- Pritzker Fellows
- Former Fellows
- Jay Roach
Jay Roach
Award-Winning Film Director & Producer
Biography
Jay Roach is the director of “All The Way,” based on the Tony-Award winning play by Robert Schenkkan. Bryan Cranston reprises his role as President Lyndon B. Johnson alongside Melissa Leo, Anthony Mackie and Frank Langella.
Roach was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, graduated with an economics degree from Stanford University in 1980 and later went on to receive his masters degree in film production from the University of Southern California in 1986.
Roach was awarded a total of four Emmy’s for his directing on the made for television movies “Recount” in 2008 and “Game Change” in 2012. As a director, his most recent film, “Trumbo,” stars Bryan Cranston as Dalton Trumbo, one of Hollywood’s blacklisted screenwriters in the 1940s. The film, which also stars Elle Fanning, Helen Mirren and Diane Lane, was released by Bleecker Street on November 6, 2015. In addition, Roach is known for directing movies such as “Meet the Parents,” “Meet the Fockers,” the “Austin Powers” trilogy and “The Campaign.”
Along with directing, Roach has also spent time as a producer on a number of moves including “50 First Dates,” “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” “Borat,” “Little Fockers” and “Sisters.”
Seminars
“The Art of Political Narrative”
67 Shots is a film in development that aspires to remind us of the dangers of history repeating itself in these charged and politically polarized times. Based on the book 67 Shots: Kent State and the End of American Innocence, the film is about the tragic shooting of student protestors at Kent State University in 1970 when the National Guard fired 67 shots into the crown, killing 4 students, and injuring 9 others. With more people marching in the streets now than perhaps at any time since the 1970s, what are the factors that make this story worth telling again now? What are the issues and challenges filmmakers face in developing a screenplay that is both true to history and relevant and meaningful today?
Special Guest: Stephen Belber, Screenwriter
How do you distill 36 days of non-stop political history into a 2-hour film? Recount tells the story of Bush V. Gore, and the unprecedented battle over the Florida election recount in 2000. This seminar will explore what it means to be authentic vs. “accurate” when making historic/political films, and how “dramatic license” may allow a filmmaker to illuminate the greater truths behind political events. Special guest Ron Klain, General Counsel to the Gore Recount Committee (and former Chief of Staff to both Vice Presidents Biden and Gore), will discuss his experience watching his story become a film, and what still feels true in the era of “alternative facts.
Special Guest: Ron Klain, General Counsel to the Gore Recount Committee & former Chief of Staff to both Vice Presidents Biden and Gore