Sarah Jacobson

Sarah Jacobson
Born	August 25, 1971(1971-08-25) Norwalk, Connecticut
Died	February 13, 2004(2004-02-13) (aged 32) New York City, New York
Occupation	Film producer, film director, screenwriter
Years active	1993–2004

Sarah Jacobson (August 25, 1971, Norwalk, Connecticut – February 13, 2004 New York City) was an independent filmmaker who wrote, produced, and filmed her own movies.

Career

After studying with George Kuchar, Jacobson began making her first film while in her early twenties. Jacobson's two major releases were I Was a Teenage Serial Killer and Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore. Both were well-received at film festivals across North America such as the New York Underground Film Festival, the Chicago Underground Film Festival and Sundance. I Was a Teenage Serial Killer featured songs by Heavens to Betsy. She was listed in Spin Magazine as one of the "Top Influences on Girl Culture".^[1] Also outspoken in their praise were film critic Roger Ebert, filmmaker Allison Anders and Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth.^[2] Ed Halter, writing in the Village Voice, considered I Was A Teenage Serial Killer,"...a key film of that decade's angrily subversive underground cinema."^[3]

Sarah Jacobson was interviewed, reviewed and written about in such national publications as The New York Times, Village Voice, Spin, Bust and Film Threat among others.

Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore

Her novel and feature film Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore and the grassroots manner in which Jacobson promoted the film garnered her much recognition in her specific field. Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore starred Lisa Gerstein and Beth Roman Allen of the band The Loudmouths, whose music along with that of Babes In Toyland and Mudhoney, is featured in the film. Jello Biafra also appears in a cameo role. Film Threat Magazine, in its Film Threat Video Guide labelled it as one of the "25 Underground Films You Must See". Following the release of this film Jacobson directed videos for the bands Man or Astroman and Fluffy.

As a result of the success of her films, Jacobson was an important champion of the DIY approach to filmmaking and wrote for several publications, including Punk Planet, Grand Royal, San Francisco Bay Guardian and Indiewire on the topic. She was a contributor to the film zine, Joanie4Jackie, a project created by Miranda July to showcase women's independently made and DIY films. Jacobson was also a participant in DiY Fest, a do-it-yourself travelling film festival.

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains

In 1999, she wrote an article for Grand Royal about the cult film Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains and soon after presented the film at the Chicago Underground Film Festival. In 2000 she collaborated with filmmaker Sam Green on a short documentary about the film for the IFC television channel's show Split Screen. The same year Sarah Jacobson was featured in a cameo role in the independent film GodAss by Esther Bell, which starred Fred Schneider of the B-52's.

Death

Jacobson had just completed writing the screenplay for her next film when she died from endometrial cancer in 2004, aged 32.

Posthumously

After her death, Marc Savlov wrote in the Austin Chronicle "There's no doubt in the minds of anyone...that she greatly helped stoke the flames of the guerilla and indie filmmaking movement while becoming a voice for grrrl-positive cineastes everywhere".

Legacy

The Sarah Jacobson Film Grant was set up and annually awards grants to young female directors. The Sarah Jacobson Papers are located in the Fales Library at New York University.

Filmography

• I Was a Teenage Serial Killer (1993)
• Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore (1997)
• The Making of Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains (2000)

References

1. ^ Adams, Sam (January 7–14, 1999). "The Virgin Machine". The City Paper. http://www.citypaper.net/articles/010799/critmas.virgin.shtml. 
2. ^ "Sarah Jacobson Memorials". Filmmaker Magazine: Blog. 2004. http://www.filmmakermagazine.com/blog/2004/02/sarah-jacobson-memorials.php. Retrieved 2006-12-16. 
3. ^ Halter, Ed (2004). "Sarah Jacobson 1971-2004". Village Voice. http://www.villagevoice.com/film/0408,halter,51309,20.html. Retrieved 2006-12-16. 

Sources

• Dixon, Wheeler Winston. The Second Century of Cinema: The Past and Future of the Moving Image (The Suny Series, Cultural Studies in Cinema/Video). State University of New York Press March 2000 ISBN 0791445151

External links

• NYU's Fales Library and Special Collections Guide to the Sarah Jacobson Papers
• Sarah Jacobson at the Internet Movie Database
• Sarah Jacobson Remembered on Indiewire
• Sarah Jacobson in the Austin Chronicle
• The Sarah Jacobson Film Grant

Persondata
Name	Jacobson, Sarah
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	August 25, 1971
Place of birth	Norwalk, Connecticut
Date of death	February 13, 2004
Place of death	New York City, New York