Patrick H. Willems

Patrick Willems
Willems in 2025
Born (1987-09-29) September 29, 1987
Saratoga Springs, New York, U.S.[1]
EducationOberlin College
Occupationsvideo essayist, filmmaker
Years active2011–present
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2011 - present
Genres
Subscribers609,000
Views73.4 million
Last updated: January 24, 2026
Websitewww.patrickwillems.com

Patrick H. Willems (born September 29, 1987)[2][3][4] is an American video-essayist and filmmaker. On his YouTube channel, Willems initially posted short films before transitioning into producing video essays in 2016. His video essays are about films and the state of the film industry.

In 2022 he released his feature directorial debut Night of the Coconut on Nebula. He was named the "Director of Creative Programming" at Nebula in 2025.

Early life

According to Willems, his mother, who is from County Clare, Ireland, came to the United States in 1980, and met his father in Saratoga Springs,[5] where Willems would later be born and raised.[1][6]

Career

Initial short films

While attending Saratoga Springs High School, Willems formed a film club with a fellow student, Max Rouzier. They would later host a film festival at the school.[6] After graduating from Oberlin College in 2010[6] with a degree in Cinema Studies,[1] he reunited with Rouzier, and the two formed an independent film production company, Lumberjack Films, in December of that year.[6] Willems produced various commercials and short films with the company.[6][7]

Between 2013 and 2015, Willems produced a number of short films which played homage to various existing well-known productions and filmmakers.[3] These included "What if Wes Anderson Directed X-Men?", “What if Werner Herzog directed Ant-Man?”, and "Breaking Bad Jr.", which recast children as the leads of the TV series Breaking Bad.[3][7][8] He also directed "Point Break Live", a 2013 theatrical stage production which played homage to the film Point Break.[9]

Video essays

In 2016, Willems uploaded his first video essay, which critiqued the colour grading of the MCU films.[3] He has continued to produce video essays on a wide variety of film topics since.[3][10] In 2019, he collaborated with fellow video essayist Mikey Neumann on a two-part series covering the Mission: Impossible films.[11]

In 2023 he produced The Patrick (H) Willems Star Wars Holiday special, which featured previous channel guests.[12]

Film projects

Starting in 2020, during video essays, Willems began incorporating short serialised skits about a coconut named Charl.[13] The story arc closed out in his feature directorial debut, Night of the Coconut.[14][15] The film was released on June 17, 2022 on the streaming platform Nebula.[16]

In 2025, Willems released his short film The Dinner Plan, starring Griffin Newman, John Hodgman, and Miriam Shor, onto Nebula.[17]

In 2025 it was announced Willems would direct an episode of the Nebula anthology series Sub/Liminal, executive produced by Dan Jinks.[18] Later in the same year he was appointed by Nebula as 'Director of Scripted Development'.[19]

Personal life

Willems is based in Brooklyn.[20] Willems' parents frequently appear in his videos,[12] and, according to Willems, are popular among his audience.[21] Willems also has a sister, Mary.[22]

Reception

Colin Gorenstein of Salon praised Willems' 2015 "What if Wes Anderson Directed X-Men?" short film, saying that his imitation of Anderson's visual style "checks across the board".[23] In Vulture, Sean Fitz-Gerald described it as having "just the right hint of auteur-esque pretension".[8]

In Ars Technica, Nathan Matisse praised Willems' essays.[3] Caroline Seide of The A.V. Club praised a 2017 video covering the action filmmaking of director Steven Spielberg as "another thoughtful look at cinema" from Willems.[24] In Pajiba, Alberto Cox Délano praised Willems' videos for their thorough analysis and research, entertaining narrative segments, and breadth of their coverage of the film medium.[10] Mike Redmond praised a 2020 video discussing the Star Wars franchise following the release of the film The Rise of Skywalker, calling it a "calm, rational examination".[25]

In International Policy Digest, Will Mann reviewed Willems' directorial feature debut Night of the Coconut.[15] Mann praised the film's production value, and described it as "more focused and effective" than other similar film productions made by other YouTube creators. Mann also enjoyed the film's music, humor, and performances of the lead actors, which he stated "mostly work".[15] However, Mann stated that the film would potentially be hard to follow for viewers who were not familiar with the Charl story arc from Willems' past videos.[15] In a review for We Live Entertainment, Aaron Neuwirth praised Willems' direction and the film's humor, acting, and conclusion to the Charl storyline, calling it a "fun diversion".[26]


