Better Than A Shovel | A Dark Comedy Feature Film

AN INDEPENDENT FEATURE FILM

WATCH TEASER

Teaser

Cast

Carolyn

Benny

Howard

Dean

Darrell

Officer Bo

Francis

Don

Officer Barry

Team

The key creators are all USC School of Cinematic Arts MFA alumni,

supported by USC professors and industry professionals.

writer & director | Alex Kamb

Alex Kamb is a writer, director, and stop motion animator. After graduating from USC School of Cinematic Arts MFA program, he directed the stop motion section of a Netflix Top 10 Kids movie “L.O.L Surprise! The Movie”. He was selected as one of 15 filmmakers for the Sundance Institute's young filmmakers fellowship program, Ignite, in 2017. He has directed over 50 short films, music videos and commercials, clients include Netflix, MGA Entertainment, SpinMaster, Mattel, etc. His short film "5150" won 1st Place Best Film at the New Haven 48 Hour Film Project and his short film "Walking to the Trashcan... In Front of Da Ladies" won Best Comedy at the My Rode Reel Film Competition 2016. Many of his other films went to Flickers’ Rhode Island IFF, LA Shorts IFF, Short Shorts FF, etc. His interracial and bicultural background gives him appreciation and open mind for different types of cinema, which he hopes will be apparent and incorporated in his debut feature film “Better Than A Shovel”.

producer & cinematographer | Quincy Huanxi Li

Quincy Huanxi Li is a producer, cinematographer, and stop motion animator with an award-winning portfolio. She has produced and shot over 40 short films since 2014, including narratives, documentaries, music videos, and commercials. Her work includes the 47th Student Academy Awards Gold Medalist, BAFTA Student Film Awards Special Jury Prize winner, Flickers' Rhode Island IFF Finalist, and many more. Her credits also include the Netflix Top 10 Kids movie “L.O.L Surprise! The Movie”. She graduated from the MFA Program at USC School of Cinematic Arts in 2020, and now is working professionally in L.A. with her O-1 Visa (Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement). She has worked with clients including Netflix, MGA Entertainment, Mattel, SpinMaster, etc.

executive producer | Katy Garretson

Katy Garretson has been an award-winning DGA Director and Assistant Director for over 30 years, and has worked on every genre of production, from features and TV movies to commercials and situation comedies. She has been nominated for two BET Awards as a director, a DGA Award for Outstanding Comedy Direction, and several of her guest stars have been nominated for and/or received Emmy Awards. Katy is a recipient of the Frank Capra Career Achievement Award from the Directors Guild of America. She is a decades-long member of The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences as well as the Screen Actors Guild.

As a producer, Katy developed and produced the most successful series of movies (16) ever for The Hallmark Channel: The Garage Sale Mysteries. She also produced a series of documentaries, funded by The Annenberg Foundation, on climate change and the Arctic.

In addition to directing and producing, Katy is currently a professor of directing in the School of Cinematic Arts at her alma mater, the University of Southern California.

casting director | Emily Schweber

Emily Schweber has cast over 100 films. She began her career working on commercials and movies in the Bay Area. After moving to Los Angeles, she worked with the late Mali Finn on such films as Terminator 2, True Lies, and Titanic for James Cameron, L.A. Confidential and Wonder Boys for Curtis Hanson, The Matrix for the Wachowskis, and The Client, A Time to Kill, Batman Forever, and Tigerland for Joel Schumacher. Many of her films have premiered at major film festivals including Sundance, South by Southwest, Tribeca, Venice, Cannes, and LA Film Festival. Selected credits include I’ll See You In My Dreams, The Hero, Secondhand Lions, The Wood, Lemon, Oh Lucy!, The Tiger Hunter, The Quarry, and Flora and Ulysses. Video game credits include Star Wars: Battlefront II, Wolfenstein: The New Colossus and The New Order, Battlefield 1, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Killzone: Shadow Fall, and most recently Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Need for Speed: Heat and Star Wars: Squadrons. Emily was the Film Independent Directing Lab Advisor for 2018 and 2019.