Ash Avildsen

Ashley Gregory Avildsen (born November 5, 1981) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and the founder and CEO of Sumerian Records and Sumerian Films. The son of director John G. Avildsen, he wrote and directed the film American Satan (2017) and the scripted series Paradise City (2021). Avildsen was the vocalist of metalcore band Reflux in the early 2000s, which also featured Tosin Abasi (Animals As Leaders) and Evan Brewer (Fallujah, formerly of The Faceless, Animosity and Entheos) co-founder John Mehoves and Stephen Clifford of Circa Survive. The band released one album "The Illusion of Democracy" via Prosthetic Records in 2004 and a self-titled EP in 2002 before breaking up in 2005. Sumerian Records (currently located in Nashville, TN) was founded in 2006 by Avildsen. Initially, the label was run out of his one-bedroom apartment in Venice Beach, beginning with the bands The Faceless and Stick to Your Guns. Sumerian has since released over 100 albums, expanded their roster to feature a diverse collective of over 40 artists, and in 2016 celebrated their 10-year anniversary as a successful independent label. On March 22, 2011, Avildsen released a video in which he argued against music piracy. This led to some controversy as the video was perceived to be an ad for Born of Osiris' then new record The Discovery. A second point was made of the fact that during the 1990s, Avildsen was active in the software piracy warez scene.