Spike Jonze

Spike Jonze

Jonze at the 2013 New York Film Festival
Born Adam Spiegel
(1969-10-22) October 22, 1969[1]
Rockville, Maryland, U.S.
Occupation Film director, film producer, screenwriter, actor
Years active 1989–present
Spouse(s) Sofia Coppola (m. 1999–2003)
Relatives Sam Spiegel (brother), Julia Lunn (sister)

Spike Jonze (pronounced "Jones" /nz/; born Adam Spiegel on October 22, 1969) is an American director, producer, screenwriter and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television. He started his feature film directing career with Being John Malkovich (1999) and Adaptation (2002), both written by Charlie Kaufman, and then began making movies with screenplays of his own like Where the Wild Things Are (2009) and Her (2013).

Jonze is well known for his music video collaborations with Daft Punk, Fatboy Slim, Weezer, the Beastie Boys, Björk, and Kanye West. He was a co-creator and executive producer of MTV's Jackass.[2] He is currently the creative director of Vice Media, Inc.. He is part owner of skateboard company Girl Skateboards with riders Rick Howard and Mike Carroll.

He co-founded Directors Label, with filmmakers Chris Cunningham and Michel Gondry, and the Palm Pictures company.[3]

He has been nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Director for Being John Malkovich, and Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay and Best Original Song ("The Moon Song") for Her. He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay, the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay, and the 2014 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Her.

Early life and education

Jonze was born on October 22, 1969 in Rockville, Maryland, and grew up in Bethesda, Maryland and in Gulph Mills, Pennsylvania. His father, Arthur H. Spiegel III, was a distant relation of the Spiegel catalog family, and founded APM Management Consultants. His mother, Sandra L. Granzow, is a writer, communications consultant in developing countries, and artist.[4][5][6] His brother, Sam "Squeak E. Clean" Spiegel, is a producer and DJ.[7] He also has a sister, Julia. His father was from a German Jewish family, while his mother has German, Scottish, and English ancestry.[8][9]

Jonze attended the San Francisco Art Institute in San Francisco, California. When he was a junior in high school (Walt Whitman High School), Jonze spent time at a Bethesda community store, where the former owner Mike Henderson gave him his nickname "Spike Jonze" in reference to Spike Jones.[10] He fronted Club Homeboy, an international BMX club, with Mark "Lew" Lewman and Andy Jenkins, both co-editors of Freestylin' Magazine in the mid- to late 1980s, where Jonze worked as a photographer.[11] The three also created the youth culture magazines Homeboy and Dirt (the latter of which was described as "Sassy Magazine for boys," being published by the same company and distributed in cellophane bags with the landmark magazine for young women).[10]

Career

In 2006, he was nominated by the Directors Guild of America for "Outstanding Achievement in Commercials in 2005." He was nominated for a body of work that included Hello Tomorrow for Adidas, Lamp for IKEA, and Pardon Our Dust for The Gap.[12] He was a producer and co-creator of MTV television series Jackass and Jackass: The Movie, also directing some of the segments.[2] Jonze has acted in some videos and films; his most prominent role was in Three Kings as the sweet, dimwitted, casually racist Conrad, in which he was directed by friend David O. Russell.[2]

Jonze was a co-founder and editor of Dirt magazine along with Mark Lewman and Andy Jenkins, as well as an editor for Grand Royal Magazine and senior photographer for Transworld Skateboarding. In the past, Jonze shot street skateboarding videos, most notably Blind's highly influential Video Days in 1991, and Lakai Footwear's Fully Flared in 2007.[2] He co-directed the Girl Skateboards film Yeah Right! and the Chocolate Skateboards video Hot Chocolate.[2] In the closing credits montage of Yeah Right!, Spike is shown doing a nollie heelflip in loafers. He is co-owner of Girl Skateboards.[13]

Jonze holding a producer credit for The 1 Second Film.

