Da Frè is best known for directing, screenwriting and executive producing the crime drama Stolen Dough on Apple TV. Da Frè is also recognized for the documentaries The Girl Who Cannot Speak featured on NBC’s Meet The Press Film Festival in collaboration with the American Film Institute and the social activism film The Day I Had to Grow Up.[3] His films have been screened at multiple film festivals including the Cannes Film Festival and the Chelsea Film Festival in New York.[4][5]
After graduating, Da Frè began his career with a role in Taking Woodstock, a film directed by Ang Lee, which premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.[1][8][9] Later that year, Da Frè appeared in Law & Order: Criminal Intent.[8] Da Frè subsequently appeared in TV series including Blue Bloods, One Bad Choice, Pandora's Box: Unleashing Evil.[1]
In 2009, Da Frè was elected as a member of the selection committee for the Montreal International Film Festival, and has been an active member ever since.[1]
In 2018, Da Frè's documentary, The Girl Who Cannot Speak, debuted, exploring five women's sexual abuse narratives amidst the MeToo movement.[10][11] Later that year, it was screened at the Cannes Film Festival and at the Meet The Press Film Festival in Washington, D.C., a festival co-hosted with the American Film Institute.[12][13] The film was also selected for screening at St. Louis International Film Festival and the Saguenay International Short Film Festival in 2019.[14][10]
In 2020, Da Frè directed and produced The Day I Had to Grow Up, a documentary on U.S. youth activism addressing issues such as gun violence and climate change.[15][16][17] The film was featured at the 2021 St. Louis International Film Festival and won the Jury Prize at Switzerland International Film Festival.[18][19] The documentary also won the FFTG Spirit Award in 2021.[20] In the same year, Da Frè co-directed another film titled The Moon in Deep Winter with Laura Pellegrini.[21] Subsequently, the film was screened twice at the Cannes Film Festival.[21] It also received the Best Screenplay Award at the Chelsea Film Festival in New York.[21]
In December 2022, Da Frè wrote and directed a feature film, Stolen Dough, with Da Frè as executive producer and Laura Pellegrini as main producer.[22][23] The film explores the battle between Italian-American inventor Anthony Mongiello and Pizza Hut over the patent for stuffed crust pizza.[22][23] The documentary, which received the Russo Brothers Italian American Film Forum Grant, is scheduled to air on the Disney Channel in 2023.[22] In July 2023, the documentary won the Best Documentary Award at the Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival in Athens, Greece.[24]
In October 2023, Stolen Dough screened at the DOC LA Los Angeles Film Festival for its California Premiere.[26] Da Frè received an Honorable Mention Award in the feature film category of the festival.[26]
In November 2023, Stolen Dough screened as the opening night film at The North Film Festival in New York City.[27] The festival ran from 15 November to 18 November.[27] Da Frè won an award for Best Director in the feature film category at the festival.[27] Later in November, Stolen Dough had its Scottish Premiere at the Grosvenor Picture Theatre in Glasgow, Scotland.[28]Stolen Dough's Scottish Premiere was part of its Gala series that included the film Bitter Taste, directed by Harry Holland and starring Spider-Man actor Tom Holland, followed by Da Fre's Stolen Dough as the main feature film.[28]
In December 2023, Da Frè was awarded Best Documentary of the Film Festival, for Stolen Dough, at the FFTG Awards.[29]
Apple TV premiered Stolen Dough on its international streaming platform in January 2024.[30]
