American filmmakers
Daniel Kwan (born February 10, 1988)[ 1] Daniel Scheinert (born June 7, 1987),[ 2] Daniels , are an American filmmaking duo. They began their career as directors of music videos,[ 3] Houdini " (2012) byFoster the People and "Turn Down for What " (2013) byDJ Snake andLil Jon , both of which earned themGrammy Award nominations.
They wrote and directed the absurdist comedy-dramasSwiss Army Man Everything Everywhere All at Once A24 's highest-grossing film,[ 4] Academy Awards forBest Picture ,Best Director , andBest Original Screenplay .[ 5] [ 6] [ 7]
Kwan and Scheinert met while studying film atEmerson College inBoston .[ 8] [ 9] Sunita Mani , who starred with Kwan in the music video for "Turn Down for What ",[ 10] [ 11]
Since 2011, the duo have directed music videos for artists includingFoster the People ,the Shins andTenacious D . In 2018, Kwan co-founded the group We Direct Music Videos (W.D.M.V.), described as "a global community of music video directors who are committed to sustainable directorial labor practices".[ 12]
Transition to film and television [ edit ] In 2016, the duo expanded to feature films, writing and directingSwiss Army Man Paul Dano andDaniel Radcliffe ,[ 13] [ 14] 2016 Sundance Film Festival .[ 15] black comedy -drama film The Death of Dick Long 2019 Sundance Film Festival and received positive reviews.
The Daniels have since accumulated several television directing credits, includingAwkwafina Is Nora from Queens ,Legion andOn Becoming a God in Central Florida (Scheinert only). The duo were attached as directors on a prospective TV adaption ofCat's Cradle Kurt Vonnegut , being developed byNoah Hawley , but the project was not picked up.[ 16]
Everything Everywhere All at Once [ edit ] The Daniels announced in 2017 they would write, direct, and produce ascience-fiction film with their producing partnerJonathan Wang and theRusso brothers .[ 17] [ 18] Everything Everywhere All at Once ,Michelle Yeoh ,Stephanie Hsu ,Ke Huy Quan ,James Hong andJamie Lee Curtis , was released in March 2022 to widespread critical acclaim and box office success, garneringseveral awards and accolades for the duo including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Director at the95th Academy Awards .[ 19] IGN Everything Everywhere All at Once had surpassedThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King [ 20]
As of 2022[update] A24 .[ 21] Universal Pictures .[ 22]
The duo were on theTime 100 Next[ 23]
In March 2023, it was revealed that the Daniels had directed one episode ofStar Wars: Skeleton Crew [ 24] [ 25]
In February 2024, it was announced that the Daniels' next feature film was scheduled to release on June 12, 2026. The following year it was announced that the film had been delayed to an unspecified date afterUniversal Pictures confirmed thata new film bySteven Spielberg would release on that date.[ 26] [ 27]
In June 2025, it was announced thatPaul Dano would write and potentially direct and produce "a high-concept comedy" forUniversal Pictures , produced by the Daniels.[ 28]
Kwan was born inWestborough, Massachusetts , to aTaiwanese mother and a father fromHong Kong . He has been married to fellow filmmaker and animatorKirsten Lepore since 2016, and together they have one son.[ 29] [ 30] attention deficit hyperactivity disorder after researching the condition forEverything Everywhere All At Once .[ 31]
Scheinert was born and raised inBirmingham, Alabama , the son of Becky and Ken Scheinert.[ 32] [ 33] Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School at the campus ofShades Valley High School .[ 32]
In 2023, the Daniels won theEmerson College EVVY Alumni Award of Distinction.[citation needed
Year Title Director Writer Notes 2009 Swingers Yes Yes [ 10] 2010 Puppets Yes Yes [ 10] 2011 My Best Friend's Wedding/ Yes Yes 2014 Possibilia Yes Yes 2014 Interesting Ball Yes Yes 2020 Omniboat: A Fast Boat Fantasia Yes Yes Segments
Scheinert only
Year Title Director Writer 2007 I'm Nostalgic Yes No 2008 Trust Yes Yes
Scheinert only
Kwan only
Scheinert only
