Director X


Julien Christian Lutz, credited professionally as Director X, is a Canadian film and music video director and producer. Having directed more than 100 music videos, he is widely known as a prolific director in the industry. He has also directed feature films and television series.

Early life

Lutz was born and raised in the Greater Toronto Area, mostly in and around Brampton, and is of Trinidadian and Swiss descent.

Career

Early work

Lutz began his career working on various productions; he was a visual consultant on the Hype Williams 1998 film Belly. Lutz was slated to direct the vampire feature Razorwire, though the film never moved into production.

Music videos

After working on several of his projects, Lutz became a protégé of Hype Williams. Since the late 1990s, Lutz has directed dozens of music videos for popular artists and been noted for his high-budget, visually distinctive music videos for popular music singles, including videos for The Wanted, R. Kelly, Usher, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Korn, David Guetta, Nelly Furtado, Sean Paul, Justin Bieber, Drake, Nicki Minaj, T.I., Little Mix, Rihanna, Union J, Fifth Harmony, Miguel, One Direction, Zayn Malik and Iggy Azalea. In 2004, Lutz appeared in Mya Baker's documentary film Silence: In Search of Black Female Sexuality in America.
In 2015, Lutz founded his own production company, Popp Rok, in Toronto. In 2017, he appeared on episode 7 of America's Next Top Model Cycle 23, "X Marks The Spot", as the director for a Gypsy-Sports-themed music video.

Feature films

''Across the Line''

In addition to music video direction, Lutz has directed two feature films and a television film; he made his feature directorial debut in 2015 with Across the Line. The film starred Stephan James and the storyline was inspired by the 1989 Cole Harbour District High School race riots.
Across the Line was set and shot in Nova Scotia. The first screening of Across the Line was 19 September 2015 at the Atlantic Film Festival where it won the award for Best Atlantic Feature. The film opened for limited in British Columbia and Ontario on 8 April 2016, with screenings in various Canadian cities throughout that month. The National Post assessed the film at 2.5/4 stars, noting the story's unwavering focus on racial themes was "to the detriment of the film's depth and realism" but noted that video producer Director X "makes the transition to feature film-making look easy". In 2017, the film was the subject of an episode of The Filmmakers, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's web talk series on Canadian film.

''Center Stage: On Pointe''

In 2016, he directed the teen drama television film '. The film stars Nicole Muñoz, Barton Cowperthwaite, Maude Green, Chloe Lukasiak, Kenny Wormald and Peter Gallagher. It premiered on Lifetime on June 25, 2016. The official DVD was released September 6, 2016.
The film was is the third installment in the Center Stage film series, following the 2000 film Center Stage and its sequel, '. Variety critic Sonia Saraiya found Center Stage: On Pointe wholly inferior to the original Center Stage, though she complimented Lutz's direction, noting "...though it is frustrating that the film feels like 15-odd low-budget music videos strung together, the dance in those segments, and the way it's filmed, are some of the best parts of the movie."

''Superfly''

In 2018, Lutz directed Superfly, a remake of the 1972 blaxploitation film of the same name. Superfly was released in the United States on June 13, 2018 and received mixed reviews from critics. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 51% based on 73 reviews, and an average rating of 5.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Superfly updates the blaxploitation original with a stylish remake that's short on social subtext, but still exciting and visually arresting enough to offer its own slickly staged action rewards." Varietys Owen Gleiberman wrote: "Shot in a functional, slammed-together manner that's less sensually stylish than you'd expect from a music-video auteur, the film is a competent yet glossy and hermetic street-hustle drug thriller, less a new urban myth than a lavishly concocted episode. It holds your attention yet leaves you with nothing."

Filmography

TV series

2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
  • Lloyd Banks featuring Avant - "Karma"
  • Mario - "Let Me Love You"
  • Kanye West - "The New Workout Plan"
  • Keshia Chanté - "Does He Love Me?"
  • Nelly featuring Christina Aguilera - "Tilt Ya Head Back"
  • Akon - "Ghetto"
  • Usher featuring Ludacris & Lil Jon - "Yeah"
2003
  • Clipse featuring Faith Evans - "Ma, I Don't Love Her"
  • G-Unit - "Poppin' Them Thangs"
  • Ginuwine - "There It Is"
  • Keshia Chanté - "Bad Boy"
  • Sean Paul featuring Sasha - "I'm Still In Love With You"
  • Timbaland & Magoo featuring Missy Elliott - "Cop That Disk"
  • Loon - "How You Want That"
  • John Mayer - "Clarity"
  • Sean Paul - "Get Busy"
  • Kelis - "Trick Me"
  • Jay-Z featuring Pharrell Williams - "Excuse Me Miss"
  • Melanie Durrant featuring Common - "Where I'm Goin'"
  • Daniel Bedingfield - "Gotta Get Thru This"
2002
  • Aaliyah - "I Care 4 U"
  • Craig David - "What's Your Flava?"
  • Sean Paul - "Gimme the Light"
  • Nelly - "Hot in Herre"
  • Eve featuring Alicia Keys - "Gangsta Lovin'"
  • Alicia Keys - "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"
  • Donell Jones featuring Styles P - "Put Me Down"
2001
  • Destiny's Child featuring Missy Elliott - "Bootylicious"
  • 112 - "Peaches and Cream"
  • Fabolous featuring Nate Dogg - "Can't Deny It"
  • Foxy Brown - “BK Anthem”
  • Foxy Brown featuring Spragga Benz - “Oh Yeah”
  • Jadakiss - "Knock Yourself Out"
  • Usher - "U Got It Bad"
  • Usher - "U Don't Have to Call"
  • R. Kelly featuring Jay Z - "Fiesta"
  • Kardinal Offishall - "Ol' Time Killin'"
2000
  • Reflection Eternal featuring Vinia Mojica - "The Blast"
  • Mystikal - "Shake Ya Ass"
  • Mystikal featuring Nivea - "Danger "
  • Ice Cube featuring Krayzie Bone - "Until We Rich"
  • Ghostface Killah featuring Madam Majestic & U-God - "Cherchez La Ghost"
  • Donell Jones - "Where I Wanna Be"
  • Beanie Sigel featuring Eve - "Remember Them Days"
  • Sisqó featuring Foxy Brown - "Thong Song"
  • Aaliyah featuring DMX - "Come Back in One Piece"
1999
  • Case - "Happily Ever After"
  • Choclair - "Let's Ride"
  • Chris Rock - "No Sex "
  • Terry Dexter - "Better Than Me"
  • DMX - "What's My Name?"
  • Eric Benét featuring Faith Evans - "Georgy Porgy"
  • Marvelous 3 - "Freak of the Week"
  • Mystikal featuring Outkast - "Neck Uv Da Woods"
  • Ice Cube featuring Mack 10 & Ms. Toi - "You Can Do It"
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