Bob Byington
Encyclopedia
Bob Byington is an award-winning independent American
film director
, screenwriter
, and actor
living in Austin, Texas
. He is most noted for his films RSO (Registered Sex Offender) (2008) and Harmony and Me (2009).
. He studied at the University of California, Santa Cruz
and received a major in American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin
. Byington directed his first film Shameless in 1996, and followed up with Olympia in 1998, which played on opening night of the South by Southwest
Film Festival. He then entered a decade long "God-imposed" hiatus before directing his next two films RSO [Registered Sex Offender] (2008) and Harmony and Me (2009).
described his film Harmony and Me as a "collision of joyous whimsy and bittersweet melancholy." His work is occasionally lumped in with the larger mumblecore
movement in part because of his appearance in Andrew Bujalski
's film Beeswax
and his use of actors, such as Bujalski, Justin Rice
, and Alex Karpovsky
, who appeared in movies carrying the mumblecore label.
Byington considers his films thematically different from mumblecore and has resisted the label. Variety magazine agreed in its review of Harmony and Me describing Byington's work as "mumblecore without the mumble." Unlike the extreme naturalistic dialogue of many mumblecore films, Byington's work leans towards exact dialogue and, according to Roger Ebert, "perfect timing" which is "unreasonably funny". Filmmaker Magazine
likened his rich humor to the New Hollywood
comedies of the 1970s.
Byington often reuses performers, including Nick Offerman
, Kristen Tucker, Pat Healy, Keith Poulson, Kevin Corrigan
and Suzy Nakamura
. Offerman will star in Byington's latest film, Somebody Up There Likes Me, which begins shooting Summer 2011 in Austin, Texas.
Michael Moore
awarded Byington the Stanley Kubrick Award for "bold and innovative filmmaking"in 2009 and praised him:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
, screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
living in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. He is most noted for his films RSO (Registered Sex Offender) (2008) and Harmony and Me (2009).
Bio
Byington grew up in Lincoln, NebraskaLincoln, Nebraska
The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....
. He studied at the University of California, Santa Cruz
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California...
and received a major in American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
. Byington directed his first film Shameless in 1996, and followed up with Olympia in 1998, which played on opening night of the South by Southwest
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
Film Festival. He then entered a decade long "God-imposed" hiatus before directing his next two films RSO [Registered Sex Offender] (2008) and Harmony and Me (2009).
Style and Content
Byington's work has been called literate, bawdy, sardonic, and quirky. The Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
described his film Harmony and Me as a "collision of joyous whimsy and bittersweet melancholy." His work is occasionally lumped in with the larger mumblecore
Mumblecore
Mumblecore is an American independent film movement that arose at the turn of the 21st century. Filmmakers associated with the movement include Andrew Bujalski, Lynn Shelton, Mark Duplass, Jay Duplass, Aaron Katz, Joe Swanberg, and Barry Jenkins....
movement in part because of his appearance in Andrew Bujalski
Andrew Bujalski
Andrew Bujalski, born April 29, 1977 in Boston, Massachusetts, is an American film director, screenwriter and actor, who has been called the "Godfather of Mumblecore."- Bio :...
's film Beeswax
Beeswax
Beeswax is a natural wax produced in the bee hive of honey bees of the genus Apis. It is mainly esters of fatty acids and various long chain alcohols...
and his use of actors, such as Bujalski, Justin Rice
Justin Rice
-Music career:Since 2001, he has played guitar for indie rock band Bishop Allen. He also co-wrote the music for the documentary The Bully Project with band-mate Christian Rudder.-Movie career:...
, and Alex Karpovsky
Alex Karpovsky
Alex Karpovsky is an American director, actor, screenwriter, producer and editor.Alex Karpovsky's first feature-length film, , was completed in 2006. The critically acclaimed dark comedy garnered numerous awards on the festival circuit before being released theatrically by Indiepix...
, who appeared in movies carrying the mumblecore label.
