Darren Stein

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Darren Stein
Born (1971-12-24) December 24, 1971 (age 52)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Alma materNew York University
Occupation(s)Film director, producer, screenwriter
Years active1988–present

Darren Stein (born December 24, 1971)[1] is an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer who grew up in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley. Among his works include the documentary Put the Camera on Me,[2] the 2010 horror comedy All About Evil,[3] and the satirical major motion picture Jawbreaker, which was deemed a "cult classic" by the New York Post.[4][5]

Early life and education[edit]

Stein was born and raised in Encino, California.[6] His father worked with his grandparents at a film lab and post-production company called Crest National in Hollywood.[6] At a young age, Stein started making films with his friends in his neighborhood. He graduated from Harvard School for Boys (now known as Harvard-Westlake) in 1989 and later received his B.A. in film studies from New York University through the Tisch School of the Arts.[7][8]

Career[edit]

Late 1990s[edit]

Stein's first feature was Sparkler, a film about a newly single woman in Victorville, California, who crosses paths with three young men on a road trip to Las Vegas. Stein co-wrote and directed the film which featured Park Overall, Jamie Kennedy, Freddie Prinze Jr., Grace Zabriskie, and Veronica Cartwright.[9] The film premiered at the Hamptons Film Festival.[10]

Stein's second feature, Jawbreaker, premiered at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival[11] and was nominated for the MTV Movie Award for “Best Villain”. The dark comedy about three teenage girls who accidentally kill their best friend via a birthday prank gone awry had a wide release in theaters through Tristar Pictures.[12] The film's stars — Rose McGowan, Julie Benz, and Rebecca Gayheart — reunited at 90s Con in March 2023.[13]

2001–2004[edit]

Stein's third feature, Put the Camera on Me, premiered at Outfest in July 2003. The documentary takes viewers behind the scenes of the movies Stein made with his neighborhood friends on his Encino cul-de-sac in the 1980s. Stein co-directed and co-produced the film with Adam Shell.[14] The project was released on DVD through Wellspring/Genius Entertainment.[15]

2005–2008[edit]

Stein executive-produced Cam Archer’s Wild Tigers I Have Known, which premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.[16]

2009–2015[edit]

In 2010, Stein produced All About Evil,[3][17] a horror comedy starring Natasha Lyonne, Thomas Dekker, Cassandra Peterson, Noah Segan, and Jack Donner. The film is written and directed by Joshua Grannell (also known as the drag queen Peaches Christ). All About Evil premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival.[18] It was released on Blu-Ray through Severin in 2022.[19]

Stein wrote the book for Jawbreaker the Musical,[20] with music and lyrics by Jeff Thomson and Jordan Mann. The stage musical had a one-night showing on July 29, 2010, in Los Angeles, featuring Jenna Leigh Green, [21][22][23] Eden Espinosa, Shoshana Bean, and Megan Hilty. The show also had a reading in New York City featuring Elizabeth Gillies, Jojo, and Diana Degarmo.[23]

Stein directed and produced the 2013 film G.B.F. (Gay Best Friend), a teen comedy starring Michael J. Willett, Paul Iacono, Sasha Pieterse, Andrea Bowen, Xosha Roquemore, Molly Tarlov, Evanna Lynch, Joanna "JoJo" Levesque, and Megan Mullally.[24] The film premiered at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival and was released theatrically on January 17, 2014, by Vertical Entertainment. G.B.F. focuses on closeted gay high school students Tanner and Brent. When Tanner is outed, he is picked up by the cool girls and begins to surpass still-closeted Brent in popularity.[24]

Stein's 2013 fashion film for Alexander Wang was voted one of the "Top Ten Fashion Films of the Season" by Business of Fashion.[25]

Stein was the writer of Seeds of Yesterday (2015), based on the book by V.C. Andrews for Lifetime starring Sammi Hanratty, James Maslow, Jason Lewis, and Rachel Carpani. It was directed by Shawn Ku.[26]

2016–present[edit]

Stein has appeared as a guest judge on five seasons of The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula.[27]

He has directed music videos for Deap Vally (featuring Trixie Mattel), The Haunt (featuring Vander Von Odd), and '90s electropop band Dirty Sanchez.[28]

Personal life[edit]

Stein is openly gay.[29]

Filmography[edit]

