Calogero's films have been showcased at numerous prestigious international film festivals, including Cannes, Berlinale, Deauville, Hamptons International, Montclair, AFI, Heartland, BAMcinemaFest, and Napa Valley, to name a few. His directorial debut, MOVING IN, released in 2008, delves into the struggles of a family during the 2008 recession and is currently available on Prime Video. His sophomore feature, LONG ISLAND GUS, follows a man's perilous journey on Long Island's black market in search of a kidney to save his ailing friend. The film premiered at the 2022 Sarasota Film Festival, where it won the Independent Visions Jury Prize, and is also available on Prime Video.
As a producer, Calogero has collaborated on notable projects such as Tyler Taormina's HAPPER'S COMET, which premiered in Berlinale's 2022 Forum section, and CHRISTMAS EVE IN MILLER'S POINT, which debuted in Cannes 2024 Directors' Fortnight and is distributed by IFC Films.
Calogero's latest directorial project, SUE THUNDER, JOHNNY LIGHTNING, has recently wrapped production. The film tells the story of Sue, a Native American social worker leading a task force for missing and murdered Indigenous women in Arizona. As she investigates, she uncovers a complex web of human trafficking and real estate fraud threatening her reservation.
Born and raised around Long Island, New York, Calogero credits his family's constant moving and Italian-American blue-collar heritage as significant influences in his work. His parents, Jimmy and Maria, named him after the character 'Calogero' in the 1993 movie A BRONX TALE. He is also the founder of 19th Floor Productions, a film production company based in New York.
Calogero's cinematic inspirations include John Cassavetes, Frederick Wiseman, Shirley Clarke, D.A. Pennebaker, Martin Scorsese, Agnes Varda, Sidney Lumet, Robert Altman, the Maysles Brothers, Orson Welles, John Ford, and Allan King. He resides in Brooklyn, NY with his wife, Savannah.