Jonze has many alter egos, including Richard Koufey (alternately spelled Coufey or Couffe), the leader of the Torrance Community Dance Group, an urban troupe that performs in public spaces. The Koufey persona appeared when Jonze, in character, filmed himself dancing to Fatboy Slim's "The Rockafeller Skank" as it played on a boom box in a public area.[14] Jonze showed the video to Slim, who appears briefly in the video around the 3:57 mark.[15] Jonze then assembled a group of dancers to perform to Slim's "Praise You" outside a Westwood, California movie theater and taped the performance. The resulting clip was a huge success, and "Koufey" and his troupe were invited to New York City to perform the song for the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards. The video received awards for Best Direction, Breakthrough, and Best Choreography, which Jonze accepted, still in character. Jonze made a mockumentary about the experience called Torrance Rises.[2] At the 2001 Grammy Awards, the music video for Weapon of Choice won Best Short Form Music Video.[16]

He has a speaking part along with Dave Eggers in the Beck song "The Horrible Fanfare/Landslide/Exoskeleton" from his 2006 album, The Information. He appears in the "Exoskeleton" part.[17]

Since 2007, he has been the creative director at VBS.tv, an online television network supplied by Vice and funded by MTV.[18]

Spike Jonze was part of the Detour-Moleskine project in New York in 2007.[17] The project invites authors to compile and illustrate Moleskine notebooks to provide an intimate insight into the artists' creative process.

In 2008 he co-produced a new video for the Chocolate Skateboards "Easy Steady", direct by Ty Evans and Federico Vitetta in Milan, featuring the song "Felicità" by Bugo.[19]

Jonze directed Where the Wild Things Are,[20] which opened in the United States on October 16, 2009. It was arguably his most anticipated film to date, the product of an almost decade long collaboration with author Maurice Sendak.[21] The film received generally favorable reviews, and appeared on many critics' end-of-the-year top ten lists.[22]

In July 2009, Jonze acquired the rights to make a film adaptation of the Shane Jones novel Light Boxes. However, Jonze, in an interview with Times Online, said that Ray Tintori was no longer a director for that project as expected.[23] In an interview with Interview Magazine in June 2010, Jones said the film option had been dropped.[24]

In 2010, he made a 28-minute short titled Scenes from the Suburbs, inspired by the Arcade Fire album The Suburbs. Scenes from his short were used in the music video to the album's title song, "The Suburbs". A dystopian vision of suburbia in the near-future, the short was co-written by Jonze, Win Butler, and Will Butler. Expanding on the themes of nostalgia, alienation, and childhood, the short premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival and saw its online premiere at MUBI on June 27, 2011.[25]

Jonze is good friends with Björk and frequently works with her. He has directed three videos for her and she contributed the theme song for Jonze's film Being John Malkovich.

In 2011, Jonze collaborated with the Beastie Boys for the release of their Santigold collaboration, "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win." In a similar fashion to Jonze's work with Arcade Fire, he directed both "short and epic-length videos" to partner with the single.[26]

In 2011, Jonze directed the music video for "Otis" the second single from the album Watch The Throne by Jay-Z and Kanye West.[27] On November 3, 2013, Jonze directed the live music video for Arcade Fire's "Afterlife" and documented Lady Gaga's live performance of "Dope" with Chris Milk for the YouTube Music Awards.[28]

Jonze's next theatrical project Her was released in late 2013. Her is a science fiction romance film starring Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Olivia Wilde, Rooney Mara, and Scarlett Johansson, and is Jonze's first feature-length original screenplay. The film follows a man (Phoenix) who develops a relationship with a seemingly intuitive and humanistic female voice, named "Samantha" (Johansson), produced by an advanced computer operating system.[29] Jonze won the 2014 Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay for Her.[30] Jonze was nominated for three Academy Awards for Her, as producer for Best Picture, writer for Best Original Screenplay, and lyric writer for Best Original Song. On March 2, 2014, Jonze won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, which marks his first win. In 2013, Jonze played a role in The Wolf of Wall Street.[31]

Jonze is Co-President of multinational television channel brand Viceland (stylized as VICELAND) launched on February 29. 2016.

In 2017, Jonze"s filmed Frank Ocean's New york Concert. Jonze also produced an elaborate stage with a runway and central platform for the same concert.[32]

Personal life

On June 26, 1999, Jonze married director Sofia Coppola, whom he had first met in 1992.[33] On December 5, 2003, the couple filed for divorce, citing "irreconcilable differences."[34] The character of John, a career-driven photographer (Giovanni Ribisi) in Coppola's Lost in Translation (2003), was rumored to be based on Jonze, though Coppola commented "It’s not Spike, but there are elements of him there, elements of experiences."[35]

Jonze began dating Michelle Williams in July 2008, after the death of Heath Ledger. They met on the set of Synecdoche, New York, which Williams starred in and Jonze produced. Williams called the timing of their relationship "impossible", and ended it in September 2009.[36]

