Wikipedia

Jamie Babbit

Jamie Merill Babbit(born November 16, 1970) is an American director, producer and screenwriter. She directed the filmsBut I'm a Cheerleader(1999),The Quiet(2005), andItty Bitty Titty Committee(2007). She has also directed episodes of such television series asRussian Doll,Gilmore Girls,Malcolm in the Middle,United States of Tara,Looking,Nip/Tuck,The L Word,Silicon Valley,The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,The Orville,Only Murders in the Building,andA League of Their Own.

Jamie Babbit
Born
Jamie Merill Babbit

(1970-11-16)November 16, 1970(age 54)
Shaker Heights, Ohio,U.S.
EducationBarnard College(BA)
Occupation(s)Director, producer, screenwriter
Years active1986–present
Spouse
​
(divorced)​
​
(m.2014)​
Children2

Early life and education

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Babbit was born inShaker Heights, Ohio.She grew up inClevelandwith her father, a lawyer and law school professor, and her mother who ran a treatment program for teenagers with drug and alcohol problems,[1]before her death in 2006. The program was called New Directions, and it provided inspiration for the fictional "reparative therapy" (conversion therapy) camp "True Directions" inBut I'm a Cheerleader.Babbit began acting at theCleveland Play Houseat the age of seven,[1]later moving intostage managementand lighting. She studied West African Studies atBarnard College(graduating in 1993)[2][3]and began taking film classes atNew York Universityduring her summer vacations.

Career

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After graduating from Barnard College in 1993, Babbit's first job was as an assistant to the assistant forMartin ScorseseonThe Age of Innocence.[1]After that she worked as an intern onJohn Sayles'sThe Secret of Roan Inishwhere she worked with fellow aspiring filmmakersKaryn KusamaandJasmine Kosovic.

Babbit's next job was asscript supervisoronJohn Duigan's filmThe Journey of August King- a job for which she had little experience, that she said she "lied her way into".[1]This was followed bySu Friedrich's television filmHide and Seek.In 1996, after working onIf These Walls Could Talk,where she met her futurepartnerAndrea Sperling,Babbit got a job as script supervisor onDavid Fincher's filmThe Game.This proved to be influential to her career as a director.

Short films

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In 1996, Babbit, withAri Gold,directedFrog Crossing,a comedic short film about an animal rights activist who protects frogs as they hop across a highway.[1]She followed this with 1999 comedy shortSleeping Beauties.While working onThe Game,she discussed her idea for a short film based on afairy talewith Fincher. He gave Babbit about 6,000 feet of35 mm film.His editor gave her free use of anAvidediting machine. The star ofThe Game,Michael Douglas,wrote toParamountand asked them to let Babbit access their costume department. As a result, she was able to makeSleeping Beautiesfor about $10,000.[1]Based on the classic fairy taleSleeping Beauty,the film is about a young woman (Sarah Lassez) who works as a makeup artist at a funeral home. Obsessed with an unavailable ex-girlfriend, she eventually meets and falls in love with a photographer's assistant (Clea DuVall). The short premiered atSundancein 1995. Her other short filmStuckpremiered atSundancein 2002 and won a jury prize.

But I'm a Cheerleader

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In 1999, Babbit directed her first feature film,But I'm a Cheerleader.StarringNatasha LyonneandClea DuVall,it is a romantic comedy about a high school cheerleader who is sent to a so-called "reparative therapy" camp when her parents suspect she is a lesbian. The film was inspired by an article that Babbit read about a man who had been sent to a similar camp.[4]The camp in the film was partly based on a halfway house for young people with drug and alcohol problems run by her mother.[5]Babbit wanted this film to have characters that reminded her of herself and the people around her, since there was minimal representation of feminine lesbians in the media.[6]She aimed to make it a comedy because the few lesbian movies produced before hers were serious, somber films.[6]Babbit appeared inThis Film Is Not Yet Rateddiscussing this film and her struggle against an NC-17 rating.[7]In 2000, the film won the Audience Award and the Graine de Cinéphage Award at theCréteil International Women's Film Festival,an annual French festival which showcases the work of female directors.[8]It was also nominated by the Political Film Society for two categories: the Exposé award and the Human Rights award.[9]Film scholarWheeler Winston Dixondescribed the film as a commercial and critical success which became a cult film on DVD in later years.[10]In 2020, for the film's 20th anniversary, Babbit's director's cut was released via video on demand.[11]This version of the film was made available on Blu-Ray the next year.

The Quiet

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Babbit's second film was 2005 thriller filmThe Quiet.StarringElisha CuthbertandCamilla Belle,the plot revolves around a deaf girl who, when sent to live with her godparents, discovers some dark secrets about the family. The film's worldwide rights was acquired byDestination Films,which released this film in the United States theatrically throughSony Pictures Classics.The film was not generally well received by critics, but still became a commercial success.[12]It earned $381,420 in the box office worldwide.[13]

Itty Bitty Titty Committee

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Babbit's next film, comedyItty Bitty Titty Committeewas released in 2007. Produced by POWER UP, it starredMelonie Diazas a young woman who becomes involved with aradical feministgroup. It received mostly negative reviews[14]but was nominated for aTeddy Awardat theBerlin International Film Festivaland won a jury award atSouth by Southwestin 2007.[15]

Breaking the Girls

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In 2011 Babbit began production onBreaking the Girls,a thriller film written byMark DistefanoandGuinevere Turner.[16]It was released in 2012.

