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{{Infobox actor
{{Infobox actor
| name = Wes Craven
| name = brandon horn
| image = WesCravenScream2.jpg
| image = WesCravenScream2.jpg
| caption = Craven on the set of ''Scream 2'', 1997
| caption = Craven on the set of ''Scream 2'', 1997
Line 8: Line 8:
| occupation = [[Film director]], [[screenwriter|writer]] and [[film producer|producer]]
| occupation = [[Film director]], [[screenwriter|writer]] and [[film producer|producer]]
| years_active =
| years_active =
| spouse = Bonnie Broecker<br>(1964–1969)<br> Mimi Craven (1984–1987)<br>Iya Labunka
| spouse = Bonnie Broecker<br>(1964–1969)<br> Mimi Craven (1984–1987)<br>Iya Labunka
| website = http://www.wescraven.com
| website = http://www.wescraven.com
}}
}}

Revision as of 15:07, 28 October 2010

brandon horn
File:WesCravenScream2.jpg
Craven on the set of Scream 2, 1997
Born
Wesley Earl Craven

(1939-08-02) August 2, 1939 (age 85)
Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Occupation(s)Film director, writer and producer
Spouse(s)Bonnie Broecker
(1964–1969)
Mimi Craven (1984–1987)
Iya Labunka
Websitehttp://www.wescraven.com

Wesley Earl "Wes" Craven (born August 2, 1939) is an American film director and writer, perhaps best known as the creator of many horror films, including the famed A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare featuring the iconic Freddy Krueger character, the Scream films alongside The Last House on the Left, The Hills Have Eyes, The Serpent and the Rainbow, The People Under the Stairs, Vampire in Brooklyn, Red Eye and My Soul To Take.

Early life

Craven was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the son of Caroline (née Miller) and Paul Craven.[1] He had a strict Baptist upbringing.[2] Craven earned an undergraduate degree in English and Psychology from Wheaton College in Illinois, and a masters degree in Philosophy and Writing from Johns Hopkins University.[3] Prior to landing his first job in the film industry as a sound editor for a post-production company in New York, Craven briefly taught English at Westminster College and was a humanities professor at Clarkson College of Technology (now Clarkson University) in Potsdam, NY.

Directing and writing career

Craven's works tend to share a common exploration of the nature of reality. A Nightmare on Elm Street, for example, dealt with the consequences of dreams in real life. New Nightmare "brushes against" (but does not quite break) the fourth wall by having actress Heather Langenkamp play herself as she is haunted by the villain of the film in which she once starred. At one point in the film, we see on Wes Craven's word processor a script he has written, which includes the exact conversation he just had with Heather — as if the script was being written as the action unfolded. The Serpent and the Rainbow portrays a man who cannot distinguish between nightmarish visions and reality. In Scream, the characters frequently reference horror films similar to their situations, and at one point Billy Loomis tells his girlfriend that life is just a big movie. This concept was emphasized in the sequels, as copycat stalkers reenact the events of a new film about the Woodsboro killings occurring in Scream. Scream included a scene mentioning the well-known Richard Gere gerbil urban legend. Craven stated in interviews that he received calls from agents telling him that if he left that scene in, he would never work again.[4][5] He is currently directing Scream 4. Craven was also set to direct Beetlejuice but dropped out to co-write and executive produce the third outing for Freddy Krueger. The "Elm Street" is located in Potsdam,[6] NY (a small town just south of the Canadian border).

Craven also frequently collaborates with Sean S. Cunningham in his filmography. In Craven's debut feature, The Last House on the Left, Cunningham served as producer. Later, in Craven's most famous film, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Cunningham directed one of the chase scenes, although uncredited. Their infamous characters, Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees, appeared together in the 2003 slasher film Freddy vs. Jason with Cunningham acting as producer, while screenwriter Victor Miller is credited as "Character Creator". Later, in The Last House on the Left remake, both Cunningham and Craven share production credits. Craven announced on 22 March 2010 via Twitter his return to the Scream franchise.[7]

Awards and nominations

During his career, Wes Craven won nine cinematic awards and received three nominations.

In 1977, he won the 'Prize of the International Critics' Jury' in the "Sitges – Catalonian International Film Festival" for his film The Hills Have Eyes.

In 1985, his horror film A Nightmare on Elm Street won the 'Critic's Award' at the "Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival".

In 1992, the Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film presented him the Pegasus Audience Award for the thriller The People Under the Stairs. His Fantasporto won the International Fantasy Film Award for Best Screenplay while the Best Film award went to his film Wes Craven's New Nightmare, the final A Nightmare on Elm Street film he directed. His Shocker was also nominated for Best Film in 1990.

