Smiling man with glasses and curly hair operating a professional camera outdoors at an event.

Award-winning filmmaker based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Jim Granato is an award-winning filmmaker based in Oakland, California. He has directed and produced several short films and music videos since 1996. His shorts, A Day With My Boy: Slug War (2014), was licensed by PBS and premiered as part of their series PBS Indies, and Angels (2013) was nominated for a Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco International Film Festival. He has made music videos for Sonny & The Sunsets, Rogue Wave, Ramon & Jessica, Pancho-San and The Bobbyteens.

D Tour (2009), his first feature film as director and producer, has won several awards including the Golden Gate Award for Bay Area Feature Documentary from the San Francisco International Film Festival and the Jury Prize for Best Documentary from the Bend Film Festival. D Tour premiered nationwide on the PBS Emmy award-winning program Independent Lens in November 2009. He is currently working on a second feature film project with underground "budget rock" legends, The Mummies.

As a freelance Director, Producer, Videographer and Editor, he has worked on projects for Adobe, Apple, PBS, The History Channel, The Travel Channel, Court TV, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, The Exploratorium, San Francisco Silent Film Festival, Flicker Alley and dozens of independent filmmakers and many more organizations worldwide.

Please contact me directly to discuss your project, no matter how big or small.

jim.granato@gmail.com
IMDb
LinkedIn
Instagram

  • "I’ve had the pleasure of working with Jim Granato for well over ten years through his work as the videographer for hire at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and other Bay Area film projects. He is an incredible PRO with a deep knowledge of the field of filmmaking, he has a passion for film, whose supportive and collaborative spirit is invaluable to the film community. He demonstrates commitment to his work and a thorough mastery of all aspects of film production. He applies a professional demeanor, curiosity and is a great thought partner and importantly, he respects project deadlines. He is known as a "go to guy" and that’s why he is the first one to call when you need documentation! As a filmmaker, he is a wonderful talent who has a unique voice. I cannot say enough good things about Jim G!"

    - Gina Basso, Communications & Station Relations Manager, American Documentary | POV

  • "I had the pleasure of working with Jim Granato over the past four years in my role as Director of Villa Albertine San Francisco. During that time, we commissioned Jim for a range of video productions, from short-form interviews to documentary-style event coverage and more experimental artistic formats. Jim brought to each project not only his remarkable creative vision, but also a rare combination of flexibility, technical expertise, and pragmatism. His intuitive understanding of narrative and rhythm, along with his ability to adapt to evolving needs, made him an invaluable collaborator. Thanks to his work, we were able to showcase and promote our artistic programs with clarity, style, and emotional resonance, essential qualities in cultural diplomacy and public engagement. I warmly recommend Jim for any creative endeavor involving film, storytelling, or cultural communication. He's a true asset to any team."

    — Sabine de Maussion, Director Villa Albertine | Arts & Culture Strategy | Product & Program Development | Public Program Curation

    ‍ ‍

  • "As a Creative Director at Adobe, I’ve worked with Jim G. for years, on a variety of projects, and in different capacities. Though we’ve worked with him primarily as a sound recordist and mixer, Jim is a talented and versatile filmmaker, comfortable in all areas of production and post. Sound, yes, but he shoots and edits too. More importantly: in this work, you spend a lot of time working closely with people, and you want to hire people you like to be around, who play well with others, and who work hard – and Jim delivers on all of the above."

    — Daniel Cowles, Sr. Director / Exec. Creative Director - Video, Adobe Studio

  • "I had the absolute pleasure to work with Jim on a video shoot for Alcoholics Anonymous last year. The video segments were interviews about Young People in A.A. and the struggles they faced on their journey toward sobriety. In our preproduction phase of the project, we needed to strategize how stylistically we would convey emotion while each of our subjects remained unidentifiable when recorded. As a videographer, it was with Jim’s expertise in video production and creative direction that we were able to successfully completed the video project with great content. I was most impressed by Jim’s ability to identify what production concerns I would encounter and insisted we address them early on in the process. Always pleasant, accommodating with a positive demeanor. Jim aims for the best in all of what he does. I would definitely consider working with him again in the near future."

    – Julisa Soriano, Senior Production Manager- Digital at Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

  • "Jim and I have worked together on multiple projects over the years, creating short features to accompany Blu-ray releases of recently restored films. In addition to creating features for the disc releases, I have also engaged with worked with Jim on several other film related projects that we have made available online. Jim's work is always of the highest quality. There is no better testament of that than the fact that our Blu-ray release of FOOLISH WIVES won the award for Best Bonus Features at the 2024 DVD and Blu-ray Awards at Il Cinema Ritrovato in Bologna, Italy. In addition to the outstanding quality of his productions, Jim is a consummate professional. Planning, communication, and execution are always spot-on and everything we have worked on has come in on schedule and in conformance with our agreed budget. I have no reservations about wholeheartedly recommending Jim and I am very happy to serve as a reference."

    – Robert Byrne, Preservation and Presentation of the Moving Image / Former President San Francisco Silent Film Festival

  • "Jim and I have collaborated and worked together many times over the years, from freelance assignments and creative projects to our work together at the Exploratorium. Whenever the opportunity arises, I consistently choose to hire Jim as a freelancer. He is a versatile video producer with strong skills in every aspect of production, from cinematography and sound recording to editing. During our time working together at the Exploratorium, I was consistently impressed by Jim's ability to approach each project with fresh ideas and innovative techniques. He always ensured that the final product was not only visually captivating but also aligned with the project's needs. Jim is reliable, communicative, and always meets deadlines without compromising on quality. His blend of technical skill, professionalism, and creativity make him an asset to any project."

    – Phoebe Tooke, Video Producer / Director of Multimedia at Exploratorium / Filmmaker

  • "The highly talented filmmaker and DP Jim Granato filmed, created lighting and ran sound, all totally solo, for a key interview for a feature documentary in postproduction, that I directed by Zoom. I was so impressed by Jim throughout the process -- he created a beautiful and elegant interview set-up that seamlessly complimented what I had already shot, he was very supportive of the talent and made her feel completely comfortable, like she had known him for years. He anticipated everything I needed from this shoot, and made the remote aspect completely seamless for everyone. Jim was just fantastic to work with over all. I look forward to doing so again and recommend him highly."

    – Lisanne Skyler, Filmmaker/Program Director

  • "Jim pulled off a miracle shooting our verité doc under trying conditions: an 8-day walk across windy, rainy Iowa. He has a talent for anticipating action, nailing the critical shot, and delivering B-roll that you don’t expect to need (but invariably do). His strong work ethic and keen sense of humor made the long days fly by. With his steady hand on the tiller and sensitivity towards the subjects, my directing load was very light indeed."

    – Ralph King, Filmmaker/Founder, Hawkview Pictures LLC

  • "Jim Granato is fantastic to work with. Aside from being a great filmmaker in his own right, he is a valued collaborator with a deep knowledge of film, video and sound technology. He has shot video for SF Sketchfest for nearly two decades and is always the first call we make."

    – David Owen, Co-Founder, SF Sketchfest