The Wachowski brothers
Encyclopedia
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
s, writers and producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
s, most famous for creating The Matrix series
The Matrix (franchise)
The Matrix is a science fiction action franchise created by Andy and Larry Wachowski and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The series began with the 1999 film The Matrix and later spawned two sequels; The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, both released in 2003, thus forming a trilogy...
. Their most recent project was producing Ninja Assassin
Ninja Assassin
Ninja Assassin is a 2009 American martial arts film directed by James McTeigue. The story was written by Matthew Sand, with a screenplay penned by J. Michael Straczynski of Babylon 5. The film stars South Korean pop musician Rain as a disillusioned assassin looking for retribution against his...
.
Life and career
Andy and Larry Wachowski were born in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Their mother, Lynne (née Luckinbill), was a nurse and painter whose brother is actor Laurence Luckinbill
Laurence Luckinbill
Laurence George Luckinbill is an American actor.-Life and career:Luckinbill was born in Fort Smith, Arkansas, the son of Agnes and Laurence Benedict Luckinbill. He graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1956 and The Catholic University of America in 1958.He starred in the 1976 Broadway play...
. Their father, Ron Wachowski, was a businessman of Polish
Polish American
A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...
descent. They went to Kellogg Elementary School, in Chicago's Beverly
Beverly, Chicago
Beverly is one of the 77 official community areas of Chicago, Illinois. It is located on the South Side on the southwestern edge of the city. Beverly Hills was built by English engineers as an exclusive streetcar suburb and the homes and large lots reflect this historic distinction...
area, and graduated from Whitney Young High School, known for its performing arts and science curriculum, in 1983 and '86. Former students recall them playing Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
and working in the school's theater and TV program. Andy then attended Emerson College
Emerson College
Emerson College is a private coeducational university located in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a "school of oratory," Emerson is "the only comprehensive college or university in America dedicated exclusively to communication and the arts in a liberal arts...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, while Larry went to Bard College
Bard College
Bard College, founded in 1860 as "St. Stephen's College", is a small four-year liberal arts college located in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.-Location:...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Both dropped out before graduating, and they ran a carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
business in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
while creating comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s.
Style
The siblings admit to a love for telling multipart stories. "Because we grew up on comic books and the TolkienJ. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
trilogy
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
, one of the things we're interested in is bringing serial fiction to cinema," Larry explains. Andy puts his desire to shake up viewers a bit more bluntly: "We think movies are fairly boring and predictable. We want to screw with audiences' expectations."
Comic books
Prior to working in the film industry, the Wachowskis wrote comic books for Marvel ComicsMarvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
' Razorline
Razorline
Razorline was an imprint of American comic book company Marvel Comics that ran from 1993-1995. It was created by filmmaker and horror/fantasy novelist Clive Barker, with its characters existing in one of the many alternate universes outside the mainstream continuity known as the Marvel...
imprint, namely Ectokid
Ectokid
Ectokid is a fantasy comic book series published by Marvel Comics' Razorline imprint, created by filmmaker and horror/fantasy novelist Clive Barker.-Publication history:...
(created by horror novelist Clive Barker
Clive Barker
Clive Barker is an English author, film director and visual artist best known for his work in both fantasy and horror fiction. Barker came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories which established him as a leading young horror writer...
) in 1993 as well as writing for EPIC Comics "Clive Barker's Hellraiser" and "Clive Barker's Nightbreed" comic series.
In 2003, they created Burlyman Entertainment
Burlyman Entertainment
BurlyMan Entertainment is a comic book company created by Andy and Larry Wachowski, best known as the writer/director duo behind the Matrix Trilogy.-History:...
and have released comic books based on The Matrix
The Matrix
The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving...
as well as two original bi-monthly series:
- Shaolin CowboyShaolin CowboyShaolin Cowboy is an American comic book series created, co-written , and drawn by artist Geof Darrow...
– created, written, and art by Geof DarrowGeof DarrowGeofrey "Geof" Darrow is a comic artist known for his work on books such as Hard Boiled and Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot, which was adapted into an animated TV series of the same name.-Character design and Moebius collaborations:...
(with the Wachowskis contributing an opening dialogue to each issue) - Doc FrankensteinDoc FrankensteinDoc Frankenstein is an American comic book series created by Geof Darrow and Steve Skroce, written by the Wachowski Brothers , drawn by Steve Skroce, and published by Burlyman Entertainment...
– created by Geof Darrow and Steve SkroceSteve SkroceSteve Skroce is a Canadian comic book and movie storyboard artist. He is of Croatian origin.-Biography:Skroce broke into comics in 1993 on the Clive Barker series Ectokid for Marvel Comics' Razorline imprint. He went to work on the Marvel series Cable and X-Man before moving onto The Amazing...
, written by the Wachowskis, with art by Skroce.
Personal life
Larry was previously married to his high school sweetheart Thea Bloom. Beginning in 2001, Larry Wachowski was regularly seen with Los AngelesLos 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...
-area professional Dominatrix
Dominatrix
Dominatrix or mistress is a woman or women who takes the dominant role in bondage, discipline and sadomasochism, or BDSM. A common form of address for a submissive to a dominatrix is "mistress", "ma'am", "domina" or "maîtresse"...
