Annie Silverstein Explained

Annie Silverstein
Alma Mater:Macalester College, University of Texas at Austin
Occupation:Film Director, Screenwriter
Years Active:2004 - present

Annie Silverstein is an American film director and screenwriter.

Early life

Annie was born and raised in Oakland, California. She graduated from Macalester College.[1] with a BA in American History, and in 2013 received an MFA in Film Production from the University of Texas at Austin.[2]

Career

Silverstein's short documentary Noc na Tanečku: Night at the Dance premiered at SXSW in 2011. She returned to SXSW the following year with her fiction short Spark.

In 2014 Silverstein's short film Skunk premiered at the Cannes Film Festival - Cinefondation and won the first place jury award, presided over by Abbas Kiarostami. She was named one of Filmmaker Magazine's 25 New Faces of Indie Film in 2014.[3]

Silverstein's feature debut Bull was selected for the 2016 Sundance Screenwriter's Lab and directors Lab. Bull premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival - Un Certain Regard, and went on to screen at the Deauville American Film Festival where it won the Grand Prize, Revelation Prize, and Critics’ Prize.[4] Bull premiered in the US at Film Independent's ‘New Wave,’[5] and was selected to screen in the Festival Favorites section at SXSW 2020.[6] Bull was acquired by Samuel Goldwyn Films (domestic)[7] and Sony Pictures Worldwide (international).[8]

Silverstein often cites the 10 years she spent as a youth worker prior to film school as her greatest influence.[9] In 2004, Silverstein co-founded Longhouse Media, a non-profit indigenous media arts organization, based in Seattle, in partnership with the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community. Longhouse Media's “Native Lens” program teaches Native youth in rural and urban settings filmmaking as a form of inquiry, community development, and cultural pride and preservation. In 2007 Silverstein received a Fulbright scholarship to spend a year in Rio de Janeiro, teaching a weekly filmmaking and media literacy course at an orphanage for teenage boys. For her work with Longhouse Media, Silverstein received the National Association for Media Literacy Award for outstanding contributions made in the field of media education in 2009.[10]

Personal life

Annie is married to screenwriter and producer Johnny McAllister. They frequently collaborate on scripts together, and co-wrote Bull. They have two children. Annie is the sister of Jake Silverstein, editor of the New York Times Magazine.[11]

Filmography

Year Title Credited As Notes
2008 March Point Director, producer, cinematographer PBS Independent Lens (2008), Presented at Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, IFC Award for Best Documentary, imagineNATIVE
2011 Noc na Tanečku: Night at the Dance Director, producer, cinematographer, editorHamptons International Film Festival Student Award
2012 Spark Writer, director, editor 2012 SXSW Best Texas Short Jury Award
2014 Skunk Writer, director
  • 2014 Cannes Film Festival - Cinéfondation 1st Prize Jury Award[12]
  • 2014 BAFTA/LA Student Film Award
  • 2014 Austin Film Festival Best Short Film & Special Jury Prize
  • 2015 Bermuda International Film Festival Best Narrative Short
  • 2015 Ashland Independent Film Festival Best International Short
  • 2015 American Short Film Awards, Best Drama Short Film
2019 Writer, director
  • 2019 Deauville Film Festival, Winner of Grand Prize, Critics Award, & Revelations Prize
  • 2019 SXSW Louis Black “Lone Star” Award Special Jury Recognition for Acting - Rob Morgan

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Film Star. 4 June 2014 .
  2. Web site: Longhorn Student Film Wins Top Prize at Cannes. May 22, 2014.
  3. Web site: Annie Silverstein. Vadim. Rizov. 17 July 2014 .
  4. Web site: Annie Silverstein's 'Bull' Takes Top Awards, Robert Pattinson Starrer 'The Lighthouse' Wins Jury Prize at Deauville. Elsa. Keslassy. September 15, 2019.
  5. Web site: New Wave Preview: Behind-the-Scenes (and Color) of Cannes Bull Rider Drama 'Bull'. October 14, 2019.
  6. Web site: Bull. SXSW 2020 Schedule.
  7. Web site: Cannes Drama 'Bull' Rides To North America With Samuel Goldwyn Films. Andreas. Wiseman. October 8, 2019.
  8. Web site: Sony Nabs International Rights to Cannes Title 'Bull' From Film Constellation (EXCLUSIVE). Elsa. Keslassy. October 9, 2019.
  9. Web site: Student Film Wins First Place at Cannes Film Festival. April 22, 2014. Moody College of Communication.
  10. Web site: Media Literate Media Awards: 2000-2009. September 23, 2009. National Association for Media Literacy Education.
  11. Web site: Risks pay off for UT filmmaker, who is headed for Cannes. Charles. Ealy. Austin American-Statesman.
  12. Web site: Annie Silverstein. IMDb.