Michael Almereyda
Encyclopedia
Michael Almereyda is an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer. His most well known work is Hamlet
(2000), starring Ethan Hawke
.
, Almereyda took an early interest in drawing and painting. His family moved from Kansas to Orange County, California
and the young Almereyda took advantage of his proximity to Los Angeles
and its film culture. He read books on film, visited revival houses, and attended talks held by the likes of Howard Hawks
and John Huston
at community college
s. He met Manny Farber
at age sixteen, when the latter presented a Fassbinder film at Orange Coast College
. The meeting left an impression on Almereyda, who had then just read Farber's book Negative Space, and he cited the American painter and film critic as a formulative influence in a 1999 interview with Filmmaker.
He later studied art history
at Harvard but grew impatient with academia. Convinced that he should be making movies, he dropped out his senior year and moved to New York
to pursue screenwriting
. He met Tom Pope, who had written a draft of Hammett for Wim Wenders
, and the scribe put him in touch with his literary agent
. Almereyda would get signed on the strength of a spec script
about inventor Nikola Tesla
.
screenwriter. His first assignment, which he received within two weeks of signing with his agency, was a rewrite of Mandrake the Magician
for Embassy Pictures
. He booked a room at the Chelsea Hotel
and churned out a new draft in three weeks, but the film was dropped after the studio changed heads. Some of Almereyda's dialogue from his writing sessions with Bruce Beresford
in Australia remains in Total Recall
(1990) and the writer retains a credit for Cherry 2000
(1987). A script for David Lynch
went unmade but Almereyda would work again with the director on the film Nadja
(1994
). His last studio writing job was for a Tim Burton
passion project, one based on a Nathaniel Hawthorne
story, at Warner Brothers.
Almereyda edited and wrote assorted chapters for "Night Wraps the Sky: Writings by and about Mayakovski," an anthology published by Farrar, Straus and Girux in 2008.
of the HBO western drama Deadwood
as a director for the second season in 2005. The series was created by David Milch
and focused on a growing town in the American West. Almereyda helmed the episode "E.B. Was Left Out".
Almereyda profiled American photographer William Eggleston
in the 2005 documentary William Eggleston in the Real World. The film premiered at The Museum of Modern Art, New York in 2005, and was distributed by Palm Pictures. Almereyda also contributed an essay to a book of Eggleston photographs 5X7, published by Twin Palms in 2006. His previous film, This So-Called Disaster (2004), also a documentary, followed Sam Shepard
as he mounted a production of his play The Late Henry Moss with Woody Harrelson
, Cheech Marin
, and Nick Nolte
in the cast. Almereyda recently completed filming of New Orleans, Mon Amour, starring Christopher Eccleston
and Elisabeth Moss
, with producer Edith LeBlanc and executive producer Michael Arata
. This twisted love story is set in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, and features stunning use of the apocalyptic destruction of the city.
PixelVision camera
. He used the format, which records video onto audiocassettes, most prominently in his 1992 film Another Girl, Another Planet, which won an award for "expanding the possibilities of experimental film." The camera was also used for subjective perspective sequences in Nadja and Hamlet.
Hamlet (2000 film)
Hamlet is a 2000 American film written and directed by Michael Almereyda, set in contemporary New York City, and based on the Shakespeare play of the same name...
(2000), starring Ethan Hawke
Ethan Hawke
Ethan Green Hawke is an American actor, writer and director. He made his feature film debut in 1985 with the science fiction movie Explorers, before making a supporting appearance in the 1989 drama Dead Poets Society which is considered his breakthrough role...
.
Early life
Born in Overland Park, KansasKansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, Almereyda took an early interest in drawing and painting. His family moved from Kansas to Orange County, California
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
and the young Almereyda took advantage of his proximity to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and its film culture. He read books on film, visited revival houses, and attended talks held by the likes of Howard Hawks
Howard Hawks
Howard Winchester Hawks was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era...
and John Huston
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics: The Maltese Falcon , The Treasure of the Sierra Madre , Key Largo , The Asphalt Jungle , The African Queen , Moulin Rouge...
at community college
Community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...
s. He met Manny Farber
Manny Farber
Emanuel "Manny" Farber was an American painter, film critic and writer. Often described as "iconoclastic" , Farber developed a distinctive prose style and set of theoretical stances which have had a large influence on later generations of film critics; Susan Sontag considered him to be "the...
at age sixteen, when the latter presented a Fassbinder film at Orange Coast College
Orange Coast College
Orange Coast College is a community college in Orange County, California. It was founded in 1947, with its first classes opening in the fall of 1948. It provides two-year associate of art and science degrees, certificates of achievement, and lower-division classes transferable to other colleges...