References

  1. ^ a b c "About". www.lumberjackfilms.net. Archived from the original on 2012-06-23. Retrieved 2026-03-21.
  2. ^ Willems, Patrick [@patrickhwillems] (September 12, 2024). "Dear @Criterion you're coming to my city (NYC) on my birthday (9/29) and it would make my year if I got to visit the closet. Love, Patrick" (Tweet). Retrieved 29 April 2025 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  3. ^ a b c d e f Mattise, Nathan (2021-03-22). "YouTuber Patrick (H) Willems has thoughts on movies—lots of thoughts". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  4. ^ |last=Willems |first=Patrick url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4o3uRsckMto&t=123s%7Ctitle= THIRTY date=September 29, 2017 via=YouTube. Retreived December 22, 2025
  5. ^ Willems, Patrick; Willems, Mary (2022-12-28). "Question by @curlybert". The 2022 Christmas Q&A (feat. My Sister) (Video). Event occurs at 1:00:00. Archived from the original on March 20, 2026. Retrieved 2026-03-20 – via YouTube.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Locally based film company shooting for fame". Saratogian. 2011-07-03. Retrieved 2026-03-21.
  7. ^ a b Savage, Lesley (2013-08-08). "Middle school kids make their own "Breaking Bad"". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  8. ^ a b Fitz-Gerald, Sean (2015-03-03). "X-Men Receive Wes Anderson Treatment in Spot-on Fan-Made Mash-up". Vulture. Archived from the original on 2019-09-18. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  9. ^ Goodman, Stephanie (2013-08-09). "A Remake So Bad, It's Outright Homage". The New York Times. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  10. ^ a b Délano, Alberto Cox (2021-09-17). "Too Good For YouTube: Patrick (H) Willems". Pajiba. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
  11. ^ Neumann, Mikey; Willems, Patrick (2019-04-27). "The key to Mission: Impossible's explosive, endless possibilities". Polygon.com. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
  12. ^ a b "Nebula Announces Patrick Willems' STAR WARS HOLIDAY SPECIAL Special". Nerdist. 14 December 2023. Archived from the original on 2025-03-18. Retrieved 2025-01-30.
  13. ^ King, Andrew (2022-06-24). "Patrick Willems Interview: The YouTube Filmmaker On His Feature Debut, Night Of The Coconut". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 2025-05-14. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  14. ^ I Accidentally Made A Feature Film - Here Is What I Learned, November 26, 2021, archived from the original on February 22, 2026, retrieved December 23, 2025
  15. ^ a b c d Mann, Will (2022-09-01). "Review of YouTuber Patrick Willems' 'Night of the Coconut'". International Policy Digest. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  16. ^ "Night of the Coconut | Nebula". nebula.tv. Retrieved 2026-03-16.
  17. ^ Maas, Jennifer (2025-10-29). "Griffin Newman Tries Really Hard Not to Throw Up in Nebula's First Trailer for Patrick Willems Short Film 'The Dinner Plan' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 2026-01-12. Retrieved 2026-01-24.
  18. ^ Vlessing, Etan (2025-01-28). "Dan Jinks to Executive Produce 'Sub/liminal' Anthology Series at Nebula". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2025-04-16.
  19. ^ Levy, Giana (2025-09-04). "Indie Streamer Nebula Taps 'The Dinner Plan' Filmmaker Patrick Willems as Director of Scripted Development (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 2025-09-05.
  20. ^ "About". Patrick Willems. Retrieved 2026-03-21.
  21. ^ "Patrick (H) Willems Reacts To His Top 1000 Comments On YouTube". Ars Technica Videos. Retrieved 2026-03-20.
  22. ^ Patrick (H) Willems (2026-03-02). The Best Movies Of 2025 (The Vito Awards) (Video). Event occurs at 1:06:02. Archived from the original on March 20, 2026. Retrieved 2026-03-20 – via YouTube.
  23. ^ Gorenstein, Colin (2015-03-04). "Here's "X-Men" brilliantly reimagined as a Wes Anderson film". Salon.com. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
  24. ^ Siede, Caroline (March 30, 2017). "Steven Spielberg's best action scenes rely on horror, not spectacle". AV Club. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
  25. ^ Redmond, Mike (2020-02-24). "Patrick Willems Made a Great Video About Breaking Up With 'Star Wars'". Pajiba. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
  26. ^ "In-House Reviews: Marcel the Shell, Cha Cha Real Smooth, Brian and Charles, and More!". We Live Entertainment. 2022-06-21. Archived from the original on 2024-06-22. Retrieved 2026-03-17.
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