The Nee Brothers, Aaron and Adam, are an American filmmaking team most famous for their feature The Last Romantic.
Although the brothers work separately at times – Adam acts and writes solo or with other writing partners, and Aaron directs documentary projects and commercials – their collaboration on short and feature films, music videos for bands including A Fine Frenzy[1] and Terrene,[2] garnered them recognition as a filmmaking team. Their feature film The Last Romantic made Aaron and Adam Nee the winners of the Emerging Filmmakers Award at the 29th Starz Denver Film Festival.[3] The festival described it as: "Ambitious in its narrative and visual aesthetics, this film is also the rare work by a first-time filmmaker that is both very funny and very smart," and "buoyed by an impressive and charming central performance as well as an eccentric and hilarious supporting cast."[4]
They were also featured in Filmmaker's "25 New Faces of Independent Film 2006".[5]
An earlier collaborative work of Aaron and Adam Nee was the music of ru(ok). Both brothers still create music separately, and Aaron scores many of the projects he has produced.[6]
Aaron Nee, the elder of the brothers Nee, attended the University of Central Florida.[7] Aaron's work as a cinematographer in their debut feature has been called some of the most beautiful DV cinematography in independent film to date.[8] His documentary following convicts released from prison and their journey to rehabilitation and transformation was released at the end of 2008.
Aaron also does motion graphics and visual effects through his company G.R.O.W. LLC.[9]
The younger Nee brother moved to New York City as a young adult to pursue acting, which entailed day work on such television projects as Law & Order and Sex in the City. Adam starred in the 2006 film The Last Romantic,[5] Able Danger,[10] and South of Heaven, in which he acted alongside Aaron, playing brothers Roy and Dale Coop.[11] He currently resides in Los Angeles. He is married to actress Allison Miller.[12]
The Last Romantic, starring Adam Nee, James Urbaniak and Shalom Harlow, which was shot on DV for under $20,000, opened at the SXSW film festival.[5] The film was selected to play in The New York Times' and Emerging Pictures' "Undiscovered Gems of 2006",[13] a series of films highlighting some of the best undistributed films of the past year. The film has been labeled as belonging to the Mumblecore movement, although others have argued that its cinematography, story, and use of professional actors excludes it from such a grouping.[14]