John Debello

John DeBello has produced, written, and directed an impressive variety of strategic communication campaigns, initiatives, and projects for major brands, global entertainment leaders, diverse public agencies, and prominent institutions.

The quality of his work is underscored by the remarkable scope of Tier One organizations that have called upon him to deliver exceptional results. These include AAA, Callaway Golf, Dell, DIRECTV, Discovery Networks, Disney, DXC Technology, EA SPORTS, ESPN, Fox, Google, Harvard, Lionsgate Entertainment, Mattel, and the National Science Foundation, Qualcomm, and the U.S. Olympic Committee.

His notable accomplishments include creating the live multimedia event for Motorola that introduced digital HDTV to North America; a customer acquisition campaign for DIRECTV that achieved the best results in company history; a direct response broadcast strategy for Dell that tripled anticipated response; and a campaign for GameStop named International “TV Spot of the Week” by AdAge.

DeBello has developed a client outreach strategy and produced compelling content for major events and trade show presentations at CES, CTIA, SBCA, the Super Bowl, the Olympic Games, and in international stadiums and arenas. He’s written & directed the video portion of presentations that have resulted in the award of 3 Super Bowls and the US Open.

John has produced major communications programs and motion picture projects for government agencies including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Defense Advanced Research Products Agency (DARPA), the Intelligence Advanced Research Products Agency (IARPA), SPAWAR and US Naval Special Warfare (SEALs.)

Through his work on behalf of the nation’s intelligence gathering community, he was a contributing author to Working Through Synthetic Worlds, an anthology of visionary concepts designed to advance the study and implementation of improved analytical decision-making tools and processes.

He’s guided public service initiatives for the City of Austin, the City of Sheffield, England, the City of San Diego, and many others. His work for more than 20 major universities has included engagements on behalf of Harvard, Stanford, Northwestern, UCLA, UC San Diego, and the University of Virginia.

Fresh out of college, John directed, co-produced, and co-wrote the cult-classic comedy Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. He also directed and co-wrote three sequels, served as executive producer of the top-rated Fox animated series, and wrote the famous Killer Tomato theme song–an international favorite in its own right, undoubtedly the only tune in history to be broadcast from the space shuttle and close the CBS Evening News.

He has also written and directed other feature films and award-winning documentaries, including The Story Behind the Spectacle, an inside look at the making of the revolutionary Los Angeles Olympics; Beat the Baja, the official story of the world’s most famous off-road race; The College Game, a celebration of American football starring legendary sportscaster Keith Jackson; and X-Carriers, a Discovery special that explores the science driving America’s next generation aircraft carrier.

He is currently writing and directing World War I’s Last Battle, a broadcast documentary that celebrates the inspiring story behind the making of America’s new national Memorial in Washington DC.

His interest in film began as a teenager when he won national honors in Eastman Kodak’s Young People’s Movie Awards. Featured on a national PBS television special, he went on to graduate from the University of California San Diego with a degree in American History. John has been inducted into the Silver Circle by the National Association of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) in recognition of 25 years of special achievement in television.