In 2011, it was reported that he was dating Japanese actress Rinko Kikuchi, but they have since broken up.[37]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Director Writer Producer Actor Executive producer Role Notes
1991 Video Days Yes Yes Skateboarding video
1993 Goldfish Yes Skateboarding video
1994 Mi Vida Loca Yes Teenage Drug Customer
1994 Ciao, L.A. Yes Short film
1996 Bed, Bath and Beyond Cinematographer; short film
1996 Pig! Yes Unknown Short film
1996 Mouse Yes Yes Skateboarding video
1997 How They Get There Yes Yes Short film
1997 The Game Yes Airbag EMT Beltran
1997 Free Tibet Cinematographer; documentary
1998 Amarillo by Morning Yes Himself Documentary short
1999 Torrance Rises Yes Yes Richard Coufey Short film; co-directed with Lance Bangs
1999 The Chocolate Tour Yes Skateboarding video
1999 Three Kings Yes Private First Class Conrad Vig
1999 Being John Malkovich Yes Yes Derek Mantini's Assistant
1999 An Intimate Look Inside the Acting Process with Ice Cube Yes Short film
2001 Human Nature Yes
2001 Keep Your Eyes Open Yes Officer Jonze
2002 Jackass: The Movie Yes Yes Yes Himself
2002 Adaptation Yes Yes Himself
2003 Yeah Right! Yes Yes Skateboarding video
2003 What's Up, Fatlip? Yes Yes Himself Documentary short
2004 The Chocolate Tour Yes Yes Skateboarding video
2004 The Mystery of Dalarö Yes Short commercial film
2006 Tell Me What Rockers to Swallow Concert video; cinematographer
2006 The Krooked Chronicles Yes Skateboarding video
2006 Jackass Number Two Yes Yes Yes Himself
2007 Fully Flared Yes Yes Skateboarding video
2007 Heavy Metal in Baghdad Yes Documentary
2008 The Final Flare! Yes Skateboarding video
2008 Synecdoche, New York Yes
2009 We Were Once a Fairytale Yes Yes Short film
2009 Where the Wild Things Are Yes Yes Yes Bob / Terry (voices)
2009 Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak Yes Himself Documentary
2010 I'm Here Yes Yes Short film
2010 Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life Yes Yes Plant (voice)
2010 The Vampire Attack Yes Yes The Vampire Short film
2010 Jackass 3D Yes Yes Yes Himself
2011 Moneyball Yes Alán Uncredited
2011 Scenes From the Suburbs Yes Short film
2011 Mourir Auprès De Toi Yes Yes Yes Macbeth Short film
2012 Pretty Sweet Yes Documentary
2013 Her Yes Yes Yes Yes Alien Child (voice)
2013 Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa Yes Yes Yes Gloria
2013 Choose You Yes Short film
2013 The Wolf of Wall Street Yes Dwayne Uncredited
2014 Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa .5 Yes Yes Yes Gloria
2016 Kenzo World Yes Yes Short commercial film

Television

Year Title Director Writer Producer Actor Executive producer Role Notes
1995 Double Rush Yes Opening titles only
2000–2002 Jackass Yes Yes Himself Also creator
2010–2012 The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret Yes Doug Whitney 8 episodes
2015 Girls Yes Marcos Episode: "Home Birth"
2016 The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Yes Guest director of intro
2016–present Viceland programs Yes

