Todd Haynes
Directing
Todd Haynes (/heɪnz/; born January 2, 1961; Los Angeles) is an American filmmaker. His films span four decades with themes examining the personalities of well-known musicians, dysfunctional and dystopian societies, and blurred gender roles. Haynes first gained public attention with his controversial short film Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (1987), which chronicles singer Karen Carpenter's life and death, using Barbie dolls as actors. Superstar became a cult classic. Haynes's feature directorial debut, Poison (1991), a provocative exploration of AIDS-era queer perceptions and subversions, established him as a figure of a new transgressive cinema. Poison won the Sundance Film Festival's Grand Jury Prize and is regarded as a seminal work of New Queer Cinema. Haynes received further acclaim for his second feature film, Safe (1995), a symbolic portrait of a housewife who develops multiple chemical sensitivity. Safe was later voted the best film of the 1990s by The Village Voice Film Poll. His next feature, Velvet Goldmine (1998), is a tribute to the 1970s glam rock era. The film received the Special Jury Prize for Best Artistic Contribution at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. Haynes gained acclaim and a measure of mainstream success with Far from Heaven (2002) earning his first Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. He continued to direct critically lauded films such as I'm Not There (2007), Carol (2015), Wonderstruck (2017) and Dark Waters (2019). He directed his first feature-length documentary, The Velvet Underground (2021). Haynes directed and co-wrote the HBO mini-series Mildred Pierce (2011) for which he was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards.
Known for
Directing23
movieMay December
2023
Director
movieImage Book
2023
Director
movieThe Velvet Underground
2021
Director
movieDark Waters
2019
Director
movieWonderstruck
2017
Director
movieCarol
2015
Director
movieSix by Sondheim
2013
Director
tvEnlightened
2011
Director
tvMildred Pierce
2011
Director
movieI'm Not There
2007
Director
movieFar from Heaven
2002
Director
movieVelvet Goldmine
1998
Director
movieSafe
1995
Director
movieDottie Gets Spanked
1993
Director
movieGoo
1991
Director
moviePoison
1991
Director
movieLa Divina
1989
Assistant Director
movieCause and Effect
1988
Assistant Director
movieThe Suicide
1978
Director
De Noche
Director
Acting21
movieBarbara Forever
2026
Self (archive footage)
tvMarcians
2017
Self - Interviewee
movieSwoon
1992
Phrenology Head
movieSuperstar: The Karen Carpenter Story
1987
Todd Donovan
Production21
movieEarthlings
2025
Executive Producer
movieThe Velvet Underground
2021
Producer
movieCertain Women
2016
Executive Producer
movieNight Moves
2014
Executive Producer
movieBuoy
2013
Executive Producer
movieMeek's Cutoff
2011
Executive Producer
tvMildred Pierce
2011
Executive Producer
movieWendy and Lucy
2008
Executive Producer
movieQuinceañera
2006
Executive Producer
movieOld Joy
2006
Executive Producer
movieAnemone Me
1990
Producer
movieLa Divina
1989
Co-Producer
He Was Once
1989
Production Manager, Producer
movieNatural History
1989
Producer
movieMuddy Hands
1988
Producer
movieCause and Effect
1988
Producer
movieAmerican Lunch
1988
Producer
movieTommy's
1985
Producer
movieA Man in Your Room
1984
Producer
movieThe Suicide
1978
Producer
Writing12
tvMildred Pierce
2011
Teleplay
movieI'm Not There
2007
Screenplay, Story
movieFar from Heaven
2002
Writer
movieVelvet Goldmine
1998
Screenplay, Story
movieOffice Killer
1997
Co-Writer
movieSafe
1995
Writer
moviePoison
1991
Writer
movieThe Suicide
1978
Screenplay
De Noche
Writer
