Adam Stein is an American film director and screenwriter working in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California. Stein graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

and the directing program at the

USC School of Cinematic Arts The University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) houses seven academic divisions: Film & Television Production; Cinema & Media Studies; John C. Hench Division of Animation + Digital Arts; John Wells Division of Writing for Sc ...

. He co-directed the Disney live-action movie ''

Kim Possible ''Kim Possible'' is an American animated action comedy-adventure television series created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle for Disney Channel. The title character is a teenage girl tasked with fighting crime on a regular basis while coping wi ...

'', and also co-wrote and directed the award-winning independent film ''

Freaks Freak has several meanings: a person who is physically deformed or suffers from an extraordinary disease and condition, a genetic mutation in a plant or animal, etc. Freak, freaks or The Freak may also refer to: Fictional characters * Freak (Ima ...

'', working with partner

Zach Lipovsky Zach Lipovsky is a Canadian director, former child actor and visual effects specialist. Career Lipovsky was a finalist on the first season of the Fox reality show ''On the Lot'' where he placed 5th out of 12,000 directors worldwide. He went on to ...

. In 2019, he was nominated for an Emmy award for Outstanding Directing for his work on the TV series

Mech-X4 ''Mech-X4'' is an American sci-fi adventure comedy television series created by Steve Marmel that aired on Disney Channel from November 11 to December 4, 2016, and on Disney XD from April 17, 2017 to August 20, 2018. The series stars Nathani ...

. Prior to directing, Stein edited several independent features that played at film festivals such as Sundance,

Tribeca Tribeca (), originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its name is a syllabic abbreviation of "Triangle Below Canal Street". The "triangle" (more accurately a quadrilateral) is bounded by Canal Stre ...

, and

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

''On The Lot''

Adam Stein was a contestant on ''

On The Lot ''On the Lot'' is a single season reality show and online competition for filmmaking, produced by Steven Spielberg, Mark Burnett and David Goffin. The show, which aired on Fox, featured filmmakers competing in weekly elimination competitions, wit ...

'', the Fox Television reality show produced by

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

and

Mark Burnett Mark Burnett (born 17 July 1960) is a television producer who is the former Chairman of MGM Television, MGM Worldwide Television Group. He is best known for creating and producing the reality shows The Apprentice (American TV series), ''The Ap ...

. The films that Adam Stein created for ''

'' consistently received the highest reviews from the show's judges. Actress/writer

Carrie Fisher Carrie Frances Fisher (October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016) was an American actress and writer. She played Princess Leia in the ''Star Wars'' films (1977–1983). She reprised the role in'' Star Wars: The Force Awakens'' (2015), ''The Last ...

said of his film ''Army Guy'': "that was one of the most innovative, freaky, fantastic films I have seen." Director

Gary Ross Gary Ross (born November 3, 1956) is an American film director, writer, and producer. He is best known for writing and directing the fantasy comedy-drama film '' Pleasantville'' (1998), the sports drama film ''Seabiscuit'' (2003), the sci-fi acti ...

called Stein's filmmaking "charming, unbelievably ambitious, and really really technically proficient." At least one celebrity judge chose Stein as their favorite filmmaker each time he made a film. ''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'', ...

'' called the director a "wunderkind". When ''

Film Threat ''Film Threat'' is an online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. It first ...

'' reviewed his film ''Dough: The Musical'', the magazine said that it "covered a lot of visual ground and was extremely accomplished in lyrics, dancing, singing and acting."

Writing and directing

In 2018, it was announced that Stein would co-direct a live-action adaptation of the hit animated TV series ''

''. The movie aired February 15, 2019 on Disney Channel. The independent feature film ''

'' that Stein wrote and directed with partner

premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and has won awards at several film festivals around the world. The Vancouver Film Festival, which awarded Stein and Lipovsky "Best Emerging Director," said that their film "ratchets up the go-for-broke audacity as it laces the family drama of ''Room'' with genre confections indebted to vintage Spielberg." ''Freaks'' was released in theaters on September 13, 2019. In 2016, Adam Stein directed episodes for the first and second seasons of the

Disney XD Disney XD is an American pay television channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years ...

series ''

''. He was also the director of the

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...

pilot "Forever Boys." Before that, he directed comedy pieces for

Jimmy Kimmel Live! ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, Los ...

on ABC. Stein has written and directed dozens of short films and music videos, which have been released around the world. He directed the music video "Suburban Symphony" for the '' Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone'' album. This music video was first screened at an orchestral performance conducted by

Andrea Morricone Andrea Morricone (born 10 October 1964) is an Italian composer and conductor, known for his film scores. He is the third child, and second son, of late composer and Academy Award winner Ennio Morricone. He composed the film scores for the Americ ...

