Zoe Cassavetes
Encyclopedia
Zoe Rowlands Cassavetes (born 29 June 1970 in Los Angeles
, California
) is an American
film director
, screenwriter
and actress best known for her 2007 film Broken English
and as the daughter of American actor and filmmaker John Cassavetes
and Gena Rowlands
.
' film Minnie and Moskowitz
as a baby girl, but it was not until 1991 that she had her first acting role in a film, Ted & Venus
, which was followed with minor roles in the films Noises Off and The Thing Called Love
. In 1994, she and her filmmaking friend Sofia Coppola
created and hosted the Comedy Central
television series Hi Octane, a skit and variety show that featured guests including Keanu Reeves
, Beastie Boys
and Martin Scorsese
. Hi Octane lasted for only one season but is remembered as one of the first series to be entirely shot in digital video
.
Her directorial debut was in 2000 on the Sundance Film Festival
-featured short film Men Make Women Crazy Theory, but she is best known as the director and writer of the 2007 comedy-romance film Broken English
, which featured Parker Posey
and Gena Rowlands
, Cassavetes' mother. Her inspiration for Broken English came from her perception of other people's impression that happiness can only come from being in love with someone, saying: "I got caught up and swept up in the whole idea that I didn't have any worth until I found that person ... So I just wanted to make a nice, little portrait about what happens to someone when they get caught up in all of that." She was nominated for the 2008 Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay
but lost to Diablo Cody
for Juno
.
an actor, screenwriter and director; her mother Gena Rowlands
an actress; her brother Nick Cassavetes an actor and director; her sister Alexandra Cassavetes
an actress; and her grandmother Katherine Cassavetes
an actress. She says that the relationship problems the main character encounters in Broken English are mostly autobiographical, saying: "I'm obsessed with the idea of love on many different levels – love through family, love your friends, love yourself and who you give that love to, who you can take it from." She has been called a muse to fashion designer Marc Jacobs
along with actress and director Sofia Coppola
.
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film 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:...
, screenwriter
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:...
and actress best known for her 2007 film Broken English
Broken English (2007 film)
-Plot:Nora Wilder , a single, career woman works at a Manhattan boutique hotel where her excellent skills in guest relations lack in the romantic department. If it is not her loving and dominant mother attempting to set her up that consistently fail, she has her friend’s disastrous blind dates to...
and as the daughter of American actor and filmmaker John Cassavetes
John Cassavetes
John Nicholas Cassavetes was an American actor, screenwriter and filmmaker. He acted in many Hollywood films, notably Rosemary's Baby and The Dirty Dozen...
and Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...
.
Career
Cassavetes' first experience with the filmmaking business was at the age of one, when she had an uncredited role in her late father John CassavetesJohn Cassavetes
John Nicholas Cassavetes was an American actor, screenwriter and filmmaker. He acted in many Hollywood films, notably Rosemary's Baby and The Dirty Dozen...
' film Minnie and Moskowitz
Minnie and Moskowitz
Minnie and Moskowitz is a film by John Cassavetes, starring his wife, Gena Rowlands, and actor Seymour Cassel in the title roles of Minnie and Moskowitz, respectively.-Plot:...
as a baby girl, but it was not until 1991 that she had her first acting role in a film, Ted & Venus
Ted & Venus
Ted & Venus is a 1991 film directed by Bud Cort. This comedy is written by Bud Cort and Paul Ciotti, and features and all-star cast including Brian Thompson. The original music is composed by David Robbins....
, which was followed with minor roles in the films Noises Off and The Thing Called Love
The Thing Called Love
The Thing Called Love is an American comedy-drama film released in 1993. It was directed by Peter Bogdanovich. The film's tagline is: "Stand by your dream."...
. In 1994, she and her filmmaking friend Sofia Coppola
Sofia Coppola
Sofia Carmina Coppola is an American screenwriter, film director, actress, and producer.In 2003 she received the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Lost in Translation, and became the third woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Directing...
created and hosted the Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
television series Hi Octane, a skit and variety show that featured guests including Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves
Keanu Charles Reeves is a Canadian actor. Reeves is perhaps best known for his roles in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Speed, Point Break and the science fiction-action trilogy The Matrix...
, Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys
Beastie Boys are an American hip hop trio from New York City. The group consists of Mike D who plays the drums, MCA who plays the bass, and Ad-Rock who plays the guitar....
and Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
. Hi Octane lasted for only one season but is remembered as one of the first series to be entirely shot in digital video
Digital video
Digital video is a type of digital recording system that works by using a digital rather than an analog video signal.The terms camera, video camera, and camcorder are used interchangeably in this article.- History :...
.
Her directorial debut was in 2000 on the Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
-featured short film Men Make Women Crazy Theory, but she is best known as the director and writer of the 2007 comedy-romance film Broken English
Broken English (2007 film)
-Plot:Nora Wilder , a single, career woman works at a Manhattan boutique hotel where her excellent skills in guest relations lack in the romantic department. If it is not her loving and dominant mother attempting to set her up that consistently fail, she has her friend’s disastrous blind dates to...
, which featured Parker Posey
Parker Posey
Parker Christian Posey is an American actress. She became known during the 1990s after a series of roles in several well-received independent films. As a result, she has often been referred to as the "Queen of the Indies"....
and Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...
, Cassavetes' mother. Her inspiration for Broken English came from her perception of other people's impression that happiness can only come from being in love with someone, saying: "I got caught up and swept up in the whole idea that I didn't have any worth until I found that person ... So I just wanted to make a nice, little portrait about what happens to someone when they get caught up in all of that." She was nominated for the 2008 Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay
Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay
The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay is one of the annual awards given by Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers.-1990s:1994*David O...
but lost to Diablo Cody
Diablo Cody
Brook Busey , better known by the pen name Diablo Cody, is an American screenwriter, writer, blogger, journalist, and author. She was first known for her candid chronicling of her year as a stripper in her Pussy Ranch blog and her 2006 memoir, Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper...
for Juno
Juno (film)
Juno is a 2007 comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody. Ellen Page stars as the title character, an independent-minded teenager confronting an unplanned pregnancy and the subsequent events that put pressures of adult life onto her. Michael Cera, Olivia Thirlby, J. K....
.
Personal life
Cassavetes comes from a family of filmmakers: her father John CassavetesJohn Cassavetes
John Nicholas Cassavetes was an American actor, screenwriter and filmmaker. He acted in many Hollywood films, notably Rosemary's Baby and The Dirty Dozen...
an actor, screenwriter and director; her mother Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands
Gena Rowlands is an American actress of film, stage and television. The four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner is best known for her collaborations with her actor-director husband John Cassavetes in ten films, in two of which, Gloria and A Woman Under the Influence, she gave Academy...
an actress; her brother Nick Cassavetes an actor and director; her sister Alexandra Cassavetes
Alexandra Cassavetes
Alexandra Cassavetes , nicknamed "Xan", is an American actress and director. She is the daughter of Greek actor-director John Cassavetes and actress Gena Rowlands. She is the granddaughter of actress Katherine Cassavetes...
an actress; and her grandmother Katherine Cassavetes
Katherine Cassavetes
Katherine Cassavetes was an American actress, born as Katherine Demetre.She was the mother of actor-director John Cassavetes and mother-in-law of actress Gena Rowlands. Her grandchildren are actors-directors Nick Cassavetes, Zoe Cassavetes, and Alexandra Cassavetes...
an actress. She says that the relationship problems the main character encounters in Broken English are mostly autobiographical, saying: "I'm obsessed with the idea of love on many different levels – love through family, love your friends, love yourself and who you give that love to, who you can take it from." She has been called a muse to fashion designer Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs
Marc Jacobs is an American fashion designer. He is the head designer for Marc Jacobs, as well as Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, with more than 200 retail stores in 60 countries. He has been the creative director of the French design house Louis Vuitton since 1997...
along with actress and director Sofia Coppola
Sofia Coppola
Sofia Carmina Coppola is an American screenwriter, film director, actress, and producer.In 2003 she received the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Lost in Translation, and became the third woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for Directing...
.
External links
- Zoe Cassavetes at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....