Lydia Dean Pilcher Explained

Lydia Dean Pilcher
Occupation:Film and Television Producer/Director
Known For:Founder of Cine Mosaic

Lydia Dean Pilcher is an American film and television producer and director and founder of Cine Mosaic, a production company based in New York City.[1]

A two time Emmy Award winner, Pilcher was nominated for an Academy Award in 2014 for Cutie & The Boxer, directed by Zachary Heinzerling (winner of 2013 Sundance Directing Award);[2] and Sony Pictures Classics released the Cine Mosaic production of The Lunchbox, directed by Ritesh Batra (winner of 2013 Critics Week Viewers Choice Award at Cannes Film Festival).[3] In 2013, The Reluctant Fundamentalist was released by IFC Films, based on the highly acclaimed novel by Mohsin Hamid, starring Riz Ahmed, Kate Hudson, Kiefer Sutherland, Liev Schreiber, and directed by Mira Nair.[4] Pilcher has produced over 35 films including The Darjeeling Limited, directed by Wes Anderson; Jesus' Son, directed by Alison Maclean, and eleven films with director Mira Nair including The Namesake, Vanity Fair, Amelia, Mississippi Masala and most recently Queen of Katwe for The Walt Disney Company; and HBO Films' The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, based on the NY Times best selling book by Rebecca Skloot, starring Oprah Winfrey and Rose Byrne, directed by George C. Wolfe.

In 2018, Pilcher made her solo directing bow with the feature, A Call to Spy, a thriller based on the true stories of women who worked spies during the French Resistance of WWII. Before this in 2017, Pilcher co-directed the feature film, Radium Girls, starring Joey King and Abby Quinn with Executive Producer Lily Tomlin, which premiered at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival. Pilcher previously directed the HBO documentary "Reno Finds her Mom" and has directed the second unit of many of the films she produces, most recently The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lack, for HBO Films.

Most recently she was Executive Producer for the six hour mini-series "A Suitable Boy" with Mira Nair streaming on Netflix Worldwide & AcornTV in US. Projects in development include Fela: Music is the Weapon, based on the life of Nigerian musician and political activist, Fela Kuti, with director Melina Matsoukas for Focus Features.

Film producer

After receiving a BA in Political Science and Communications at Antioch College (Yellow Springs, OH) and a MFA at New York University Graduate Institute of Film and Television in 1983, Pilcher began her career making documentaries and working in the production department of feature films including After Hours (dir: Martin Scorsese); F/X (dir: Robert Mandel); Round Midnight (dir: Bertrand Tavernier); Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (dir: John Hughes); Mississippi Burning (dir: Alan Parker); and Quiz Show (dir: Robert Redford).[5]

In 2002, Pilcher founded Cine Mosaic, a production company based in New York City.[6] Pilcher has produced numerous award-winning independent feature films, specializing in international co-production, and film finance based on studio and independent models.[7]

In 2010, Pilcher was nominated for Emmy, Golden Globe, and PGA Awards for producing HBO Films' You Don't Know Jack, directed by Barry Levinson.[8] The film, starring Al Pacino, follows Jack Kevorkian's battle to legalize assisted suicide. Prior to that, Pilcher produced Jesus' Son, starring Billy Crudup, directed by Alison Maclean; The Darjeeling Limited, directed by Wes Anderson; and eleven movies with director Mira Nair including Amelia, starring Hilary Swank as the famous aviator, and The Namesake, based on the novel by Jhumpa Lahiri, released by Fox Searchlight.Pilcher was nominated in 2005 for a Golden Globe Award for the HBO feature film, Iron Jawed Angels directed by Katja von Garnier and starring Hilary Swank and Anjelica Huston.[9] She was nominated in 2004 for an Emmy Award, Golden Globe and Producer's Guild Award as the Executive Producer of Normal with writer/director Jane Anderson and starring Jessica Lange and Tom Wilkinson.[10]

Sustainability and environmental work

Pilcher is a Founder and Chair of PGA Green,[11] an active initiative of the Producers Guild of America since 2006, dedicated to supporting sustainability in the entertainment industry, and winner of the 2011 EMA Green Production Award.[12] With seed funding and support provided by Disney, DreamWorks Studios, 20th Century Fox, NBC Universal, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Warner Bros., the Green Production Guide was created by PGA Green to provide a new resource for film, television and commercial professionals looking to increase the sustainability of their productions. The website and mobile app includes a carbon calculator, the PGA Green Unified Best Practices Guide, and a substantial vendor guide of companies that provide sustainable and energy saving products and services for the entertainment industry.[13] Pilcher is a member of The Climate Reality Project, founded and chaired by Al Gore, and has been a speaker and panelist at many public and film events including Berlin Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, Woodstock Film Festival, and PGA's Produced by Conference.[14] Pilcher is a recipient of the City of New York's Made in New York Award, which recognizes those who have made significant contributions to the growth of NYC's media and entertainment industries.

