Director of American Wedding

Background:

American Film, music video and TV commercial director, and businessman Jesse Dylan, son of the noted musician Bob Dylan and older brother of the Wallflowers lead singer Jakob Dylan, is most famous for directing the third film in the American Pie trilogy American Wedding (2003). He also has directed the Method Man/Redman comedy How High (2001) and the Will Ferrell film Kicking & Screaming (2005). Dylan started his directing career by helming music videos for the prestigious, groundbreaking artists like Lenny Kravitz, Tom Waits and Nick Cave, to name a few. He went on to make TV ads for such companies as Coke, Pepsi, Budweiser and Reebok.

As a successful businessman, Dylan is known as the President of Paradise Music and Entertainment, Inc. He also owns a production company, Firm, through which he has produced the 2005 film Welcome to California, several shorts/documentaries, and TV commercials for the American Express Open campaign.

Drop Out

Childhood and Family:

The eldest son of the legendary singer/songwriter Bob Dylan and his first wife, Sara Lowndes, Jesse Byron Dylan was born on January 6, 1966, in New York. A very sympathetic outgoing boy, young Jesse spent much of his days following his father nearly everywhere he went and making notes of what his father was doing in a small notebooks. He was educated at New York University, but later quit to pursue his career.

Jesse is married to actress Susan Traylor, the daughter of the late actors William Traylor and Peggy Feury and sister of actress Stephanie Feury. They had a son together in 1995 named William. The family currently have a residence in the Hollywood Hills. Jesse is the brother of Jakob Dylan, the lead vocalist of The Wallflowers.

President of Paradise Music

Career:

The son of a noted musician, Jesse Dylan first came to the attention of the press, worthily The Melody Maker, when he was 3, after knocking his head on a door knob while boarding the Queen Elizabeth 2 to sail with his parents to the Isle Of Wright, in which his father was heading the 1969 festival. Instead of following in his father's footsteps as a musician, Dylan embarked on the showbiz industry as a music video maker. He directed the music video of “Red Right Hand” by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds in 1994, followed by collaborations with artists like The Black Crowes (“Hotel Illness”), Tom Waits (“God's Away on Business”), Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (“A Face in the crowd”) and Lenny Kravitz (“It Ain't Over 'til It's Over”). Besides, he helmed his father video of “Most of the Time” and his brother's band, The Wallflowers, video of “Be Your Own Girl.” His success on making music videos led to Dylan's chances in the TV commercial world. He has done commercials for clients such as Coke, Budweiser, Reebok and Pepsi, among others.

Dylan produced his videos and TV ads for the Los Angeles-based production company Straw Dogs, which merged with a publicly traded company, Paradise Music Entertainment Inc. Along with actors Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon, he was a leading investor, and was named Chairman, a position that subsequently established him as a a triumphant businessman. The company was reform in late 2004 as Paradise Music and Entertainment, Inc. and specifies in building up and producing music festival, events and branding campaigns for business firms like Coors.

The New York native made his debut as a film director in 2001, when he helmed Method Man and Redman in the comedy How High, scripted by Dustin Abraham. He gained much publicity with his second assignment, directing young actors such as Jason Biggs and Seann William Scotts, in American Wedding (2003), the third sequel of the massively popular American Pie series. He then helmed Will Ferrell and Robert Duvall in the comedy Kicking & Screaming (2005). The latter two projects were under the Universal Pictures.

On his own, the owner of a production company called “Form,” Dylan made a short, Inside the Light (2005), executive produced the drama film Welcome to California (2005), starring his wife, Susan, and his sister-in-law, Stephanie, as well as Mike White, and directed the shorts Vidiosyncrasy (2006) and Ricky Jay Plays Poker (2007).

Recently, Dylan directed Vagrant band The Eels “Trouble With Dreams” music video, as well as made a series of TV commercials for American Express Open campaign. He also serves as producer of the upcoming documentaries The Baron Davis Project and Untitled John Legend Documentary (both 2007).

Awards:
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