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RetrievedDecember 6, 2022 . ^ "Alumni "Daniels" on Emerson, "Swiss Army Man," and What's Ahead" .Emerson Today . June 30, 2016.Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. RetrievedMarch 13, 2023 .^a b c d e f g h Fear, David (March 23, 2022)."Twerking, Time Warps and Tenacious D: A Viewer's Guide to the Daniels" .Rolling Stone Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. RetrievedMarch 30, 2022 . ^ Pearl, Max (March 20, 2014)."Meet the Man Behind Lil Jon & DJ Snake's "Turn Down for What" Video" .Vice Archived from the original on March 26, 2014. RetrievedMay 7, 2014 . ^ "WDMV advocates for the fair treatment of music video directors" .Shots.net . July 29, 2019.Archived from the original on August 9, 2019. RetrievedAugust 9, 2019 .^ Fleming, Mike (June 29, 2015)."Paul Dano, Daniel Radcliffe & Mary Elizabeth Winstead Join 'Swiss Army Man' .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on December 7, 2019. RetrievedMay 18, 2017 . ^ Swiss Army Man Rotten Tomatoes , July 2016,archived from the original on December 7, 2022, retrievedDecember 6, 2022 ^ Patton, Domonic (January 30, 2016)."Sundance Film Festival Awards" .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. RetrievedMay 18, 2017 . ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (August 13, 2021)."Noah Hawley 'Cat's Cradle' Not Moving Forward At FX" .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. RetrievedMay 17, 2022 . ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (July 25, 2017)."Fox Sets Russo Brothers in Co-Finance & WW Distribution Deal for New Movie Projects" .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on July 14, 2019. RetrievedJuly 14, 2019 . ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (March 22, 2017)."Joe & Anthony Russo Set Next Pic By 'Swiss Army Man' Daniels Duo" .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on July 15, 2019. RetrievedJuly 15, 2019 . ^ "Everything Everywhere All at Once" .Rotten Tomatoes Fandango Media .Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. RetrievedMarch 25, 2022 .^ Zee, Michaela; Josh, Du (March 9, 2023)."Everything Everywhere All at Once Passes Return of the King as Most-Awarded Movie Ever" .IGN Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. RetrievedMarch 15, 2023 . ^ Kohn, Eric (March 13, 2022)." .IndieWire Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. RetrievedMay 17, 2022 . ^ Rubin, Rebecca (August 2, 2022)." .Variety Archived from the original on August 2, 2022. RetrievedAugust 2, 2022 . ^ Radcliffe, Daniel (September 28, 2022)."2022 TIME100 Next: Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan" .Time Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. RetrievedDecember 7, 2022 . ^ Couch, Aaron (March 20, 2023)." .The Hollywood Reporter Archived from the original on March 20, 2023. RetrievedMarch 20, 2023 . ^ Chapman, Wilson (March 20, 2023)." .IndieWire . ^ Rubin, Rebecca (February 29, 2024)." .Variety .Archived from the original on March 1, 2024. RetrievedMarch 1, 2024 . ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 18, 2025)."Steven Spielberg Event Movie Moves To June 2026; Daniels' Next Movie Temporarily Unset" .Deadline . RetrievedFebruary 20, 2025 . ^ Kroll, Justin (June 26, 2025)."Paul Dano To Write And Direct Comedy For Universal Pictures And The Daniels" .Deadline . RetrievedJuly 1, 2025 . ^ Ito, Robert (June 14, 2016)." .The New York Times ISSN 0362-4331 .Archived from the original on May 23, 2022. RetrievedMay 17, 2022 . ^ Daniel Kwan [@dunkwun]; (August 22, 2016)."This is Kir and I the day after our wedding. I'm not ready to post an actual picture of the wedding because I don't think I'll be able to come up with a caption that will do it justice. I will probably never have the words to describe the insanely transcendent rocket ship made of clouds we found ourselves on the day we got married, but it was one of those rare times where life exceeds all expectations and gives you a wholly new experience. I generally avoid hyperbole, unless it's a