Festival Year: 2017
James Gray
Roles: Director, Producer, Writer
JAMES GRAY (Producer/Writer/Director) made his directorial debut in 1994 at the age of 25 with LITTLE ODESSA, a widely acclaimed film, which received the Critics Award at the Deauville Film Festival as well as the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival. That same year, he received nominations from the Independent Spirit Awards for Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay.
In 2000, Gray wrote and directed THE YARDS, his second feature and his first with Joaquin Phoenix, who would become a frequent collaborator, going on to star in his next three films. The cast also includes Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Faye Dun away, Ellen Burstyn and James Caan. The drama premiered In Competition at the Cannes Film Festival in 2000.
Gray’s New York crime drama WE OWN THE NIGHT (2007) stars Mark Wahlberg, Joaquin Phoenix, Eva Mendes and Robert Duvall. The film received a César nomination in 2008 for Best Foreign Film and screened In Competition at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival.
His fourth feature, TWO LOVERS (2008) received nominations at the Independent Spirit Awards for Best Director and Best Female Lead. The Brooklyn-set drama starred Joaquin Phoenix opposite Gwyneth Paltrow, Vinessa Shaw and Isabella Rossellini. The film premiered In Competition at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival and went on to receive a César nomination for Best Foreign Film in 2009.
In May 2013, THE IMMIGRANT, which starred frequent collaborator Joaquin Phoenix, Marion Cotillard and Jeremy Renner, became his fourth film to premiere In Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. The film, which was released by The Weinstein Company in May 2014, went on to garner numerous awards including Best Actress (Marion Cotillard) and Best Cinematography (Darius Khondji) prizes from the New York Film Critics Circle.
Gray’s latest film, THE LOST CITY OF Z, based on the best-selling novel by David Grann and starring Charlie Hunnam, Sienna Miller, Robert Pattinson and Tom Holland, had its world premiere as the closing night selection at the 2016 New York Film Festival.
Born in New York City, Gray grew up in Queens and attended the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television.
Festival Year: 2017
