This biographical article is written like a résumé .(May 2024) |
Bruna Papandrea | |
---|---|
Born | 1971 (age 52–53) Adelaide, South Australia, Australia |
Nationality | Australian |
Occupation | Film producer |
Years active | 1997 – present |
Works | Wild ; Big Little Lies ; Gone Girl |
Spouse | Steve Hutensky |
Children | 2 |
Bruna Papandrea AM (born 1971) is an Australian film and television producer and the founder of production company Made Up Stories. Prior to Made Up Stories, Papandrea co-founded the production company Pacific Standard with Reese Witherspoon.
Papandrea was raised in Adelaide, South Australia, [1] by a single mother. [2]
She moved to New York City in the 1990s after establishing a career in film production. She briefly returned to Australia to produce the 2000 film Better Than Sex , which was nominated for the AFI Award for Best Film, before moving to London in 2001. She served as a production executive at the film studio Mirage Enterprises and later returned to New York to work for GreeneStreet Films, a production company for independent films, as a creative director. At GreeneStreet she executive produced the 2006 romantic comedy Wedding Daze before joining another independent production company, Groundswell Productions, in Los Angeles in February 2006. There she was responsible for producing Smart People (2008), Milk (2008), The Marc Pease Experience (2009), and All Good Things (2010). [3]
In 2011, Papandrea produced Warm Bodies , a zombie comedy film directed by Jonathan Levine and released in 2013. [4]
In 2012, she and actress Reese Witherspoon co-founded Pacific Standard, a Beverly Hills-based production company focusing on creating films made by and about women. [5] [1] Their first two projects at Pacific Standard were Gone Girl and Wild , both adapted from books whose rights were acquired by Papandrea and Witherspoon before publication. Both films were released in 2014, by which time they had also completed production on the 2015 comedy film Hot Pursuit . [5] In 2016, they announced that they were ending their partnership, though they would continue to work on the projects that were in the middle of production, including the HBO series Big Little Lies and a film adaptation of the novel Luckiest Girl Alive . [6]
Papandrea launched her current production company, Made Up Stories, in January 2017 to carry on her mission in championing female filmmakers, adapting female-written novels and creating stories featuring multi-faceted female characters. The company is also committed to inclusivity in less-acknowledged departments behind-the-scenes such as transportation teams and gaffers. Papandrea has expressed intent to start a foundation, Made Up Solutions, to provide opportunities for women from low socio-economic and diverse backgrounds. [7] [8]
In April 2020, Papandrea and Gregg Fienberg founded the "It Takes Our Village" initiative, along with numerous A-list Hollywood producers to help raise money for below-the-line crews affected by COVID-19. [9] Papandrea credited "below-the-line crews" as "the backbone of our industry". “They are our community – and our community is in need. This initiative is personal to me as I’m a working-class girl who grew up with unions protecting my family. I want to help provide that protection to those who are a vital part in creating stories; the stories that are providing escapism and comfort to people around the world." [10]
On October 12, 2023 an open letter was published by Creative Community for Peace, whose mission statement is "to galvanize support against the cultural boycott of Israel." [11] The open letter states: "More than 2000 leaders from the entertainment industry have signed an open letter released by the non-profit entertainment industry organization Creative Community For Peace in support of Israel." Papandrea joined the petition. [12] On October 23, 2023 Papadrea signed a second petition, 'NoHostageLeftBehind'. [13] The petition consisted of 'Several Hundred Hollywood figures' [14] petitioning for President Joe Biden to secure the release of more Israeli hostages.
