Cory Edwards

Last updated

Cory Edwards
Cory Edwards.jpg
Born (1968-08-21) August 21, 1968 (age 55)
Anderson, Indiana, U.S.
Alma mater Anderson University
Occupation(s)Film director, screenwriter, actor, stand-up comedian
SpouseVicki Edwards
Children2

Cory Edwards (born August 21, 1968) is an American film director, screenwriter, and stand-up comedian. He is best known for directing, co-writing, and voice acting in Hoodwinked (2005), and for co-writing and voice acting in the 2011 sequel Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil . He is the older brother of screenwriter/director Todd Edwards and film producer Katie Hooten.

Contents

Parents

James L. Edwards, Cory Edwards' father, grew up as the son of a minister in Kettering, Ohio, and graduated from Anderson University with a Bachelor of Arts in 1965. [1] [2] Throughout college, James worked at a J.C. Penney, held various jobs on campus, and served as a minister of music in a small church. [3] Upon graduation, he took on a job as the university's Director of Student Recruitment, which he held until earning a Master of Divinity from Anderson School of Theology in 1970. [1] [2]

Deanna Monteith, Cory Edwards' mother, grew up in Springfield, Ohio, where she worked in a law office while attending classes part-time at Wittenberg University. She enrolled in Anderson University during the same semester as James, and they married in 1964 after their junior year. [4] [3] Deanna continued her studies by following a degree in Elementary Education with a master's degree from Ball State University. [4] She and James then moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where James served as a pastor at Pasadena Park Church of God. [2] [5] Cory's younger brother Todd was born there in 1971. [6]

A year later, the family returned to Anderson and James resumed work at the university. He directed church and alumni relations until 1975, at which point they all moved to Columbus Ohio. James served as a senior pastor of Meadow Park Church of God for the next fifteen years and also studied at Ohio State University, where in 1987 he received a PhD. in Educational Policy and Leadership. [2] [7]

Deanna worked as a teacher in both public and private schools. [4] In addition to his work as a pastor and at Anderson University, James also held the positions of president and CEO at Warner Press, the publishing house for the Church of God. [7] James and Deanna have known gospel music singers Bill and Gloria Gaither since early on in their music career. The Gaithers' son Benjy was a childhood friend of Cory and his siblings and often collaborated with them on their films. [8]

In 1990, his father was elected president of Anderson University. [2] Upon moving back to Anderson, Deanna assumed the position of Children's Program Director at Alternatives Inc., an organization that works with women and children in domestic crises. Although she no longer holds this position at the organization, she is currently a member of the board. [4] [9]

Early life

Cory Edwards was born on August 21, 1968, in Anderson, Indiana, to James L. Edwards and Deanna Monteith. [10] [1]

Cory, Todd, and their younger sister Katie showed an interest in the arts from an early age. They would put on puppet shows and plays and used a tape recorder to create their own radio shows. [1] [11] [12] Cory was around seven or eight years old when they first started experimenting with their family's Super 8 video camera. [13] Their first film, succinctly titled Movie Stuff, did not have a plot and was simply a chance for them to learn how to use the camera and try out special effects.

As they continued, they made films in several different genres, including a superhero film called Captain Lightning that was directed by Cory, a Laurel and Hardy type comedy called Crime Doesn't Pay that was directed by Todd, and an action-adventure film that centered on a character named Jack Francisco. As they grew older, their films became more elaborate, often taking them months to complete. Starting with storyboarding the shots, they would go on to create their own sets, miniatures, and costumes. Neighborhood kids joined in as extras, and sound and special effects were added after filming. [1] [13] In school, Cory usually turned in films for class projects and occasionally won national competitions with them. [14]

While attending Anderson University, Cory and Todd served as directors for the on-campus comedy show Cheap Thrills. [8] Cory interned at an animation studio in Ohio during his summers and graduated in 1990 with a major in Broadcasting and a minor in Art. [1] [14]

Career

In the early 1990s, he hosted a Christian music video show, Signal Exchange, on INSP network. Cory Edwards acted in his brother Todd's 1999 film Chillicothe. Private investor Maurice Kanbar enjoyed the film and eventually offered to finance them to make an animated fairy tale told in a contemporary style.

