Todd Solondz

Todd Solondz
Solondz in 2009
Born	(1959-10-15)October 15, 1959 Newark, New Jersey,U.S.
Education	Yale University
Occupations	Filmmaker playwright professor
Years active	1984–present
Children	2

Todd Solondz(/ˈsoʊləndz/;born October 15, 1959) is an American filmmaker and playwright known for his style of dark, socially conscious satire. Solondz's work has received critical acclaim for its commentary on the "dark underbelly of middle class Americansuburbia,"a reflection of his own background inNew Jersey.His work includesWelcome to the Dollhouse(1995),Happiness(1998),Storytelling(2001),Palindromes(2004),Life During Wartime(2009),Dark Horse(2011), andWiener-Dog(2016). He is also a professor atNew York University.

Background

Solondz was born in 1959 inNewark, New Jersey,and grew up in its nearby suburbs.He wrote several screenplays while working as a delivery boy for theWriters Guild of America.Solondz earned his undergraduate degree in English from Yale and attendedNew York University'sMaster of Fine Artsprogram in film and television, but did not complete a degree.

During the early 1990s, Solondz worked atNYANAas a teacher ofEnglish as a second languageto Russian immigrants in New York City and described the experience as positive.

Solondz is anatheist.InThe A.V. Club'sarticle "Is There a God?", he answered the question "Well, me, I'm an atheist, so I don't really believe there is. But I suppose I could be proven wrong."

As of 2024,Solondz lives in New York City, inGreenwich Village.He and his wife have two children.

Career

1980s

Solondz's student short filmSchatt's Last Shotwas produced in 1985, and was shown at least once in 1986.The title character is a high schooler who wants to get intoStanford University,but his gym teacher hates him. The teacher fails him because he cannot make a shot in basketball. He has no luck with the girl of his dreams, but he wishes he was more like the coach, whom he challenges to a game of one-on-one.

In 1989 Solondz wrote and directedFear, Anxiety & Depression,an episodic comedy about fledgling playwright Ira (played by Solondz) and his frustrating interactions with women. The film contains several musical interludes, including three songs written for the film.Stanley Tucciappears in one of his early roles as an old, disliked acquaintance of Ira, who takes up playwriting on a whim and becomes the toast ofOff-Broadway.

1990s

The frustrations of his first feature led Solondz to swear off further involvement with the industry. More than five years later, an attorney friend urged Solondz to give filmmaking another go, and promised partial finance for any project Solondz came up with.The end result was 1995'sWelcome to the Dollhouse,which went on to win the Grand Jury Prize at theSundance Film Festival.The dark comedy follows the travails of Dawn Wiener, a bespectacled, toothy, and shy 7th-grade girl who is mercilessly teased at school and treated to alternating contempt and neglect at home. It was distinct from most earlier films about adolescent abuse due to its complex characterization. It gave a balanced and sometimes sympathetic portrayal of the bully antagonist Brandon, and its depiction of Dawn, the ostensible protagonist and victim of the story, showed her as deeply flawed and sometimes cruel and selfish herself. The film was a major success among critics,and a moderate success at the box office. It was a festival hit, with screenings all over the world.

Solondz's next piece wasHappiness(1998), a highly controversial film due to the themes explored in it, which range from rape,pedophilia,incest,suicide, and murder to a bizarre sexual phone caller. After the original distributorOctober Filmsdropped it, the film was distributed byGood Machine Releasing.The movie received numerous awards,including International Critics' Prize at theCannes Film Festival,and yielded strong critical praise for Solondz.

2000s

In 2001, Solondz releasedStorytelling,which premiered at the2001 Cannes Film Festival.It is a film separated into two parts, entitled "Fiction" and "Nonfiction." The two stories share two thematic elements, but deal with each in an autonomous manner. Solondz used this format because he wanted to "find a fresh structure, a fresh form, and a different way of tackling what may be identical geographical material."When Solondz initially presented the film to theMPAA,he was told that if he wished to receive a rating other thanNC-17,he would have to remove a scene of explicit sex involvinga white female and a black male.However, a clause in Solondz's contract allowed him to cover part of the actors with a bright red box. "For me it's a great victory to have a big red box, the first red box in any studio feature [...] it's right in your face: You're not allowed to see this in our country."Solondz did, however, remove a portion of the film (which has variously been reported as either a subplot of the second story, or a third story entirely) which contained a sex scene involvingtwo male actors(one of whom wasJames Van Der Beek).

Solondz's next film,Palindromes(2004), raised the eyebrows of many pundits and reviewers due to its themes ofchild molestation,statutory rapeand abortion. Like all of Solondz's previous films,Palindromesis set in suburban New Jersey. It was released unrated in the US.

Life During Wartime(formerly known asForgiveness) was produced by John Hart and Evamere Entertainment and released in 2009.Solondz said the film is a companion piece toHappinessandWelcome to the Dollhouse.Life During Wartimehas characters in common with the two earlier films, but played by different actors and with loose continuity. Information about the characters in the film, and their differences from those of its predecessorHappiness,first emerged in August 2009.The film featuresAlly Sheedy,Renée Taylor,Paul Reubens,Ciarán Hinds,Shirley Henderson,Michael Lerner,Michael Kenneth Williams,Charlotte Rampling,Allison Janney,Rich Pecci andChris Marquette.

The film debuted at theTelluride Film Festivalin September 2009; it was nominated for theGolden Lionat theVenice Film Festivalin August–September 2009, and it won the Osella award there for Best Screenplay.

