Max Barbakow

Director

Biography

Max Barbakow is a director and writer in Los Angeles, CA. Max earned his MFA in Directing from the AFI Conservatory, trained with Werner Herzog at Escuela Internacional de CineTV in Cuba, and is a graduate of Yale University. Palm Springs, his narrative feature debut, premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, where it was acquired by NEON and Hulu. He also wrote and directed Mommy, I'm a Bastard! (2013), an autobiographical feature documentary about his adoption.

Filmography

7.3

Palm Springs

When carefree Nyles and reluctant maid of honor Sarah have a chance encounter at a Palm Springs wedding, things get complicated when they find themselves unable to escape the venue, themselves, or each other.

5.9

Brothers

A reformed criminal's attempt at going straight is derailed when he reunites with his sanity-testing twin brother on a road trip for the score of a lifetime. Dodging bullets, the law, and an overbearing mother along the way, they must heal their severed family bond before they end up killing each other.

4.0

The Improv Guru

A dark comedy about an arrogant improv teacher, and his deranged students, as they desperately climb over each other to reach for the bottom rung on the ladder to fame.

5.8

Cuddle Buddy

A depressed woman must come to terms with her own vulnerability when she hires an eager Professional Cuddler on Christmas Eve.

N/A

The Duke: Based on the Memoir 'I'm The Duke' by J.P. Duke

Mired in a concussed haze, an ex-NFLer struggles to adjust to life off the field during Super Bowl Sunday.

N/A

Mi Dulcinea

Observe the tenets of Taekwondo. Respect instructors and seniors. Never misuse Taekwondo. Be a champion of freedom and justice. Help to build a more peaceful world.

N/A

Arcadia

Children come together in a world falling apart.

N/A

Destiny

A young fighter meddles in a feud between "business associates," soon descending into a criminal underworld that's all too real.

N/A

Collision Bend

Collision Bend is a place — a massive curve of the Cuyahoga River in the heart of Cleveland that forces boats and barges into a blind turn. Like Cleveland itself, the Bend is a place where the possibility of sudden disaster is never far. Collision Bend is also home to Quicken Loans Arena, site of the 2016 Republican National Convention. It was here that 2,472 delegates gathered to elect Donald Trump their nominee for President. COLLISION BEND explores the tension between this event and its setting — the often-absurd politics of our time and the often-harsh reality of the lives most affected by them. It is an intimate portrait of a city and its people bearing witness to American history.

N/A

Collasuyo

Equal parts documentary, road film, and ethnographic recording, Collasuyo makes most sense as a symphony of the nation of Bolivia.

N/A

Mommy, I'm a Bastard!

A young filmmaker considers his adoption and the three families linked by his birth.

N/A

The Touch

St. Louis, 1984: A charismatic televangelist suffers a seizure during a faith-healing crusade, upsetting his veneer of invincibility.

N/A

Merrimaker

After the death of his overbearing mother, an awkward outcast searches for his father at a seedy juke joint.

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