trent & marlena, directors
We’re Trent and Marlena. We make films about people, and we spend a fair amount of time explaining how to spell our last name.
We direct together and work on every part of a job together: the agency side, the story, how it looks. Honest, natural performances are what we build around.
Marlena went to college for finance and came out with an advertising degree. She worked as a writer and creative director at DDB, Arnold and Saatchi & Saatchi, on brands including John Frieda, Hershey, the New York Lottery and Metro by T-Mobile. Directing was what she wanted most. She is good at finding beauty in the small moments most people skip.
Trent studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York and won a Young Directors Award at Cannes in 2015. He believes film is about revealing a truth, and that emotion comes from a performer’s vulnerability. He is good at earning that from the cast, the crew and the creatives around him.
Adweek Creative 100 (2022). LBB, The Work That Made Us. LBB, Dream Teams. Young Directors Award, Gold and Shortlist. British Arrows Shortlist. Vimeo Staff Pick. Video of the Day. Webby.
We direct at Gravy Films.