Mike White
Encyclopedia
Michael Christopher "Mike" White (born June 28, 1970) is an American
writer
, director
, actor
, and producer
for television
and film
and the winner of the Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award
for Chuck & Buck
.
, California
. White attended Polytechnic School
and Wesleyan University
. White's father is the Reverend Dr. Mel White
, a former speechwriter and ghostwriter for Religious Right
figures such as Jerry Falwell
and Pat Robertson
. White is openly bisexual. His father came out
as gay
in 1994.
and Freaks and Geeks
and wrote and acted in the films Chuck & Buck
, The Good Girl
, Orange County
, School of Rock
and Nacho Libre
. He also had a role in the 2004 remake
of The Stepford Wives
, and the 2008 film Smother
. Chuck and Buck was named the best film of 2000 by Entertainment Weekly. In an interview with The New York Times, Jeff Bridges called White's performance in Chuck and Buck "the performance of the decade".
He frequently collaborates with actor–writer Jack Black
on films. Together they formed the production company Black and White, which closed in 2006. White is not a fan of classic rock
, but he wrote School of Rock
specifically so Black could perform his own favorite rock music.
White made his directorial
debut with the self-penned Year of the Dog
at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival
. White is a vegan animal rights supporter and received an award from animal rights group PETA
for Year of the Dog, which was also the third screenplay of White's to be nominated for Best Screenplay at the Independent Film Awards. (He won for The Good Girl.)
He was a member of the US Dramatic Jury at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival
.
He appeared on the fourteenth season
of The Amazing Race
along with his father Mel
.
They lasted for seven legs before being eliminated in sixth place in Phuket
, Thailand
. Mel and Mike returned to compete in The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business, where they finished in tenth place.
Laura Dern
brought White into a project with HBO which became the series Enlightened
that premiered on October 10, 2011. White himself had suffered an on-the-job meltdown while running an earlier television series and incorporated elements of that experience into the new series' plot. Dern's character Amy Jellicoe goes to a Hawaiian retreat after her meltdown and is introduced to meditation
, echoing to a degree White's own exploration of Buddhist meditation
, and the character Jellicoe tries to continue the discipline as she resumes her working life. White wrote the pilot and all the episodes in the first season.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, 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:...
, 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...
, and 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...
for television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and the winner of the Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award
Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award
The Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award is presented to the creative team of a film budgeted at less than $500,000 by Film Independent, a non-profit organization dedicated to independent film and independent filmmakers...
for Chuck & Buck
Chuck & Buck
Chuck & Buck is a 2000 comedy-drama film written by and starring Mike White, and directed by Miguel Arteta. The title is a reference to the nickname that poet Charles Bukowski was known as in literary circles—Chuck Buk.-Plot:...
.
Early years
White was born in PasadenaPasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. White attended Polytechnic School
Polytechnic School
Polytechnic School, often referred to as simply Poly, is a college preparatory private school in Pasadena, California.-History:The school was founded in 1907 as the first private non-sectarian, non-profit elementary school in California. It descends from the Throop Polytechnic Institute founded by...
and Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
. White's father is the Reverend Dr. Mel White
Mel White
James Melville "Mel" White is an American clergyman and author. White was a behind-the-scenes member of the Evangelical Protestant movement through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, writing speeches and ghostwriting books for televangelists such as Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and Billy Graham...
, a former speechwriter and ghostwriter for Religious Right
Christian right
Christian right is a term used predominantly in the United States to describe "right-wing" Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies...
figures such as Jerry Falwell
Jerry Falwell
Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. was an evangelical fundamentalist Southern Baptist pastor, televangelist, and a conservative commentator from the United States. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia...
and Pat Robertson
Pat Robertson
Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson is a media mogul, television evangelist, ex-Baptist minister and businessman who is politically aligned with the Christian Right in the United States....
. White is openly bisexual. His father came out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
as gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
in 1994.
Career
White was a writer and producer on Dawson's CreekDawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...
and Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks
Freaks and Geeks is an American teen comedy-drama television series, created by Paul Feig and executive produced by Judd Apatow, that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season...
and wrote and acted in the films Chuck & Buck
Chuck & Buck
Chuck & Buck is a 2000 comedy-drama film written by and starring Mike White, and directed by Miguel Arteta. The title is a reference to the nickname that poet Charles Bukowski was known as in literary circles—Chuck Buk.-Plot:...