2015: Papandrea received the Australians in Film International Award. [2]
2018: Papandrea was honored by G'Day USA, receiving Outstanding Achievement in Film & TV Award. [15]
2020: Papandrea won the Don Dunstan Award, and appeared "In Conversation" with one of the patrons of the Adelaide Film Festival, Margaret Pomeranz AM in mid-October during the 2020 event. [16] [1]
2020: Papandrea was named to Variety's L.A. Women's Impact Report 2020. [17]
2020: Papandrea was named as one of 40 Australians who mattered in Film & TV for 2020 by The Age's Good Weekend. [18]
2021: Papandrea received the Australian Women's Film Festival (AWFF) Groundbreaker Award. [19]
2021: Papandrea was included in The Hollywood Reporter's 2021 Women In Entertainment Power 100 [20]
2021: Papandrea was included in Deadline's DISRUPTORS 2021 class [21]
2023: Papandrea was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2023 Australia Day Honours. [22]
2024: Received the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA), Byron Kennedy Award. [23]
2000: Nominated for the Australia Film Institute (AFI) Award Best Film for Better Than Sex
2017: Winner of the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Limited Series for Big Little Lies
2018: Winner of the Golden Globe for Best Television Series or Motion Picture Made for Television for Big Little Lies (season 1)
2018: Nominated for the BAFTA TV Award for Best International for Big Little Lies
2018: Nominated for the PGA Award for Outstanding Producer of Episode Television, Drama for Big Little Lies (season 1)
2019: Winner of the AACTA Award for Best Film for The Nightingale
2020: Winner of the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards for Best Film for The Nightingale
2020: Nominated for the PGA Award for Outstanding Producer of Episode Television, Drama for Big Little Lies (season 2)
2020: Nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Television Series, Drama for Big Little Lies (season 2)
2021: Nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Awards for Best Limited Series for The Undoing
2021: Nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Limited Series or Television Film for The Undoing
2021: Nominated for the PGA Award's David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Limited Series Television for The Undoing
Papandrea is married to producer Steve Hutensky and gave birth to twins in 2012. She has systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus), diagnosed in August 2010, which causes her chronic joint pain. [24]
Before she started her own production companies, Papandrea produced various films with other companies, including: [3]
Year | Title | Director | Gross (worldwide) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Warm Bodies | Jonathan Levine | $117 million | A Summit Entertainment film |
2014 | Wild | Jean-Marc Vallée | $52.5 million | Produced as Pacific Standard Nominated for two Academy Awards |
2014 | Gone Girl | David Fincher | $369.3 million | Produced as Pacific Standard Nominated for one Academy Award |
2015 | Hot Pursuit | Anne Fletcher | $51.7 million | Produced as Pacific Standard |
2019 | Lucy in the Sky | Noah Hawley | n/a | Produced by Bruna Papandrea Premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival |
2018 | The Nightingale | Jennifer Kent | n/a | Premiered in competition at the 75th Venice International Film Festival, winning two awards Swept the 9th AACTA Awards including winning Best Film and Best Director Distributed in the United States by IFC Films |
2019 | Little Monsters | Abe Forsythe | n/a | Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival |
2020 | Penguin Bloom | Glendyn Ivin | $6 million [25] (AUS & NZ only) | Premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival Released in Australia by Roadshow on January 21, 2021, Releasing in North America, U.K., France and select countries in Asia by Netflix on Jan. 27, 2021 |
2021 | The Dry | Robert Connolly | $17 million [26] (AUS & NZ only) | Released in Australia by Roadshow on January 1, 2021, Releasing in N. America by IFC Films on May 21, 2021 |
2022 | Luckiest Girl Alive | Mike Barker | n/a | Will be released by Netflix [27] |
Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon is an American actress and producer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Golden Globe Awards. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2006 and 2015, and Forbes listed her among the world's 100 most powerful women in 2019 and 2021. In 2021, Forbes named her the world's highest earning actress, and in 2023, she was named one of the richest women in America with an estimated net worth of $440 million.
Lesli Linka Glatter is an American film and television director. She is best known for her work on the AMC drama series Mad Men and the Showtime series Homeland. For her work in these two shows, she has received eight Primetime Emmy Award nominations and seven Directors Guild of America Awards nominations, winning the latter three times. She has also received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for Tales of Meeting and Parting (1985).
Kerry Anne Ehrin is an American screenwriter, showrunner, and producer. The first writer with whom Apple TV+ signed an overall deal, Kerry Ehrin developed and ran the first two seasons of the Apple TV+ series The Morning Show starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, which led the streaming service's launch. Ehrin was also the co-creator, executive producer, and co-showrunner of the Emmy-nominated and critically acclaimed A&E drama series Bates Motel which featured Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore in the iconic roles of Norma and Norman Bates, and aired for five seasons on A&E. Prior to that, she was a writer and producer on Friday Night Lights and Parenthood and has received numerous Emmy and WGA nominations, as well as four AFI Awards.
Type A Films was a film production company founded by actress and producer Reese Witherspoon in 2000.
Blossom Films is a production company founded by American-born Australian actress Nicole Kidman in 2010. The first production by the company was the film Rabbit Hole, based on the play of the same name by David Lindsay-Abaire. Their logo features a blossom tree growing.
