Brett Simon is a director and father based in Venice, California. His work has screened at the Sundance Film Festival, ResFest, Telluride, SXSW, the Toronto International Film Festival. Studying creative writing, photography and comparative literature at Princeton University, he wrote his thesis under Joyce Carol Oates. He went on to graduate school at UC Berkeley where he later taught film history and filmmaking.

His first feature Assassination of a High School President starring Bruce Willis, also premiered at Sundance to rave reviews. MTV called it one of the “truly great films” of the festival, likening it to “Rushmore meets The Usual Suspects.” In early 2018 Brett directed Better Start Running, a road movie starring Jeremy Irons and Maria Bello, and Playdates, a pilot starring Paul Scheer and Carla Gallo that premiered at Sundance.

Brett has also directed award-winning music videos for such bands as The Killers and Queens of the Stone Age and commercials for Nike, AT&T, and Dos Equis. He recently directed ten videos for the Snow Patrol album, Wildness.

At Seed, Mr. Simon spends his time photographing superorganisms, both in their natural habitats as well as in the wild.

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In conversation with Brett:

Share your life story in six words:
Made to make. Loved to love.

What was your first brush with science?
At ten, I came up with a science fair experiment on sleep deprivation. I fell asleep watching Das Boot and faked the results.

What’s your current obsession? In other words, what gets you up in the morning?
My daughters. Every morning, they wake me up and continue working on me.

Why do you think bacteria are important?
They came before us. They’ll be here after us. They could save us from ourselves or at least tell our story after we’re gone.

How do you define science?
The curiosity of a child dressed up as an adult.

How do you define health?
A story of you that doesn’t call attention to the storytelling.

What are you currently reading/listening to/watching?
How to Change Your Mind, A Man Needs a Maid, the LA metro go by

Favorite microbiome-nurturing food?
greek yogurt, kimchi sriracha–just not together.

Scientist, dead or alive, you’d like to have lunch with?
Jack Parsons

Microbiome perturbation you’re trying to give up:
Dumb smart phone use.

Favorite science joke?
The one about Isaac Newton, Hunter S. Thompson, and Oprah in an elevator.

Most mindgasmic thing you’ve learned since being involved with Seed?
Gregor Reid once sat on Frank Zappa’s lap.

The song you get sh*t done to:
A Fifth of Beethoven.

Fact most people don’t know about you
I only have one heart.

Social?
@hellobrettsimon