Meet Andrew De Burgh | Screenwriter, Producer & Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Andrew De Burgh and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Andrew, we’d love for you to start things off by telling us something about your industry that we and others not in the industry might be unaware of?
How hard it is to find success. Unless you’re from a very wealthy family or have lots of connections making it in the entertainment industry is very difficult. What you know is important but who you know even moreso. I think what a lot of people not in the industry don’t realize is that you’re essentially going from project to project so you do the jobs you get hired on but you also have to always look for work as well which can be challenging.

When I tell people that I’m a filmmaker, they think I’m living the dream. Though I truly love what I do and am very lucky to have had the success I had, it’s been a difficult path with my fair share of disappointment along the way. I graduated from Pepperdine University with a Bachelor of Arts in Advertising (as well as a Minor in Film Studies) and having had excellent grades, I could have entered a more stable industry but I love film so much that I pursued Hollywood and here I am!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’m a screenwriter, producer and director that truly loves movies. I’ve been grateful to have made projects in a variety of genres, from science-fiction, children’s animation, psychological thriller to horror. I’ve also directed a few commercials. I wouldn’t want to talk about what sets me apart from others as I don’t want to come across as better than anyone but I’ll happily talk about my own work.

I guess I’m most excited about being able to do projects that I love / believe in and being very proud of how they’ve turned out. My first ever short film (the psychological thriller “Just One Drink”) scored a 100% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and getting validation from established film critics so early in my directing career was incredible.

I grew up watching Hollywood movies as a kid and being involved with Hollywood productions as an adult has been a full circle dream come true. In 2018, I also founded the production company Sacred Ember Films dedicated to creating original films in a variety of genres and as of today, we have several short films and two feature films behind us which has been incredible.

As for what I’m most excited about, I’d first have to say my upcoming horror-thriller feature film “The Seductress from Hell”, which stars Jason Faunt (“Power Rangers”), James Hyde (Netflix’s “Monarca”), Andy Lauer (“Iron Man 3”), Rocio Scotto (Blumhouse’s “AfrAId”) and Raj Jawa (“Free Guy”). It also features special effects makeup by Brittany Jamison-Lackey (“Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania”), art direction by Anna Giudice (“Interstellar”) and sound design by Steve Campagna (“Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”). As of September 7th, 2024, the film currently holds a 67% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and is having it’s World Premiere at 8 pm on Saturday 28th of September, 2024 at the Glendale International Film Festival. You can get tickets here so please come and see it if you’re available and into horror-thriller films: https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/glendalearts/7335/event/1396668 . The film is heavily inspired by classic horror films like “The Exorcist”, “The Omen” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street”. It will be released in limited theaters next year (exact date TBD).

I’m also very excited about my upcoming TV show, the Cpics Original “The Twisted Doll”. Cpics is a streaming platform that was recently acquired by the Indian streaming giant ZEE5 so it’ll available on there under the Cpics add-on channel. Heavily inspired by the 2011 film “Drive”, the show is a psychological thriller about a young Indian woman that sets out on a revenge mission after her and her husband are scammed by two real estate agents in Los Angeles. The show’s cast features a mixture of up and coming actors and more established ones, like Chelsea Gilson (“Hawaii Five-O”) and Will Roberts (“Oppenheimer”). It’s releasing on October 31st, 2024 so please tune in!

As for getting to where I am professionally, I’d have to say not giving up has been a big part of it. Hard work I believe goes a long way. Over the years I’ve seen many talented people not fulfill their potential partly as a result of a subpar work ethic. As for my own journey, it hasn’t been easy but I think persistence has helped me a lot. My first feature film as writer and director (“The Bestowal”) ended up winning awards at film festivals, scoring a 78% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and getting a streaming release on Amazon Prime, Tubi, Google Play and YouTube Movies. Despite the eventual success, it got rejected by almost sixty film festivals but I believed in the film and did my best to see it all the way.

As for my story, I’m a big believer in empathy and showing compassion. I just feel like the world is so fast paced and money driven that people lose sight of showing kindness in their everyday lives.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If my best friend was visiting, I’d probably want to take them to my favorite places. The Bungalow in Santa Monica is a really fun outdoor lounge / bar close to the beach. Ever since my Pepperdine days, I’ve been going to Cholada Thai Beach Cuisine in Malibu which I recommend for great Thai food.

Santa Monica is really fun but can get very crowded on the weekends. Korean BBQ in Koreatown is also delicious. Little Tokyo is a cool place to visit to buy Anime collectibles and eat Japanese food.

Checking out a movie at one of the historic Laemmle theaters is also a must do.

Natalee Thai in Beverly Hills is great and you can’t go wrong with the Urth Caffe’s all around the city. Their Green Tea Boba Blended is really good.

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is incredible. I love the silent film exhibit that they have there.

I’d also say India Sweets & Spices in Los Feliz has amazing Indian vegetarian food as well.

In terms of an itinerary, I’d probably just plan it by ear!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d firstly have to say my parents. They are and always have been very supportive of me trying to pursue such a difficult career. As for other people, I’d have to say my friends (who have shown support by watching my films) and also some amazing colleagues I’ve had over the years that have really helped me become a better filmmaker.

In my latest project, the critically acclaimed horror-thriller feature film “The Seductress from Hell”, Raj Jawa has been a great Executive Producer (and Actor) to work with. On the same project, as a childhood “Power Rangers” fan, it was great to work with legendary Red Power Ranger Jason Faunt who plays one of the leads in the film. He poured everything into his role as one of the antagonists, and it shows on screen.

I’d also have to give a shoutout to Steve Campagna, the sound designer I work with. He’s worked on the likes of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” and “Stranger Things” and has made my projects sound absolutely incredible in 5.1 Surround Sound. Another great collaborator is Elezeid, a very talented and versatile composer I’ve been working with since 2015 when he scored my first professional short film “Just One Drink”.

Shintaro Shimosawa, a well known Hollywood producer with credits including the likes of “The Grudge”, “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “Fear the Walking Dead”, has been a mentor of sorts as he’s always watched my films over the years and has even gone so far as letting me use his praise as publicity quotes for our marketing.

Website: https://seductressfromhellmovie.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theseductressfromhellmovie/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-de-burgh-88972a102/

Twitter: https://x.com/seductressfhell

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theseductressfromhellmovie

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@andrewdeburghdirector

Other: IMDb page of “The Seductress from Hell”: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt28331533/

IMDb page of TV show “The Twisted Doll”: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24849532/

Image Credits
Garaj Pictures & Sacred Ember Films.