Jeremy Kagan
Encyclopedia
Jeremy Paul Kagan is an American
film
and television director
, screenwriter
and television producer
.
from Harvard University
in 1967 and went on to attend the newly formed New York University Graduate Institute of Film & Television
was in the first class at the American Film Institute.
(1977), about veterans returning from the Vietnam War
, The Big Fix
, a political thriller with Richard Dreyfuss, The Chosen
(1981) from the classic book of the same name by Chaim Potok
, and The Journey of Natty Gann
, the first American movie ever to win the Gold Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival
, the underground comedy Big Man On Campus, and the hybrid film Golda's Balcony from the hit play.
He has also been a prolific television director. In 1996, Kagan won an Emmy Award
for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
for the ""Leave of Absence" of Chicago Hope
. Other credits include the television movie Katherine: The Making of an American Revolutionary, which he also wrote, and Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 for which he won the CableACE Award
for Best Dramatic Special. Kagan also directed Roswell: The UFO Conspiracy, which garnered a Golden Globe Award
nomination.
Other television films include The Ballad oF Lucy Whipple, Courage with Sophia Loren
, Scott Joplin, Descending Angel for HBO and for Showtime Color of Justice, Bobbie's Girl, and Crown Heights, about the riots in 1991 which won the Humanitas Award in 2004 for "affirming the dignity of every person." This film also received an NAACP Image Award and the Directors Guild nomination for best family film. Kagan also directed a movie episode of Steven Spielberg
's Emmy winning Taken. He has worked on several other series shows including The West Wing, The Guardian
, Resurrection Blvd.
, Picket Fences
, Boomtown
and more.
Kagan produced and directed the ten-part series The ACLU Freedom Files, in 2006 and 2007 which received a number of awards and was shown on Link TV
, Court TV
and PBS. Kagan recently made a number of short documentaries and advocacy films for NGOs including The Doe Fund which works with the homeless and formerly incarcerated, and The Democracy School a movement developing local governance, and Bioneers which advances achievements in environmental and social justice.
where he teaches the graduate courses in directing and has recently created the Center for Change Making Media which is to become a hub for research and training in advocacy cinematic techniques.
He has served as Artistic Director at the Robert Redford
's Sundance Institute
and is on a National Board Member of the Directors Guild of America
and chairperson of its Special Projects Committee which provides cultural and educational programs for the 14,000 members. In 2004 he was honored with the Robert Aldrich Award for "extraordinary service to the guild."
Kagan is also the author of the book Directors Close Up (Scarecrow, 2006).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film
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:...
and television director
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
, 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 television producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
.
Early life
Born in Mount Vernon, New York, Kagan received his B.A.Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1967 and went on to attend the newly formed New York University Graduate Institute of Film & Television
Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
was in the first class at the American Film Institute.
Film and television career
Kagan's feature film credits include the box-office hit HeroesHeroes (film)
Heroes is a 1977 comedy drama film directed by Jeremy Kagan and starring Henry Winkler and co-starring Sally Field and Harrison Ford...
(1977), about veterans returning from the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, The Big Fix
The Big Fix
The Big Fix is a 1978 film directed by Jeremy Kagan and based on the novel by Roger L. Simon, who also wrote the screenplay. It starred Richard Dreyfuss as private detective Moses Wine and co-starred Susan Anspach and John Lithgow...
, a political thriller with Richard Dreyfuss, The Chosen
The Chosen (film)
The Chosen is a 1981 drama film directed by Jeremy Kagan, based on the bestselling book of the same name by Chaim Potok published in 1967. It stars Maximilian Schell and Rod Steiger. It won three awards at the 1981 Montréal World Film Festival.-Plot:...
(1981) from the classic book of the same name by Chaim Potok
Chaim Potok
Chaim Potok was an American Jewish author and rabbi. Potok is most famous for his first book The Chosen, a 1967 novel which was listed on The New York Times’ best seller list for 39 weeks and sold more than 3,400,000 copies.-Biography :Herman Harold Potok was born in The Bronx, New York City, to...
, and The Journey of Natty Gann
The Journey of Natty Gann
The Journey of Natty Gann is a 1985 American film directed by Jeremy Paul Kagan, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and released by Buena Vista Pictures.-Plot:Set in 1935, the movie tells the story of a young woman, Natty Gann...
, the first American movie ever to win the Gold Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival
Moscow International Film Festival
Moscow International Film Festival , is the film festival first held in Moscow in 1959. From its inception to 1995 it was held every second year in July, alternating with the Karlovy Vary festival. The festival has been held annually since 1995....
, the underground comedy Big Man On Campus, and the hybrid film Golda's Balcony from the hit play.
He has also been a prolific television director. In 1996, Kagan won an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series is an Emmy presented to the best directing of a television drama series.-Best Direction of a Single Program of a Drama Series:*1959: Jack Smight – Alcoa-Goodyear Theatre ...
for the ""Leave of Absence" of Chicago Hope
Chicago Hope
Chicago Hope is an American medical drama series created by David E. Kelley that ran from September 18, 1994, to May 5, 2000. It takes place in a fictional private charity hospital.-Premise:The show stars Mandy Patinkin as Dr...
