This article may rely excessively on sources too closely associated with the subject , potentially preventing the article from being verifiable and neutral.(December 2020) |
Jenn Gotzon Chandler is an American film actress. She portrayed U.S. President Richard Nixon's daughter Tricia Nixon in the 2009 film Frost/Nixon . Gotzon portrayed the female protagonist [1] in The Farmer and The Belle: Saving Santaland opposite her actor-husband Jim E. Chandler, [2] and appeared in the mystery-drama Doonby . [3]
Jennifer Lee Gotzon was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and raised in neighboring Northampton. [4] She attended Northampton Area High School and graduated in 1997. [1] She competed in the Miss America pageant. [5]
Gotzon studied at the New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts for two years and did a two-year conservatory at Joanne Baron/DW Baron Studio in Los Angeles. [6] Gotzon also worked for Google in various positions, including human resources co-ordinator. [7]
Gotzon's first lead role was in 2002 in low-budget independent film Julie and Jack, for which she won Best Actress at the Global Arts Film in Sacramento. [8]
Gotzon had a number of "bit roles" in TV series, including House , Pushing Daisies , and CSI: New York . [8] In 2009, she had a cameo role in Frost/Nixon as First Daughter Tricia Nixon Cox, [8] after casting director Jane Jenkins was struck by her physical resemblance to Nixon's daughter. [9]
In 2008, Gotzon won Best Actress for the short film Stained at the 168 Film Festival, a contest that gives filmmakers 168 hours to shoot, edit, and score a film based on a Bible verse. [9] Gotzon received the 2008 Rising Star Award at the Wildwood By the Sea Film Festival. [10] [11]
In 2012, Gotzon had a leading role in psychological thriller Doonby . She was cast by producer Mark Joseph after he followed her on social media, making it the "first official Facebook casting of a lead role in a theatrically released film." [8] [12] Writer-director Peter Mackenzie had a scene digitally altered to make it more "Christian-friendly", reducing the amount of cleavage shown by Gotzon in response to comments from religious leaders. [13]
The Film Advisory Board granted Gotzon an "Award of Excellence for 'Doonby' and Outstanding Contribution to the Entertainment World [Inspiring Audiences motivational program]". [6] [14] Gotzon also starred in the Christian film God's Country , directed by her then-husband Armstrong, in 2012, for which she received "Best Actor" at the Pocono Mountain Film Festival. [14]
Since 2017, Gotzon has worked on faith-based film projects with her husband Jim Chandler, including My Daddy's in Heaven, Sunrise in Heaven , [15] and the 2020 releaseThe Farmer and the Belle: Saving Santaland, a Christmas movie loosely based on their real=life romance. [16] [17]
Gotzon was previously married to director Chris Armstrong, [1] who she met in 2004 after he cast her in his senior thesis film. [9] They divorced in 2014. She married Jim Chandler, whom she met while working on a movie together in 2014, on March 17, 2017; footage from their wedding was used in The Farmer and The Belle. [18] [19]
Gotzon has a mentor-outreach program called Inspiring Audiences in which she speaks at high schools about the moral lessons of her movies. [6] [20]