The Gérardmer Film Festival granted him the Grand Prize in '97 for Scream.

He was nominated for Best Director for Scream at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA, in 1997.

In 2006, he was honored at Spike TV's Scream with the Mastermind Award (the tribute was presented to him by Neve Campbell).

Other work

Craven designed the Halloween 2008 logo for Google,[8] and was the second celebrity personality to take over the YouTube homepage on Halloween.[9]

Craven had a letter published in the July 19, 1968 edition of Life magazine, praising that periodical's coverage of contemporary rock music, in particular Frank Zappa.[10]

Personal life

Craven's first marriage to Bonnie Broecker produced two children, Jonathan Craven (born 1965) and Jessica Craven (born 1968). Jonathan is a writer and director with a few credits to his name. Jessica was a singer/songwriter in the group the Chapin Sisters. The marriage ended in 1970. In 1982, Craven married Millicent Eleanor Meyer. However, the two divorced, according to Joe Eszterhas's book American Rhapsody, after she began an affair with actress Sharon Stone.[citation needed] Also according to the book, on the day the divorce was finalized, Stone sent Craven a dozen black roses. Although Craven has never publicly commented on his wife's lesbian affair, he has stated in interviews that the marriage dissolved after he discovered it "was no longer anything but a sham."[11]

Books

Year Title
1999 Fountain Society

Filmography

Wes Craven Presents

Director

Year Title Notes
1972 The Last House on the Left
1977 The Hills Have Eyes
1978 Stranger in Our House TV
The Evolution of Snuff
1981 Deadly Blessing
1982 Swamp Thing
1984 Invitation to Hell TV
A Nightmare on Elm Street
1985 Chiller TV
The Hills Have Eyes Part II
The New Twilight Zone TV series
1986 Casebusters TV
Deadly Friend
1988 The Serpent and the Rainbow
1989 Shocker
1990 Night Visions TV
1991 The People Under the Stairs
1992 Nightmare Cafe TV series
1994 Wes Craven's New Nightmare
1995 Vampire in Brooklyn
1996 Scream
1997 Scream 2
1999 Music of the Heart
2000 Scream 3
2005 Cursed
Red Eye
2006 Paris, je t'aime Segment: Père-Lachaise
2007 Agitation
2010 My Soul to Take
2011 Scream 4 Post-production

Producer

Year Title Notes
1971 Together
1981 Kent State'
1987 A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
1989 The People Next Door TV Series
Shocker
1990 Night Visions TV
1991 The People Under the Stairs
1992 Nightmare Cafe TV Series
1993 Laurel Canyon TV
1994 Wes Craven's New Nightmare
1995 Mind Ripper
1997 Wishmaster
Scream 2
1998 Hollyweird TV
Carnival of Souls Remake
Don't Look Down TV
2000 Dracula 2000
2002 They Shoot Divas, Don't They? TV
2005 Feast
2006 The Hills Have Eyes Remake
The Breed
2007 The Hills Have Eyes 2 Sequel from the Remake
2009 The Last House on the Left Remake

Actor

Year Title Role Notes
1994 Wes Craven's New Nightmare Himself
1996 Scream "Fred" (School Janitor/Freddy Look-a-like) Cameo (uncredited)
1997 Scream 2 Camera Man (uncredited)
2001 Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back Himself Cameo
2005 Inside Deep Throat Himself
2006 Paris, je t'aime Vampire's Victim (uncredited)
2007 The Tripper Top hat-wearing hippy Cameo
2008 Diary of the Dead Voice on radio Cameo
2011 Scream 4 TBD Cameo


References

Wikiquote has quotations related to Wes Craven.
  1. ^ Wes Craven Biography (1939–)
  2. ^ The Biography Channel – Wes Craven Biography
  3. ^ Muir, John Kenneth (1998). Wes Craven: The Art of Horror. Jefferson, South Carolina: McFarland & Co. ISBN 0-7864-0576-7. pp. 8–9.
  4. ^ http://web.archive.org/web/20021003142223/http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Boulevard/7811/screamreferences.html
  5. ^ Slashed and Burned
  6. ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000127/bio
  7. ^ 'Scream IV' Officially Greenlit with Wes Craven Attached
  8. ^ Wes Craven Carves Google Logo
  9. ^ "Wes Craven Takes Over YouTube for Halloween!". Tubefilter News. 2008-08-31. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
  10. ^ Life Magazine, July 19 1968
  11. ^ [1]


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