Australians in Film (AiF) is a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization that serves the Australian community working in the film and television industry. It awards the annual Heath Ledger Scholarship to emerging Australian actors, as well as several other programs which help actors and filmmakers to develop their careers.
Wild is a 2014 American biographical adventure drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Nick Hornby, based on the 2012 memoir Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed. Starring Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Thomas Sadoski, Michiel Huisman, Gaby Hoffmann, Kevin Rankin, and W. Earl Brown, the film follows Strayed as she embarks on a solo hiking trip on the Pacific Crest Trail in 1995 after numerous personal problems had left her life in shambles.
Nathan Ross is an American film and television producer.
Big Little Lies is an American black comedy drama television series based on the 2014 novel by Liane Moriarty. Created and written by David E. Kelley, it aired on HBO from February 19, 2017, to July 21, 2019, encompassing 14 episodes and two seasons. Originally billed as a miniseries, Jean-Marc Vallée directed the first season, while Andrea Arnold directed the second season. In November 2023, Nicole Kidman stated a third season would be made.
Hello Sunshine is an American media company founded by actress Reese Witherspoon and Strand Equity founder and managing partner Seth Rodsky in 2016.
The Morning Show, also known as Morning Wars in Australia and Indonesia, is an American drama television series starring Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Steve Carell in lead roles that premiered on Apple TV+ on November 1, 2019. The series is inspired by Brian Stelter's 2013 book Top of the Morning. The show examines the characters and culture behind a network broadcast morning news program. After allegations of sexual misconduct, the male co-anchor of the program is forced off the show. Aspects of the #MeToo movement are examined from multiple perspectives as more information comes out regarding the misconduct. Subsequent seasons focus on other political topics and current events, including the COVID-19 pandemic, racial inequality, the Capitol insurrection, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Little Fires Everywhere is an American drama television miniseries, based on the 2017 novel of the same name by Celeste Ng. It premiered on Hulu on March 18, 2020 and consists of 8 episodes. The series stars Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington, both of whom were also executive producers, alongside Liz Tigelaar, Lauren Neustadter, and Pilar Savone. Set in the Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights, Ohio, during the late 1990s, it features Witherspoon and Washington as mothers from different socioeconomic backgrounds.
Daisy Jones & the Six is an American musical drama television miniseries developed by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, based on the 2019 novel of the same name by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Set in the Los Angeles music scene of the 1970s, the series charts the rise and fall of the fictional titular rock band through a documentary style series of interviews with the members and footage of concerts and recording sessions, complete with vocals by series leads Riley Keough and Sam Claflin. It also stars Camila Morrone, Suki Waterhouse, Will Harrison, Josh Whitehouse, and Sebastian Chacon as the band members.
The Dry is the 2016 debut novel by Australian author Jane Harper. The book has won numerous international awards and has sold more than one million copies worldwide. A film adaptation starring Eric Bana was released on 1 January 2021 with great success, placing it as one of the highest grossing Australian film opening weekends ever.
Pieces of Her is an American thriller drama television series created by Charlotte Stoudt, based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Karin Slaughter, that premiered on Netflix on March 4, 2022.
Penguin Bloom is a 2020 Australian drama film directed by Glendyn Ivin, from a screenplay by Shaun Grant and Harry Cripps, and is based on the book of the same name by Cameron Bloom and Bradley Trevor Greive. It stars Naomi Watts, Andrew Lincoln and Jacki Weaver. The book and film are based on a true story of Sam and Cameron Bloom's family and their interactions with an Australian magpie named 'Penguin'.
Made Up Stories is a film and television development and production company founded in 2017 by producer Bruna Papandrea that claims to "[champion] women on and off the screen." The company has offices in Los Angeles and Sydney.
Jodi Matterson is an Australian producer who has produced films and TV series including Penguin Bloom (2020), The Dry (2020), Wolf Like Me (2022) and Nine Perfect Strangers, with Nicole Kidman. Matterson was managing director, Australia of film production company Made Up Stories alongside Bruna Papandrea and Steve Hutensky. Matterson exited Made Up Stories in April 2024 and launched her new film production company, Silent Firework.
The Last Anniversary is an upcoming Australian television series. It is directed by John Polson, and is an adaptation by Samantha Strauss from the Liane Moriarty novel of the same name and is executive produced by Nicole Kidman. It is starring Teresa Palmer, Miranda Richardson and Danielle Macdonald.
Truly Madly Guilty is an upcoming American television series based on an adaption by an unspecified writer from the Liane Moriarty novel of the same name, and is produced by Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon.