Lexi Alexander
Lexi Alexander | |
---|---|
Born | Alexandra Mirai 23 August 1974 |
Nationality | German Palestinian[1] |
Other names | Lexi Mirai |
Occupation | Director |
Years active | 2002–present |
Website | lexi-alexander |
Alexandra Mirai (
Early life and education
Alexander was born in Mannheim, Germany, to a German mother and a Palestinian father.[3] She grew up in Mannheim.[4] Alexander's father was born and raised in Ramallah, Palestine.[5]
Alexander studied acting in Los Angeles at Joanne Baron's acting school learning Meisner technique and with acting coach Piero Dusa. She took extension classes in filmmaking at University of California, Los Angeles.[6]
Career
Martial arts and stunt work
Alexander began studying martial arts, specifically judo, when she was 8 years old. At 14, she switched to Shotokan karate. She has a third-degree black belt in karate.[2]
Alexander excelled at kickboxing, where after two years in the sport, she joined the German National Team.
In 1994, at the age of 19, Alexander became the
At the age of 19, she retired from professional fighting and moved to the United States. Alexander had met Chuck Norris at a kickboxing event in the United States and she had previously acted in small roles in German TV. Norris encouraged her to come to Hollywood to act and study filmmaking. He was one of her sponsors for immigration.[6]
With the assistance of martial artist
Alexander went on to work steadily as a stunt person doing fighting stunts and motorcycles, falls from high-rise buildings, going on to learn precision driving and race car driving.[8][10] She also partially trained Marines in hand-to-hand combat one time in 1994.[11]
Filmmaking
The first film Alexander directed was called
In 2005, Alexander directed her first full-length feature film called Green Street, also known as Green Street Hooligans, or Hooligans.[4] The independent film starred Charlie Hunnam as soccer hooligan Pete Dunham, Elijah Wood as Matt Buckner, Claire Forlani as Shannon, Marc Warren as Steve, and Leo Gregory as Bover,[14] and was produced by Gigi Pritzker and Deborah Del Prete.[15]
Green Street Hooligans was inspired by her experience growing up watching her family's favorite German
Released in 2005, Green Street Hooligans was only the second in the history of the South by Southwest festival to win both the Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature and Audience Award for Narrative Feature, after Alex Holdridge's Sexless in 2003.[16][17]
In 2008, Alexander directed the film Punisher: War Zone starring Ray Stevenson as the Punisher.[18] She was the first woman to direct a Marvel adaptation and it was her first studio film.[6] At the time of its release, the film was considered a commercial and critical failure.[19][20] The film has since become considered a cult classic.[6][21][22] Comedian Patton Oswalt was an early and vocal defender of the film.[6][23][24]
Alexander has been outspoken about her experience with Punisher. The film's budget shrank considerably, and Alexander wanted to work on a studio film so she said she was hired at a low rate. Then, during marketing, that budget was also low, and, in her opinion, the Christmas release date a mis-step.[25][26][27] She also mentioned that due the film developing a cult following, she's since mainly been optioned scripts with extreme levels of violence, which she passes on because she's naturally "squeamish."[28]
In 2011, Alexander wrote and directed the
In 2012, Alexander directed an episode for
In 2014, the higher profile Alexander received from her advocacy work speaking out about gender parity in Hollywood on
In 2016, it was reported that she would be directing a biopic called Crossface about the life of Canadian
In February 2018, it was announced that Alexander was working on a TV series for Blumhouse Productions called You Bury Me,[33] intended to be a war-torn love story set in modern-day Iraq, Syria and Turkey.[34]
In June 2018, Alexander was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[35]
Alexander has a long-term working relationship with martial artist Pat Johnson, who she has hired as a stunt coordinator and choreographer since starting her directing her career.[9] Alexander is a fan of film director Euzhan Palcy.[36]
Advocacy
In early 2014, on her Twitter feed and in a blog post that was republished[37] and widely discussed,[38][39] Alexander discussed the lack of women directors in Hollywood and lifted back the curtain on the lack of gender parity in the entertainment industry.[6][40] Alexander has been outspoken on Hollywood sexism and has spoken at length about the directorial opportunities she says were denied to her because of her gender.[41][42] In a 2014 interview she stated that she and director Catherine Hardwicke were denied a meeting to discuss possibly directing The Fighter, as the producers were not interested in hiring a woman to direct.[43][44]
Alexander worked to support the American Civil Liberties Union investigation into gender bias in hiring practices, specifically for women directors, which cast a critical eye on the role of the Directors Guild of America.[41][42][45][46] Film school graduates have gender parity, but once in the industry, the percentage of women hired ranges from 8% in 2017 to less than 6%.[44][47][48] In 2015, Alexander testified about her experiences as part of an investigation by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on hiring practices in Hollywood.[49]
