Owen Kline | |
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Born | Owen Joseph Kline October 14, 1991 New York City, U.S. |
Occupation(s) | Actor, filmmaker |
Years active | 2001–present |
Parents |
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Relatives | Greta Kline (sister), Gilbert Cates (great-uncle), Gil Cates Jr. (first cousin once removed) |
Owen Joseph Kline (born October 14, 1991) is an American filmmaker and actor. He is best known for his directorial debut Funny Pages (2022) [1] and his performance as Frank Berkman in The Squid and the Whale (2005).
Kline was born and raised in New York City, to actor Kevin Kline and actress Phoebe Cates. His father is of German Jewish and Irish descent, and his mother has Russian Jewish and Chinese-Filipino ancestry. He has one younger sister, Greta Kline, a musician/singer-songwriter. At age 7, he fell ill, and during a two-week stay in the hospital was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. He acted in his adolescence in the independent films The Anniversary Party (2001) and Noah Baumbach’s The Squid and The Whale (2005), [2] but did not pursue a subsequent career in acting, instead remaining in junior high school. He performed in provocative novelty bands in high school, released prank call CDs, and created xeroxed comics, joke books and zines. [3] He attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, studying illustration and film. [4]
He worked as an assistant to the archivist at New York film museum Anthology Film Archives, and for musicologists Billy Miller and Miriam Linna at their Norton label and Kicks Books imprint. He crewed on early work of filmmakers Josh and Benny Safdie, and acted in their film John's Gone (2010), and in Michael M. Bilandic's [5] films Hellaware (2013), and Jobe'z World (2018).
In 2013 Kline wrote and directed the short comedy Fowl Play, about a group of low-rent criminals fooled into buying a hen for a cockfight in Flushing, Queens. He co-wrote and directed the short film Jazzy for Joe (2014), a narrative comedy about, and starring, New York broadcaster Joe Franklin raising an abandoned baby, which premiered at BAMcinemaFest 2015. [6]
Kline spent six years continually writing, directing and editing his debut feature Funny Pages , a black comedy about a young dropout cartoonist striking out on his own in Trenton, New Jersey. Produced by the Safdie Brothers and distributed by A24, it premiered in the Director's Fortnight at the 75th Cannes Film Festival in 2022. [7]
Prior to Funny Pages, Kline provided archival research for books, including Mark Newgarden and Paul Karasik's How to Read Nancy . [8]
In 2021, Kline contributed a two-page comic about Our Gang star Norman "Chubby" Chaney to film critic Nick Pinkerton's premiere issue of Bombast: A Journal of Film & Funnies. [9]
Year | Title | Director | Writer | Actor | Editor | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | The Anniversary Party | No | No | Yes | No | dir. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Alan Cumming |
2005 | The Squid and the Whale | No | No | Yes | No | dir. Noah Baumbach |
2010 | John's Gone | No | No | Yes | No | dir. Josh and Benny Safdie |
2010 | Sinners of Kings Highway | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Short film, directorial debut |
2012 | Dave Buddin Drinks at Home | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Documentary |
2013 | Fowl Play | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Short film |
2014 | Jazzy for Joe | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Short film |
2016 | Steve Dalanchinsky | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Documentary |
2018 | Jobe'z World | No | No | Yes | No | dir. Michael M. Bilandic |
2022 | Funny Pages | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | First feature film |
2022 | Mystery Reel | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | |
2024 | A Different Man | No | No | Yes | No | dir. Aaron Schimberg |
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Phoebe Belle Cates Kline is an American retired actress, who appeared in films such as Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), Gremlins (1984), Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990), Drop Dead Fred (1991) and Princess Caraboo (1994).
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The Squid and the Whale is a 2005 American independent comedy-drama film written and directed by Noah Baumbach and produced by Wes Anderson. It tells the semi-autobiographical story of two boys in Brooklyn dealing with their parents' divorce in 1986. The film is named after the giant squid and sperm whale diorama housed at the American Museum of Natural History, which is seen in the film. The film was shot on Super 16 mm, mostly using a handheld camera.
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She's Funny That Way is a 2014 screwball comedy film directed by Peter Bogdanovich and co-written with Louise Stratten. It stars Owen Wilson, Imogen Poots, Kathryn Hahn, Will Forte, Rhys Ifans, and Jennifer Aniston. It marked the first feature film Bogdanovich directed in 13 years since The Cat's Meow. In addition, the film marked Bogdanovich's final non-documentary feature he directed and Richard Lewis' final theatrical film before their deaths in 2022 and 2024 respectively.
Greta Simone Kline, also known by the stage name Frankie Cosmos, is an American musician and singer-songwriter. She is known for her independent releases, inspired by Frank O'Hara's poetry, DIY ethics of K Records and the early 2000s New York City's anti-folk scene. She is the daughter of actors Kevin Kline and Phoebe Cates. Her former stage name "Frankie Cosmos" is now the name of her band.
Sean Price Williams is an American cinematographer and film director. Williams is known for his work as a cinematographer, frequently collaborating with Alex Ross Perry and the Safdie Brothers. He made his directorial feature film debut with The Sweet East (2023).
Benjamin Safdie is an American film director, screenwriter, actor, and film editor best known for working with his older brother Josh as a filmmaker. His directorial works include Heaven Knows What (2014), Good Time (2017), and Uncut Gems (2019). Transitioning towards acting, Safdie was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male for his role in Good Time and has since taken on roles in films such as Licorice Pizza (2021), Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. and Oppenheimer. He co-created, co-wrote and starred in the television show The Curse (2023).
Funny Pages is a 2022 American coming-of-age black comedy film written, directed, and edited by Owen Kline and produced by the Safdie brothers. It stars Daniel Zolghadri, Matthew Maher, Miles Emanuel, Maria Dizzia, Josh Pais, Stephen Adly Guirgis, Louise Lasser, and Andy Milonakis. It premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival and was released in the United States on August 26, 2022, where it received positive reviews from critics. The film was ranked among the Best Films of 2022 by The New York Times and was awarded as one of the Top 10 Independent Films of 2022 by the National Board of Review.
Daniel Zolghadri is an American actor known for his roles in Eighth Grade, Low Tide, and Funny Pages. He attended the Orange County School of the Arts.
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