John Thomas Sayles is an American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor, and novelist. He has twice been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, for Passion Fish (1992) and Lone Star (1996). His film Men with Guns (1997) was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. His directorial debut, Return of the Secaucus 7 (1980), has been added to the National Film Registry.
Daniel Edward Aykroyd is a Canadian actor, comedian, producer, musician and writer. He was an original member of the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" on Saturday Night Live (1975–1979). During his tenure on SNL, Aykroyd appeared in a recurring series of sketches about the Coneheads, and the Blues Brothers. For his work on the show he received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations winning for Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series in 1977. After his departure, he has since returned in guest roles.
The Blues Brothers are an American blues and soul revivalist band founded in 1978 by comedians Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi as part of a musical sketch on Saturday Night Live. Belushi and Aykroyd fronted the band, in character, respectively, as lead vocalist 'Joliet' Jake Blues and harmonica player/vocalist Elwood Blues, donning black suits with matching fedoras and sunglasses. The band was composed of well-known musicians, and debuted as the musical guest in a 1978 episode of Saturday Night Live, opening the show performing "Hey Bartender", and later "Soul Man".
Kevin Roosevelt Moore, known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician and five-time Grammy Award winner. He is a singer, guitarist, and songwriter, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been described as "a living link to the seminal Delta blues that travelled up the Mississippi River and across the expanse of America." His post-modern blues style is influenced by many eras and genres, including folk, rock, jazz, pop and country. The moniker "Keb Mo" was coined by his original drummer, Quentin Dennard, and picked up by his record label as a "street talk" abbreviation of his given name.
The Honey Drippers or The Honeydrippers may refer to:
Lone Star is a 1996 American neo-Western mystery film written, edited, and directed by John Sayles and set in a small town in South Texas. The ensemble cast features Chris Cooper, Kris Kristofferson, Matthew McConaughey and Elizabeth Peña and deals with a sheriff's investigation into the murder of one of his predecessors. Filmed on location along the Rio Grande in southern and southwestern Texas, the film received critical acclaim, with critics regarding it as a high point of 1990s independent cinema as well as one of Sayles' best films. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, and also appeared on the ballot for the AFI's 10 Top 10 in the western category. The film was a box office success, grossing $13 million against its $3–5 million budget.
The Brother from Another Planet is a 1984 American science fiction film, written and directed by John Sayles. The low-budget film stars Joe Morton as an extraterrestrial trapped on Earth.
Casa de los Babys is a 2003 drama film written, directed, and edited by filmmaker John Sayles. It features an ensemble cast, including Marcia Gay Harden, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Daryl Hannah.
Chapter 27 is a 2007 biographical drama film depicting the murder of John Lennon by Mark David Chapman. It was written and directed by Jarrett Schaefer, based on the 1992 book Let Me Take You Down by Jack Jones, produced by Robert Salerno, and stars Jared Leto as Chapman. The film takes place in December 1980, and is intended to be an exploration of Chapman's psyche. Its title is a reference to J. D. Salinger's 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye, which has 26 chapters, and suggests a continuation of the book.
Creed Bratton is an American actor, singer and musician. A former member of the rock band the Grass Roots, he is best known for playing a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom The Office, which earned him five nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.
I'm Not There is a 2007 musical drama film directed by Todd Haynes, and co-written by Haynes and Oren Moverman. It is an unconventional biographical film inspired by the life and music of American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Six actors depict different facets of Dylan's public personas: Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger, and Ben Whishaw. A caption at the start of the film declares it to be "inspired by the music and the many lives of Bob Dylan"; this is the only mention of Dylan in the film apart from song credits, and his only appearance in it is concert footage from 1966 shown during the film's final moments.
Harold Thomas Wright is an American television and theatre actor.
Sunshine State is a 2002 American drama film written and directed by John Sayles. The picture stars an ensemble cast that features Angela Bassett, Edie Falco, Jane Alexander, Alan King, Timothy Hutton, Mary Steenburgen, Bill Cobbs, and others. It was filmed on Amelia Island, Florida, which includes settings in historic Fernandina Beach. For her performance in the film, Falco received the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actress.
City of Hope is a 1991 American drama film written, directed, and edited by John Sayles. The film features Vincent Spano, Stephen Mendillo, and Chris Cooper.
Blindness is a 2008 English-language thriller film about a society that suffers an epidemic of blindness. The film is an adaptation of the 1995 novel of the same name by the Portuguese author José Saramago. The film was written by Don McKellar and directed by Fernando Meirelles, starring Julianne Moore as the doctor's wife and Mark Ruffalo as the doctor. Saramago originally refused to sell the rights for a film adaptation, but the producers were able to acquire it with the condition that the film would be set in an unnamed and unrecognizable city. Blindness premiered as the opening film at the Cannes Film Festival on May 14, 2008, and was released in Canada as part of the Toronto International Film Festival on September 6, 2008.
Religulous is a 2008 American documentary film written by and starring comedian Bill Maher and directed by Larry Charles. The title of the film is a portmanteau derived from the words religious and ridiculous. The documentary examines and challenges religion and religious belief.
Me and Orson Welles is a 2008 period drama film directed by Richard Linklater and starring Zac Efron, Christian McKay, and Claire Danes. Based on Robert Kaplow's novel of the same name, the story, set in 1937 New York, tells of a teenager hired to perform in Orson Welles's groundbreaking stage adaptation of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar who becomes attracted to a career-driven production assistant.
Amigo is a 2010 American-Philippine drama film written and directed by John Sayles. The film takes place in the Philippines in 1900 during the Philippine–American War.
Medicine for Melancholy is a 2008 independent romantic drama film written and directed by Barry Jenkins. The film stars Wyatt Cenac, Tracey Heggins, and Elizabeth Acker.
Go for Sisters is a 2013 crime drama, written and directed by John Sayles. The title refers to the history of friendship between the two main characters: when they were in high school, the two African American women were so close they could "go for sisters". Sayles shot the film in 19 days, using 65 locations, for under a million dollars. The DVD was released in August 2014 and features a Director's Commentary in which Sayles talks at length about the art and craft of guerrilla film making.
