The January July Company was founded by Ben Nelson and Katie Van Dyk (pictured to the right at the 2025 Texas Film Awards).

Ben is a writer, director, and musician from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Ben graduated from Louisiana State University before earning a law degree at Tulane University Law School in New Orleans. After a brief legal career - highlighted by a lawsuit representing Louisiana against the federal government to secure FEMA funds for fishermen impacted by Hurricane Katrina - Ben left the practice of law to pursue the arts full time. 

A lifelong musician, Ben has played bass (and just about every other instrument) in numerous bands, writing, recording and touring across the U.S. and beyond. He has performed in forty-seven cities in America and four in Canada, with music he composed airing on radio stations nationwide. Several music videos that he directed have enjoyed millions of views and were featured at the Austin Music Video Festival. It was through his years on the road that he recognized his gift for storytelling, particularly about Louisiana, and transitioned from directing and producing music videos to narrative feature films. 

In his work as a filmmaker, Ben is drawn to the history, landscape, culture, and personalities of South Louisiana, crafting stories that bring the region’s rich and complex stories to life. He continues to write, record, and perform music through his projects Starflake and Real Persons, and as a composer for films.

Katie is a lawyer, entrepreneur, and producer. She is a partner at a global law firm. With almost fifteen years of experience negotiating complex business transactions valued in the billions of dollars, Katie has a proven knack for providing strategic insight, building and managing dynamic teams, and business development. 

California-born and Texas-bred, Katie studied Finance at the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin, and earned her law degree from Tulane University Law School, where she met Ben, her partner in business and life.

While in law school, Katie founded her first business - a tech startup which she scaled and ultimately sold to a private equity firm, igniting her passion for entrepreneurship. Today, she brings a unique blend of creative vision and business acumen to her role as producer, helping to nurture and guide projects from development through financing and production.