Byington considers his films thematically different from mumblecore and has resisted the label. Variety magazine agreed in its review of Harmony and Me describing Byington's work as "mumblecore without the mumble." Unlike the extreme naturalistic dialogue of many mumblecore films, Byington's work leans towards exact dialogue and, according to Roger Ebert, "perfect timing" which is "unreasonably funny". Filmmaker Magazine
Filmmaker Magazine
Filmmaker is a quarterly publication magazine covering issues relating to independent film. The magazine was founded in 1992 by Karol Martesko-Fenster, Scott Macaulay and Holly Willis...
likened his rich humor to the New Hollywood
New Hollywood
New Hollywood or post-classical Hollywood, sometimes referred to as the "American New Wave", refers to the time from roughly the late-1960s to the early 1980s when a new generation of young filmmakers came to prominence in America, influencing the types of films produced, their production and...
comedies of the 1970s.
Byington often reuses performers, including Nick Offerman
Nick Offerman
Nick Offerman is an American actor best known for his role as Ron Swanson in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation. He is also a skilled woodworker.-Early life and career:...
, Kristen Tucker, Pat Healy, Keith Poulson, Kevin Corrigan
Kevin Corrigan
Kevin Fitzgerald Corrigan is an American actor who has appeared mostly in independent films and television since the 1990s.-Life and career:Corrigan was born in The Bronx, New York to an Irish-American father and a Puerto Rican mother...
and Suzy Nakamura
Suzy Nakamura
Susan Aiko "Suzy" Nakamura is an American actress. She starred opposite Ted Danson in the ABC sitcom Help Me Help You. Nakamura has also had many guest appearances on American sitcoms such as According to Jim, Half and Half, 8 Simple Rules, Curb Your Enthusiasm and How I Met Your Mother and had a...
. Offerman will star in Byington's latest film, Somebody Up There Likes Me, which begins shooting Summer 2011 in Austin, Texas.
Awards
- Harmony and Me
- People's Choice Award for Best Narrative, Denver Film FestivalDenver Film FestivalThe Denver Film Festival is held in November, primarily in the Tivoli Union on the Auraria Campus and the new Denver Film Center/Colfax, in Denver Colorado...
- Selected as the only American film to have its premiere at New Directors/New Films presented by the Museum of Modern ArtMuseum of Modern ArtThe Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
and the Film Society of Lincoln CenterFilm Society of Lincoln CenterThe Film Society of Lincoln Center based in New York City, United States, is one of the world's most prominent film presentation organizations. Founded in 1969 by three Lincoln Center executives - William F. May, Martin E. Segal and Schuyler G...
. - Financed in part by an Annenberg Fellowship from the Sundance InstituteSundance InstituteSundance Institute is a non-profit organization founded by Robert Redford in 1981 that actively advances the work of filmmakers and storytellers worldwide...
in 2008.
- People's Choice Award for Best Narrative, Denver Film Festival
Michael Moore
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore is an American filmmaker, author, social critic and activist. He is the director and producer of Fahrenheit 9/11, which is the highest-grossing documentary of all time. His films Bowling for Columbine and Sicko also place in the top ten highest-grossing documentaries...
awarded Byington the Stanley Kubrick Award for "bold and innovative filmmaking"in 2009 and praised him:
"To me, Austin is a really great example of a close-knit American independent filmmaking community that shows the kind of collaboration and inventiveness that it takes to make great films outside of the studio system. You've got a guy like Bob Byington who has developed a very unique style working with the same group of people on his last few films, and his films feel very organic as a result. They're the kind of movies that can only be made if the cast and crew are very comfortable working together. And when you watch his films you feel like you're part of their group too – it's like he's letting the audience in on a big inside joke."
Filmography (as writer and director)
- Shameless (1996)
- Olympia (1998)
- RSO [Registered Sex Offender] (2008)
- Harmony and Me (2009)
- Somebody Up There Likes Me (in production)