Television

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Babbit has directed and produced episodes of several television programs includingPopular,United States of Tara,The Bernie Mac Show,Malcolm in the Middle,Nip/Tuck,Gilmore Girls,Castle,Alias,Ugly Betty,Dirty Sexy Money,Drop Dead Diva,Looking,Girls,The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,andThe L Word.She enjoys working in television because it helps her to "keep her skills up". She has said that because television directors have less overall responsibility than film directors, she is able to concentrate on working with actors. Television work also enables her to earn money while pursuing her long-term goals of making feature films.[1]

Personal life

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Babbit lives in Los Angeles. She has two daughters, Finley and Ryder, with her former partner, producerAndrea Sperling.[17][18][19]Babbit is a lesbian.[20][21]

Filmography

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Director

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Film

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Television

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See also

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References

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  1. ^abcdefgDixon, Wheeler Winston(2004). Gerald Duchovnay (ed.).Film Voices: Interviews from Post Script.State University of New York Press, Albany. pp.153–165.ISBN0-7914-6156-4.
  2. ^Krach, Aaron."INTERVIEW: Happy Camp-er, Jamie Babbit, Comes Out with" Cheerleader "".indieWIRE.Archived fromthe originalon May 12, 2006.RetrievedSeptember 8,2007.
  3. ^"The Quiet – about the Director".Seattle Post-Intelligencer.RetrievedAugust 12,2007.[dead link‍]
  4. ^ Stukin, Stacie (July 4, 2000)."But she's serious".The Advocate.Archived fromthe originalon September 20, 2004.RetrievedMay 20,2007.
  5. ^Gideonse, Ted (July 2000)."The New Girls Of Summer".Out.p. 56. Archived fromthe originalon October 17, 2007.
  6. ^abDowling, Aydian (2020).QUEER CLASSIC But I'm A Cheerleader Interview with Director Jamie Babbit.YouTube.RetrievedMarch 21,2023.
  7. ^Dick, Kirby (director) (2006).This Film Is Not Yet Rated(Motion picture (DVD)). New York, NY:IFC Films.RetrievedJune 16,2007.
  8. ^Sullivan, Monica (2000)."But I'm a Cheerleader-- Jamie Babbit Wins Créteil Films de Femmes 'Prix du Public'".Movie Magazine International.RetrievedMay 26,2007.
  9. ^"But I'm a Cheerleader-- Awards".IMDb.2001.RetrievedMarch 21,2023.
  10. ^Wheeler Winston Dixon,Rutgers University Press, July 11, 2007,Film Talk: Directors at Work,Retrieved November 10, 2014 (see page xii Introduction second paragraph),ISBN978-0-8135-4077-1
  11. ^Rubin, Rebecca (December 4, 2020)."'But I'm a Cheerleader' Director Jamie Babbit on the Queer Classic 20 Years Later: 'I Wanted to Make a Gay 'Clueless ".Variety.RetrievedApril 2,2022.
  12. ^"Changes in the Weather: As Burnt Orange cools, the UT Film Institute heats up".The Austin Chronicle.
  13. ^"The Quiet (2005)".Box Office Mojo.
  14. ^"Itty Bitty Titty Committee (2007)".Rotten Tomatoes.Archived fromthe originalon December 4, 2009.RetrievedFebruary 24,2010.
  15. ^"Itty Bitty Titty Committee".POWER UP.RetrievedFebruary 24,2010.
  16. ^McNary, Dave (September 11, 2009)."Crew, Palicki to star in 'Breaking the Girl's".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on September 17, 2009.RetrievedNovember 7,2009.
  17. ^Warn, Sarah (June 2004)."Interview with Jamie Babbit".AfterEllen.Archived fromthe originalon February 7, 2012.RetrievedMay 14,2007.
  18. ^Belge, Kathy (June 24, 2007)."Jamie Babbit Interview".LesbianLife. Archived fromthe originalon November 5, 2007.RetrievedOctober 22,2007.
  19. ^Ryder, Caroline (January 18, 2008)."We Rabbit With Babbit".OurChart. Archived fromthe originalon January 20, 2008.RetrievedJanuary 18,2008.
  20. ^Kramer, Gary (December 3, 2020)."Lesbian Filmmaker Talks About Her First and Latest Movies".San Francisco Bay Times.RetrievedJune 22,2024.
  21. ^Cuby, Michael (December 8, 2020)."Jamie Babbit Always Knew" But I'm a Cheerleader "Was Ahead of Its Time".them.RetrievedJune 22,2024.
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