Boards and organizations

Personal life

She is married to production designer Mark Friedberg; they have two children.[18]

Filmography

Producer

Director

See also

Notes and References

  1. Produced By Case Study: Pilcher. Produced By. 29 July 2013. Summer 2008.
  2. Patten. Dominic. Sundance: Radius-TWC Acquires 'Cutie And The Boxer'. Deadline.
  3. News: IndieWire. Sony Pictures Classics Acquires Cannes Critics' Week Winner 'The Lunchbox'. IndieWire.
  4. News: McNary. Dave. PGA makes its mark with Mira Nair Pic. Variety Media, LLC.
  5. Web site: Lydia Pilcher. Women Make Movies.
  6. Web site: Kaufmann. Glenn. Documenting Drama. Continental Magazine. 29 July 2013.
  7. Web site: Schoenbrun. Dan. Lydia Dean Pilcher on Producing. 21 October 2010 . IFP.
  8. Web site: You Don't Know Jack. Home Box Office, Inc..
  9. News: A Hard Earned Right. Savannah Morning News. 29 July 2013.
  10. Web site: Normal. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
  11. Web site: Who's Who. PGA.
  12. Web site: Joy. Rachael. Going Green: PGA Green receives EMA's Green Production Award. pga.org.
  13. Web site: Green Production Guide. PGA Foundation.
  14. Web site: Produced By 2009: Lydia Dean Pilcher. Producers Guild of America, Inc..
  15. Web site: Officers, Board Members & Staff. Producers Guild of America.
  16. Web site: Board of Directors. Maisha Film Lab.
  17. Web site: Leader For The 21st Century. Women's eNews, Inc..
  18. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/karin-badt/personal-experience-set-d_b_67799.html Huffington Post: "Personal Experience: Set Designing "The Darjeeling Limited" By Karin Badt
  19. Web site: The Kill-Off. 10 September 2012 . TimeOut.
  20. Web site: Lydia Dean Pilcher. Produced By Conference 2009. Producers Guild of America. https://web.archive.org/web/20100118222246/https://www.producedbyconference.com/2009/lydia_dean_pilcher.html. January 18, 2010.
  21. News: Thompson. Gary. Cast Adrift In America 'Perez Family' Has Values Of Its Own. The Philadelphia Inquirer. May 12, 1995. https://web.archive.org/web/20151230032348/http://articles.philly.com/1995-05-12/news/25671649_1_juan-raul-perez-perez-family-jose-felipe-padron. December 30, 2015.
  22. Web site: Movies of Pearl Padamsee & Lydia Dean Pilcher. Gomolo. https://web.archive.org/web/20150924050324/http://www.gomolo.com/celeb/pearl-padamsee-and-lydia-dean-pilcher-movies-list/16257/203967. September 24, 2015.
  23. Web site: Lydia Pilcher. Women Make Movies.
  24. Web site: Diuguid. Carol. The Gotham 50. Variety. 29 July 2013. 30 April 1998.
  25. Web site: The Talented Mr. Ripley. Turner Classic Movies.
  26. Oxman. Steven. Disappearing Acts. Variety. December 3, 2000.
  27. News: Hysterical Blindness (2002). dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20100906042421/https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/261171/Hysterical-Blindness/details. Movies & TV Dept.. The New York Times. 2010. September 6, 2010.
  28. Web site: 11'09"01: September 11: Cast & Details. TVGuide. https://web.archive.org/web/20081022201457/http://movies.tvguide.com/110901-september-11/cast/136936. October 22, 2008.
  29. Higgins. Bill. Situation: 'Normal' for an HBO preem. Variety. March 5, 2003.
  30. Rooney. David. 'Iron Jawed' triad reunites in 'Future'. Variety. April 14, 2004.
  31. Rooney. David. Lipstick & Dynamite, Piss & Vinegar:The First Ladies of Wrestling. Variety. Apr 29, 2004.
  32. McCarthy. Todd. Vanity Fair. Variety. August 26, 2004.
  33. Web site: Lydia Dean Pilcher on Producing (2007 Independent Filmmaker Conference). Gotham Film & Media Institute. 21 October 2010 .
  34. Simon. Alissa. The Darjeeling Limited. Variety. September 3, 2007.
  35. Fleming. Michael. Hilary Swank to play Amelia Earhart. Variety. February 7, 2008.
  36. Gray. Tim. 2014 Oscar Nominations: 'American Hustle,' 'Gravity' Lead with 10 Each. Variety. January 16, 2014.
  37. Web site: Pilcher. Lydia. Trumping The Industry with Kickstarter: Women Support Women To Get Movies Made And Seen. IndieWire. March 7, 2008. 7 March 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20141106100158/http://blogs.indiewire.com/tedhope/community-trumps-the-industry-women-support-women-to-get-movies-made-and-seen. November 6, 2014.
  38. Web site: Epstein. Sonia Shechet. Lydia Pilcher on The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Sloan Science and Film. April 14, 2017. Museum of the Moving Image.
  39. Martin . Ed . Reno Finds Her Mom . . May 7, 1998.