Alexander has said she is against illegal
Personal life
As a teenager, Alexander was a member of Mannheim City Boys, a
Alexander has metal screws in her knees from her time as a kickboxer.[7][53]
As of 2017[update], Alexander has been practicing the Russian martial arts technique called Systema.[6][49]
Selected awards
- 1994: United States Marine Corps, Meritorious Service Award for Outstanding Service and Exemplary Performance of Duty, Trainer, Advisor to Marine Close Combat Instructor Staff[11]
- 2003: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film (nominee) for Johnny Flynton – with Alexander Buono[54]
- 2005:
- 2005:
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Actor | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1997 | Executive Target | No | No | No | No | Production assistant (as Lexi Mirai) |
2001 | Pitcher Perfect | Yes | No | No | No | Short film |
2002 | Fool Proof | Yes | No | No | No | |
Johnny Flynton | Yes | Yes | No | No | ||
2005 | Green Street Hooligans | Yes | Yes | Executive | No | |
Wheelman | No | No | Yes | No | ||
2008 | Punisher: War Zone | Yes | No | No | No | |
2009 | Green Street Hooligans 2 | No | Characters | Executive | No | |
2010 | Lifted
|
Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Role: Afghan Woman |
2024 | Absolute Dominion | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Post-production[55] |
Television
Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Actor | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1997 | Boy Meets World | No | No | No | Yes | Role: Sonja Episode: "Last Tango in Philly" |
2012 | BlackBoxTV | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "AEZP: Execution Style" |
2015 | Arrow | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Beyond Redemption" |
2016 | Supergirl | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Truth, Justice and the American Way" |
Limitless | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "A Dog's Breakfast" | |
American Gothic | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Kindred Spirits" | |
2017 | Taken | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Hail Mary" |
How to Get Away with Murder | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "I Love Her" | |
2018 | S.W.A.T. | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Day Off" |
2019 | L.A.'s Finest | Yes | No | No | No | Episode: "Thief" |
TBA | You Bury Me | No | Yes | Executive | No | Pre-production |
Stunt work
- 1997: Batman & Robin[2]
Selected writing
- Alexander, Lexi (14 January 2014). "An Oscar-Nominated Director Gets Real About How Women Are Treated in Hollywood". IndieWire.
- Alexander, Lexi (29 July 2014). "My Hell is for Hyphenates podcast about Euzhan Palcy". Lexi-Alexander.com.
- Alexander, Lexi (4 January 2016). "Crosspost: The Difficulties of Juggling Diversity Activism and a Directing Career in Hollywood". IndieWire.
- Alexander, Lexi (15 January 2016). "Make More Women and Minorities Members of the Motion Picture Academy". The New York Times.
- Alexander, Lexi (7 June 2018). "What time is it, Hollywood? Those whisper campaigns where you can anonymously ruin someone's Hollywood career forever need to stop. Now". The Tempest.
References
- ^ a b Twitter:"A fellow Palestinian artist right here" -Lexi Alexander, 1 Jan 2021 as well as countless other tweets in which she self-identifies as a Palestinian]
- ^ a b c d e f g Fogan, Sara (June 2003). "Black Belt Times: Former Karate Champ Fails To Bag Academy Award". Black Belt. 41 (6): 22, 52, 54.
- Vulture. New York.
- ^ a b c d Buckley, Will (17 September 2005). "Football: The director addicted to hooligans". The Guardian.
- ^ Lexi Alexander [@LexiAlex] (1 March 2016). "My father was born and raised in Ramallah..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Raftery, Brian (1 August 2017). "Virtuoso Action Director Lexi Alexander Fights Back Against Hollywood". Wired.
- ^ a b Quint (4 April 2005). "Quint chats with Elijah Wood, Charlie Hunnam, Claire Forlani and a few other HOOLIGANS!!". Ain't It Cool News.
- ^ a b c "Lexi Alexander: from karate champion to Hollywood" (Audio interview). BBC World Service. 15 August 2017.
- ^ a b Malicki-Sánchez, Keram; Alexander, Lexi (15 November 2008). "Interview with Director Lexi Alexander" (MP3 audio podcast interview). KeramCast. No. 9.
- Fast Company.
- ^ a b McBride, Blaine G. (1994). "Meritorious Service Award for Outstanding Service and Exemplary Performance of Duty" (Award letter). United States Marine Corps.
- ^ "Oscar Films; Forecasts and Favorites: the Critics Weigh In". The New York Times. 9 March 2003.
- ^ a b Champagne, Christine (19 May 2016). "Checks and Balances: Success in film does not guarantee success in TV". Emmy Magazine.
- ^ Dargis, Manohla (9 September 2005). "Lads Who Love Being Thugs and the Lads Who Love Them". The New York Times.
- ^ a b Moerk, Christian (4 September 2005). "Director/Hooligan". The New York Times.
- ^ a b c Ankrum, Nora (18 March 2005). "SXSW Film Reviews: Hooligans". The Austin Chronicle.
- ^ a b c Jones, Preston (2005). "SXSW Film 2005" (press release). DVD Talk.
- ^ Sacks, Ethan (5 December 2008). "'Punisher: War Zone's' secret weapon: Director Lexi Alexander". New York Daily News.
- ^ Punisher: War Zone at Box Office Mojo
- ^ "Punisher: War Zone (2008)". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ Rabin, Nathan (13 October 2015). "Why Punisher: War Zone Deserves Cult Status". Rotten Tomatoes.
