Daniel Barnz
Barnz at the New York premiere of Won't Back Down, September 2012
Born1970 (age 53–54)
Gladwyne, Pennsylvania
Occupation(s)Screenwriter, film director
Years active2008–present
Children2

Daniel Barnz (born 1970) is an American screenwriter and director.

Life and career

Barnz was born Daniel Bernstein in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania,[1] a suburb of Philadelphia. His parents, Richard J. Bernstein and Carol L. Bernstein, are both professors. He is openly gay[2] and later changed his surname to an amalgamation of Bernstein and Schwartz, the surname of his partner of almost two decades, Ben Schwartz. The couple has two children. Barnz describes himself as "a Jewish liberal Democrat".[3]

Barnz graduated from Yale University and the University of Southern California Film School.[4] He made his directorial debut in the 2001 movie, The Cutting Room. He directed the 2009 movie, Phoebe in Wonderland, which received mixed reviews from critics. He wrote and directed a movie adaption of the novel Beastly, a modern-day take on Beauty and the Beast. The movie was released on 4 March 2011.[5]

His film Won't Back Down (2012) received mixed reviews and garnered controversy; it was attacked by Randi Weingarten, head of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the predominant national teachers' union, as having "the most blatant stereotypes and caricatures I have ever seen-even worse than in Waiting for Superman", another film attacked as "anti-teacher union".[3]

In 2014 he directed the film Cake starring Jennifer Aniston, which received mixed reviews. In 2015, the film was honored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration with a Voice Award for its respectful portrayal of mental health.[6]

Filmography

Year Title Notes
2001The Cutting Room
2008Phoebe in WonderlandNominated—Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic Direction
2011Beastly
2012Won't Back Down
2014Cake
2021GenerationTelevision series; co-creator with his daughter, Zelda

References

  1. ↑ Champagne, Christine, "10 Directors to Watch: Daniel Barnz", Variety, 16 January 2008
  2. ↑ "Vanessa Hudgens: 'I Don't See People as Gay or Straight'". 22 April 2015.
  3. 1 2 Lloyd Grove. Newsweek, 1 & 8 October 2012, p. 6.
  4. ↑ "Bio: Daniel Barnz" Archived 11 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Moviefone
  5. ↑ Title Treatment and New Hi-Res Look at 'Beastly'
  6. ↑ "Winners of the 2015 Voice Awards". Archived from the original on 7 August 2016.
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