He directed a 2003 direct-to-video Christian short film A Wobots Christmas. [15]

Cory, Todd, and their friend Tony Leech decided to make a film of Little Red Riding Hood told in the context of a police investigation. However, once their film was finished, Maurice Kanbar was not in the financial position to distribute it, so he took it to the newly formed Weinstein Company, which agreed to buy the film.

The film, titled Hoodwinked! , was released in late 2005 in order to be eligible for award consideration and then received a wider release in January 2006. [16] Hoodwinked! received mixed reviews [17] and made a worldwide total of $110,011,106, making it a success due to its small budget. [18]

Edwards co-wrote Hoodwinked Too: Hood vs. Evil alongside his Hoodwinked! co-creators and co-writers Tony Leech and Todd Edwards.

Despite Hoodwinked's mediocre reviews, many people at the Jim Henson Company enjoyed the film. They started to talk with Cory about the possibility of him rewriting the script for the sequel to The Dark Crystal , however instead they agreed that he would write and direct a feature-length version of Fraggle Rock .

Edwards is the co-writer of Escape from Planet Earth , an animated alien adventure directed by Tony Leech produced by Brian Inerfeld, Jon Shestack, Ed Jones, Preston Stutzman and Greg Little and released by The Weinstein Company in February 2013.

Edwards has co-written several episodes of the hit Christian children's series VeggieTales (as well as its reboot, The VeggieTales Show ) since 2013, including "The Little House That Stood", "Merry Larry and the True Light of Christmas", "Veggies in Space: The Fennel Frontier", "Beauty and the Beet", and "Noah's Ark".

Edwards created the webseries Roger Cosmonkey , which has been self-described as the first-ever Twitter series. [19]

He is also the creator and star of the internet cartoon series Krogzilla on Shut Up! Cartoons.

When asked by a fan of Hoodwinked! whether he'd like to pitch a project to Angel Studios, Edwards commented that he was very interested, although he noted that it wouldn't be easy because of the complex process behind the studio's project approving. [20] However, Edwards also confirmed that he collaborated with the company by performing stand-up in a Dry Bar Comedy special, and that he's currently writing for the animated television adaption of The Wingfeather Saga . [21]

Personal life

Cory Edwards is a Christian and attends Bel Air Presbyterian Church, where he is a member of their drama department. [22]

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Sue Bea Montgomery is an American film producer from Tulsa, Oklahoma. After serving as an associate producer on the 1999 Independent film Chillicothe, she introduced the film's director Todd Edwards and his brother Cory Edwards to entrepreneur and inventor Maurice Kanbar, who had invested in the film. Kanbar agreed to finance the brothers to direct an animated film, based on a well known fairy tale, and they came up with Hoodwinked, a unique retelling of Little Red Riding Hood. To produce the film, Montgomery and Kanbar founded Kanbar Entertainment and Kanbar Animation in 2002. To save costs, the film's animation was produced in Manila, Philippines, which made it the first independent computer-animated film to be produced in the Philippines. The film was also one of the first computer-animated films to be completely independently funded. Hoodwinked! was released in 2005, receiving mixed reviews, and earning over $110 million worldwide. Montgomery served as a producer on two PBS Kids series; Sid the Science Kid from 2008 to 2009 and Dinosaur Train from 2009 to 2010. She was nominated for a Daytime Emmy award in the category of Outstanding Children's Animated Program for her work on Dinosaur Train. She has also worked on a number of other well known films, including Ironweed, The Shawshank Redemption, Air Force One, and Atlantis: The Lost Empire.