, with

Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma (''Chinese'': 馬友友 ''Ma Yo Yo''; born October 7, 1955) is an American cellist. Born in Paris to Chinese parents and educated in New York City, he was a child prodigy, performing from the age of four and a half. He graduated from ...

playing live. The music video was then sold as part of the album's bonus DVD. His USC film ''Hot Java'' played at many festivals around the country and won the top prize at the

Gen Art Film Festival Gen Art is an arts and entertainment organization that showcases emerging fashion designers, filmmakers, musicians and visual artists. It has produced over 100 events annually, which included fashion shows, film premieres and screenings, live musi ...

. His film script ''Tangles'' won an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation grant for screenwriting. With film school collaborator Sam Friedlander and actor

Mark Feuerstein Mark Feuerstein (; born June 8, 1971) is an American actor, writer, producer and director. He had an early, recurring role in several episodes of '' Caroline in the City'', playing the title character's new boyfriend, and later gained notice in a ...

, he made "Lazy Monday", an online parody described as a "west coast rap battle" response to ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

''s " Lazy Sunday". This video was widely played and widely copied, being featured on VH1, Bravo, and many other media outlets. After the release of this video, CNN's

Paula Zahn Paula Ann Zahn (; born February 24, 1956) is an American journalist and newscaster who has been an anchor at ABC News, CBS News, Fox News, and CNN. She currently produces and hosts the true crime documentary series ''On the Case with Paula Zahn'' ...

interviewed Stein and Feuerstein about making content for the web.

Editing

Stein has worked as an editor on several feature films, including: * ''

Blue State Starting with the 2000 United States presidential election, the terms "red state" and "blue state" have referred to U.S. states whose voters vote predominantly for one party — the Republican Party in red states and the Democratic Party in b ...

'', starring

Anna Paquin Anna Hélène Paquin ( ; born 24 July 1982) is a New Zealand actress. Born in Winnipeg and raised in Wellington, Paquin made her acting debut portraying Flora McGrath in the romantic drama film ''The Piano'' (1993), for which she won the Aca ...

and

Breckin Meyer Breckin Erin Meyer (born May 7, 1974) is an American actor, musician, writer and producer, known for his roles in films such as ''Clueless'' (1995), ''Road Trip'' (2000), ''Rat Race'' (2001), and '' Garfield: The Movie'' (2004), he's also known f ...

* ''

Fifty Pills ''Fifty Pills'' (also known as ''50 Pills'') is the debut comedy film of director Theo Avgerinos, which premiered at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. Plot After being blamed for a party which he didn't throw or have any knowledge of, that resulte ...

'', starring

Kristen Bell Kristen Anne Bell (born July 18, 1980) is an American actress. Beginning her acting career by starring in stage productions while attending the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, she made her Broadway stage debut as Becky That ...

and

Lou Taylor Pucci Lou Taylor Pucci (born July 27, 1985) is an American actor who first appeared on film in Rebecca Miller's '' Personal Velocity: Three Portraits'' in 2002. Pucci had his breakthrough leading role in '' Thumbsucker'' (2005), for which he won a Speci ...

* '' Flakes'', starring

Zooey Deschanel Zooey Claire Deschanel (; born January 17, 1980) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She made her film debut in '' Mumford'' (1999) and had a supporting role in Cameron Crowe's film ''Almost Famous'' (2000). Deschanel is known for he ...

* The documentary ''

Who Killed the Electric Car? ''Who Killed the Electric Car?'' is a 2006 American documentary film directed by Chris Paine that explores the creation, limited commercialization and subsequent destruction of the battery electric vehicle in the United States, specifically the G ...

'', which premiered at Sundance in 2006.

References

External links

Adam Stein's Official Site
*
Stein's page at the Directors Guild of America
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stein, Adam USC School of Cinematic Arts alumni Harvard University alumni Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People from Miami Participants in American reality television series Film directors from Florida