In 2009, Solondz became an adjunct professor on the faculty of New York University'sTisch School of the Arts.As of 2024,he is a tenured professor teaching classes on writing and directing.

2010s

In July 2010, Solondz completed the script of his next film,Dark Horse,which was filmed in the fall of 2010. To Solondz's surprise, theCreative Artists Agencyappreciated the script, the first time for a movie of his.Solondz commented that he realized this is because "there's no rape, there's no child molestation, there's nomasturbation,and then I thought, 'omg, why didn't I think of this years ago?' "

On September 5, 2011,Dark Horsewas presented at theVenice Film Festival.On October 14, 2011,Dark Horsemade its European premiere at the BFI London Film Festival. The film received a mixed reception. On April 23, 2012,Dark Horsewas announced as the Closing Night selection forMaryland Film Festival2012.

Wiener-Dogpremiered at Sundance 2016. The film tells the story of a dog, as she travels from home to home. Amazon purchased the film at the festival.Starring an ensemble cast led byEllen Burstyn,Kieran Culkin,Julie Delpy,Danny DeVito,Greta Gerwig,Tracy Letts,andZosia Mamet,the film serves as a spin-off from Solondz's 1995 filmWelcome to the Dollhouse,which also features the character of Dawn Wiener. It was released in the US on June 24, 2016, to positive reviews.

In 2017, it was reported thatPenélope CruzandEdgar Ramírezwere attached to star Solondz's next filmLove Child,a darkly comedic twist on the story ofOedipus.

In 2018, Solondz premiered his debut play, titledEmma and Max.The production began previews October 1, opened on October 14, and ran through November 4. It starred Ilana Becker, Zonya Love,Matt Servitto,andRita Wolf.

In May 2019, Solondz spent a week as the filmmaker in residence at the Centre for Film and Screen at the University of Cambridge.

2020s

In 2021, Solondz was in the process of arranging financing forLove Child.He described the project as "my first movie with a plot and my first movie taking place in Texas," shaped by theHollywood filmsthat made him want to become a filmmaker. At this time,Rachel WeiszandColin Farrellwere announced to star as the leads, in place of Cruz and Ramírez.

By 2024, it was reported thatCharles MeltonandElizabeth Olsenwere now cast to star in the main roles.Principal photographywas scheduled to begin in late 2024 in New York City andTexas,but in June, the production was abruptly cancelled due to lack of funding.

Filmography

Feature films

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Producer	Actor	Notes
1989	Fear, Anxiety & Depression	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Role: Ira Ellis
1995	Welcome to the Dollhouse	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
1998	Happiness	Yes	Yes	No	Uncredited	Role: Doorman
2001	Storytelling	Yes	Yes	No	No
2004	Palindromes	Yes	Yes	No	No
2009	Life During Wartime	Yes	Yes	No	No
2011	Dark Horse	Yes	Yes	No	No
2016	Wiener-Dog	Yes	Yes	No	No

Short films

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Producer	Actor	Notes
1984	Feelings	Yes	Yes	Yes	Uncredited	Student film Role: Sensitive Young Man
	Babysitter	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Student film
1986	Schatt's Last Shot	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Thesis film Role: Ezra Schatt

Performances

Year	Title	Role
1987	In Transit	Musician
1988	Married to the Mob	The Zany Reporter
1997	As Good as It Gets	Man on Bus

Recurring characters

Character	Welcome to the Dollhouse(1995)	Happiness(1998)	Palindromes(2004)	Life During Wartime(2009)	Wiener-Dog(2016)
Dawn Wiener	Heather Matarazzo		Mentioned		Greta Gerwig
Brandon McCarthy	Brendan Sexton III				Kieran Culkin
Mark Wiener	Matthew Faber		Matthew Faber	Rich Pecci
Missy Wiener	Daria Kalinina		Mentioned
Marj Wiener	Angela Pietropinto		Angela Pietropinto	Mentioned
Harvey Wiener	Bill Buell		Bill Buell	Michael Lerner
Joy Jordan Mellencamp		Jane Adams		Shirley Henderson
Andy Kornbluth		Jon Lovitz		Paul Reubens
Allen Mellencamp		Philip Seymour Hoffman		Michael K. Williams
Bill Maplewood		Dylan Baker		Ciarán Hinds
Helen Jordan		Lara Flynn Boyle		Ally Sheedy
Timmy Maplewood		Justin Elven		Dylan Riley Snyder
Trish Jordan Maplewood		Cynthia Stevenson		Allison Janney
Chloe Maplewood		Lila Glantzman-Leib		Emma Hinz
Billy Maplewood		Rufus Read		Chris Marquette
Mona Jordan		Louise Lasser		Renée Taylor

Themes

Solondz has included portraits of and some satire of Jews and Jewish life in his work. Set in Florida, Life During Wartime portrayed pro-Israel activists. Set in New Jersey, Welcome to the Dollhouse includedtraditional-Jewish-influenced music befitting a bar mitzvah being played at a wedding anniversary party.

Awards

In 2007, Solondz was honored with the Filmmaker on the Edge Award at theProvincetown International Film Festival.

Further reading

• Moore, Michelle E. "If It Was a Rape, Then Why Would She Be a Whore?: Rape in Todd Solondz' Films."Rape in Art Cinema.Ed. Dominique Russell. New York: Continuum Press, 2010. 129–144.

External links

• Todd SolondzatIMDb
• ToddSolondz– Website dedicated to the films of Todd Solondz
• Gothamist interview– with Todd Solondz, April 2005
• A review ofLife During Wartimeby Andréa Grunert (in French)
• Literature on Todd Solondz