Today we’d like to introduce you to Rob Hardy.
Hi Rob, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in Philadelphia. A guy in my neighborhood had a camcorder. I borrowed it and shot music videos starring my friends lip-synching to popular rap songs. That led to me making a mini-movie in high school about a superhero (called ‘G-Man’). I wrote and directed it… and the positive response I got from friends inspired me to be a filmmaker.
When I went to college (at Florida A&M University), I majored in Engineering. My dad felt like film wasn’t a ‘real’ career, so I was hoping to use Engineering to break me into special effects. But I wasn’t really feeling all the math, and even though I got the degree… while I was in school, I shot my first movie on actual 16mm film. The project was called ‘Chocolate City’, and it was about life at a Historically Black College. Will Packer, who was a good friend of mine, worked on the project with me. We released the movie locally in one theater and then took it to film festivals… The festival hustle got us in Blockbuster video stores.
After graduating, Will and I moved to Atlanta and scraped together work while raising money for movie Trois. Our indie release of that project got us noticed by Sony Pictures (Columbia TriStar). We started doing low-budget features for them and eventually worked our way up to movies like Think Like a Man, Stomp the Yard, and The Gospel; later, I got a chance to apprentice as a TV director. That decision to pivot birthed a new phase of my career.
Aside from directing/producing TV shows, I’ve also gotten a chance to be part of launching several series including Raising Kanan (Power Book III) and All American. The filmmaking journey has been pretty amazing, and I’ve gotten the chance to create stories with lots of interesting people.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have been a number of different challenges along the way at various stages of my career. Earlier on, the challenge was finding work and learning how to raise money for independent movies and the distribution. Then, once we started doing studio films, we were initially known for our success with erotic thrillers… It was hard for us to get projects made that were in a different genre. Later on, after establishing myself in features, it was tough transitioning into TV directing. After TV became more consistent, I had to show folks that I could also develop new projects.
No matter the phase, there’s always going to be new obstacles to face. But pushing boundaries keeps things interesting and helped me grow as a filmmaker.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a Producer / Director. I am a storyteller who gets excited about finding the heart of the story so that I can help make it more relatable to audiences. I like each of the projects I’ve done for different reasons, but the ‘All American’ TV series stands out to me because it seemed to connect with audiences and highlight the magic of our neighborhoods.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
My advice for finding a mentor is to locate someone who has a generous and knowledgeable spirit. Be sure to ask specific questions and try to get them to help you create a road map to success.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @RealRobHardy
- Linkedin: Rob Hardy
- Twitter: @TheRealRobHardy
Image Credits
Dwayne Boyd
Eli Joshua