Ilsa Strix. Larry later divorced his wife. Bloom stated in the divorce, "Larry has been extremely dishonest with me in our personal life", and that their separation was "based on very intimate circumstances which I do not elaborate on at this time for reasons of his personal privacy". Larry and Strix subsequently began living together.
Larry has been rumored to be transgendered or a transvestite. The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
referred to the Wachowskis as "Andy and Lana (formerly Larry) Wachowski", and Deadline.com
Deadline.com
Deadline.com, part of Jay Penske's PMC, is an online magazine, founded and edited by Nikki Finke.-Publication:The site is updated several times a day, with the infotainment industry as its focus.-History:...
referring to the duo as "Andy and Lana Wachowski." On some documents he appears as Laurenca Wachowski. However, neither director has spoken directly on the subject.
Future films
The Wachowskis are collaborating with writer Tom TykwerTom Tykwer
Tom Tykwer is a German film director, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing Run Lola Run , Heaven , Perfume: The Story of a Murderer , and The International ....
to adapt Warner Bros./DreamWorks's Cloud Atlas to a movie. Production for the film will start in spring 2011. Hood, a modern adaptation of the tales of Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
, has been confirmed as well.
The siblings are set up to direct a mysterious film titled Jupiter Ascending for Warner Bros. They are currently looking to cast a big-name star for a spring 2012 start date.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Credited as | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director Film director A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:... s |
Writer Screenwriter Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:... s |
Producer Film producer A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The... s |
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| 1995 | Assassins | |||
| 1996 | Bound Bound (film) Bound is a 1996 neo-noir crime thriller film directed by the Wachowski brothers. Violet , who longs to escape her relationship with her mafioso boyfriend Caesar , enters into a clandestine affair with alluring ex-con Corky , and the two women hatch a scheme to steal $2 million of mafia money.Bound... |
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| 1999 | The Matrix The Matrix The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving... |
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| 2003 | The Matrix Reloaded The Matrix Reloaded The Matrix Reloaded is a 2003 American science fiction film and the second installment in The Matrix trilogy, written and directed by the Wachowskis. It premiered on May 7, 2003, in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, and went on general release by Warner Bros. in North American theaters on May 15,... |
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| The Matrix Revolutions The Matrix Revolutions The Matrix Revolutions is a 2003 American science fiction film and the third installment of The Matrix trilogy. The film was released six months following The Matrix Reloaded. The film was written and directed by the Wachowski brothers and released simultaneously in sixty countries on November 5,... |
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| The Animatrix The Animatrix is a 2003 direct-to-video anthology film based on The Matrix trilogy. The film is a compilation of nine animated short films.-Production:Development of the Animatrix project began when the film series' writers and directors, the Wachowski brothers, were in Japan promoting the first Matrix film... |
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| 2006 | V for Vendetta V for Vendetta (film) V for Vendetta is a 2005 dystopian thriller film directed by James McTeigue and produced by Joel Silver and the Wachowski brothers, who also wrote the screenplay. It is an adaptation of the V for Vendetta comic book by Alan Moore and David Lloyd... |
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| 2007 | The Invasion The Invasion (film) The Invasion is a 2007 science fiction thriller film starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel, with additional scenes written by the Wachowski brothers and directed by James McTeigue.... |
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| 2008 | Speed Racer Speed Racer (film) Speed Racer is a 2008 American live action film adaptation of Tatsuo Yoshida's 1960s Japanese anime series of the same name, produced by Tatsunoko Productions. The film is written and directed by the Wachowskis... |
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| 2009 | Ninja Assassin Ninja Assassin Ninja Assassin is a 2009 American martial arts film directed by James McTeigue. The story was written by Matthew Sand, with a screenplay penned by J. Michael Straczynski of Babylon 5. The film stars South Korean pop musician Rain as a disillusioned assassin looking for retribution against his... |
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| 2012 | Cloud Atlas Cloud Atlas (film) Cloud Atlas is an upcoming English-language historical/science fiction film directed by Tom Tykwer and The Wachowskis. The directors wrote the screenplay based on the 2004 eponymous novel by David Mitchell. With an ensemble cast to cover the film's multiple storylines, production began in September... |
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Games
- Enter the MatrixEnter the MatrixEnter the Matrix is the first video game based on The Matrix series of films. It was developed by Shiny Entertainment and published by Atari and WB Interactive for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube game systems, and for the PC. It was published in Japan by Bandai...
(2003) - The Matrix: Path of NeoThe Matrix: Path of NeoThe Matrix: Path of Neo is the third video game based on the Matrix series and the second developed by Shiny Entertainment. Players control the character Neo, participating in scenes from the films. It was released on October 4, 2005 in North America....
(2005) - The Matrix OnlineThe Matrix OnlineThe Matrix Online was a massively multiplayer online game developed by Monolith Productions created by Richard Carroll. It was the official continuation of the storyline of the Matrix series of films. The game began closed beta-testing in June 2004 which was then opened for people who pre-ordered...
(2005–2009) (provided the theme for the first year)
External links
- Die Wachowski-Geschwister, biography.
- Matrix Revelations, WiredWired (magazine)Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
article about the Wachowski brothers.