May 24, 2012

Brad Silberling

by MovieMaker Staff | Published November 26, 2006

Writer/Director Brad Silberling on the set of THINKFilm’s 10 Items or
Less - 2006.

After making his mark with the autobiographical drama Moonlight Mile, writer-director Brad Silberling has moved on to an indie retelling of the buddy road trip movie with Ten Items or Less, starring Morgan Freeman and Paz Vega as an unemployed actor and grocery store clerk who hit the road while learning about the otherâ€™s respective worlds. Silberling, whose directorial debut was the underwhelming live-action Casper in 1995, has found himself a niche in the bordering-on-mainstream indie world.

Born in Washington, DC in 1963, Silberling has worked steadily as a director for film and TV since the â€˜80s, busting out his writing chops whenever he has a chance to bring a meaningful story to life. Moonlight Mile, based on Silberlingâ€™s experiences dealing with the murder of his girlfriend, actress Rebecca Schaeffer, was a quiet yet heart-wrenching indie film with an all-star cast of Susan Sarandon, Dustin Hoffman and relative newcomers Jake Gyllenhaal and Ellen Pompeo. Now, with 10 Items or Less, Silberling proves that less is more with his short (running time barely passes 70 minutes) but charming story of the unexpected intertwining of two very different lives.

While Silberling may make a living directing bigger flicks like Lemony Snicketâ€™s A Series of Unfortunate Events, itâ€™s clear that the writerâ€™s heart lies in telling smaller, more personal stories that strike a deep chord in his audiences. Ten Items or Less will open to limited released on December 1st, but will also screen on http://www.cstar.com beginning December 15th.