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Stefan Schaefer | |
|---|---|
 Schaefer in 2015 | |
| Born | Stefan Schaefer August 17, 1971 Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Education | Wesleyan University (BA) University of Kiel (Fulbright Scholar) |
| Occupations | |
| Spouse | Chenta Laury |
| Children | 2 |
Stefan Schaefer (born August 17, 1971) is an American writer, director, and producer of films and television.
Schaefer was born in Boston, USA. He spent his childhood in Sussex, England, and his adolescent years in Michigan and New York. He studied theater and political theory at Wesleyan University, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. After a year and a half in Germany as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Kiel, he returned to New York and co-founded the production company Cicala Filmworks. [1]
He is the maternal grandson of polar explorer and ornithologist Carl R. Eklund. [2]
His films have been premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival and SXSW, [3] with releases on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO, PBS, and the Sundance Channel. [4]
He has worked on films with Melissa Leo, Ali Larter, Zoe Lister-Jones, Ken Duken, Nicole Beharie, David Harbour, and Michael Imperioli. Schaefer, along with writer Chris Silber, [5] has written TV movies for European networks ARD and ZDF, two of which were filmed in Hawaii. [6]
Schaefer also directed the television documentary Contested Streets, [7] which examined the streets and public spaces in New York City compared to those in London, Paris and Copenhagen. The documentary screened at environmental film festivals and aired as part of "The Green" series on the Sundance Channel. [8] He next directed a feature documentary on Poet Laureate and environmental activist W.S. Merwin, titled Even Though the Whole World Is Burning . [9] A one-hour version of the film, W.S. Merwin: To Plant a Tree , was broadcast on PBS in 2016.
| Year | Title | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Confess | Director/writer | |
| 2006 | Act Normal | Co-producer | |
| Contested Streets [10] | Director/producer/editor | Documentary | |
| 2007 | Arranged [11] | Director/writer/producer | |
| 2008 | The Higher Force [12] | Writer/producer/actor | |
| The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela | Writer/producer/actor | ||
| 2009 | The Hungry Ghosts | Producer/actor | |
| 2011 | The Roundup | Director/writer/producer | Short film |
| Get a Job [13] | Producer/actor | ||
| My Last Day Without You [14] | Director/writer/producer | ||
| 2014 | Even Though the Whole World Is Burning | Director/writer/producer | Documentary |
| 2017 | Kuleana | Producer/actor | |
| 2020 | Aloha Surf Hotel [15] | Director/writer/producer | |
| 2023 | Viral | Director/co-writer/producer | Short film |
| 2024 | Grit & Gratitude: The Sig Anderman Story | Director/writer/producer | Documentary |
| Year | Title | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Circledrawers [16] | Co-creator/producer/actor |
| 2012 | First Lady / Nicht mit mir, Liebling [17] | Writer |
| 2013 | The Paradise Within / Das Paradies in uns | Writer |
| To Love, Let Go / Wer liebt, lässt los | Writer | |
| 2015 | Bluewater: Nightmare in Paradise / Blauwasserleben | Writer |
| 2016 | Surf Break Hotel [18] | Director/writer/producer |
| W.S. Merwin: To Plant a Tree | Director/writer/producer | |
| 2018 | I Am Because You Are | Director/writer/producer |
 | This section needs additional citations for verification .(June 2024) |
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Confess is a 2005 American independent feature film written and directed by Stefan Schaefer.
Arranged is a 2007 American independent film produced by Cicala Filmworks, directed by Diane Crespo and Stefan Schaefer, and starring Zoe Lister-Jones and Francis Benhamou. It tells the story of the friendship between an Orthodox Jewish woman (Rochel) and a Muslim woman (Nasira), both of whom are teachers in New York City.
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Cicala Filmworks is an American independent film production company based in New York City. Feature film credits include My Last Day Without You (2011), Get a Job (2011), Michael Imperioli's debut The Hungry Ghosts (2009), Olaf de Fleur's The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela (2008), Arranged (2007), and Confess (2005). Documentaries include Even Though the Whole World Is Burning (2014) and Contested Streets (2006), which was broadcast as part of "The Green" on The Sundance Channel. Founded in 1997 by Stefan Schaefer and Diane Crespo, the company has also created promotional content for The Guggenheim Museum, The New York Yankees and The March of Dimes.
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Even Though the Whole World Is Burning is a feature documentary film about former United States Poet Laureate and environmental activist W. S. Merwin. The film is directed and produced by Stefan Schaefer, and screened at the Maui Film Festival, DOXA Documentary Film Festival, Environmental Film Festival in the Nation's Capital, Seattle International Film Festival, and the Hawaii International Film Festival.
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