Spotlight Events feature conversations with high-profile film and television artists and industry professionals who share helpful advice and insights on their career experiences and creative process.


Jeff Nichols’ new film, The Bikeriders, premiered to critical acclaim as the opening film of the 50th Telluride Film Festival and will be released in U.S. theaters on June 21, 2024. The film follows the rise of a fictional 1960s Midwestern motorcycle club through the lives of its members and stars Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, and Tom Hardy.


Nichols has written and directed six feature films, starting with his debut feature Shotgun Stories, his first of many collaborations with actor Michael Shannon. The indie success was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award and won the International Jury Prize at the 2007 Venice International Film Festival. He followed this up with two more Independent Spirit Award nominees. Take Shelter premiered at Sundance in 2011 and took multiple honors at the Cannes International Film Festival, including the Critics Week Grand Prize. Mud world-premiered at the Cannes International Film Festival and became one of the highest-grossing independent films of the year. His biographical drama Loving received four critics choice awards and an Academy Award nomination for Ruth Negga as Mildred Loving.


For this Spotlight Event, Nichols will discuss his approach to writing and directing, fostering long-term collaborations with actors, regional filmmaking, and working with distinct types of intellectual property.

Jeff Nichols
Jeff Nichols is an acclaimed writer and director who hails from Little Rock, Arkansas. In addition to two nominations for the prestigious Palme d’Or, Nichols has won three awards at the Cannes Film Festival. His critically-acclaimed feature, LOVING, received four Critics’ Choice Award Nominations including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay and garnered an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for Ruth Negga. Nichols was previously an Independent Spirit Award Best Director nominee for MUD, starring Matthew McConaughey, and TAKE SHELTER, starring Michael Shannon. Nichols and Shannon have collaborated on multiple occasions, beginning with Nichols’ directorial debut, SHOTGUN STORIES, which he also wrote. In addition to numerous festival honors, the short film was also nominated for the John Cassavetes Award. Nichols and Shannon also worked together on the science fiction film MIDNIGHT SPECIAL, co-starring Adam Driver, Joel Edgerton and Kirsten Dunst. He is the director of the upcoming film, THE BIKERIDERS, a drama following the rise of a fictional 1960s Midwestern motorcycle club through the lives of its members. THE BIKERIDERS stars Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, and Tom Hardy and will be released in theaters June 21. more...
Erica Elson
Moderator | Digital Course & Event Producer
Erica Elson is a Producer, Writer and Educator based in the mountains outside Los Angeles. Her short film, WING NIGHT, premiered at Method Fest in Los Angeles. She is the co-author of the book THE AWKWARD HUMAN SURVIVAL GUIDE and co-hosted a podcast by the same name on the 5by5 network for five years. Elson's articles have been published by HuffPost, Lifehacker, and Reader's Digest. Prior to working in education, she worked in television development and writers’ rooms such as VH1’s HINDSIGHT, where she had the chance to write for the spinoff web series PLANET SEBASTIAN. more...
Tags: Acting & Directing Actors

Join the Discussion