Mike White (scriptwriter)
| Mike White | |
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| Born | Michael Christopher White June 28, 1970 Pasadena, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor, director, writer, producer |
| Years active | 1997 – present |
Michael Christopher "Mike" White (born June 28, 1970) is an American writer, director, actor, and producer for television and film and the winner of the Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award for Chuck & Buck.[1]
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[edit] Early years
White was born in Pasadena, California. White attended Polytechnic School and Wesleyan University. White's father is the Reverend Dr. Mel White, a former speechwriter and ghostwriter[2] for Religious Right figures such as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. White is openly bisexual.[3] His father came out as gay in 1994.[4]
[edit] Career
White was a writer and producer on Dawson's Creek and Freaks and Geeks and wrote and acted in the films Chuck & Buck, The Good Girl, Orange County, School of Rock and Nacho Libre. He also had a role in the 2004 remake of The Stepford Wives, and the 2008 film Smother. Chuck and Buck was named the best film of 2000 by Entertainment Weekly. In an interview with The New York Times, Jeff Bridges called White's performance in Chuck and Buck "the performance of the decade".
He frequently collaborates with actor–writer Jack Black on films. Together they formed the production company Black and White, which closed in 2006.[5] White is not a fan of classic rock, but he wrote School of Rock specifically so Black could perform his own favorite rock music.[6]
White made his directorial debut with the self-penned Year of the Dog at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. White is a vegan animal rights supporter [7] and received an award from animal rights group PETA for Year of the Dog, which was also the third screenplay of White's to be nominated for Best Screenplay at the Independent Film Awards. (He won for The Good Girl.)
He was a member of the US Dramatic Jury at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.
He appeared on the fourteenth season of The Amazing Race along with his father Mel.[8] They lasted for seven legs before being eliminated in sixth place in Phuket, Thailand. Mel and Mike returned to compete in The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business, where they finished in tenth place.[9]
Laura Dern brought White into a project with HBO which became the series Enlightened that premiered on October 10, 2011. White himself had suffered an on-the-job meltdown while running an earlier television series and incorporated elements of that experience into the new series' plot. Dern's character Amy Jellicoe goes to a Hawaiian retreat after her meltdown and is introduced to meditation, echoing to a degree White's own exploration of Buddhist meditation, and the character Jellicoe tries to continue the discipline as she resumes her working life. White wrote the pilot and all the episodes in the first season.[2]
[edit] Writing credits
- Dead Man on Campus (with Michael Traeger) (1998)
- Dawson's Creek (1998–1999) (TV) (also Producer)
- Freaks and Geeks (1999) (TV) (also Producer)
- Chuck & Buck (2000)
- Pasadena (2001) (also Creator/Executive Producer)
- Orange County (2002)
- The Good Girl (2002)
- School of Rock (2003)
- Cracking Up (2004) (TV) (also Creator/Executive Producer)
- Nacho Libre (2006)
- Year of the Dog (2007) (also Director)
- Them (2011)
- Enlightened (2011) (HBO pilot and first season)[2]
[edit] Acting credits
- Chuck & Buck (2000)
- Orange County (2002)
- The Good Girl (2002)
- School of Rock (2003)
- The Stepford Wives (2004)
- Pushing Daisies (2008) (TV)
- Smother (2008)
- Gentlemen Broncos (2009) (also Producer)
- Zombieland (2009)
- The Amazing Race (2009) (TV)
- The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business (2011) (TV)
- Enlightened (2011) (first season, seven episodes)[10][11][12]
[edit] Awards and nominations
- Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards (Critics Choice Award)
- Chlotrudis Awards
- Deauville Film Festival (Acting Prize)
- Independent Spirit Awards
- Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards (Sierra Award)
- Golden Satellite Award
- Seattle International Film Festival (New American Cinema Award)
[edit] References
- ^ . http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/09/magazine/stuff-mike-white-likes.html. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
- ^ a b c "HBO's 'Enlightened' Take On Modern Meditation", Fresh Air interview with Dern and White on NPR, October 10, 2011. Retrieved 2011-10-10.
- ^ "Advocate, The: White out: writer-producer Mike White comes out and discusses the gay subtext in his new comedy, Orange County - film - Brief Article - Critical Essay - Interview". Web.archive.org. 2004-11-08. Archived from the original on 2004-11-08. http://web.archive.org/web/20041108212818/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1589/is_2002_Feb_5/ai_82322838. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
- ^ Steve Inskeep. "Religion, Politics a Potent Mix for Jerry Falwell", NPR, June 30, 2006.
- ^ "Jack Black to Produce In College Football, Big Paydays for Humiliation". Movieweb.com. http://www.movieweb.com/news/jack-black-to-produce-in-college-football-big-paydays-for-humiliation. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
- ^ Fresh Air from WHYY. "Mike White Goes to the 'Dog'". NPR. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9473074. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
- ^ "PETA Media Center > Recent News Releases : Year of the Dog Voted Best Animal-Friendly Movie in Second Annual peta2 Libby Awards". Peta.org. http://www.peta.org/mc/NewsItem.asp?id=10790. Retrieved 2011-11-23.[dead link]
- ^ "Mel and Mike: Amazing Race". CBS. http://www.cbs.com/shows/amazing_race/season/14/cast/. Retrieved 2009-01-26.
- ^ Olmstead, Kasey (2010-11-22). "The Amazing Race 18: All Stars! (Spoilers)". http://www.yakkityyaks.com/the-amazing-race-18-all-stars-spoilers/4571/. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
- ^ Laura Dern Is Enlightened, Slate.com. by Troy Patterson. 14 Oct. 2011. Retrieved 18 Dec. 2011.
- ^ "Laura Dern Stars in Enlightened". Sky Atlantic website. 2011-10-01. http://skyatlantic.sky.com/shows/new-comedy-starring-golden-globe-winner-laura-dern. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
- ^ IMDB, Mike White, Enlightened, Acting Credits. Retrieved 18 Dec. 2011.
[edit] External links
- Mike White at the Internet Movie Database
- The Director Interviews: Mike White, Year of the Dog[dead link] at Filmmaker Magazine
- July 2000 article about White from The Village Voice
- May 2003 article about White[dead link] from his Pasadena, California grade and high school newspaper
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- 1970 births
- Living people
- Actors from California
- American film actors
- American film producers
- American screenwriters
- American soap opera writers
- American television producers
- American television writers
- American vegans
- Bisexual actors
- Bisexual writers
- Independent Spirit Award winners
- LGBT directors
- LGBT screenwriters
- LGBT writers from the United States
- Participants in American reality television series
- People from Pasadena, California
- The Amazing Race contestants
- Wesleyan University alumni
- Writers from California
