David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, painter, television director, visual artist, musician, and occasional actor. Known for his

surrealist Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...

films, he has developed his own unique cinematic style which has been dubbed "Lynchian" and is characterized by its dream imagery and meticulous

sound design Sound design is the art and practice of creating sound tracks for a variety of needs. It involves specifying, acquiring or creating auditory elements using audio production techniques and tools. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including ...

. The surreal and, in many cases, violent elements to his films have earned them the reputation that they "disturb, offend or mystify" their audiences. Lynch's

oeuvre Oeuvre(s) or Œuvre(s) may refer to: * A work of art; or, more commonly, the body of work of a creator Books * ''L'Œuvre'', a novel by Émile Zola * ''Œuvres'', a work by Emil Cioran * ''Œuvres'', a work by Auguste Brizeux * ''Oeuvres'', a wor ...

includes short and feature-length films, music videos, documentaries and television episodes, while his involvement in these ranges from direction, production, and screenwriting to acting and sound design. Lynch's first project was the 1967 short ''

Six Men Getting Sick (Six Times) ''Six Men Getting Sick (Six Times)'' (sometimes known as ''Six Figures Getting Sick'') is a 1967 experimental animated short film, directed by David Lynch. A student project that was developed over the course of a semester, it is Lynch's fir ...

'', an animated film which blended elements of sculpture and painting into its animation. His first feature-length project, 1977's '' Eraserhead'', became a

cult film A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage ...

and launched his commercial career. It also marked his first collaboration with

Jack Nance Marvin John Nance (December 21, 1943 – December 30, 1996), known professionally as Jack Nance, was an American actor. A longtime collaborator of filmmaker David Lynch, Nance portrayed the lead in Lynch's directorial film debut ''Eraserhead'' (1 ...

, an actor who would appear in many more of Lynch's productions until his death in 1996. Lynch's other feature films include the critically successful ''

The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), often erroneously called John Merrick, was an English man known for having severe deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "the Elephant Man" and then wen ...

'' (1980), '' Blue Velvet'' (1986) and ''

Mulholland Drive Mulholland Drive is a street and road in the eastern Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. It is named after pioneering Los Angeles civil engineer William Mulholland. The western rural portion in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties is nam ...

'' (2001), all of which went on to earn

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nominations, and the commercial flop ''

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

''. Lynch has also branched out into television, and later, internet-based series. His first foray into the medium was ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Mystery fiction, mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company, ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cance ...

'', a joint venture with

Mark Frost Mark Frost (born November 25, 1953) is an American novelist, screenwriter, film-and-television producer and director. He is the co-creator of the mystery television series ''Twin Peaks'' (1990–1991; 2017) and was a writer and executive story ...

. ''Twin Peaks'' became a cult success, leading to Lynch and Frost working together on a number of other projects, including ''

On the Air On the Air may refer to: *On the Air (album), ''On the Air'' (album), 1984, by Billy Preston *On the Air (TV series), ''On the Air'' (TV series), an American sitcom *On the Air (film), ''On the Air'' (film), a 1934 British musical comedy *On the A ...

'' and '' American Chronicles''. In 2002 Lynch began producing two series of shorts released through his official website: the

Flash Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Barry Allen) ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Wally West, the first Kid ...

-animated ''

DumbLand ''DumbLand'' is a series of eight animated shorts written, directed and voiced by director David Lynch in 2002. The shorts were originally released on the Internet through Lynch's website, and were released as a DVD on March 28, 2006. The total ru ...

'' and ''

Rabbits Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...

''. Having begun acting in his 1972 short ''The Amputee'', Lynch went on to appear on-camera in ''Twin Peaks'', ''

Zelly and Me ''Zelly and Me'' is a 1988 American drama film written, directed and produced by Tina Rathborne and starring Isabella Rossellini, Glynis Johns and Alexandra Johnes. Filmmaker David Lynch features in a minor role. Released on April 15, 1988, ''Zel ...

'', and ''Dune''. From 2010 to 2013, Lynch appeared in a recurring voice role in the animated series ''

The Cleveland Show ''The Cleveland Show'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry for the Fox Broadcasting Company. A spin-off of ''Family Guy'', the series centers on Cleveland Brown, his new wife Donna Tubbs, a ...

''.

Feature films

Short films

Television series

Web series

Music videos

Commercials

Concert films

Other works

Acting roles

Film

Short films

Television

Documentary films

Executive producer

References

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lynch, David Filmography Director filmographies Male actor filmographies American filmographies