, The Good Girl
The Good Girl
The Good Girl is a 2002 black comedy-drama film directed by Miguel Arteta from a script by Mike White, and stars Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal and John C. Reilly.-Plot:...
, Orange County
Orange County (film)
Orange County is a 2002 American comedy film starring Colin Hanks and Jack Black. It was released on January 11, 2002. The movie was distributed by Paramount Pictures and produced by MTV Films and Scott Rudin. The movie was directed by Jake Kasdan and written by Mike White.-Plot:Shaun Brumder is a...
, School of Rock
School of Rock
School of Rock, also called The School of Rock, is a 2003 American musical comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, written by Mike White, and starring Jack Black...
and Nacho Libre
Nacho Libre
Nacho Libre is a 2006 comedy film directed by Jared Hess. It is a production of Nickelodeon Movies.The script was written by Jared Hess, Jerusha Hess and Mike White. It was loosely based on the story of Fray Tormenta , aka Rev. Sergio Gutiérrez Benítez, a real-life Mexican Catholic priest who had a...
. He also had a role in the 2004 remake
The Stepford Wives (2004 film)
The Stepford Wives is a 2004 American science fiction film. The film is a remake of the 1975 film of the same name; both films are based on the Ira Levin novel The Stepford Wives...
of The Stepford Wives
The Stepford Wives (1975 film)
The Stepford Wives is a 1975 science fiction–thriller film based on the 1972 Ira Levin novel of the same name. It was directed by Bryan Forbes with a screenplay by William Goldman, and stars Katharine Ross, Paula Prentiss, Peter Masterson, Nanette Newman and Tina Louise...
, and the 2008 film Smother
Smother (film)
Smother is a 2008 comedy film starring Diane Keaton as a mother who is over-attached to her adult son. The movie is directed by Vince Di Meglio.- Plot :...
. Chuck and Buck was named the best film of 2000 by Entertainment Weekly. In an interview with The New York Times, Jeff Bridges called White's performance in Chuck and Buck "the performance of the decade".
He frequently collaborates with actor–writer Jack Black
Jack Black
Jack Black , is an American actor and musician, notably of Tenacious D.Jack Black may also refer to:* Jack Black , late 19th - early 20th Century author and hobo* Jack Black , drummer for 1970s UK punk band The Boys...
on films. Together they formed the production company Black and White, which closed in 2006. White is not a fan of classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
, but he wrote School of Rock
School of Rock
School of Rock, also called The School of Rock, is a 2003 American musical comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, written by Mike White, and starring Jack Black...
specifically so Black could perform his own favorite rock music.
White made his directorial
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:...
debut with the self-penned Year of the Dog
Year of the Dog (film)
Year of the Dog is a 2007 comedy-drama film written and directed by Mike White, and starring Molly Shannon, Laura Dern, Regina King, Tom McCarthy, Josh Pais, John C. Reilly and Peter Sarsgaard...
at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival
2007 Sundance Film Festival
The 2007 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 18 until January 28, 2007 in Park City, Utah with screenings in Salt Lake City, Utah and Ogden, Utah. It was the 23-rd iteration of the Sundance Film Festival...
. White is a vegan animal rights supporter and received an award from animal rights group PETA
Peta
Peta can refer to:* peta-, an SI prefix denoting a factor of 1015* Peta, Greece, a town in Greece* Peta, the Pāli word for a Preta, or hungry ghost in Buddhism* Peta Wilson, an Australian actress and model* Peta Todd, English glamour model...
for Year of the Dog, which was also the third screenplay of White's to be nominated for Best Screenplay at the Independent Film Awards. (He won for The Good Girl.)
He was a member of the US Dramatic Jury at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival
2009 Sundance Film Festival
The 2009 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 15, 2009 until January 25 in Park City, Utah. It was the 25th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival.-Award winners:*Grand Jury Prize: Documentary - We Live in Public...
.
