CHRIS APPLEBAUM WAS BORN IN LOS ANGELES IN 1970.  HE STUDIED FILM AT HAMPSHIRE COLLEGE IN AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS WHERE HE STARTED DIRECTING MUSIC VIDEOS FOR BANDS IN THE BURGEONING INDEPENDENT ALTERNATIVE ROCK SCENE. AFTER SEEING ONE OF APPLEBAUM'S EARLY VIDEOS, MTV OFFERED THE 19-YEAR-OLD COLLEGE STUDENT THE OPPORTUNITY TO JOIN THEIR PRODUCTION TEAM IN NEW YORK CITY.

AT AGE 21, APPLEBAUM BECAME THE YOUNGEST DIRECTOR TO SIGN WITH SATELLITE FILMS, A DIVISION OF THE LEGENDARY PROPAGANDA, WHERE HE DIRECTED OVER 100 VIDEOS AND GARNERED MULTIPLE MVPA AND MTV VIDEO AWARD NOMINATIONS. IN 1998 APPLEBAUM SEMISONIC'S VIDEO FOR "CLOSING TIME" WAS THE FIRST VIDEO TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME IN CLEVELAND AND WAS HERALDED BY MTV AS A "BREAKTHROUGH" VIDEO. HIS VIDEO FOR FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE'S "STACY'S MOM" WAS HIS SECOND VIDEO TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME. APPLEBAUM HAS HAD TWENTY-ONE #1 VIDEOS ON MTV, HELPING BREAK ARTISTS LIKE RIHANNA, HILARY DUFF, KELLY OSBOURNE, THE FOUNTAINS OF WAYNE AND CONTINUE THE SUCCESSFUL CAREERS OF ARTISTS SUCH AS BRITNEY SPEARS, JESSICA SIMPSON, KID ROCK, MILEY CYRUS, AND SELENA GOMEZ. In 2007 Applebaum won MTV’s Video of the Year award for Rihanna’s “Umbrella”.

SIGNING WITH BELIEVE MEDIA IN 2008, APPLEBAUM HAS CONTINUED TO DIRECT MUSIC VIDEOS BUT HAS ALSO BEGUN DIRECTING TELEVISION COMMERCIALS FOR OLD SPICE, CARL'S JR. (WITH PARIS HILTON), COVERGIRL, HUGO BOSS AND JOHN FRIEDA.

APPLEBAUM CURRENTLY LIVES IN LOS ANGELES.