Kirsten Sheridan

Infobox Actor


imagesize = 150px
name = Kirsten Sheridan
birthdate = birth date and age|1976|7|14|df=yes
birthplace = flagicon|IRL Dublin, Ireland
occupation = Director, screenwriter, editor
yearsactive = 1995 - present
awards =

Kirsten Sheridan (born July 14, 1976) is an Irish film director and screenwriter. The director of "August Rush" (2007) and "Disco Pigs" (2001), Sheridan was nominated for an Academy Award for co-writing the semi-autobiographical film "In America" with her father, director Jim Sheridan, and her sister, Naomi Sheridan.

Biography

Born in Dublin, Sheridan moved to New York City in 1981, spending her early childhood there while her father struggled to make it as an actor and theatre director. Her family moved back to Ireland eight years later, whereupon her father found success as the director of "My Left Foot",Macnab, Geoffrey. [http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,592170,00.html "My life as a pig"] , "The Guardian", 12 November 2001. Accessed 2 November 2007.] in which Sheridan plays the younger sister of lead actor Daniel Day-Lewis. [http://www.independent.ie/national-news/person-of-the-month-jim--naomi-amp-kirsten-sheridan-477711.html "Person of the Month Jim , Naomi & Kirsten Sheridan"] , "Independent.ie", 22 February 2004. Accessed 2 November 2007.] She studied script writing at New York University in 1993 and went to film school at University College Dublin, ultimately earning her film degree from Dun Laoghaire College of Art and Design in 1998. Her thesis short film "Patterns" won several international film festival awards, including Clermont-Ferrand, Cork, Galway, Dresden, Aspen, and Chicago, and her next short, "The Case of Majella McGinty", about a little girl who escapes her stressful life by crawling into a suitcase,Kemp, Rebecca. [http://www.close-upfilm.com/features/Featuresarchive/inamerica.htm "In America"] , "Close-UpFilm.com". Accessed 2 November 2007.] received festival awards at Foyle, Cork, San Francisco, Cologne, and Worldfest Houston. [http://www.iftn.ie/whoswho/Directors/?act1=record&aid=24&rid=213&tpl=whoswho_dets&only=1 "Who's Who Directors: Kirsten Sheridan"] , "IFTN.ie". Accessed 2 November 2007.]

The first feature film Sheridan directed was 2001's "Disco Pigs", Enda Walsh's screen adaptation of his own play, starring Cillian Murphy and Elaine Cassidy as teenagers in a lifelong, obsessive, antisocial friendship. "The Guardian" described the independent film as a "stylised, hyperkinetic drama ... that combines kitchen-sink realism and vicious fight scenes with highly stylised fantasy sequences". "Disco Pigs" earned Sheridan nominations for best director at the British Independent Film Awards and the Irish Film & TV Academy Awards, as well as prizes at the Castellinaria Youth Film Festival, the Giffoni Film Festival, the Young European Cinema Film Festival and the Ourense Film Festival.

Next, Sheridan collaborated with her father Jim and sister Naomi on the script for "In America", a film based on their memories of their family's years of poverty in New York, with the story of the death of Jim's younger brother woven in as an added element. Jim directed the film, which went on to success and earned several prestigious awards nominations, including an Oscar nomination for best screenplay. Sheridan's latest film is 2007's "August Rush", which stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Keri Russell as star-crossed lovers and musicians, Freddie Highmore as their orphaned musical prodigy offspring, and Robin Williams as a Faginesque character. "The Irish Times" criticized the film as "bounc(ing) around between so many forms, moods and genres that it proves impossible to get a handle on," [Clarke, Donald. [http://www.ireland.com/theticket/articles/2007/1123/1195682052086.html "August Rush"] ,"The Irish Times", 23 November 2007. Accessed 24 November 2007.] while "Variety" called it "utterly predictable, but with moments of genuine charm." [Weissberg, Jay. [http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117935159.html?categoryid=31&cs=1 "August Rush"] , "Variety", 22 October 2007. Accessed 2 November 2007.]

Filmography

* "The Bench" (short, 1995) ... director, writer, editor
* "Gentleman Caller" (short, 1996) ... director, editor
* "Walking Into Mirrors" (short, 1997) ... director, editor, producer
* "Patterns" (short, 1998) ... director, writer, editor, producer
* "Between Two Worlds" (1997) ... editor
* "Ward Zone" (1998) ... editor
* "The Case of Majella McGinty" (short, 1999) ... director
* "Disco Pigs" (2001) ... director
* "In America" (2002) ... writer
* "August Rush" (2007) ... director [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0792202 "Kirsten Sheridan Filmography"] , "IMDb.com". Accessed 2 November 2007.]

elected awards and nominations

In addition to the accolades listed below, Sheridan has won many awards for her short films. [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0792202/awards "Kirsten Sheridan Awards"] , "IMDb.com". Accessed 2 November 2007.]

Academy Awards

* Nominated: Best Original Screenplay (2004), "In America" (shared with Jim Sheridan, Naomi Sheridan)

Golden Globe Awards

* Nominated: Best Screenplay (2004), "In America" (shared with Jim Sheridan, Naomi Sheridan) [ [http://www.premiere.com/movienews/1379/2004-golden-globe-nominations.html "2004 Golden Globe Nominations"] , "Premiere". Accessed 3 November 2007.]

Irish Film & Television Awards (IFTA)

* Nominated: Best Short Film (2000), "The Case of Majella McGinty" (shared with producers Siobhan Bourke and Kate Lennon)
* Nominated: Best Director of a Feature Film (2003, January's biennial ceremony), "Disco Pigs" [Stewart, Miriam. [http://www.emigrant.ie/files/indexfile.asp?id=319 "News: Irish Film and Television Academy Awards"] , "Arts Ireland", December 2002. Accessed 3 November 2007.]

Other awards

* Won: Film Institute of Ireland/Guinness Outstanding Young Irish Talent Award (1998)
* Nominated: British Independent Film Awards, Douglas Hickox Award (2002), "Disco Pigs" [ [http://www.bifa.org.uk/awards/nominations/2002.html "2002 Nominations"] , "BIFA.org.uk". Accessed 2 November 2007.]
* Won: Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards, Best Writer (2004), "In America" (shared with Jim Sheridan, Naomi Sheridan) [ [http://www.bfca.org/NomineesWinners.asp "Winners 2003"] , BFCA.org. Accessed 3 November 2007.]

References

External links

*imdb name | id=0792202 | name=Kirsten Sheridan

Persondata
NAME= Sheridan, Kirsten
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Director, screenwriter, editor
DATE OF BIRTH= 14 July 1976
PLACE OF BIRTH= Dublin, Ireland
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=