He appeared on the fourteenth season
The Amazing Race 14
The Amazing Race 14 is the fourteenth installment of the reality television show The Amazing Race. The Amazing Race 14 featured 11 teams of two, with a pre-existing relationship, in a race around the world....
of The Amazing Race
The Amazing Race (U.S. TV series)
The Amazing Race is an American reality game show in which teams of two or four race around the world against other teams, with the first-place team winning $1,000,000. As the original version of the Amazing Race franchise, the CBS program has been running since 2001 and is airing its nineteenth...
along with his father Mel
Mel White
James Melville "Mel" White is an American clergyman and author. White was a behind-the-scenes member of the Evangelical Protestant movement through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, writing speeches and ghostwriting books for televangelists such as Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and Billy Graham...
.
They lasted for seven legs before being eliminated in sixth place in Phuket
Phuket Province
Phuket , formerly known as Thalang and, in Western sources, Junk Ceylon , is one of the southern provinces of Thailand...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. Mel and Mike returned to compete in The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business, where they finished in tenth place.
Laura Dern
Laura Dern
Laura Elizabeth Dern is an American actress, film director and producer. Dern has acted in such films as Smooth Talk , Blue Velvet , Fat Man and Little Boy , Wild at Heart , Jurassic Park and October Sky...
brought White into a project with HBO which became the series Enlightened
Enlightened (TV series)
Enlightened is an American television series starring Laura Dern. The first season, which premiered on October 10, 2011 on HBO, will consist of 10 episodes.-Plot:...
that premiered on October 10, 2011. White himself had suffered an on-the-job meltdown while running an earlier television series and incorporated elements of that experience into the new series' plot. Dern's character Amy Jellicoe goes to a Hawaiian retreat after her meltdown and is introduced to meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
, echoing to a degree White's own exploration of Buddhist meditation
Buddhist meditation
Buddhist meditation refers to the meditative practices associated with the religion and philosophy of Buddhism.Core meditation techniques have been preserved in ancient Buddhist texts and have proliferated and diversified through teacher-student transmissions. Buddhists pursue meditation as part of...
, and the character Jellicoe tries to continue the discipline as she resumes her working life. White wrote the pilot and all the episodes in the first season.
Writing credits
- Dead Man on Campus (with Michael Traeger) (1998)
- Dawson's CreekDawson's CreekDawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...
(1998–1999) (TV) (also Producer) - Freaks and GeeksFreaks and GeeksFreaks and Geeks is an American teen comedy-drama television series, created by Paul Feig and executive produced by Judd Apatow, that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season...
(1999) (TV) (also Producer) - Chuck & BuckChuck & BuckChuck & Buck is a 2000 comedy-drama film written by and starring Mike White, and directed by Miguel Arteta. The title is a reference to the nickname that poet Charles Bukowski was known as in literary circles—Chuck Buk.-Plot:...
(2000) - PasadenaPasadena (TV series)Pasadena is an American primetime soap opera originally broadcast in the U.S. from September to November 2001 on Fox.-Summary:The series starred Alison Lohman as Lily McAllister, an initially naïve young woman who witnesses a stranger's suicide and begins to investigate the secrets being hidden by...
(2001) (also Creator/Executive Producer) - Orange CountyOrange County (film)Orange County is a 2002 American comedy film starring Colin Hanks and Jack Black. It was released on January 11, 2002. The movie was distributed by Paramount Pictures and produced by MTV Films and Scott Rudin. The movie was directed by Jake Kasdan and written by Mike White.-Plot:Shaun Brumder is a...
(2002) - The Good GirlThe Good GirlThe Good Girl is a 2002 black comedy-drama film directed by Miguel Arteta from a script by Mike White, and stars Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal and John C. Reilly.-Plot:...
(2002) - School of RockSchool of RockSchool of Rock, also called The School of Rock, is a 2003 American musical comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, written by Mike White, and starring Jack Black...
(2003) - Cracking UpCracking UpFor the movie, see Cracking Up .Cracking Up is an American television sitcom created by School of Rock writer Mike White, who also served as the series' head writer. It aired on the Fox Network on Monday nights from March to May 2004. The title of the program and the name of the psychiatrist, Dr...
(2004) (TV) (also Creator/Executive Producer) - Nacho LibreNacho LibreNacho Libre is a 2006 comedy film directed by Jared Hess. It is a production of Nickelodeon Movies.The script was written by Jared Hess, Jerusha Hess and Mike White. It was loosely based on the story of Fray Tormenta , aka Rev. Sergio Gutiérrez Benítez, a real-life Mexican Catholic priest who had a...
