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Joel Coen

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Joel Coen: Biography

joel coen
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  • Birth Place: St. Louis Park, MN
  • Date of Birth / Zodiac Sign: 11/29/1954, Sagittarius
  • Profession: Director; screenwriter; producer
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Joel Coen Fast Facts:
  • Prior to 2004's The Ladykillers, always took the directing credits while brother Ethan took the producing credits; actually, they both did everything.
  • Edits all of his films with Ethan under the pseudonym Roderick Jaynes; they've even been nominated for two Academy Awards under the AKA. 
  • Made directorial debut with Blood Simple, which won him an Independent Spirit Award for Best Director in 1985.
  • Won the 1991 Cannes International Film Festival Golden Palm for best film for Barton Fink, and was nominated in 1994 for The Hudsucker Proxy and in 1996 for Fargo.
  • Became first to direct his own wife to an Oscar when Frances McDormand won Best Actress for Fargo.
  • Won Best Director for Fargo at the 1996 Independent Spirit Awards, the London Film Critics Awards, the National Board of Review Awards, the San Diego Film Critics Awards and the Florida Film Critics Awards.
  • Has codirected commercials for the Gap, Budweiser and H&R Block with Ethan.
  • In 2009, directed, along with Ethan, a TV commercial critical of the use of coal as an environmentally safe way to produce electrity.
  • Once called the sitcom Petticoat Junction his favorite TV show.
  • The 2009 film A Serious Man (another effort with his brother) was notable in that it reflected the Coens' Jewish backgrounds as it examined Judaism and faith; Joel notes that “there’s no doubt that our Jewish heritage affects how we see things.” The brothers received Israel’s million-dollar Dan David prize for the film.
  • Joel Coen Relationships:
  • Debbie Coen - Sister
  • Edward Coen - Father
  • Ethan Coen - Brother
  • Frances McDormand - Wife
  • Pedro McDormand Coen - Son
  • Rena Coen - Mother
  • Joel Coen Awards:
  • 1997 Golden Globe: Best Director - Motion Picture - Nominee
  • 1996 Oscar: Best Achievement in Directing - Nominee
  • 2000 Oscar: Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) - Nominee
  • 1996 Oscar: Best Writing (Original Screenplay) - Winner
  • 2008 Golden Globe: Best Director - Motion Picture - Nominee
  • 2008 Golden Globe: Best Screenplay - Motion Picture - Winner
  • 2007 Oscar: Best Achievement in Directing - Winner
  • 2007 Oscar: Best Motion Picture of the Year - Winner
  • 2007 Oscar: Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) - Winner
  • 2009 Oscar: Best Motion Picture of the Year - Nominee
  • 2009 Oscar: Best Writing (Original Screenplay) - Nominee
  • 1985 Sundance Film Festival: Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic - Winner
  • 2009 BAFTA Awards: Best Original Screenplay - Nominee
  • 2008 BAFTA Awards: Best Original Screenplay - Nominee
  • 2007 BAFTA Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay - Nominee
  • 2007 BAFTA Awards: Best Film - Nominee
  • 2007 BAFTA Awards: Best Director - Winner
  • 2000 BAFTA Awards: Best Original Screenplay - Nominee
  • 1996 BAFTA Awards: Best Film - Nominee
  • 1996 BAFTA Awards: Best Original Screenplay - Nominee
  • 1996 BAFTA Awards: The David Lean Award for Achievement in Direction - Winner
  • 2001 Cannes Film Festival: Best Director - Winner
  • 2010 BAFTA Awards: Best Film - Nominee
  • 2010 BAFTA Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay - Nominee
  • 2010 Oscar: Best Motion Picture of the Year - Nominee
  • 2010 Oscar: Best Achievement in Directing - Nominee
  • 2010 Oscar: Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay) - Nominee
  • College:
  • New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, New York, NY (BA in Film, 1978); attended University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX; attended Simon's Rock College of Bard, Great Barrington, MA

Photos

Steve Buscemi, Joel Coen, and Frances McDormand Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com
more Joel Coen photos (1 total photos)
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