joke, but this really was one of the best weekends of my life. Photo cred: @chelseanicolelepore #kwanlepore" – viaInstagram . ^ Pasternack, Alex (April 7, 2022)." .Fast Company Archived from the original on April 11, 2022. RetrievedMarch 14, 2023 . ^a b Flanagan, Ben (April 14, 2022)."One of the Daniels on his Alabama roots, fitting his state into 'Everything Everywhere' .Al.com Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. RetrievedMay 17, 2022 . ^ Colurso, Mary (December 12, 2022)."Alabama filmmaker nominated for 2 Golden Globes, competing against Spielberg and Cameron" .Al.com Archived from the original on December 13, 2022. RetrievedDecember 13, 2022 . ^ Ebiri, Bilge (February 28, 2023)."The Cult of Daniels" .Vulture .Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. RetrievedMarch 14, 2023 . ^ Boilen, Bob (June 22, 2017)."First Watch: Manchester Orchestra 'The Alien' .NPR Archived from the original on October 29, 2020. RetrievedOctober 15, 2019 . ^ "2013 Grammy Nominations: The Full List" .MTV the original on November 25, 2022. RetrievedJanuary 26, 2023 .^ Lynch, Joe (December 5, 2014)."Grammys 2015: And the Nominees Are…" .Billboard.com Archived from the original on December 31, 2022. RetrievedJanuary 26, 2023 . ^ Sharf, Zack (October 20, 2016)."Gotham Awards 2016 Nominations" .Indiewire Archived from the original on November 24, 2016. RetrievedNovember 23, 2016 . ^ "Sundance:The Birth of a Nation Sweeps Top Prizes" .Variety . January 31, 2016. RetrievedFebruary 1, 2016 .^ "Awards and Winners" .Sundance . Archived fromthe original on October 27, 2017. RetrievedFebruary 1, 2016 .^ "A Complete List of Sundance Award Winning Movies" .Sundance Film Festival 2020 . October 18, 2019. RetrievedJanuary 15, 2020 .^ "Smoke Signals" and "Swiss Army Man" Celebrate June Birthdays - sundance.org ^ Nordine, Michael (November 22, 2016)."2017 Independent Spirit Award Nominations" .Indiewire Archived from the original on November 23, 2016. RetrievedNovember 23, 2016 . ^ Anderson, Erik (July 1, 2022)."Everything Everywhere All at Once sweeps HCA Midseason Film Awards, Austin Butler named Best Actor" .AwardsWatch .Archived from the original on July 1, 2022. RetrievedDecember 9, 2022 . ^ Tinoco, Armando (August 12, 2022)."Saturn Awards Nominations:The Batman ,Nightmare Alley ,Spider-Man ,Better Call Saul Top List" .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. RetrievedAugust 12, 2022 . ^ O'Rourke, Ryan (October 26, 2022)."Saturn Award Winners Headlined ByEverything Everywhere All At Once ,Top Gun Maverick , andBetter Call Saul " .Collider Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. RetrievedNovember 4, 2022 . ^ Zilko, Christian (November 28, 2022)."Gotham Awards Winners List (Updating Live)" .IndieWire Archived from the original on January 29, 2023. RetrievedNovember 28, 2022 . ^ Ntim, Zac (November 4, 2022)."British Independent Film Awards: 'Aftersun,' 'Blue Jean' & 'The Wonder' Lead Nominations" .Deadline Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. RetrievedNovember 4, 2022 . ^ Davis, Clayton; Moreau, Jordan (December 8, 2022)."Top Gun: Maverick Named Best Picture by National Board of Review" .Variety Archived from the original on December 8, 2022. RetrievedDecember 9, 2022 . ^ Lewis, Hilary (December 9, 2022)."AFI Best Film, TV Shows of 2022 IncludeAvatar Sequel,Women Talking ,The Bear andMo " .The Hollywood Reporter Archived from the original on December 9, 2022. RetrievedFebruary 13, 2023 . ^ Butler, Karen (December 11, 2022)."Banshees of Inisherin wins big at New York Film Critics Online" .United Press International Archived from the original on December 11, 2022. RetrievedDecember 11, 2022 . ^ Thomas, Carly (December 11, 2022)." .The Hollywood Reporter Archived from the original on December 22, 2022. RetrievedDecember 11, 2022 . ^ Anderson, Erik (December 12, 2022)."Washington DC Critics go forEverything Everywhere All At Once ,Glass Onion ,The Banshees of Inisherin " .AwardsWatch .Archived from the original on December 12, 2022. RetrievedDecember 13, 2022 . ^ Tallerico, Brian (December 12, 2022)."Everything Everywhere All at Once Leads Chicago Film Critics Nominations" .RogerEbert.com Archived from the original on December 12, 2022. RetrievedDecember 12, 2022 . ^ Tallerico, Brian (December 14, 2022)."The Banshees of Inisherin Named Best Picture by Chicago Film Critics Association" .RogerEbert.com Archived from the original on December 15, 2022. RetrievedDecember 15, 2022 . ^ Anderson, Erik (December 11, 2022)."The Banshees of Inisherin ,Everything Everywhere All At Once lead 2022 St. Louis Film Critics Association nominations" .AwardsWatch .Archived from the original on December 12, 2022. RetrievedDecember 14, 2022 . ^ Anderson, Erik (December 18, 2022)."2022 St. Louis Film Critics Association winners:Everything Everywhere All At Once ,Women Talking ,Elvis " .AwardsWatch .Archived from the original on December 19, 2022. RetrievedDecember 19, 2022 . ^ Neglia, Matt (December 19, 2022)."The 2022 Dallas Fort-Worth Film Critics Association (DFWFCA) Winners" .NextBestPicture .Archived from the original on December 20, 2022. RetrievedDecember 20, 2022 . ^ Neglia, Matt (December 14, 2022)."The 2022 Florida Film Critics Circle (FFCC) Nominations" .Next Best Picture .Archived from the original on December 16, 2022. RetrievedDecember 15, 2022 . ^ "2023" .Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. RetrievedJanuary 24, 2023 .^ "2023 EE BAFTA Film Awards: The Nominations" .BAFTA Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. RetrievedJanuary 26, 2023 .^ "Winners & Nominees 2023" .Golden Globe Awards Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. RetrievedDecember 13, 2022 .^ "The Gold List" .Gold House the original on October 27, 2023. RetrievedOctober 27, 2023 .Complex, Valerie (January 10, 2023)."Gold House & CAPE Unveils 2023 Gold List To Celebrate Asian Film Achievements And Guide Voters As Awards Seasons Takes Off" .Deadline Hollywood Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. RetrievedOctober 27, 2023 . ^ Huff, Lauren (January 15, 2023)."Critics Choice Awards 2023: The full winners list" .Entertainment Weekly Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. RetrievedOctober 22, 2023 . ^ Davis, Clayton (January 11, 2023)."DGA Awards: Steven Spielberg and the Daniels Lead Nominees, With Women Shut Out in Top Category" .Variety Archived from the original on January 22, 2023. RetrievedJanuary 26, 2023 . ^ "Producers Guild of America Awards CelebratesEverything Everywhere All At Once ,White Lotus ,The Bear ,Navalny & more with Top Honors" (Press release). Los Angeles:Producers Guild of America . February 25, 2023.Archived from the original on March 4, 2023. RetrievedMarch 2, 2023 .^ Davis, Clayton (January 25, 2023)."WGA Nominations: 'Everything Everywhere,' 'Nope' and 'Wakanda Forever' Among Recognized Screenplays" .Variety Archived from the original on January 25, 2023. RetrievedJanuary 26, 2023 . ^ Anderson, Erik (December 8, 2022)."Top Gun: Maverick leads International Press Academy's 27th Satellite Awards nominations" .AwardsWatch .Archived from the original on December 9, 2022. RetrievedDecember 8, 2022 . ^ Anderson, Erik (December 15, 2022)."6th Hollywood Critics Association Film Awards nominations: 'Everything Everywhere All At One,' 'The Banshees of Inisherin' lead" . AwardsWatch.Archived from the original on December 15, 2022. RetrievedDecember 16, 2022 . ^ Shackleton, Liz (December 15, 2022)." .Deadline Archived from the original on December 15, 2022. RetrievedDecember 15, 2022 . ^ Vlessing, Etan (January 4, 2023)." .The Hollywood Reporter . 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Awards for Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