(2006) - Year of the DogYear of the Dog (film)Year of the Dog is a 2007 comedy-drama film written and directed by Mike White, and starring Molly Shannon, Laura Dern, Regina King, Tom McCarthy, Josh Pais, John C. Reilly and Peter Sarsgaard...
(2007) (also Director) - ThemThem: Adventures With ExtremistsThem: Adventures with Extremists is a book by British journalist Jon Ronson published in 2001. The book accompanied Ronson's documentary series The Secret Rulers of the World, which covered similar topics and depicted many of the same episodes...
(2011) - EnlightenedEnlightened (TV series)Enlightened is an American television series starring Laura Dern. The first season, which premiered on October 10, 2011 on HBO, will consist of 10 episodes.-Plot:...
(2011) (HBO pilot and first season)
Acting credits
- Chuck & BuckChuck & BuckChuck & Buck is a 2000 comedy-drama film written by and starring Mike White, and directed by Miguel Arteta. The title is a reference to the nickname that poet Charles Bukowski was known as in literary circles—Chuck Buk.-Plot:...
(2000) - Orange CountyOrange County (film)Orange County is a 2002 American comedy film starring Colin Hanks and Jack Black. It was released on January 11, 2002. The movie was distributed by Paramount Pictures and produced by MTV Films and Scott Rudin. The movie was directed by Jake Kasdan and written by Mike White.-Plot:Shaun Brumder is a...
(2002) - The Good GirlThe Good GirlThe Good Girl is a 2002 black comedy-drama film directed by Miguel Arteta from a script by Mike White, and stars Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal and John C. Reilly.-Plot:...
(2002) - School of RockSchool of RockSchool of Rock, also called The School of Rock, is a 2003 American musical comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, written by Mike White, and starring Jack Black...
(2003) - The Stepford WivesThe Stepford Wives (2004 film)The Stepford Wives is a 2004 American science fiction film. The film is a remake of the 1975 film of the same name; both films are based on the Ira Levin novel The Stepford Wives...
(2004) - Pushing DaisiesPushing DaisiesPushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations...
(2008) (TV) - SmotherSmother (film)Smother is a 2008 comedy film starring Diane Keaton as a mother who is over-attached to her adult son. The movie is directed by Vince Di Meglio.- Plot :...
(2008) - Gentlemen BroncosGentlemen BroncosGentlemen Broncos is a 2009 comedy film written by Jared and Jerusha Hess, and directed by Jared Hess. The film stars Michael Angarano, Jemaine Clement, Sam Rockwell and Jennifer Coolidge.-Plot:...
(2009) (also Producer) - ZombielandZombielandZombieland is a 2009 American zombie comedy film directed by Ruben Fleischer from a screenplay written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. The film stars Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin as survivors of a zombie apocalypse...
(2009) - The Amazing RaceThe Amazing RaceThe Amazing Race is a reality television game show in which teams of two people, who have some form of a preexisting personal relationship, race around the world in competition with other teams...
(2009) (TV) - The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business (2011) (TV)
Awards and nominations
- Broadcast Film Critics Association AwardsBroadcast Film Critics Association AwardsThe Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards, commonly called the Critics' Choice Awards, are bestowed annually by the Broadcast Film Critics Association to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. Nominees are selected by written ballots in a week-long voting period, and are announced in...
(Critics Choice Award) - Chlotrudis Awards
- Deauville Film Festival (Acting Prize)
- Independent Spirit AwardsIndependent Spirit AwardsThe Independent Spirit Awards , founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glass pyramids containing suspended shoestrings representing the paltry budgets of independent films. In 1986, the event was renamed the Independent Spirit...
- Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards (Sierra Award)
- Golden Satellite Award
- Seattle International Film FestivalSeattle International Film FestivalThe Seattle International Film Festival , held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees...
(New American Cinema Award)
External links
- The Director Interviews: Mike White, Year of the Dog at Filmmaker Magazine
- July 2000 article about White from The Village VoiceThe Village VoiceThe Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
- May 2003 article about White from his Pasadena, CaliforniaPasadena, CaliforniaPasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
grade and high school newspaper