Insights from the Cinematic World: Actors /Directors

Terence Davies

As a filmmaker, Terence Davies is noted for his recurring themes of emotional endurance, the influence of memory on everyday life and the potentially crippling effects of dogmatic religiosity on the emotional life of individuals and societies.

Read more
JOHNNY DEPP is an award-winning actor who is also producing projects under the banner of his company, infinitum nihil.

Johnny Depp

John Christopher “Johnny” Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor, producer, and musician. Depp was born in Owensboro, Kentucky, the youngest of four children of Betty Sue Palmer (née Wells), a waitress, and John Christopher Depp, a civil engineer.

Read more
Bradley Cooper became fluent in French at Georgetown and spent six months as an exchange student in Aix-en-Provence, France.

Bradley Cooper

Bradley Cooper made his Broadway debut in the spring of 2006 in Joe Montello’s production of “Three Days of Rain” opposite Julia Roberts and Paul Rudd. In July 2008, Cooper joined the cast of the critically acclaimed Theresa Rebeck play “The Understudy,”

Read more
In 2013, Elba made his directorial debut with SKYTV’s Pavement Psychologist and the music video for Mumford & Sons “Lover of the Light.”

Idris Elba

Idris Elba showcases his creative versatility both on-screen in television and film as well as behind the camera as a producer and director. He continues to captivate audiences and secure his position as the one to watch in Hollywood, with a string of well-received performances in high-profile films as well as and multiple critically acclaimed television series.

Read more
David O. Russell was honored with a Career Tribute at the Gotham Independent Film Awards

David O. Russell

David Russell was born in New York City, New York, the son of Maria (née Muzio) and Bernard Russell, who was a sales executive for Simon & Schuster. His father was from a Russian Jewish family, while his mother was Italian American and Catholic. He was raised in an atheist household.

Read more
Matt Damon was the founder of H2O Africa Foundation, the charitable arm of the Running the Sahara expedition, which merged with WaterPartners to create Water.org in July 2009.

Matt Damon

Matthew Paige “Matt” Damon (born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, screenwriter, producer, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the drama film Good Will Hunting (1997) from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend and actor Ben Affleck.

Read more
Along with several friends, including Brett Rodriguez, and his own wife Jenna Dewan, Channing Tatum started two production companies, 33andOut Productions and Iron Horse Entertainment.

Channing Tatum

Channing Matthew Tatum (born April 26, 1980) is an American actor and film producer.. Channing Tatum was born and raised in Cullman, Alabama. He is the son of Kay (née Faust), an airline worker, and Glenn Tatum, who worked in construction. His ancestry includes Irish, French, German, and Native American.

Read more
Noomi Rapace married Swedish actor Ola Norell in 2001. Together, they chose the surname Rapace after they were married; it means "bird of prey" in French and Italian. In September 2010, the couple filed for divorce.

Noomi Rapace

Noomi Rapace (born December 28, 1979) is a Swedish actress. She was born in Hudiksvall, Sweden. Her mother, Nina Norén (born Kristina Norén; 1954) is a Swedish actress, and her father, Rogelio Durán (November 10, 1953 – November 4, 2006), was a Spanish Flamenco singer from Badajoz.

Read more
Favreau credits the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons with giving him "...a really strong background in imagination, storytelling, understanding how to create tone and a sense of balance."

Jon Favreau

John Favreau was born in Flushing, Queens, New York, the son of Madeleine, an elementary school teacher who died of leukemia in 1979, and Charles Favreau, a special education teacher. His mother was Jewish and his father is a Catholic of Italian and distant French-Canadian ancestry. Favreau attended Hebrew school.

Read more
Franco has been published several times in magazines and through his own books and is currently teaching college courses at UCLA, USC and CAL ARTS and acting classes at STUDIO 4.

James Franco

James Franco was born in Palo Alto, California. His mother, Betsy Lou (née Verne), is a writer and actress, and his father, Douglas Eugene “Doug” Franco (d. 2011), ran a Silicon Valley business. The two met as students at Stanford University. James Franco’s father was of Portuguese (Madeiran) and Swedish descent. Franco’s mother is Jewish, a descendant of immigrants from Russia.

Read more
Jason Bateman is a fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers

Jason Bateman

Jason Kent Bateman (born January 14, 1969) is an American television and film actor. Bateman was born in Rye, New York. His mother, Victoria Elizabeth, was a former flight attendant for Pan Am, and his father, Kent Bateman, is an actor, film and television writer/director, and founder of a repertory stage in Hollywood. His mother was from the United Kingdom, born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

Read more