Colleen McGuinness is an American director, screenwriter, and producer who has worked as a writer and producer on shows including 30 Rock , Life & Beth , and Ramy . After joining 30 Rock in 2011, she shared in its 2013 Emmy nomination for best series as well as in its 2013 and 2014 WGA nominations and 2014 PGA nomination. [1] McGuinness directed the 2024 short film Loser [2] which is being adapted into a feature film with the same name [3] and will be produced by Radio Silence. [4]
McGuinness, who is half-Korean and half-Irish, [5] was born in Killeen, Texas, and was raised on Long Island in Islip, New York. [6] McGuinness was a tennis champion in high school. [7]
At Harvard University, McGuinness studied directing with Professor Marcus Stern [8] and directed productions of A Doll's House and Guys and Dolls while also producing a version of Hamlet . [8] The production of Guys and Dolls that McGuinness directed was the first undergraduate co-ed production at the Hasty Pudding Theater in over 10 years. [9] Upon graduating, McGuinness was awarded the Louise Donovan award for directing. [10]
McGuinness began her career at Castle Rock Entertainment and later became a development assistant at New Line Cinema. [5] While at New Line, McGuinness wrote and directed her first short film, For Mature Audiences Only. [11]
After Darren Starr saw her short film, he hired McGuinness for her first series writing job on Miss Match , starring Alicia Silverstone. [5] Since then, McGuinness has written on shows including Mercy , 30 Rock, About a Boy , Friends from College , Forever (2018 TV series) , Ramy , Stargirl , and Life & Beth , where she was also an executive producer. [12] She joined the staff of 30 Rock in 2011, which ultimately led her to share in the series' Emmy, WGA, and PGA nominations. [1]
In 2013, when Tina Fey started her new production company Little Stranger productions, her company's first sale was an untitled comedy to be written by McGuinness and executive-produced by Fey and by former 30 Rock showrunner Robert Carlock. [13] In 2014, McGuinness developed a script with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck for Fox. [14] [15]
In 2016, together with Game of Thrones executive producer Carolyn Strauss, McGuinness worked with HBO to develop a comedy series based on the novel Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld. [16]
McGuinness later wrote, produced, and directed the 2024 short film Loser which has played in over 25 film festivals, including the Oscar-qualifying Hamptons International Film Festival [4] and the Palm Springs International ShortFest. [4] Loser won multiple awards, including "Best International Short", "Best Director" (Colleen McGuinness), and "Best Performance in a Lead Role" (Angourie Rice) at the Oxford International Film Festival, [17] "Best Short" and "Best Screenplay" (Colleen McGuinness) at the LA Indie Film Festival, [18] "Best Film" and "Best Actress" (Angourie Rice) at DOC LA, [19] "International: Best Film" at the Canberra Short Film Festival, [20] "Best Short Film" at the Byron Bay International Film Festival, [21] "Best Short Drama" at the New Hampshire Film Festival, [22] and the "Audience Award" at the Charlotte Film Festival. [23]
McGuinness is currently developing Loser into a feature film, which is to be produced by Radio Silence. [3] [4]
| Years | Title | Writer | Director | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | For Mature Audiences Only | Yes | Yes | Yes | Short Film |
| 2003 | Miss Match | Yes | No | No | |
| 2004 | North Shore (TV series) | Yes | No | No | |
| 2009-2010 | Mercy (TV series) | Yes | No | No | |
| 2011 | Love Bites (TV series) | Yes | No | Co-Producer | |
| 2011-2013 | 30 Rock (TV series) | Yes | No | Producer, Co-Producer | |
| 2014 | About a Boy (TV series) | Yes | No | Supervising Producer | |
| 2017 | Friends from College | Yes | No | Co-Executive | |
| 2018 | Forever | Yes | No | Consulting Producer | |
| 2020 | Ramy (TV series) | Yes | No | Co-Executive | |
| 2020-2022 | Stargirl (TV series) | Yes | No | Co-Executive, Consulting Producer | |
| 2022 | Life & Beth | Yes | No | Executive | |
| 2024 | Loser (short film) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Short film |
| Year | Awards | Category | Project | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Producers Guild of America | Best Writing in a Comedy Series | 30 Rock | Nominated | [24] |
| Writers Guild of America | Best Writing in a Comedy Series | Nominated | |||
| 2014 | Emmy Awards | Outstanding Comedy Series | 30 Rock | Nominated | [24] |
| Producers Guild of America | Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy | Nominated | |||
| Writers Guild of America | Comedy Series | Nominated | |||
| 2024 | Arizona Underground Film Festival | Best Narrative Short | Loser (short film) | Won | [25] |
| Byron Bay International Film Festival | Best Short Film | Won | [26] | ||
| Canberra Short Film Festival | Best Film | Won | [27] | ||
| Charlotte Film Festival | Audience Award | Won | [28] | ||
| DOC LA | Best Film | Won | [29] | ||
| New Hampshire Film Festival | Best Short Drama | Won | [30] | ||
| LA Indie Film Festival | Best Short | Won | [18] | ||
| Best Screenplay | Won | ||||
| Oxford International Film Festival | Best Director | Won | [31] | ||
| Best International Short | Won |