Jon Cassar | |
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Born: | John Francis Cassar April 27, 1958 Malta |
Children: | Lex Cassar (son) Zak Cassar (son) |
Role: | Director, Executive producer |
- "My favorite... seasons in order are - 5,2,7,1,3,4,6 then 8... I think 8 is my least favorite because the storytelling just felt a little tired [and Renee Walker] and [the] president changes didn't feel real... There are many things I liked but I hated the mole in CTU plot, as did many. And I'm happy they bought Logan back."
- — Jon Cassar on the best and worst changes made to 24 in recent years
John Francis Cassar (born April 27, 1958; age 65) is a director and executive producer of 24. He holds the record for most episodes directed of the series, with 56 total between 2002 and 2009, as well as directing 24: Redemption and six episodes of the Live Another Day series. Cassar also produced and directed four episodes of the 2017 revival series 24: Legacy.
Biography[]
Jon Cassar was born in Malta. He has both Maltese and Canadian citizenship. He started out as a successful camera operator in feature films and the 80s show War of the Worlds prior to snatching the director's chair.
Cassar worked previously with 24 producer Stephen Kronish on Street Time and Profiler, and with 24 creators Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran on La Femme Nikita. He has also produced/directed for other TV shows, including: Mutant X, Due South, Queen of Swords, Sheena (with John Allen Nelson), Kung Fu: The Legend Continues... (with Al Leong), Profiler and Baywatch: Nights.
In addition to his work as a director and producer, Cassar is a founding member of the Motion Picture Industry Charitable Alliance, an entertainment industry-based non-profit organization that hosts charity auctions featuring items donated by studios, theatres, actors, directors, producers and crew members of popular movies, television series and stage productions.
After completing Season 7, Cassar chose to leave prior to the production of Season 8 of 24, opting instead to work on the new CBS pilot Washington Field (with Gina Torres) and work on movie projects for Pixar. Neither one was picked up so instead he guest directed a few popular shows like Criminal Minds and Human Target.
In 2011, Cassar worked as executive producer and director of both Terra Nova (with Brannon Braga, David Fury and Mido Hamada) and Joel Surnows's The Kennedys. The following year, he also directed an episode of Touch, starring Kiefer Sutherland, as well as episodes of Continuum, which stars Roger Cross. In 2013, Cassar directed Forsaken, a western starring Kiefer Sutherland opposite his father, Donald Sutherland. Greg Ellis and Michael Wincott also appear in the film, due to be released in 2014.
Cassar returned as executive producer and director for 24: Live Another Day, in 2014. Cassar said in an interview about his return to the show "not even a hesitation. The show was the love of my life as far as my career goes. To go back and be able to finish it off, why would I say no to that? Now I get to do the last shot of Jack Bauer, whatever that’s going to be." Cassar has directed 66 episodes of 24, making him the most prolific director of the show.
24 credits[]
Producer[]
- Season 2 – Season 3: Producer
- Season 4 – Season 5: Co-Executive Producer
- Season 6 – Season 7: Executive Producer
- Live Another Day: Executive Producer
- Legacy: Executive Producer
Director[]
Actor[]
- Cassar appears uncredited in a mugshot of Vincent Cardiff in "Day 7: 2:00am-3:00am."
[]
Cassar appears in more DVD special features and behind-the-scenes videos than any other member of the 24 crew. He has also directed the most episodes, totaling at 62 episodes altogether (beating out Brad Turner, the second one with the most directing credits).
- Cassar recorded DVD audio commentary for the following:
- "Day 2: 1:00pm-2:00pm" (with Sarah Clarke)
- All 44 season 2 deleted scenes (with Rodney Charters and Howard Gordon)
- 16 season 3 deleted scenes
- "Day 4: 12:00pm-1:00pm" (with Joseph Hodges)
- "Day 4: 12:00am-1:00am" (with Sean Callery)
- All 39 season 4 deleted scenes
- "Day 6: 12:00pm-1:00pm" (with Joseph Hodges)
- 24: Redemption (with Howard Gordon and Kiefer Sutherland)
- "Day 7: 8:00am-9:00am" (with Carlos Bernard)
- "Day 7: 12:00pm-1:00pm" (with Annie Wersching)
- "Day 7: 7:00am-8:00am" (with Howard Gordon)
- 24: Access All Areas
- 24 Inside - "Day 3: 11:00am-12:00pm"
- Pure 24 episode 1x06
- Pure 24 episode 1x07
- "24: Exposed," Season 2 DVD
- "24: On the Loose," Season 3 DVD
- "Making a Scene - Season 5 Prequel," Season 4 DVD
- "Breaking Ground: Building the New CTU," Season 4 DVD
- "Blood on the Tracks," Season 4 DVD
- "Unsung Heroes: 24 Camera Department," Season 5 DVD
- "24: Behind the Scenes Book Sample," Season 5 DVD
- "24 Season 6: Opening with a Bang," Season 6 DVD
- Webcast Diaries, Season 6 DVD
- "Changing All the Rules," 24: The Official Companion: Season 6 DVD
- "Keepin' It Real: The Stunts and Special Effects of 24," 24: The Official Companion: Season 6 DVD
- Making of 24: Redemption, 24: Redemption DVD
- "24 in 24"
- Scenemakers, Episode 2 | 3 | 12 | 13 | 16 | 17
- "Jack Is Back"
- In an advertisement for People's Choice Magazine, he compliments dialogue coach and CTU extra/stand-in Marci Michelle by saying "You need every advantage you can get in making today's ambitious shooting schedules ... the intricate nature of the storytelling meant the script was always changing and improving making it a daily challenge to track and learn. Marci was a valuable asset to production on both these fronts working with the actors and script assistant."
24: Behind the Scenes[]
- Main article: 24: Behind the Scenes
Cassar put together the photography book 24: Behind the Scenes, which collects candid pictures and stories from the cast and crew over several years of filming 24.
Awards and nominations[]
- See also: 24's awards and honors
Organization | Year | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
Primetime Emmy Awards | 2003 | Outstanding Drama Series | Season 2 | ✕ |
2004 | Season 3 | ✕ | ||
2005 | Season 4 | ✕ | ||
2006 | Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series | "Day 5: 7:00am-8:00am" | ✓ | |
Outstanding Drama Series | Season 5 | ✓ | ||
Directors Guild Awards | 2003 | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series - Night | Season 3 | ✕ |
2006 | Season 5 | ✓ | ||
Producers Guild Awards | 2005 | Television Producer of the Year Award in Episodic - Drama | Season 4 | ✕ |
2006 | Season 5 | ✕ | ||
2008 | Television Producer of the Year Award in Longform | 24: Redemption | ✕ | |
Golden Nymph Awards | 2006 | Best International Producer | Season 5 | ✓ |
External links[]
- Jon Cassar at Wikipedia
- Jon Cassar at the Internet Movie Database
- Jon Cassar (@joncassar) on Twitter
- www.CassarFilmworks.com - production company site
- Television and Motion Picture Industry Charitable Alliance
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