1951–1975 1976–present Robert Chartoff andIrwin Winkler (1976)Charles H. Joffe (1977)Michael Cimino ,Michael Deeley ,John Peverall andBarry Spikings (1978)Stanley R. Jaffe (1979)Ronald L. Schwary (1980)David Puttnam (1981)Richard Attenborough (1982)James L. Brooks (1983)Saul Zaentz (1984)Sydney Pollack (1985)Arnold Kopelson (1986)Jeremy Thomas (1987)Mark Johnson (1988)Lili Fini Zanuck andRichard D. Zanuck (1989)Kevin Costner andJim Wilson (1990)Ron Bozman ,Edward Saxon andKenneth Utt (1991)Clint Eastwood (1992)Branko Lustig ,Gerald R. Molen andSteven Spielberg (1993)Wendy Finerman ,Steve Starkey andSteve Tisch (1994)Bruce Davey ,Mel Gibson andAlan Ladd Jr. (1995)Saul Zaentz (1996)James Cameron andJon Landau (1997)Donna Gigliotti ,Marc Norman ,David Parfitt ,Harvey Weinstein andEdward Zwick (1998)Bruce Cohen andDan Jinks (1999)David Franzoni ,Branko Lustig andDouglas Wick (2000)Brian Grazer andRon Howard (2001)Martin Richards (2002)Peter Jackson ,Barrie M. Osborne andFran Walsh (2003)Clint Eastwood ,Tom Rosenberg andAlbert S. Ruddy (2004)Paul Haggis andCathy Schulman (2005)Graham King (2006)Ethan Coen, Joel Coen andScott Rudin (2007)Christian Colson (2008)Kathryn Bigelow ,Mark Boal ,Nicolas Chartier andGreg Shapiro (2009)Iain Canning ,Emile Sherman andGareth Unwin (2010)Thomas Langmann (2011)Ben Affleck ,George Clooney andGrant Heslov (2012)Dede Gardner ,Anthony Katagas ,Jeremy Kleiner ,Steve McQueen andBrad Pitt (2013)Alejandro G. Iñárritu ,John Lesher andJames W. Skotchdopole (2014)Blye Pagon Faust ,Steve Golin ,Nicole Rocklin andMichael Sugar (2015)Dede Gardner ,Jeremy Kleiner andAdele Romanski (2016)J. Miles Dale andGuillermo del Toro (2017)Jim Burke , Brian Currie,Peter Farrelly ,Nick Vallelonga andCharles B. Wessler (2018)Bong Joon-ho andKwak Sin-ae (2019)Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey,Frances McDormand ,Peter Spears andChloé Zhao (2020) Fabrice Gianfermi,Philippe Rousselet , Patrick Wachsberger (2021) Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert andJonathan Wang (2022)Emma Thomas ,Charles Roven , andChristopher Nolan (2023)Alex Coco ,Samantha Quan , andSean Baker (2024)
1940–1975 Preston Sturges (1940)Herman J. Mankiewicz andOrson Welles (1941)Michael Kanin andRing Lardner Jr. (1942)Norman Krasna (1943)Lamar Trotti (1944)Richard Schweizer (1945)Muriel Box andSydney Box (1946)Sidney Sheldon (1947)No award (1948) Robert Pirosh (1949)Charles Brackett ,D. M. Marshman Jr. , andBilly Wilder (1950)Alan Jay Lerner (1951)T. E. B. Clarke (1952)Charles Brackett ,Richard L. Breen , andWalter Reisch (1953)Budd Schulberg (1954)Sonya Levien andWilliam Ludwig (1955)Albert Lamorisse (1956)George Wells (1957)Nathan E. Douglas andHarold Jacob Smith (1958)Clarence Greene ,Maurice Richlin ,Russell Rouse , andStanley Shapiro (1959)I. A. L. Diamond andBilly Wilder (1960)William Inge (1961)Ennio De Concini ,Pietro Germi , andAlfredo Giannetti (1962)James Webb (1963)S. H. Barnett ,Peter Stone andFrank Tarloff (1964)Frederic Raphael (1965)Claude Lelouch andPierre Uytterhoeven (1966)William Rose (1967)Mel Brooks (1968)William Goldman (1969)Francis Ford Coppola andEdmund H. North (1970)Paddy Chayefsky (1971)Jeremy Larner (1972)David S. Ward (1973)Robert Towne (1974)Frank Pierson (1975)1976–2000 2001–present
1948–1975 1976–2000 2001–present
1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s
1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s
Nebula Award Soylent Green Stanley R. Greenberg (1973)Sleeper Woody Allen (1974)Young Frankenstein Mel Brooks andGene Wilder (1975)Star Wars George Lucas (1977)The Sixth Sense M. Night Shyamalan (1999)Galaxy Quest Robert Gordon (2000)Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon James Schamus , Kuo Jung Tsai, andHui-Ling Wang (2001)The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Fran Walsh ,Philippa Boyens , andPeter Jackson (2002)The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Fran Walsh ,Philippa Boyens ,Stephen Sinclair , andPeter Jackson (2003)The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Fran Walsh ,Philippa Boyens , andPeter Jackson (2004)Serenity Joss Whedon (2005)Howl's Moving Castle Hayao Miyazaki , Cindy Davis Hewitt, and Donald H. Hewitt (2006)Pan's Labyrinth Guillermo del Toro (2007)WALL-E Andrew Stanton ,Jim Reardon , andPete Docter (2008)Ray Bradbury Award
Original Drama Original Comedy Original Screenplay
International National Other
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