Austin Chick (born 1971) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer, who made the films '' XX/XY'', released in 2002, and ''

August August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and the fifth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Its zodiac sign is Leo and was originally named ''Sextilis'' in Latin because it was the 6th month in ...

'', which premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.

Early life

Although born in Hartford, Connecticut, Chick moved to New Hampshire as a youngster.Austin Chick The Brooklyn Director of XX/YY
FreeWilliamsburg.com website, May 2003 In the late 1980s he attended high school at High Mowing School, a boarding school in Wilton, NH. He went on to Sarah Lawrence College in

Yonkers Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...

, where he specialized in literature and

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

with the aid of grants from the King Foundation.:

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translation of references at ''Zinema.com'' website. Retrieved on January 25, 2008. Chick spent a number of years unsure of what he wanted to do with his life and took on a life of a wanderer for some time. He said watching '' Kings of the Road'' helped him find direction:. In 1998, Chick graduated in

cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to foc ...

from SUNY Purchase Film School in Purchase, New York.

Career

His first major film, which he wrote and directed, was released in 2002. It was titled '' XX/XY'', and it starred

Mark Ruffalo Mark Alan Ruffalo (; born November 22, 1967) is an American actor and producer best known for playing Bruce Banner / Hulk since 2012 in the superhero franchise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and in the television series '' She-Hulk: Attorne ...

and

Kathleen Robertson Kathleen Robertson (born July 8, 1973) is a Canadian actress, producer, writer and showrunner. She is best known for her roles as Kitty O' Neill in the Starz, Golden Globe winning series Boss, Hildy Mulligan in TNT's Murder in the First, Tina Edi ...

. It examined the complex relationship between three Sarah Lawrence College students, both during their time at the school and then many years later. It was an independent production, which was shown at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival (where it was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize) and subsequently taken up by

IFC Films IFC Films is an American film production and distribution company based in New York. It is an offshoot of IFC owned by AMC Networks. It distributes mainly independent films under its own name, select foreign films and documentaries under its ...

. He co-produced Sidney Lumet's 2007 film ''

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead ''Before the Devil Knows You're Dead'' is a 2007 American crime thriller film directed by Sidney Lumet. The film was written by Kelly Masterson, and stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei, and Albert Finney. The title comes fro ...

'', which featured

Ethan Hawke Ethan Green Hawke (born November 6, 1970) is an American actor and film director. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Tony Award. Hawke has directed three feature films, three off-Broadway plays, and a doc ...

and

Philip Seymour Hoffman Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character roles—typically lowlifes, eccentrics, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical produ ...

as two brothers who stage the robbery of their parents' jewelry shop in an effort to get rich quick, with tragic consequences. He then produced a movie called ''

'', was released b
ContentFilm International
in 2008. The cast list is headed by

Josh Hartnett Joshua Daniel Hartnett (born July 21, 1978) is an American actor and producer. He first came to attention in 1997 for his role as Michael Fitzgerald in the television crime drama series '' Cracker''. He made his feature film debut in 1998 in th ...

, and features Adam Scott,

Naomie Harris Naomie Melanie Harris (born 6 September 1976) is a British actress. She started her career when she was a child, appearing in the television series ''Simon and the Witch'' in 1987. She portrayed Selena in the zombie film ''28 Days Later'' (2002 ...

, Rip Torn, and

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

. The plot centered on two brothers, with one of them, Tom (Hartnett), involved in a struggle to save his internet company on the stock market just before the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Chick directed the film and was also executive producer. In 2012, he wrote and directed ''

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'' (starring

Danielle Panabaker Danielle Nicole Panabaker (born September 19, 1987) is an American actress. She began acting as a teenager and came to prominence for her roles in the The Walt Disney Company, Disney films ''Stuck in the Suburbs'' (2004), ''Sky High (2005 film), ...

and

Nicole LaLiberte Nicole LaLiberté (born December 1, 1981) is an American actress. She has had recurring roles on the television series ''How to Make It in America'' (2011) and ''Dexter'' (2012–2013) and most notably played Darya in David Lynch's ''Twin Peaks ...

); it was released by

Anchor Bay Entertainment Anchor Bay Entertainment (formerly Video Treasures and Starmaker Entertainment) was an American home entertainment and production company. It was a subsidiary of Starz Inc. Anchor Bay Entertainment marketed and sold feature films, television se ...

in 2012.

Personal life

Chick married actress Morena Baccarin over

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in 2011. Their son Julius was born October 22, 2013, in Glendale, California. Chick filed for divorce in 2015, citing irreconcilable differences.

References

External links

*
Austin Chick's first student film
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chick, Austin Sarah Lawrence College alumni American male screenwriters American film producers Living people People from Hartford, Connecticut 1971 births Waldorf school alumni Film directors from New York City Screenwriters from New York (state)