Year Title Genre Role Notes
1988 Aviel Short film Director and writer
1997 Sparkler Film Director and writer [10]
1999 Jawbreaker Film Director and writer
2003 Put the Camera on Me Documentary Himself Director, cinematographer, editor, producer and writer
2006 Wild Tigers I Have Known Film Executive producer
2007 Color Me Olsen Short film Director, producer and writer
2010 All About Evil Film Producer
2013 G.B.F. Film Director and producer
2014 Hey Qween! Web series Himself Guest (1 episode: Paul Iacono & Darren Stein)
2016-2023 The Boulet Brothers' Dragula TV Himself Guest judge (5 episodes: Season 1, episode 1; Season 2, episode 6; Season 3, episode 4; Season 4, episode 1; Season 5, episode 7)
2017 Do the Voice TV Director and executive producer (1 episode)
2022 The Boulet Brothers' Dragula: Titans TV Himself Producer (10 episodes)
Guest judge (Episode 3)

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Darren J Stein was born on December 24, 1971 in Los Angeles County, California". California Birth Index. Retrieved August 22, 2016.
  2. ^ Gary Morris. "Bright Lights Film Journal :: Interview with Darren Stein". Brightlightsfilm.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-21. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  3. ^ a b Paul E. Pratt (January 22, 2009). "Jawbreaker Director Darren Stein Knows All About Evil". San Francisco Bay Times. Sfbaytimes.com. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  4. ^ Wieselman, Jarett (2010-03-04). "First Look: Judy Greer on 'Modern Family'". New York Post. Archived from the original on 2010-03-08.
  5. ^ "Strut Your Shit Down The Hallway | Dlisted". dlisted.com. Archived from the original on 2010-03-15.
  6. ^ a b "Darren Stein". filmbug.com. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  7. ^ Kramer, Gary (2014). "Q&A with Darren Stein, Director of G.B.F." sfbaytimes.com.
  8. ^ "Darren Stein Biography, Wallpapers, Videos". filmbees.com. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  9. ^ Brendan Kelly (November 2, 1997). "Sparkler Review – Read Variety's Analysis Of The Movie Sparkler". Variety.com. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  10. ^ a b "Hamptons 97: Seven Questions For Darren Stein, The Director of "Sparkler"". indieWIRE. 1997-10-16. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  11. ^ "Review: Comedy rules among Sundance offerings – February 4, 1999". CNN. 1999-02-04. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  12. ^ Jawbreaker (1999) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-12
  13. ^ "Jawbreaker Reunion! Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart and Julie Benz Catch Up Nearly 25 Years Later". Peoplemag. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  14. ^ "225: Home Movies". This American Life. 2005-07-15. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  15. ^ "Put the Camera on Me 2003 - DVDBay". Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  16. ^ http://www.sfbg.com/printable_entry.php?entry_id=3564 [dead link]
  17. ^ "Peaches' slice-'em-up and mental health reimagined and redefined". SF360. 2010-02-19. Archived from the original on May 6, 2009. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  18. ^ All About Evil (2010) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-12
  19. ^ Bandsaboutmovies (2022-06-08). "All About Evil (2010)". B&S About Movies. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  20. ^ "Wallflower – Univision.com Buscar Videos". Univision.com. Archived from the original on 2013-02-05. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  21. ^ "Espinosa, Snyder and Green Join Cast of Jawbreaker Concert in Los Angeles - Playbill.com". www.playbill.com. Archived from the original on 2010-06-30.
  22. ^ "Espinosa, Bean et al. Lead JAWBREAKER Concert for Show at Barre, 7/29".
  23. ^ a b December 12, Kerensa Cadenas; EST, 2019 at 09:40 PM. "An oral history of the pitch-black '90s comedy 'Jawbreaker'". EW.com. Retrieved 2023-05-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  24. ^ a b G.B.F. (2013) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-12
  25. ^ "Watch People Go Crazy Over Free Alexander Wang Clothes – Fashion Gone Rogue". www.fashiongonerogue.com. 2013-08-07. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  26. ^ "The Dollanganger Saga" Seeds of Yesterday (TV Episode 2015) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-12
  27. ^ The Boulet Brothers' Dragula (TV Series 2016– ) - IMDb, retrieved 2023-05-12
  28. ^ Dazed (2016-10-25). "Drag legend Trixie Mattel stars in Deap Vally's new video". Dazed. Retrieved 2023-05-12.
  29. ^ Osenlund, R. Kurt (January 17, 2014). "G.B.F. Director Darren Stein and Star Michael J. Willet On Whiz-Bang Dialogue, Growing Up Gay, and Why Their Film Was Unfairly Handed an R Rating". Slant Magazine. Retrieved May 3, 2014.

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