentaries, T.V series, shows and sports events. Among Dirty Robber's most notable productions are Religion of Sports,[34][35] Tom vs Time,[36] Kobe Bryant’s Muse (in collaboration with Kobe Inc.),[37][38] Why We Fight (ESPN+), Wiz Khalifa: Behind the Cam (DIRECTV),[39] and We are the Champions, a documentary series about various contests and sports traditions.[3][40]

Filmography

Year Title Credit Notes
2023 BS High Co-director Documentary film
2020 Two Distant Strangers Co-director Short[41]
2020 We are the Champions Executive producer
(6 episodes)
Director
(2 episodes) 		TV documentary series[2]
2019 Wiz Khalifa: Behind the Cam Director
(5 episodes) 		TV documentary mini-series[2]
2019 Why We Fight Executive producer
(15 episodes) 		TV documentary series[27]
2018 Shut Up and Dribble Executive producer
(3 episodes) 		TV documentary series[42]
2018 Tom vs Time Executive producer
(6 episodes) 		Documentary web television series
(Emmy Award Winner)[9]
2017 Breaking2 Director TV movie documentary
Cannes Gold Lions Winner
Co-production of National Geographic Studios and Dirty Robber Productions[8][43]
2017 Uninterrupted Presents Executive producer
(2 episodes) 		TV series documentary
2016 Religion of Sports Executive producer (18 episodes)
Director
Writer 		TV series documentary[44][45]
2015 Kobe Bryant's Muse Producer TV movie documentary[6]
2012 Buzkashi Boys Co-producer
Co-writer 		Short

References

  1. ^ a b "Martin Roe's Filmography". IMDb.
  2. ^ a b c d "Brands like HP and Apple try film to reach young consumers who skip commercials". Los Angeles Times. 11 June 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d "US Focus: Dirty Robber". Shots Insight.
  4. ^ a b "Buzkashi Boys shoots for Oscar with tale of Afghan child dreamers". The Guardian. 15 February 2013.
  5. ^ a b c "Sam French on Buzkashi Boys, his Oscar-Nominated Short About Afghanistan's Brutal National Sport". Vanity Fair. 23 January 2013.
  6. ^ a b "New Film Imagines Being Kobe". Below the Line News. 17 April 2015.
  7. ^ "This Documentary Takes You Inside the 2-Hour Marathon Pursuit". Runners World. 14 September 2017.
  8. ^ a b c "Breaking2 by National Geographic and Dirty Robber for Nike". Cannes Lions.
  9. ^ a b c "'Tom vs. Time' is now an Emmy Award-winning show". Boston.
  10. ^ "'We Are the Champions' EPs on Documenting Niche Sports, Including Dog Dancing". Variety. 17 November 2020.
  11. ^ "Rainn Wilson's We Are The Champions Is a Docuseries With Heart". PrimeTimer. 17 November 2020.
  12. ^ "'We Are the Champions' Review: Netflix Doc Series Is a Lighthearted Celebration of Human Achievement". IndieWire. 17 November 2020.
  13. ^ "Short "Two Distant Strangers makes Oskar History. Here's why it's controversial". The Los Angeles Times.
  14. ^ "Oscars 2021: The Complete Winners List". Variety.
  15. ^ "Former Bristol Boy, Oscar nominee Martin Roe". Visit Bristol. 18 February 2016.
  16. ^ a b "Pro Video Coalition". Fueling creativity at Coyote Post. 29 May 2014.
  17. ^ "Martin Roe's Education". Personal LinkedIn profile.
  18. ^ "SCA In Motion - Fall 2015". University of Southern California. 2 February 2016.
  19. ^ "Oscars 2013: Afghan boy's astonishing journey to the Academy Awards". The Telegraph. 16 February 2013.
  20. ^ "Afghan Dreams: In New Film, Nation's Untold Stories". NPR.org. NPR.
  21. ^ Holden, Stephen (31 January 2013). "Movie Review: Far From Epic Length, but on the Shortlist for Oscar Glory". The New York Times.
  22. ^ "Buzkashi Boys Makes Oscar Shortlist". 30 November 2012.
  23. ^ "2012 Film Festival Award Winners Announced". Rhode Island International Film Festival. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  24. ^ "ECU Filmfestival 2013". Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  25. ^ "Martin Desmond Roe's Profile". AdAge.
  26. ^ "Nike Found an Unlikely Partner in National Geographic to Co-Produce a Marathon Documentary". AdWeek. 20 September 2017.
  27. ^ a b "Rep Sheet Roundup: ICM Partners Signs 'The Chi' Star Tiffany Boone". THR. 22 January 2018.
  28. ^ "AICP Awards - Breaking2". AICP Awards Archive.
  29. ^ "2018 One Show - Breaking2". The One Club.
  30. ^ "National Geographic Partners Takes Home Total of 9 Awards in Cannes Lion 2018 Wins First-Ever Gold Lion with "Breaking2"". National Geographic Partners. 26 June 2018.
  31. ^ Thorpe, Isha (2021-04-25). "Joey Badass, Travon Free and Diddy win Oscar for 'Two Distant Strangers'". REVOLT. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  32. ^ Carey, Matthew (August 29, 2022). "HBO Launches Production On 'BS High,' Doc About Football Team From "Fake" School That Got Drubbed On National TV". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
  33. ^ "HBO Original Documentary BS HIGH Debuts August 23". Warner Bros. Discovery. August 3, 2023. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
  34. ^ "AT&T Audience Network Renews Docuseries 'Religion Of Sports' For Season 3". Deadline. 26 June 2018.
  35. ^ "One of the greatest MMA documentaries ever made is available to watch on Netflix right now". Sports Joe. 2 March 2018.
  36. ^ "Tom Brady Is Getting His Own Facebook Watch Reality Series". Variety. 9 January 2018.
  37. ^ "TV Review: 'Kobe Bryant's Muse'". Variety. 17 February 2015.
  38. ^ "Kobe Bryant's Muse". Clio Awards.
  39. ^ "Wiz Khalifa Gets Candid in New Documentary Series Behind the Cam". Billboard. 17 April 2019.
  40. ^ "Dirty Robber Production: Works". Official Website.
  41. ^ "Behind the Scenes of New Short Film, 'Two Distant Strangers,' About Police Killings in America". The Hollywood Reporter. 19 January 2021.
  42. ^ "'Shut Up and Dribble': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. November 2018.
  43. ^ "Breaking2: A Nike Brand Film by Martin Desmond Roe". Africa Film. 27 August 2018.
  44. ^ "Religion of Sports". The Futon Critic.
  45. ^ "AT&T Audience: Network To Debut Original Series "Religion of Sports" Nov. 15". AT&T.

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