Richard Janes began his acting career at the tender age of 14, but it wasn't long before he realized his passion extended far beyond the camera. After graduating from film school in 2001, his graduation film was nominated for a prestigious Royal Television Society Award. Following a stint working with renowned commercial companies and directors, including Tarsem, Terry Gilliam, and Sharon Maguire, Richard made his directorial debut with a stage play on the London Fringe, titled 'Journey's End', a poignant tale of troubled men and boys on the front line during World War II.
The script for his debut film, 'Fakers', was discovered online, and a financier presented him with seed money that had to be spent quickly, tied to the British Tax Incentive called the Enterprise Investment Scheme. Richard and his actor friend Tom Chambers embarked on a journey, knocking on doors across the country to raise the remaining funds. Pre-production began a few months later.
In 2004, Richard relocated to Los Angeles, where he produced a movie for LionsGate, wrote a Superhero film for Walt Disney Productions, and found himself stuck in development hell at various studios. However, he also directed a low-budget music documentary that won a Los Angeles Emmy. In 2008, he produced Hulu's first original programming, "Dorm Life", and co-founded the commercial production company and digital agency Fanology. At Fanology, Richard directed and produced over 300 commercials for prominent brands such as Toyota, Mini, Lexus, RedBull, Monster Energy, Regal Cinemas, and Microsoft.
In 2018, Richard and his wife, Amy Janes, relocated to Oklahoma City, where they partnered with local film supporter Melodie Garneau to develop 12 acres into Oklahoma's first film campus, Green Pastures Studio, featuring three sound stages. Richard and Amy also launched the Film Crew Institute, a below-the-line training program that graduates around 150 students annually, many of whom have gone on to work on major motion pictures and television shows, including Martin Scorsese's 'Killers of The Flower Moon' and Paramount+'s 'King of Tules'.
In 2022, Richard returned to feature directing, producing and directing 'Cricket's Requiem', a passion project that Amy had been developing for over 17 years. This marked the first production for Green Pastures Studio.