. Other credits include the television movie Katherine: The Making of an American Revolutionary, which he also wrote, and Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 for which he won the CableACE Award
CableACE Award
The CableACE Award was an award that was given from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in American cable television programming...
for Best Dramatic Special. Kagan also directed Roswell: The UFO Conspiracy, which garnered a Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
nomination.
Other television films include The Ballad oF Lucy Whipple, Courage with Sophia Loren
Sophia Loren
Sophia Loren, OMRI is an Italian actress.In 1962, Loren won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in Two Women, along with 21 awards, becoming the first actress to win an Academy Award for a non-English-speaking performance...
, Scott Joplin, Descending Angel for HBO and for Showtime Color of Justice, Bobbie's Girl, and Crown Heights, about the riots in 1991 which won the Humanitas Award in 2004 for "affirming the dignity of every person." This film also received an NAACP Image Award and the Directors Guild nomination for best family film. Kagan also directed a movie episode of Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's Emmy winning Taken. He has worked on several other series shows including The West Wing, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, Resurrection Blvd.
Resurrection Blvd.
Resurrection Blvd. is an American dramatic series which aired on Showtime for three seasons from 2000 to 2002.-Plot:In East Los Angeles, California, the Santiago family has had three generations of boxers within the family. They continue their battle to become boxing champions while struggling with...
, Picket Fences
Picket Fences
Picket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States...
, Boomtown
Boomtown
A boomtown is a community that experiences sudden and rapid population and economic growth. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although the term can also be applied to communities growing very rapidly for different reasons,...
and more.
Kagan produced and directed the ten-part series The ACLU Freedom Files, in 2006 and 2007 which received a number of awards and was shown on Link TV
Link TV
Link TV is a non-commercial American satellite television network providing "diverse perspectives on world and national issues." It is carried nationally on DirecTV and Dish Network. Link TV was launched as a daily, 24-hour non-commercial network in 1999...
, Court TV
Court TV
truTV is an American cable television network owned by Turner Broadcasting, a subsidiary of Time Warner. The network launched as Court TV in 1991, changing to truTV in 2008...
and PBS. Kagan recently made a number of short documentaries and advocacy films for NGOs including The Doe Fund which works with the homeless and formerly incarcerated, and The Democracy School a movement developing local governance, and Bioneers which advances achievements in environmental and social justice.
Other ventures
Kagan is a full tenured professor at the University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
where he teaches the graduate courses in directing and has recently created the Center for Change Making Media which is to become a hub for research and training in advocacy cinematic techniques.
He has served as Artistic Director at the Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
's Sundance Institute
Sundance Institute
Sundance Institute is a non-profit organization founded by Robert Redford in 1981 that actively advances the work of filmmakers and storytellers worldwide...
and is on a National Board Member of the Directors Guild of America
Directors Guild of America
Directors Guild of America is an entertainment labor union which represents the interests of film and television directors in the United States motion picture industry...
and chairperson of its Special Projects Committee which provides cultural and educational programs for the 14,000 members. In 2004 he was honored with the Robert Aldrich Award for "extraordinary service to the guild."
Kagan is also the author of the book Directors Close Up (Scarecrow, 2006).
Personal life
Kagan lives in Venice, California with his companion Anneke Campbell who is an author and was the writer on the series Freedom Files, and his daughter Eve is a graduate of Harvard Ed School, an actress, writer and yoga teacher.Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Result | Category | Film or series |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | CableACE Awards | Nominated | Directing a Theatrical or Dramatic Special | Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 |
| Won | Dramatic Special | Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 (Shared with Amanda DiGiulio, Charles Hairston, Max A. Keller, Micheline H. Keller, and Ron Sossi) |
||
| 2004 | Directors Guild of America Award | Won | Robert B. Aldrich Achievement Award | |
| 2005 | Nominated | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Children's Programs | Crown Heights | |
| 1996 | Emmy Award Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American primetime television programming... |
Won | Outstanding Individual Achievement in Directing for a Drama Series | Chicago Hope (For ""Leave of Absence" episode) |
| 1981 | Montreal World Film Festival Montreal World Film Festival The Montreal World Film Festival , founded in 1977, is one of Canada's oldest international film festivals and the only competitive film festival in North America accredited by the FIAPF... |
Won | Prize of the Ecumenical Jury - Special Mention | The Chosen The Chosen (film) The Chosen is a 1981 drama film directed by Jeremy Kagan, based on the bestselling book of the same name by Chaim Potok published in 1967. It stars Maximilian Schell and Rod Steiger. It won three awards at the 1981 Montréal World Film Festival.-Plot:... |
| Grand Prix des Amériques | The Chosen | |||
| 1987 | Paris Film Festival | Won | Special Jury Prize | The Chosen |