Todd HaynesBirth Place: Los Angeles, California, USA Date of Birth: January 2, 1961 Heritage: American Famous for: Director of 'Poison' (1991) Contact Todd Haynes | 
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Far from Heaven Background: “I mean, making a film is so scary and there's such a kind of void that you're working from initially. I mean, you can have all the ideas and be as prepared as possible, but you're also still bringing people together and saying trust me even when you don't necessarily trust every element. You're making something out of nothing and it requires so many people's collaborative efforts and participation that it seems like at any moment it could just fall through the cracks and be gone forever.” Todd Haynes After gaining underground cult-figure status with his controversial short “Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story” (1987), Academy Award nominated director, producer and screenwriter Todd Haynes made a successful transformation to motion pictures with “Poison” (1991), from which he nabbed the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, a Teddy Award at the Berlin International Film Festival and Independent Spirit nominations. He received further attention with the Julianne Moore thriller “Safe” (1995), where he earned Independent Spirit nominations for his writing and directing efforts, and “Velvet Goldmine” (1998), which brought him a Cannes Film Festival award and an Independent Film nomination. However, it was the critically acclaimed drama “Far from Heaven” (2002) that earned him Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for his writing. Known for making provocative films, Haynes also received an Independent Spirit Award, the SIGNIS Award - Honorable Mention at the Venice Film Festival, and a Writers Guild of America nomination. More recently, he is known for directing and writing the Bob Dylan biopic “I'm Not There” (2007), which earned recognition at the 2008 Independent Spirit Awards and the 2007 Venice Film Festival. Haynes is openly gay. He is a member of ACT-UP, an AIDS awareness organization and is one of the founding members of the AIDS media activist collective Gran Fury. Haynes had a long running relationship with editor/actor James Lyons (born on October 8, 1960), who portrayed Jack Bolton in “Poison,” but they later broke up. Lyons died at age 47 on April 12, 2007 of AIDS related cancer. Currently, Haynes resides in Portland, Oregon.
Childhood and Family: Todd Haynes was born on January 2, 1961, in Los Angeles, California, to Sherry Lynne and Allen E. Haynes. He was raised in nearby Encino with his sister Gwendolyn Haynes (born in March 1964) and his brother Shawn Haynes (born in February 1971). He was educated at Oakwood School in North Hollywood and later received a BA in art and semiotics from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. He went on to pursue an MFA degree at Bard College. Todd developed a love for film at a young age.
Career: An aspiring filmmaker, Todd Haynes produced his first film “The Suicide” (1978), a short about modern day teenage life, while in high school. He made his directorial debut while at Brown with “Assassins: A Film Concerning Rimbaud” (1985), which he also wrote. After attaining his BA, Haynes moved to New York and founded Apparatus Productions with Christine Vachon and Barry Ellsworth, which is a nonprofit organization that supports independent films. The young filmmaker first gained notoriety with his 43 minute length film “Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story” (1987), which he directed, co-wrote and produced. A minor art hit, the film received notice in several festivals but became the subject of a lawsuit after Richard Carpenter, Karen's musical collaborator and brother, saw it and disliked the film's insinuation that he was gay. It was later discovered that Haynes never acquired music licensing from Richard and the duo's label, A&M Records, for the many songs used in the film. Richard eventually won the lawsuit and as a result, all copies of the film were to be recalled and destroyed. The film became a bootleg classic and Haynes achieved underground cult-figure status with it. After the controversial “Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story,” Haynes produced “Cause and Effect” (1988), a short by directed/writer Susan Delson, and co-produced “La Davina” (1989), which was directed by Brooke Dammkoehler (both under Apparatus Production). He also produced and acted in “He Was Once” (1989), a Mary Hestand short that won a Golden Gate Award Film & Video - Short Narrative (20 Minutes and Under) at the 1990 San Francisco International Film Festival. In 1990, Haynes directed Sonic Youth's music video for the single “Disappearer,” from the group 1990 album “Goo.” It was in 1991 that Haynes made his feature film directing debut with the independent drama “Poison,” which was partially based on the works of controversial French novelist Jean Genet. The film, which Haynes also wrote and edited, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 1991 and won the Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic. It went on to win various awards and nominations, including the 1991 Teddy for Best Feature Film at the Berlin International Film Festival, Independent Spirit nominations for Best Director and Best First Feature, a Special Prize of the Jury at the 1991 Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival, the Critics' Award and an International Fantasy Film nomination for Best Film from the Fantasporto. It also received a Golden Leopard nomination at the 1991 Locarno International Film Festival. Following a venture to the small screen with “Dottie Gets Spanked” (1993, PBS), a 30 minute dream sequence that won Haynes the Grand Prize at the 1994 USA Film Festival, Haynes wrote and directed his second film, “Safe” (1995), a thriller about a homemaker. Starring Julianne Moore as Carol, the film was nominated for Independent Spirit Awards in the categories of Best Director and Best Screenplay (for Haynes), Best Feature and Best Female Lead. Haynes also won an American Independent Award from the 1995 Seattle International Film Festival, the FIPRESCI Prize - Special Mention from the 1996 Rotterdam International Film Festival and a Best Film nomination from the 1995 Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival. Haynes was next an unaccredited writer for “Office Killer,” a 1997 film directed by Cindy Sherman and starring Carol Kane and Molly Ringwald, before returning to the director's chair to helm Ewan McGregor, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Christian Bale, Toni Collette and Eddie Izzard in the movie “Velvet Goldmine” (1998), which he wrote with James Lyons. Recounting the story of a pop star and based primarily on David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust character, the film received tepid reviews from critics and was a box office flop. Despite its significant commercial failure, “Velvet Goldmine” picked up a nomination at the Academy Awards and a BAFTA Film Award for Best Costume Design and an Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography. It was also nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Film (Limited Release) and earned Haynes a Cannes Film Festival award for Best Artistic Contribution. Haynes resurfaced four years later with “Far from Heaven” (2002), a reunion with Julianne Moore. The drama was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Actress in a Leading Role and Best Writing, Original Screenplay and Haynes took home an Independent Spirit for Best Director, a Chicago Film Critics Association for Best Director and a Chlotrudis for Best Director, among other awards and nominations. After serving as executive producer on the dramatic films “Quinceañera” (2006), which was written and directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland, and “Old Joy” (2006), directed and co-written by Kelly Reichardt, Haynes wrote and directed the movie “I'm Not There” (2007), which was inspired by singer/songwriter Bob Dylan. Starring Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger and Ben Whishaw, the film enjoyed primarily positive reviews from critics but was not a success at the box office. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (Blanchett) and won the Robert Altman Award at the 2008 Independent Spirit Awards where Haynes was also nominated for Best Director. In 2008, Haynes executive produced the drama film “Wendy and Lucy” for filmmaker Kelly Reichardt. He is set to make his TV series debut with the HBO drama “Mildred Pierce,” an adaptation of a novel by James M. Cain. The show will star Kate Winslet, Guy Pearce and Evan Rachel Wood. He is also an executive producer for the upcoming movie “Hello Darkness,” which is slated for a U.K. release in 2011.
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