Filmmaker Spotlight: Greta Gerwig5/20/2024 Our next filmmaker found her way behind the camera due largely to her success in front of it. Greta Gerwig, who in the summer of 2023 achieved the highest-grossing opening for a female director with ‘Barbie’, started with every intention of being a playwright, but chose to start her acting journey when she was rejected from multiple playwriting MFA programs while still a student at Barnard. During this time she was cast in several supporting roles in films by Joe Swanberg and the Duplass Brothers. The former, Jay Swanberg, began a partnership with Gerwig that saw her act and co-write ‘Hannah Takes the Stairs' and co-write and co-direct her first film in 2008 ‘Nights and Weekends’. In 2010, she was cast in Noah Baumbach’s ‘Greenberg’ opposite Ben Stiller, the first collaboration between the two. While on the festival circuit for the ‘Greenberg’, the two co-wrote Baumbach’s next film ‘Frances Ha’. Her Golden Globe nomination for ‘Frances Ha’ propelled her into a prolific acting career for the next five years. Despite her equity with audiences on-screen and within the industry, her efforts to raise money for her solo directorial debut ‘Lady Bird’ proved challenging. She eventually secured financing through IAC Films, who produced in collaboration with Scott Rudin Productions. The film went on to win a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and was nominated for Best Picture, Original Screenplay, and Gerwig became the fifth woman ever to be nominated for Best Director at the 90th Academy Awards. In 2018, her adaptation of ‘Little Women’ gained awards chatter as well, garnering six nominations including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay. While she did not receive a nomination for best director, the repeat critical acclaim was enough to cement her place as one of the town’s best young directors. In 2022, Gerwig was hired to direct her first major studio film with ‘Barbie’, which she co-wrote with her long-time collaborator and partner Noah Baumbach. The aforementioned historic opening further solidified her bankability not just as an actress but as a director. Gerwig’s ability to find her audience through collaboration is a helpful lesson to any young filmmaker. Her ability to be versatile as both an actor, writer, and director not only kept her on sets throughout the different seasons of her career, but it kept her relevant with her desired audience and the industry at large. By building a passionate audience within the independent film community and working within the constraints of lower budget films, her taste proved to be bankable which led her to have the opportunity on larger films that have also proven to be box office successes. Do you think being an actor helped her better transition into directing?
1 Comment
Jordan
5/24/2024 01:42:02 pm
I thoroughly enjoyed your spotlight on Greta Gerwig! She has been one of my favorite director's since Lady Bird, but I also love her as an actor! I think that her experience as an actor definitely helped shape her directing style. I love seeing BTS videos of her directing, she seems so comforting and authentic.
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