Meet Gary.
Gary L. Baker II is a writer and director making his transition into feature film. Over a thirteen year career as a writer working with agencies and brands including Apple, AKQA, and Argonaut, he developed a reputation for sharp creative thinking and the discipline to execute at the highest level. That same discipline drives his work in film.
Through his boutique production company Onassis, Gary has developed, produced, and delivered projects from the ground up. His debut short film, Do Right Man, demonstrated a command of tone and craft that carries directly into his feature work. And his commercial work has consistently delivered results.
He has two completed feature screenplays. Men in the Fog, a neo-noir thriller set in 1980s San Francisco, and Somewhere East of Marfa, a neo-western tragedy set in 1970s Texas. Both reflect a sustained interest in morally complex characters, period authenticity, and distinctly American stories. His third feature is currently in development.
He is based in San Francisco.
Men in the Fog is a neo-noir spy thriller about moral compromise, political corruption, and a man who spent his life trying to disappear, only to realize what he's willing to stand for.
Blacklist, 10/31/25
“A powerful and gritty crime thriller with both swagger and style to spare.”
As the law closes in and the deal comes together, Vance only becomes more emboldened to keep his dream alive, while Rachel can no longer carry the weight of their crime.
Blacklist, 09/17/25
“Producers should take note
of this writer as one to watch.”
Men In The Fog
Feature Screenplay
In 1980s San Francisco, two former spies make a quiet living blackmailing the city's elite, until their latest mark, a prominent tech magnate, turns the tables and forces them into his service.
In 1980s San Francisco, the city is wrapped in fog and money. And Thomas Bell moves through both like a ghost. A former CIA operative with a scandalous past, Bell runs a quiet blackmail enterprise with his partner Alex Graham. They photograph the secrets of the Bay Area's elite and collect payment with the calm efficiency of accountants. It isn't honorable work, but it's theirs and pays well.
Graham wants out. His eye set on a vineyard in the Russian River Valley and a quiet life. Bell isn't sure what's next, only that his anonymity suits him and the fog of the city feels like home.
Until they target Charles Porter.
Porter is a philanthropist and tech magnate by day. And a predator who has secretly siphoned millions of dollars from public and charitable funds using a complex web of offshore shell companies. When Graham delivers a packet revealing Porter's sexual secrets, he doesn't lose gracefully. Bell and Graham find themselves beaten and forced into his service, tasked with destroying the one political figure in San Francisco honest enough to threaten Porter's empire.
What begins as simple blackmail spirals out of control. The deeper Bell digs, the more he uncovers the corruption hiding in the shadows. And the more he's forced to act in order to protect the people he cares about and admit he can no longer hide behind the idea that it’s just a job.
In 1970s Texas, a charismatic oilman stakes his claim to build a truck stop empire, but faces the fallout of his ambition when two lawmen start asking questions and his wife begins to crack under the weight of their darkest secret.
In 1970s West Texas, Vance Hawthorne Jr. has a dream to build a chain of modern truck stops. He has the charm, the hunger, and the vision. But, what he doesn't have is the land.
So he and his wife, Rachel, form a plan to take it.
And finally develop his father’s oil rich fields.
Somewhere East of Marfa is a neo-western tragedy about ambition, the corruption of the American Dream, and the price of moral compromise.
Five years later, Hawthorne's Longhaul is open for business, but struggling. Debt mounting, Vance keeps it afloat with a quiet drug operation while he sets his sights on a deal with J.H. Randolph, a wealthy businessman who can take his dream statewide.
But a string of suspicious truck accidents attract the attention of Agent Marshall Banks and local Sheriff Chuck Lawson. And every lead only draws them closer to Vance. Meanwhile, Rachel deteriorates, guilt ridden by what they did to get the land.
Somewhere East of Marfa
Feature Screenplay