. The meeting left an impression on Almereyda, who had then just read Farber's book Negative Space, and he cited the American painter and film critic as a formulative influence in a 1999 interview with Filmmaker.
He later studied art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
at Harvard but grew impatient with academia. Convinced that he should be making movies, he dropped out his senior year and moved to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to pursue screenwriting
Screenwriting
Screenwriting is the art and craft of writing scripts for mass media such as feature films, television productions or video games. It is a freelance profession....
. He met Tom Pope, who had written a draft of Hammett for Wim Wenders
Wim Wenders
Ernst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders is a German film director, playwright, author, photographer and producer.-Early life:Wenders was born in Düsseldorf. He graduated from high school in Oberhausen in the Ruhr area. He then studied medicine and philosophy in Freiburg and Düsseldorf...
, and the scribe put him in touch with his literary agent
Literary agent
A literary agent is an agent who represents writers and their written works to publishers, theatrical producers and film producers and assists in the sale and deal negotiation of the same. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwriters and major non-fiction writers...
. Almereyda would get signed on the strength of a spec script
Spec script
A spec script, also known as a speculative screenplay, is a non-commissioned unsolicited screenplay. It is usually written by a screenwriter who hopes to have the script optioned and eventually purchased by a producer, production company, or studio....
about inventor Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla was a Serbian-American inventor, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer...
.
Writing career
Almereyda got his start as a HollywoodCinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
screenwriter. His first assignment, which he received within two weeks of signing with his agency, was a rewrite of Mandrake the Magician
Mandrake the Magician
Mandrake the Magician is a syndicated newspaper comic strip, created by Lee Falk , which began June 11, 1934. Phil Davis soon took over as the strip's illustrator, while Falk continued to script. The strip was distributed by King Features Syndicate.Davis worked on the strip until his death in 1964,...
for Embassy Pictures
Embassy Pictures
Embassy Pictures Corporation was an independent studio and distributor responsible for such films as The Graduate, The Lion in Winter, This Is Spinal Tap and Escape from New York.-Founding:The company was founded in 1942 by producer Joseph E...
. He booked a room at the Chelsea Hotel
Chelsea Hotel
Chelsea Hotel can refer to:*Hotel Chelsea in New York City*"Chelsea Hotel #2", a song from the 1974 Leonard Cohen album New Skin for the Old Ceremony*Chelsea Hotel, a book of photographs by Claudio Edinger, published in 1983See also...
and churned out a new draft in three weeks, but the film was dropped after the studio changed heads. Some of Almereyda's dialogue from his writing sessions with Bruce Beresford
Bruce Beresford
Bruce Beresford is an Australian film director who has made more than 30 feature films over a 40-year career.-Early life:...
in Australia remains in Total Recall
Total Recall
Total Recall is a 1990 American science fiction action film. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, Ronny Cox & Mel Johnson, Jr.. It is based on the Philip K. Dick story “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale”...
(1990) and the writer retains a credit for Cherry 2000
Cherry 2000
Cherry 2000 is a 1987 science fiction cult film starring Melanie Griffith and David Andrews.-Plot :In the year 2017, robotic technology has made tremendous developments. Business executive Sam Treadwell's "Cherry 2000" android , short circuits during a make out session on the wet kitchen floor...
(1987). A script for David Lynch
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor. Known for his surrealist films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style, which has been dubbed "Lynchian", and which is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous sound...
went unmade but Almereyda would work again with the director on the film Nadja
Nadja (film)
Nadja is a 1994 film by Michael Almereyda starring Elina Löwensohn as the creature Nadja and Peter Fonda as Van Helsing. As the character's names suggest, Nadja is a vampire film, but treating elements of the genre in an understated arthouse style....
(1994
1994 in film
1994 was a significant year in film.The top grosser worldwide was The Lion King, which to date stands as the highest-grossing traditionally-animated film of all time...
). His last studio writing job was for a Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
passion project, one based on a Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer.Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in the city of Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, a judge during the Salem Witch Trials...
story, at Warner Brothers.
Almereyda edited and wrote assorted chapters for "Night Wraps the Sky: Writings by and about Mayakovski," an anthology published by Farrar, Straus and Girux in 2008.
