Martha Coolidge | |
|---|---|
 Coolidge interviewed in 2009 | |
| Born | Martha Patterson Coolidge (1946-08-17)August 17, 1946 (age 79) New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Rhode Island School of Design NYU Tisch School of the Arts (MFA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1972-present |
| Spouse(s) | Michael Backes (divorced) James Spencer |
| Children | 1 |
Martha Coolidge (born August 17, 1946)[1] is an Americanfilm director and former President of theDirectors Guild of America.[2] She has directed such films asValley Girl,Real Genius andRambling Rose.
Coolidge was born in New Haven, Connecticut.[1] She is a granddaughter ofArthur W. Coolidge, former lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, who was a fourth cousin of PresidentCalvin Coolidge.[3]
Coolidge studied illustration atRhode Island School of Design, but changed majors, becoming the first film major at the school.[4] She earned her MFA from New York University'sTisch School of the Arts.[3] Later in Los Angeles, she studied acting and other aspects of her craft withLee Strasberg,Stella Adler,Joanne Baron, and David Craig.
Coolidge first made her reputation by directing many award-winning documentaries in New York City. While in New York, she helped found the Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers (AIVF).[1]
She moved toHollywood in 1976 and spent several years as a part of theZoetrope Studio created byFrancis Ford Coppola. Her feature-length directorial debut,Not a Pretty Picture, was based on adate rape she suffered at age 16.[4] Her breakthrough came with the independently producedValley Girl (1983), a film recognized for launching the career ofNicolas Cage.[5] Her filmRambling Rose (1991) won threeIndependent Spirit Awards for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress forDiane Ladd, in addition toOscar andGolden Globe nominations for Ladd andLaura Dern (Best Actress).[4]Rambling Rose was well reviewed[6] and made top 10 lists for the year.[7] Despite a limited release hampered by economic problems suffered by the production company, the film played for months and earned many honors.[8]
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999) for HBO was nominated for 11Emmy Awards, winning five, including Best Actress for its starHalle Berry,[9] and earned Coolidge anEmmy and DGA (Directors Guild of America) nominations for Best Director.
From 2002 to 2003 she was theDirectors Guild of America's first female president.[10]
She taught at theDodge College of Film and Media Arts.[11][12]
Coolidge was previously married to screenwriter Michael Backes, with whom she has a son, Preston, named for directorPreston Sturges.[13] She is now married to production designer James Spencer.[3]
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Not a Pretty Picture | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 1983 | Valley Girl | Yes | No | No | |
| 1984 | City Girl | Yes | Story | Yes | |
| Joy of Sex | Yes | No | No | ||
| 1985 | Real Genius | Yes | No | No | |
| 1988 | Plain Clothes | Yes | No | No | |
| 1991 | Rambling Rose | Yes | No | No | |
| 1993 | Lost in Yonkers | Yes | No | No | |
| 1994 | Angie | Yes | No | No | |
| 1995 | Three Wishes | Yes | No | No | |
| 1997 | Out to Sea | Yes | No | No | |
| 2004 | The Prince & Me | Yes | No | No | |
| 2006 | Material Girls | Yes | No | No | |
| 2019 | I'll Find You[22] | Yes | No | No |
| Year | Title | Episodes |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Sledge Hammer! | "Under the Gun" |
| The Twilight Zone | "Night of the Meek" | |
| "Quarantine" | ||
| "Shelter Skelter" | ||
| 2001 | Masterpiece | "The Pounder Heart" |
| Leap Years | "Pilot" | |
| 2002 | Sex and the City | "A Vogue Idea" and "I Heart New York" |
| 2003 | Hidden Hills | "The Concert" |
| 2005 | Huff | "All the Kings Horses" |
| 2006 | Related | "Not Without My Daughter" |
| CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | "Living Legend" | |
| "Redrum" | ||
| "Take my life Please" | ||
| "Fracked" | ||
| "Maid Man" | ||
| 2007 | Shark | "Porn Free" |
| Weeds | "Shit Highway" | |
| Psych | "Truer Lies" | |
| 2013 | Cult | "The Good Fight" |
| The Glades | "Glade-iators!" | |
| 2014 | Killer Women | "Warrior" |
| The Night Shift | "Blood Brothers" | |
| Madam Secretary | "Passage" | |
| 2016 | Angie Tribeca | "The Famous Ventriloquist Did It" |
| 2018 | Siren | "Showdown" |
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Trenchcoat in Paradise | |
| 1991 | Bare Essentials | |
| 1992 | Crazy in Love | |
| 1999 | Introducing Dorothy Dandridge | |
| 2000 | If These Walls Could Talk 2 | Segment "1972" |
| 2001 | The Flamingo Rising | |
| 2004 | 12 Days of Christmas Eve | |
| 2009 | An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong | |
| Tribute |
