Michael Lehmann
Encyclopedia
Michael Stephen Lehmann (born March 30, 1957; San Francisco, California
) is an American
film
and television director
.
Lehmann attended Columbia University
. His first job in the film industry was answering phones at Francis Ford Coppola
's American Zoetrope
film company. Later he supervised cameras on films that included 1983's The Outsiders
. Lehmann attended film school at the USC School of Cinematic Arts
and graduated in 1985. While at USC he made a student film, Beaver Gets a Boner, the title of which he believes helped get the attention of film executives who would later hire him.
Lehmann is probably most noted for directing the black comedy Heathers
. He also directed 40 Days and 40 Nights
, The Truth About Cats & Dogs
, Hudson Hawk
, Meet the Applegates
, Airheads
and Because I Said So
.
Lehmann directed his first television commercial via the Leo Burnett Company in June of 1996 for McDonald's. Lehmann also directs for television, and has worked on the short lived HBO comedy series The Comeback
and NBC
's The West Wing. Lehmann has guest directed on The Larry Sanders Show
, Watching Ellie
and Century City
. Recently, Lehmann has directed episodes of HBO dramas, Big Love
and True Blood
, as well as Showtime's
Californication
.
Lehmann's upcoming films include Your Word Against Mine.
At a Q & A session during 2007's South by Southwest
film festival in Austin, Texas, Lehmann claimed he would never make a sequel to Heathers. He claimed Winona Ryder
wanted to do Heathers set in Washington, D.C., but he saw no potential for the project.
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
) is an American
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...
.
Lehmann attended Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. His first job in the film industry was answering phones at Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is widely acclaimed as one of Hollywood's most innovative and influential film directors...
's American Zoetrope
American Zoetrope
American Zoetrope is a studio founded by Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas. Founded on December 12, 1969, American Zoetrope was an early adopter of digital filmmaking, including some of the earliest uses of HDTV...
film company. Later he supervised cameras on films that included 1983's The Outsiders
The Outsiders (film)
The Outsiders is a 1983 American drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, an adaptation of the novel The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton. The film was released in March 1983...
. Lehmann attended film school at the USC School of Cinematic Arts
USC School of Cinematic Arts
The USC School of Cinematic Arts, until 2006 named the School of Cinema-Television , is a film school within the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. It is the oldest and largest such school in the United States, established in 1929 as a joint venture with the Academy of...
and graduated in 1985. While at USC he made a student film, Beaver Gets a Boner, the title of which he believes helped get the attention of film executives who would later hire him.
Lehmann is probably most noted for directing the black comedy Heathers
Heathers
Heathers is a 1989 black comedy film starring Winona Ryder, Christian Slater and Shannen Doherty. The film portrays four girls in a trend-setting clique at a fictional Ohio high school...
. He also directed 40 Days and 40 Nights
40 Days and 40 Nights
This article refers to Michael Lehmann's 2002 film. For the 2007 Matthew Chapman book, see 40 Days and 40 Nights .40 Days and 40 Nights is a 2002 romantic comedy film directed by Michael Lehmann, written by Rob Perez and starring Josh Hartnett, Shannyn Sossamon and Paulo Costanzo...
, The Truth About Cats & Dogs
The Truth About Cats & Dogs
The Truth About Cats & Dogs is a 1996 American romantic comedy film, starring Janeane Garofalo, Uma Thurman, Ben Chaplin, and Jamie Foxx. It was directed by Michael Lehmann and written by Audrey Wells...
, Hudson Hawk
Hudson Hawk
Hudson Hawk is a 1991 American action comedy film directed by Michael Lehmann. Bruce Willis stars in the title role and also co-wrote the story. Danny Aiello, Andie MacDowell, James Coburn, David Caruso, Lorraine Toussaint, Frank Stallone, Sandra Bernhard, and Richard E...
, Meet the Applegates
Meet the Applegates
Meet the Applegates is a 1990 American black comedy film directed by Michael Lehmann. It was filmed in 1989, but not released until 1991. The movie takes a dark, satirical look at the end of the world, nuclear holocausts, alienism and terrorism. Meet the Applegates was filmed in Oshkosh and Neenah,...
, Airheads
Airheads
Airheads is a 1994 American comedy film written by Rich Wilkes and directed by Michael Lehmann. It stars Brendan Fraser, Steve Buscemi and Adam Sandler as a band of loser musicians called "The Lone Rangers" who take a radio station hostage, just so that their song would get played on the radio...
and Because I Said So
Because I Said So (film)
Because I Said So is a 2007 romantic comedy film directed by Michael Lehmann and starring Diane Keaton, Mandy Moore, Lauren Graham, Piper Perabo and Stephen Collins. It was released on February 2, 2007.-Plot:...
.
Lehmann directed his first television commercial via the Leo Burnett Company in June of 1996 for McDonald's. Lehmann also directs for television, and has worked on the short lived HBO comedy series The Comeback
The Comeback (TV series)
The Comeback is a television series produced by HBO that stars actress Lisa Kudrow as sitcom actress Valerie Cherish in modern-day Los Angeles, California. It was created by Kudrow and Michael Patrick King, a former executive producer of Sex and the City...
and NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's The West Wing. Lehmann has guest directed on The Larry Sanders Show
The Larry Sanders Show
The Larry Sanders Show is a satirical television sitcom that aired from August 1992 to May 1998 on the HBO cable television network in the United States. It starred stand-up comedian Garry Shandling as vain, neurotic talk show host Larry Sanders, and centered on the running of his TV show, and the...
, Watching Ellie
Watching Ellie
Watching Ellie is an American sitcom that starred Julia Louis-Dreyfus and was created by her husband, Brad Hall. It aired on NBC from February 2002 to May 2003, though only sixteen episodes were broadcast before it was canceled due to low ratings....
and Century City
Century City (TV series)
Century City is an American science fiction-legal drama television series set in Los Angeles in the year 2030.-Synopsis:The show follows the legal team of Crane, Constable, McNeil & Montero...
. Recently, Lehmann has directed episodes of HBO dramas, Big Love
Big Love
Big Love is an American television drama that aired on HBO between March 2006 and March 2011. The show is about a fictional fundamentalist Mormon family in Utah that practices polygamy...
and True Blood
True Blood
True Blood is an American television series created and produced by Alan Ball. It is based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries series of novels by Charlaine Harris, detailing the co-existence of vampires and humans in Bon Temps, a fictional, small town in the state of Louisiana...
, as well as Showtime's
Showtime Networks
Showtime Networks, Inc. is the corporate division of media conglomerate CBS Corporation.The company was established in 1983 as Showtime/The Movie Channel, Inc. after Viacom and Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment merged their premium channels, Showtime and The Movie Channel respectively, into one...
Californication
Californication (TV series)
Californication is an American comedy-drama that premiered on Showtime on August 13, 2007. The show was created by Tom Kapinos. The protagonist, Hank Moody , is a troubled novelist whose move to California, coupled with his writer's block, complicates his relationships with his longtime girlfriend...
.
Lehmann's upcoming films include Your Word Against Mine.
At a Q & A session during 2007's 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 in Austin, Texas, Lehmann claimed he would never make a sequel to Heathers. He claimed Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
wanted to do Heathers set in Washington, D.C., but he saw no potential for the project.