- ^ "In Defense Of: Punisher: War Zone". Filmbagger. 10 March 2013.
- ^ Scheer, Paul; Raphael, June Diane; Alexander, Lexi; Oswalt, Patton (3 October 2011). "Episode #20 – Punisher: War Zone" (Audio podcast interview). How Did This Get Made?. No. 20. Earwolf.
- ComingSoon.net.
- ^ Gilchrist, Todd (2 May 2014). "'Punisher: War Zone's' Lexi Alexander on Challenges Faced By Female Directors – Part 1 of 2". CBR.
- ^ Gilchrist, Todd (5 May 2014). "Lexi Alexander on 'Punisher: War Zone,' and Changing Hollywood's Old Ways – Part 2 of 2". CBR.
- ^ a b Ulaby, Neda (26 May 2016). "Kickboxing Director Lexi Alexander Uses Activism To Bust Out Of 'Movie Jail'" (Includes audio interview). All Things Considered. NPR.
- ^ "Punisher: War Zone by How Did This Get Made? | Podchaser".
- AL.com.
- ^ Csonka, Larry (7 September 2016). "Various News: The Chris Benoit Biopic Gets a Director, New Rock Q&A Video". 411MANIA.
- ^ McNary, Dave (9 September 2016). "'Punisher: War Zone' Director Lexi Alexander Boards Chris Benoit Biopic 'Crossface'". Variety.
- ^ Web, Jeremy (14 January 2020). "WWE Chris Benoit Biopic Crossface Was Shut Down by Benoit Family Says Son". MovieWeb. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- The Mary Sue.
- ^ Holloway, Daniel (1 February 2018). "Blumhouse TV Developing Drama 'You Bury Me' With Scott Derrickson, Lexi Alexander (Exclusive)". Variety.
- ^ Bernardin, Marc (29 June 2018). "New film academy invitee Arab-German director Lexi Alexander: 'I cried a few tears'". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Zachariah, Lee; Nelson, Paul Anthony; Alexander, Lexi (31 July 2014). "Hell Is For Hyphenates – July 2014" (Audio podcast interview; starts at 13:33). Hell Is For Hyphenates. No. 50.
- ^ Alexander, Lexi (14 January 2014). "An Oscar-Nominated Director Gets Real About How Women Are Treated in Hollywood". IndieWire.
- ^ Kang, Inkoo (11 February 2014). "Athena FF: Lexi Alexander Proposes a Solution to Hollywood's Woman Director Problem". IndieWire.
- ^ Carlson, Erin (8 May 2015). "Outrageous sexism in Hollywood exposed in new blog". Fortune.
- ^ Humanick, Robert (7 October 2015). "Pushing You Into Traffic: A Discussion with Lexi Alexander". RogerEbert.com.
- ^ a b Ogilvie, Jessica P. (29 April 2015). "How Hollywood Keeps Out Women". LA Weekly.
- ^ a b c d Baker-Whitelaw, Gavia (7 June 2015). "Director Lexi Alexander dismantles Hollywood's persistent sexism". The Kernel.
- ^ Alexander, Lexi (7 June 2018). "What time is it, Hollywood?". The Tempest. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
- ^ a b c d Alexander, Lexi; Harloff, Kristian; Ellis, Mark; Smith, Tiffany; Hall, Cody (20 November 2014). "#173: Lexi Alexander Talks Women in Film, Movie Piracy, the Wonder Woman Film, Star Wars, and more!". The Schmoes Know Movie Show. Archived from the original (Includes video interview, starts at 30:35) on 21 March 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
- ^ Khatchatourian, Maane (12 May 2015). "Hollywood's 'Biased' Hiring Practices Against Women Subject of ACLU Inquiry". Variety.
- ^ Daunt, Tina (21 May 2015). "ACLU Launches Petition on Gender Bias in Directing". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ "Statistics". Women and Hollywood. 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
- ^ Kiang, Jessica (24 September 2014). "10 Female Directors Who Deserve More Attention From Hollywood". IndieWire.
- ^ a b Alexander, Lexi (4 January 2016). "Crosspost: The Difficulties of Juggling Diversity Activism and a Directing Career in Hollywood". IndieWire.
- ^ a b Gibbs, Samuel (10 July 2014). "Hollywood director: piracy is necessary, and doesn't hurt revenues". The Guardian.
- ^ Ernesto (18 November 2014). "Why Hollywood Director Lexi Alexander Sides With "Pirates"". TorrentFreak.
- ^ Applebaum, Stephen (2 December 2005). "Lexi Alexander: My hooligan years". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022.
- ^ Alexander, Lexi (2 June 2012). "Lexi Alexander Interview" (Video interview). AC News: Movie Reviews and Interviews presented by Valery. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021.
- ^ "Oscars: Academy Award Database: 2002 (75th)". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. 2002.
Short Film (Live Action) ... Johnny Flynton -- Lexi Alexander, Alexander Buono
- Variety. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
External links
- Official website
- Lexi Alexander on Twitter
- Lexi Alexander at IMDb
- Lexi Alexander at the TCM Movie Database
- Lexi Alexander at TorrentFreak.com