Justin Daering credits the book We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will be Killed With Our Families by Philip Gourevitch as a strong influence on his view that film can be a medium for addressing crucial social issues. Daering’s latest film for his production company Naturalfilms is “Francesca,” a crime drama that traces the relationship of a young girl trapped in sexual slavery and the female cop who rescues her. Daering, who wrote and directed “Francesca,” will be premiering the 2011 Wisconsin Film Festival. The film stars Debra Lopez, Ashlee Fuss, Rick Cornette, and Annabel Armour. Justin Daering founded Naturalfilms in 2002. The company has made a dozen films written and directed by Daering, including “The Shadow of the Night,” which stars Darren Burrows and Randy Wayne. Shot in black-and-white, the film was selected for screening at the Wisconsin Film Festival, the Terror Film Festival in Philadelphia, the LA Screamfest and two other California film festivals. Other films written and directed by Justin Daering for Naturalfilms include “Madison Nocturne” and “The Briefcase.” Also while in Wisconsin Justin Daering worked as a production assistant on the set of Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies,” which starred Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. Daering also served as second assistant director for Syene Road Productions during the making of “Baraboo,” a Mary Sweeney Film, and as director of photography for “Dark Ways,” which was shot using the RED camera. In 2010, Justin Daering re-located Naturalfilms to Los Angeles, California. He has worked as an EPK Assistant for “Luck,” an HBO drama starring Dustin Hoffman, and as a creative intern with Endgame Entertainment, the company behind “Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle,” “I’m Not There,” and the Oscar-winning “Hotel Rwanda.” Daering is currently editing “Paper Dreams,” a documentary about Somalian pirates directed by Marshall Tyler and featuring Pras Michel from the Fugees. Daering studied film at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, graduating with High Honors and receiving the Charline M. Wackman Award and the Nietzchka Keene Memorial Scholarship. He worked as an intern with John Roach Projects in Madison, and served as the Media Coordinator for the university’s Communication Arts Department.
