N.C. State alumnus Rob Underhill excitedly presented the pilot episode of his hopeful TV series, Fever Dreams, for a second time at the Lincoln Theatre last Wednesday. About 700 people attended the event hosted by RAW Natural Born Artists where Underhill and his crew received a wealth of praise for their series’ first pilot.
With more than ten years of experience in filmmaking, Underhill, 38, has received critical acclaim for his numerous credits as a writer, director, editor and producer.
“I really got into quality filmmaking around 2005,” Underhill said. “I worked with Aravind Ragupathi, the cinematographer of The Agent, early on in my career.”
Underhill created several short films before graduating with an English degree in 2007, the same year he created his first public film, Bench Warmers. He began working with theatre productions for various companies in North Carolina beginning in 1998, and in 2004 Underhill incorporated Wake Drama, his nonprofit film production house. Much of his success thus far stems from his organization and ambition.
“I’ve always been into organizing people and doing different things,” Underhill said. “I was involved in a lot of different groups back in high school, and I acquired a lot of directing experience from doing theatre for about five years.”
When it comes to artists striving to make their work accessible to the public, Underhill said it’s all about perseverance and making as many contacts as you can.
“I’m always meeting new people because it’s the nature of the business,” Underhill said. “I work as an independent filmmaker but I’m always making contacts with people from different companies and pitching various projects to executives from all over. I also do a lot of work with Sony Media.”
The Agent is the pilot in a series which Underhill and screenwriter/producer Al Julian have entitled Fever Dreams. In addition to presenting the episode last week, Underhill also announced that he and his crew recently finished shooting the series’ second episode, The Cameraman.
“With the amount of praise The Agent received, I look forward to seeing where the show will go,” Underhill said.
Underhill’s next major projects include a sci-fi series that he co-created titled The Carrington Event and another feature film titled Box Brown.
The Carrington Event premiered in May of this year, and it has already received “Best Drama” at the Wilmington Film Awards, along with five other nominations. Set in a large, Southern town, the series follows the lives of the Carrington family in the wake of a massive power outage. While still independently owned, Underhill said major networks are considering to air his show.
Underhill’s drama, Box Brown, follows American slave Henry Brown in his quest for freedom in the year 1849. The film is set to release later this year and includes cast and crew-members from Fever Dreams and other Underhill productions.
One of his most recent and critically acclaimed projects is also a drama entitled DAR HE: The Lynching of Emmett Till. Set in 1955, this film examines the murder of Emmett Till and how it was a spark that ignited the civil rights movement. The picture earned 10 best film awards as well as 15 other awards and honors at various film festivals and holds an 8.1 score on Internet Movie Database.
Julian discussed his experience working with Underhill on Fever Dreams and his shared excitement in regards to the show.
“Rob is a consistent pleasure to work with,” Julian said. “Confident, competent, upbeat and extremely well organized. All essentials in a good director, which Rob certainly is.”
Julian said he looks forward to continuing his career alongside Underhill.
“Rob and I are equally excited to see how our second collaboration, and the second episode of the Fever Dreams series, The Cameraman, comes out.”
Underhill’s filmography can be found on IMDb as well as his website, www.robunderhill.com. He will also participate in an N.C. State alumni-student networking event Tuesday, Oct. 1 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Caldwell Lounge.