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Katie Hooten is an American actress and film producer. She is married to Timothy Hooten, and is the sister of filmmakers Cory Edwards and Todd Edwards. As a child she participated in theatre, and along with her brothers, made Super 8 home videos. She is a graduate of Anderson University, of which her father is the president. After performing with her brothers and her husband in the 1999 independent film Chillicothe, directed by Todd Edwards, she joined The Walt Disney Company, working as a post-production coordinator on the films Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Spirited Away, and Lilo & Stitch, and as an assistant production manager on the short films Destino and Lorenzo. She served as an associate producer on the 2005 independent animated film Hoodwinked, directed by Cory Edwards, Todd Edwards, and Tony Leech. The film, which was one of the first fully independently funded computer-animated films, received mixed reviews, and earned over $110 million worldwide. Along with her husband, she served as a producer on the 2010 independent film Jeffie Was Here, directed by Todd Edwards. Both her husband and her daughter Eva were diagnosed with Leukemia within the same year, however Eva was cured after two years of treatment.

Preston Stutzman is a film producer and actor. He produced the 1999 independent film Chillicothe, which was screened at the Sundance Film Festival and the 2005 independent animated film Hoodwinked!, which was one of the first computer-animated films to be completely independently funded. He also performed the minor role of Timmy in Hoodwinked!

Michael Disa is an American film director, screenwriter, and animator. He began working as an animator at Disney in the mid-1990s, where he was involved with several films up until the late-2000s. During this time, he also worked on non-Disney animated films, including Looney Tunes: Back in Action, and Barnyard. He made his directorial debut with The Origin of Stitch, Disney's 2005 direct-to-DVD short sequel to Lilo & Stitch. At one point he was attached to direct an animated prequel to Disney's 1937 film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, but he dropped out due to creative differences, and the project was cancelled. After growing disillusioned with Disney, Disa left the studio to become an independent filmmaker. His first feature film, Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil was released in 2011. Disa followed this with Postman Pat: The Movie, which was released in 2014.

Kanbar Entertainment is an independent film production studio founded by private investor Maurice Kanbar and Hollywood veteran Sue Bea Montgomery in 2002. The studio produced Hoodwinked!, which was one of the first computer-animated films to be entirely independently financed.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Deborah Lilly (Winter 2006). "Alumni Rendition of Red Riding Hood hits the big screens". anderson.edu. Archived from the original on February 22, 2006. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Office of the President". anderson.edu. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  3. 1 2 Theresa Campbell (September 7, 2000). "Edwards begins 11th year at AU helm". anderson.edu. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Wanda Savage Award presented to Deanna Edwards". anderson.edu. October 26, 2012. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  5. ↑ David Perry. "Regional Pastors". choginmi.org. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Todd Edwards". filmtied.com. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  7. 1 2 "Anderson University Executive Staff". anderson.edu. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
  8. 1 2 Peter T. Chattaway (May 2, 2006). "Cory Edwards – the interview's up!". patheos.com. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  9. ↑ Joy May (Fall 2000). "President Edwards: A Decade of Progress". anderson.edu. Retrieved February 11, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Cory Edwards". filmtied.com. Retrieved February 9, 2013.
  11. ↑ Jason Anders (January 26, 2009). "A Conversation with Cory Edwards". fullecirclestuff.blogspot.com. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  12. ↑ Cory Edwards (January 29, 2009). "Interview with Fulle Circle". coryedwards.com. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  13. 1 2 Melanie Hayes (January 11, 2006). "AU alumni unveil "Hoodwinked!"". anderson.edu. Archived from the original on November 17, 2012. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  14. 1 2 "About Cory Edwards WRITER / DIRECTOR BIO". coryedwards.com. Retrieved February 22, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Gotta an Idea?: This Is How You Get it Made". Animation World Network. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Cory Edwards Biography". movies.com.
  17. ↑ "Hoodwinked!". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster.[ permanent dead link ]
  18. ↑ "Hoodwinked!". boxofficemojo.com.
  19. ↑ "Roger Cosmonkey: The Twitter Adventure" (PDF). coryedwards.com. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
  20. ↑ Cory Edwards (September 2, 2023). "Cory Edwards Expresses Interest in Working with Angel Studios". Twitter. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  21. ↑ Cory Edwards (September 2, 2023). "Cory Edwards Confirms his Involvement in Dry Bar Comedy and The Wingfeather Saga". Twitter. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  22. ↑ "Cory Edwards". belairdrama.com.
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