Frantz is noted for serving as cinematographer for the CKY video series, a predecessor to the Jackass franchise.[2] The series was directed by Bam Margera and starred the CKY crew, as well as popular extreme sports icons such as Tony Hawk. As director of photography for CKY 3 and CKY4, Frantz introduced high production quality 35-millimeter and 16-millimeter film sequences to the action sports genre, which was then primarily shot on various low quality videotape formats. Among the most noted film segments in the CKY videos are the "Shopping Cart Slams" and the "HeMan BeastMan" music video for the band Gnarkill (for which Frantz also crafted the stop-motion animation sequences).
Following the international success of the CKY videos, Bam Margera approached Frantz with the script for his independent motion picture directorial debut, a comedy titled Haggard: The Movie (2003).[8] Directed by, starring, and financed by Margera, Haggard co-stars Ryan Dunn and the CKY crew, and features cameos by skateboard legends Tony Hawk and Bucky Lasek. For the production of Haggard, Frantz developed a production method through which he could serve dual roles as both producer and director of photography, and shot the movie in super-16 millimeter film.
Minghags: The Movie
Directed by and starring Bam Margera and the cast of MTV's Viva La Bam, Minghags: The Movie (2009) is an homage to one of Margera's and Frantz's favorite genres, born out of the 1980s, the "Screwball Comedy" (such films as John Landis' Kentucky Fried Movie and Amazon Women on the Moon). As co-director, executive producer, and director of photography, Frantz shot it in super-16 millimeter film, in the same colorful style as its predecessor, Haggard: The Movie.[9]
Bam Margera Presents: Where the ♯$&% Is Santa?
Bam Margera Presents: Where the ♯$&% Is Santa? (2008) is a modern-day Christmas saga, a reality comedy feature reminiscent of the MTV predecessor Viva La Bam, in which Bam Margera and Brandon Novak trek across Finland to find Santa Claus in order to make good on a bet with Jimmy Pop of the Bloodhound Gang. They are also joined by the Dudesons. The film features other cameos by Kat Von D, CKY, and Andy McCoy of Hanoi Rocks. Frantz served as the film's co-executive producer, writer, and director of photography, and appeared in a cameo role.[10]
Jackass
Frantz is noted for his camera work in Jackass Number Two (2006), Jackass 2.5 (2007), Jackassworld.com: 24 Hour Takeover (2008) (in which Frantz made his first Jackass cameo appearance), Jackass 3D (2010), and Jackass 3.5 (2011).[2] Frantz is also noted for shooting the "lost" Jackass Number Two scene of Don Vito, the "Don Vito Tooth Pull" (2006), in which Vito had his tooth pulled out via a string attached to the bumper of a Lamborghini driven by Bam Margera and Johnny Knoxville. The footage quickly became the "big stunt" in the official Jackass Number Two trailer. Due to legal allegations centered around Don Vito,[11] the footage was omitted from the film, and it is rumored that Frantz still owns Vito's tooth.[citation needed] A few seconds of the lost footage can be seen in the original Jackass Number Two trailer.[12] He was asked to work on Jackass Forever (2022), and Jackass 4.5 (2022), but declined the offer.[13]
Reality TV
Viva La Bam
The Jackass spin-off Viva La Bam, MTV's scripted-reality series starred Bam Margera and his friends from Jackass and the CKY videos, known as the "CKY crew". The program was shot from 2003 to 2006 (from pilot to the "Viva La Spring Break" special). Each episode presented a theme or mission, and took the cast and crew on journeys across the United States, South America, Europe, and Scandinavia. The show also often featured appearances of Margera's favorite bands and celebrity friends such as HIM, CKY, Clutch, Slayer, Gwar, The Bloodhound Gang, Johnny Knoxville, and Tony Hawk.[14]
For Viva La Bam's five-season duration, Frantz served as director of photography and contributed to the aesthetic of the show by shooting scenes and montages in super-16 and 35-millimeter film, using a variety of experimental cinematographic in-camera techniques (such as stop-motion), producing the only motion picture film presented on a reality program in the history of television.[citation needed]
MTV's Blastazoid was the featured show on MTV's highly advertised "Gamers Week".[16] The half-hour special was created by MTV's internal division with Joe Frantz and Brandon DiCamillo, who were signed on as producers to head up the project shortly after approaching MTV with their idea to create a "Live-Action Donkey Kong"; a five-story, life-sized version of the classic arcade game.[17]
