During the last year, Elon University graduate Alex Hadden ’13 has worked on a documentary, titled “BRAND: A Second Coming," that features entertainment personality Russell Brand. The film will have its world premiere March 13 at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas.
Alex Hadden ’13 is an associate producer on ‘BRAND: A Second Coming,’ which will premiere March 13 at South by Southwest.[/caption]“BRAND: A Second Coming,” a documentary that follows the life and career of entertainer Russell Brand and features School of Communications alumnus Alex Hadden ’13 as an associate producer, will have its world premiere March 13 on the opening night of South by Southwest. The 10-day festival in Austin, Texas, bills itself as a “launch pad for innovative content with new media presentations, music showcases and film screenings.”
“It has been a whirlwind year for me,” said Hadden via email. Over the past year, the Media Arts & Entertainment major and former elondocs member has traveled and worked extensively for the documentary’s director/producer, Ondi Timoner. A two-time recipient of Sundance’s Grand Jury Prize for documentaries, Timoner is widely regarded throughout the film industry. As part of the project, Hadden visited to England three times, including a trip to the Sheffield International Documentary Festival.
During the production of “BRAND,” Hadden has served in several roles, contributing as a shooter, assistant editor, production assistant and associate producer.
“It really has been a crash course in documentary making and has shown me that hard work and resilience can lead to great results,” he explained. “More than anything, working in documentary thus far has shown me the power and importance of constantly learning – technical skills, artistic outlook and the world around that we live in,” he added.
Hadden is no stranger to hard work, said Nicole Triche, assistant professor of communications and director of the elondocs program. During his time on campus, he completed two significant documentaries, including “Beyond Superman,” an elondocs film detailing the production of comic books, and “Training Canine,” a project highlighting a canine training program in the city of Wilson.
“South by Southwest is a huge film festival, and being the opening night film is a huge honor,” Triche said. “I think it’s fantastic that Alex has done so much on the film. When he was here in the elondocs program and in my class, he was always a hard worker and an enthusiastic learner. I think that work ethic has really paid off with him rising through the ranks very quickly. “
The documentary’s first showing will be shown on Friday, March 13, at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, Texas, at 6:30 p.m. The 2015 SXSW film festival runs from March 13-21.