2000s
Almereyda joined the crewCrew of Deadwood
Deadwood is an American western drama that aired on the HBO network from 2004 to 2006. The crew received awards recognition and critical acclaim.-Producers:...
of the HBO western drama Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
as a director for the second season in 2005. The series was created by David Milch
David Milch
David S. Milch is an American writer and producer of television series. He has created several television shows, including NYPD Blue and Deadwood.-Biography:...
and focused on a growing town in the American West. Almereyda helmed the episode "E.B. Was Left Out".
Almereyda profiled American photographer William Eggleston
William Eggleston
William Eggleston , is an American photographer. He is widely credited with increasing recognition for color photography as a legitimate artistic medium to display in art galleries—which, until the 1970s, often tended to privilege work by photographers making black-and-white prints.- Early years...
in the 2005 documentary William Eggleston in the Real World. The film premiered at The Museum of Modern Art, New York in 2005, and was distributed by Palm Pictures. Almereyda also contributed an essay to a book of Eggleston photographs 5X7, published by Twin Palms in 2006. His previous film, This So-Called Disaster (2004), also a documentary, followed Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child...
as he mounted a production of his play The Late Henry Moss with Woody Harrelson
Woody Harrelson
Woodrow Tracy "Woody" Harrelson is an American actor.Harrelson's breakthrough role came in the television sitcom Cheers as bartender Woody Boyd...
, Cheech Marin
Cheech Marin
Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin is an American comedian, actor and writer who gained recognition as part of the comedy act Cheech & Chong during the 1970s and early 1980s, and as Don Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dominguez on Nash Bridges...
, and Nick Nolte
Nick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
in the cast. Almereyda recently completed filming of New Orleans, Mon Amour, starring Christopher Eccleston
Christopher Eccleston
Christopher Eccleston is an English stage, film and television actor. His films include Let Him Have It, Shallow Grave, Elizabeth, 28 Days Later, Gone in 60 Seconds, The Others, and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra...
and Elisabeth Moss
Elisabeth Moss
Elisabeth Singleton Moss is an American actor. Her notable roles include that of Zoey Bartlet, the third and youngest daughter of President Jed Bartlet, on the NBC television series The West Wing , and secretary turned copywriter Peggy Olson on the AMC original series Mad Men .-Early life and...
, with producer Edith LeBlanc and executive producer Michael Arata
Michael Arata
Michael Arata is an American actor and film producer. He began his acting career at age four and has since appeared on stage, in feature films and television programs.Arata was born in New Orleans, Louisiana...
. This twisted love story is set in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, and features stunning use of the apocalyptic destruction of the city.
Director style
The director is noted for his use of the Fisher-PriceFisher-Price
Fisher-Price is a company that produces toys for infants and children, headquartered in East Aurora, New York. Fisher-Price has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Mattel since 1993.-History:...
PixelVision camera
PXL-2000
The PXL-2000 is a toy black-and-white camcorder produced in 1987 that uses a compact audio cassette as its recording medium. The original designer at Fisher-Price was Andrew I...
. He used the format, which records video onto audiocassettes, most prominently in his 1992 film Another Girl, Another Planet, which won an award for "expanding the possibilities of experimental film." The camera was also used for subjective perspective sequences in Nadja and Hamlet.
Partial director filmography
- A Hero of Our TimeA Hero of Our TimeA Hero of Our Time is a novel by Mikhail Lermontov, written in 1839 and revised in 1841. It is an example of the superfluous man novel, noted for its compelling Byronic hero Pechorin and for the beautiful descriptions of the Caucasus...
(1985) - Twister (1990)
- Another Girl, Another Planet (1992)
- NadjaNadja (film)Nadja is a 1994 film by Michael Almereyda starring Elina Löwensohn as the creature Nadja and Peter Fonda as Van Helsing. As the character's names suggest, Nadja is a vampire film, but treating elements of the genre in an understated arthouse style....
(1994) - At Sundance (1995)
- The Rocking Horse Winner (1997)
- The Eternal (1998)
- HamletHamlet (2000 film)Hamlet is a 2000 American film written and directed by Michael Almereyda, set in contemporary New York City, and based on the Shakespeare play of the same name...
(2000) - Happy Here and Now (2002)
- This So-Called Disaster (2004)
- William Eggleston in the Real WorldWilliam Eggleston in the Real WorldWilliam Eggleston In The Real World is a documentary film about the photographer William Eggleston, made by Michael Almereyda, released in 2005....
(2005) - New Orleans, Mon Amour (2008)
- Big River Blues (2008)
- Tonight at Noon (2009)
- Paradise (2009)
External links
- Fleeting Joy A website devoted to Almereyda's work.