Blastazoid chronicled the lives of hosts Frantz, DiCamillo, and Rake Yohn, as they brought "Live-Action Donkey Kong" to life. It also showcased user-created gaming, fan, and tribute footage found on the internet. Although MTV's Blastazoid Special ended with a trailer for a "Live-Action Frogger" episode, the teaser was a spoof and Blastazoid had never been intended for a series.[16]
Music videos and documentaries
HIM
Frantz has served as both producer and director of photography with director Bam Margera on four music videos for Finnish band HIM:
Frantz has served as both producer and director of photography with director Bam Margera on three music videos for the Finnish band 69 Eyes: "Lost Boys" (2005),[21] "Dead Girls Are Easy" (2009), and "Dead and Gone" (2009).[5] The videos received heavy rotation on music video channels such as Kerrang! TV, and The Box, throughout Europe, Scandinavia, and the United Kingdom.[citation needed]
Frantz directed the Bloodhound Gang's music video "Screwing You on the Beach at Night" (2008), which is a visual parody of the classic black-and-white Chris Isaak "Wicked Game" video.[23] Frantz reconstructed the "Wicked Game" video shot-per-shot, using the same camera angles, lenses, and shot composition as the original.[4] Bloodhound Gang frontman Jimmy Pop's performance is a spoof of Chris Isaak's notably sexy performance,[24] in which Jimmy plays a drooling, cross-eyed, girl-chasing simpleton.
Viking Skull
Viking Skull's signature lifestyle of "drinking and rocking"[25] is depicted in the videos directed by Bam Margera with Frantz as producer and director of photography: "Blackened Sunrise" (2007)[26] and "Hair of the Dog" (2009).[27]
As a lifelong friend of rapper Vinnie Paz, Frantz directed the first video of Paz's band Jedi Mind Tricks called "I Who Have Nothing" (1996), which features experimental in-camera animation and effects shot on a 16-millimeter Bolex camera.[28] When frontman Paz pursued his solo career, Frantz served as director and cinematographer for Paz's debut video "Keep Movin' On" (2010). The video features cameos from several of Frantz's friends and associates: Philadelphia personality Tony Luke Jr., Scott Vogel of the hardcore band Terror, and Gina Lynn of the adult film world. Frantz followed the release with the Vinnie Paz documentary "Keep Movin' On: A Portrait of Vinnie Paz".[29]
Viva La Bands
The CD/DVD sets Viva La Bands (2005) and Viva La Bands, Volume 2 (2007) were released by skater/Jackass alumnus Bam Margera and had international distribution. The CDs are compilations of songs from Margera's favorite bands. The DVD features include popular music videos, behind-the-scenes documentaries, and the "lost episode" of Viva La Bam, titled "Iceland Waterfall",[30] which were directed by Margera and produced and filmed by Frantz.[31]
Books
Dreamseller
Frantz is a collaborative co-author of the book Dreamseller, which he wrote with MTV / Jackass personality Brandon Novak.[32] This "cautionary tale" chronicles Novak's career as a young professional skateboarder, descent into heroin addiction, and subsequent rise to MTV fame.[33] Frantz documented the life of Novak in "Dreamseller: The Documentary Series. The film outlines Novak's career, and the effects of drug addiction on relationships, and features interviews with Novak's mother, as well as Bam Margera, Tony Hawk, Bucky Lasek, and Ryan Dunn, who comment on their relationships with Novak and his history of drug abuse.[34] In December 2007, on an episode of Radio Bam on Sirius Radio, Frantz accuses Novak of being high, frisks him, and uncovers hidden drugs. Consequently, Margera, Frantz, and company kicked Novak out of Margera's studio and sent him home.[35] In March 2009, in an attempt to dissuade young people from trying drugs, Frantz interviewed Novak who was then committed to a mental institution for recovery from prescription drug addiction.[36] Frantz and Novak have started writing the second book in the Dreamseller series, which is centered around Novak's relationship with his father, now deceased.[37]
Since 2018, Frantz is the co-host of The Novak and Frantz Show on the Might Be News Network with fellow CKY crew member Brandon Novak. On the show, they discuss sobriety, film-making, current events, and their Jackass careers. They have had Chris Raab, Rake Yohn, Phil Margera, and April Margera as guests.
Frantz's first gig in the film industry was as a production assistant on Chasing Amy (1997). It was short-lived, as on his first day, he accidentally shut down the set for an hour during a key scene by triggering an alarm on a nearby building.[38]
