Gil Cates Jr - Producer

Gil Cates made his motion picture producerial and directorial debut in 1999 with the feature film $pent, a serio-comic look at life, love, and addictions. The film stars Jason London and features a cast that includes Richmond Arquette, Margaret Cho, and Rain Phoenix among others. $pent was distributed by Regent Entertainment in the summer of 2000.

In 2002, Gil wrapped the twisted comedy The Mesmerist, based on an Edgar Allan Poe short story. The film, released by Seventh Arts Releasing, stars Neil Patrick Harris and Jessica Capshaw, and was Executive Produced by Barbara De Fina (Casino, Goodfellas). In 2003, Gil completed the ensemble A Midsummer Night’s Rave, released by THINKFilm. Rave features Andrew Keegan, Chad Lindberg, Sunny Mabrey, Chris Owen, Jason London, and Carrie Fisher.

In 2005, Gil shot the documentary feature Life After Tomorrow, which follows the girls that were in the original productions of Annie on Broadway and how that experience affects their lives today. The film won Best Documentary and Best Director at the Phoenix Film Festival and had its premiere last Christmas Eve on Showtime.

Gil recently finished directing the feature Deal. The film stars Burt Reynolds as an ex-gambler who is sucked back into the popular game of Texas Hold’em. The film, shot in New Orleans and financed by Seven Arts Pictures, also stars Shannon Elizabeth, Jennifer Tilly, and Charles Durning and was released by MGM in the Spring of 2008. Gil’s TV directorial debut occurred last year with an episode of the NBC comedy, “Joey”.