Music videos

Year Song Artist Notes
1992 "Hush" Wax
"High in High School" Chainsaw Kittens
"100%" Sonic Youth Co-directed by Tamra Davis
1993 "Cannonball" The Breeders Co-directed by Kim Gordon
Produced by Steve Reiss
"Country at War" X
"Daughters of the Kaos" Luscious Jackson
"Hang On" Teenage Fanclub
"Time for Livin'" Beastie Boys
1994 "All About Eve" Marxman
"Buddy Holly" Weezer
"Ditch Digger" Rocket from the Crypt
"Divine Hammer" The Breeders Co-directed by Kim Gordon, Richard Kern
"Feel the Pain" Dinosaur Jr.
"I Can't Stop Smiling" Velocity Girl
"If I Only Had a Brain" MC 900 Ft. Jesus
"Old Timer" that dog.
"Ricky's Theme" Beastie Boys
"Sabotage" Also writer
"Sure Shot"
"Undone - The Sweater Song" Weezer
1995 "California" Wax
"Car Song" Elastica
"Crush with Eyeliner" R.E.M.
"Freedom of '76" Ween
"It's Oh So Quiet" Björk
"The Diamond Sea" Sonic Youth
"Who Is Next?" Wax
1996 "Drop" The Pharcyde
1997 "Da Funk" Daft Punk
"Electrolite" R.E.M.
"Elektrobank" The Chemical Brothers
"It's All About the Benjamins" (Rock Remix) Puff Daddy
"Liberty Calls" Mike Watt
"Shady Lane" Pavement
"Sky's the Limit" The Notorious B.I.G.
1998 "Home" Sean Lennon
"Praise You" Fatboy Slim A Torrance Public Film Production
"Root Down" version 2 Beastie Boys
2000 "Weapon of Choice" Fatboy Slim Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video[16]
"What's Up, Fatlip?" Fatlip
"Wonderboy" Tenacious D As Marcus Von Bueler
2002 "Island in the Sun" (version 2) Weezer
"Guess I'm Doing Fine" Beck
"It's in Our Hands" Björk
2003 "Big Brat" Phantom Planet
2004 "Get Back" Ludacris
"Y Control" Yeah Yeah Yeahs
2005 "Triumph of a Heart" Björk
2008 "Flashing Lights" Kanye West Co-directed with West
2009 "Heaven" UNKLE Co-directed with Ty Evans
"25" AsDSSka Co-directed with Crystal Moselle
2010 "Drunk Girls" LCD Soundsystem Co-directed with James Murphy
"The Suburbs" Arcade Fire Edited from the short film Scenes from the Suburbs
2011 "Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win" Beastie Boys feat. Santigold
"Otis" Jay-Z & Kanye West
2013 "Afterlife" (live, YouTube version) Arcade Fire Directed live for the YouTube Awards
"Dope" Lady Gaga Directed live for the YouTube Awards
2015 "Only One" Kanye West feat. Paul McCartney

Selected commercials

Year Title Subject Notes
2002 "Crazy Legs" Levi's
2005 "Lamp" IKEA
2005 "Hello Tomorrow" Adidas
2007 "Pardon Our Dust" GAP
2007 "Doctor’s" Levi's
2008 "Frontier" Nissan

Awards and nominations

Year Film Awards and nominations
1999 Being John Malkovich Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Breakthrough Artist (also for Three Kings)
Deauville Film Festival – Critics Award
Deauville Film Festival – Grand Special Prize
Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Newcomer of the Year
Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature (shared with Michael Stipe, Sandy Stern, Steve Golin, Vincent Landay)
Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Newcomer
London Critics Circle Film Award for Director of the Year
MTV Movie Award for Best New Filmmaker
New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best First Film
Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Debut
Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Director (2nd place)
Venice Film FestivalFIPRESCI Prize
Nominated – Academy Award for Best Director
Nominated – Bodil Award for Best American Film
Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Director
Nominated – César Award for Best Foreign Film
Nominated – Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures
Nominated – Empire Award for Best Debut
Nominated – Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (shared with Charlie Kaufman)
Nominated – Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Award for Best Foreign Director
Nominated – Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Director
Nominated – Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Director
Nominated – Robert Award for Best American Film[38]
2002 Adaptation Berlin International Film FestivalJury Grand Prix
San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Director (2nd place)
Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Director
Nominated – Berlin International Film FestivalGolden Berlin Bear
Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Director
Nominated – Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Director[12][39]
2009 Where the Wild Things Are Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Director
Nominated – Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Writing|[40]
2013 Her Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay
Austin Film Critics Association Award for Best Original Screenplay
Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Original Screenplay
Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
International Online Film Critics' Poll Award for Best Original Screenplay
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Original Screenplay
National Board of Review Award for Best Director
Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Original Screenplay
San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Original Screenplay
Toronto Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay
Washington DC Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Original Screenplay
Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay
Saturn Award for Best Writing
Saturn Award for Best Fantasy Film
Nominated – Academy Award for Best Picture (shared with Megan Ellison and Vincent Landay)
Nominated – Academy Award for Best Original Song
Nominated – Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Director
Nominated – Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director
Nominated – Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay (2nd place)
Nominated – New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director
Nominated – New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay
Nominated – New York Film Festival – Grand Marnier Fellowship Award
Nominated – Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Director
Nominated – Producers Guild of America Award for Best Theatrical Motion Picture (shared with Megan Ellison and Vincent Landay)
Nominated – Rome Film Fest – Golden Marc'Aurelio Award
Nominated – San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Director
Nominated – Satellite Award for Best Original Screenplay[41][42]

