Christian Cantamessa

Christian Cantamessa
Born (1976-10-04) October 4, 1976 (age 48)
Savona, Italy
Occupation(s)Video game writer, designer, screenwriter
Notable workManhunt series
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Red Dead Redemption
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

Christian Cantamessa (born October 4, 1976) is an Italian-American writer, director, and video game creator best known as lead designer and co-writer of Red Dead Redemption and the Manhunt series,[1] level designer on Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas,[2] and writer of Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.[3]

He is also the founder and CEO of Sleep Deprivation Lab, which is a production company and video game consulting firm known for work on Rise of the Tomb Raider, The Crew, Forza Horizon, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, and Middle-earth: Shadow of War.[3]

He also was the director and writer of Air, a feature film released in 2015 starring Norman Reedus, Djimon Hounsou, and Sandrine Holt.[4]

In December 2020 it was revealed that Cantamessa is working on story, world-building and cinematic direction for the reboot of Perfect Dark with Xbox's The Initiative studio.[5]

  1. ^ Pometsey, Olive (April 13, 2019). "Red Dead Redemption game designer Christian Cantamessa on his career in gaming". British GQ. Archived from the original on April 14, 2019. Retrieved April 14, 2019.
  2. ^ Parkin, Simon (August 26, 2013). "The Hunt for One of Gaming's Most Mythical Creatures". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on October 31, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Parkin, Simon (August 26, 2015). "Here's the secret to making a truly cinematic video game". Business Insider. Archived from the original on February 26, 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  4. ^ Jaworowski, Ken (August 13, 2015). "Review: In 'Air,' Norman Reedus and Djimon Hounsou Keep Hope, and Themselves, Alive". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  5. ^ Robinson, Andy (December 12, 2020). "Analysis: Who's working on the new Perfect Dark?". Video Games Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.