References

  1. "Spike Jonze". Biography.com.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Spike Jonze on IMDb
  3. "THE DIRECTOR'S LABEL COLLECTOR'S EDITION BOX SET AVAILABLE NOVEMBER 16". Smells Like Music. Sperry Media. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  4. "Spike Jonze Biography (1969–)". film reference. Advameg, Inc. 2012. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  5. "Obituary for Spiegel". Obits.abqjournal.com. Retrieved 2014-08-12.
  6. Encyclopedia of American Cinema for Smartphones and Mobile Devices - MobileReference - Google Books. Books.google.ca. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  7. O'Donnell, Kevin. "Hot Star Magnet: Sam Spiegel". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 12, 2009.
  8. NATE BLOOMContributing Writer (October 16, 2009). "Jewish Stars 10/16 - Cleveland Jewish News: Archives". Cleveland Jewish News. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  9. "Spike Jonze". IMDb.
  10. 1 2 Smith, Ethan (October 18, 1999). "Spike Jonze Unmasked". New York Magazine. New York Media. Retrieved August 19, 2008.
  11. Andy Jenkins; Mark Lewman (June–August 1984). "publications/Freestylin/1984". 23mag.com. Bob Osborn (Wizard Publications). Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  12. 1 2 Awards for Spike Jonze on IMDb
  13. "Sneak peek: The monsters of where the wild things are". Slashfilm.com. January 16, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  14. Fatboy Slim (October 15, 2009). "Rockafeller Skank (Spike Jonze Audition Demo Version)". YouTube. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
  15. Landay, Vincent (Producer) Brown, Richard (Producer) (2003). The Work of Director Spike Jonze (DVD). New York City: Palm Pictures. Event occurs at Side A, Commentry Track of Praise You spoken by Normal Cook (Fatboy Slim).
  16. 1 2 "Awards". GRAMMY.com. April 30, 2017.
  17. 1 2 "Spike Jonze-Moleskine". Moleskine.com. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  18. Business Wire (13 January 2009). "Vice Music Chooses The Orchard". Reuters. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  19. Chocolate "Easy Steady". Vimeo. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  20. "Spike Jonze On Where The Wild Things Are", Empire Online Fovember 19, 2008
  21. Saki Knafo (September 6, 2009). "Bringing 'Where the Wild Things Are' to the Screen". New York Times.
  22. "The Top Ten Chart For January 21, 2010". Movie City News. October 18, 1999. Retrieved January 21, 2010.
  23. Tim Teeman (May 15, 2010). "A cure for Aids? Spike Jonze is not joking". London: Times Online. Retrieved March 18, 2011.
  24. Laura Van Den Berg (June 22, 2010). "Shedding Light on Shane Jones". Retrieved March 18, 2011.
  25. "Scenes from the Suburbs". MUBI. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  26. "Spike Jonze to direct 'epic' Beastie Boys video". London: The Independent. July 5, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  27. Breihan, Tom (August 1, 2011). "Spike Jonze to Direct Jay-Z/Kanye "Otis" Video". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  28. "Spike Jonze to direct live music videos for Arcade Fire and Lady Gaga at YouTube Awards". NME. IPC Media. October 31, 2013. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  29. "Sony Picks Up New Spike Jonze & David O. Russell Movies". Screenrant.com. November 14, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  30. Los Angeles Times (January 12, 2014). "Golden Globes 2014: The complete list of nominees and winners". latimes.com. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  31. "How Spike Jonze Ended Up in The Wolf of Wall Street". Retrieved July 10, 2014.
  32. "Frank Ocean had a legendary director film his first New York concert in 5 years". Business Insider France (in French). Retrieved 2017-08-01.
  33. "Jonze and Coppola Announce Divorce Plans". IMDb. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  34. "Sofia Coppola, Spike Jonze to divorce". USA Today. December 9, 2003.
  35. "Sofia's Choice", Entertainment Weekly, October 3, 2003.
  36. "Michelle Williams Confirms Split From Spike Jonze". Us Weekly. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
  37. Rinko Kikuchi: the interview, The Guardian, February 27, 2011.
  38. Awards for Being John Malkovich on IMDb
  39. Awards for Adaptation. on IMDb
  40. Awards for Where the Wild Things Are on IMDb
  41. "Her".
  42. Los Angeles Times (February 1, 2014). "'Her,' 'Captain Phillips' win top Writers Guild film awards". latimes.com. Retrieved April 28, 2015.

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