Steve De Jarnatt is an American film and television director, screenwriter, and short-story author. De Jarnatt is perhaps best known for writing and directing the nuclear-apocalypse thriller ''

Miracle Mile Miracle Mile may refer to: Places in the United States * Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California, a district of Los Angeles * Miracle Mile (Coral Gables), a shopping area in Coral Gables, Florida * Miracle Mile (Manhasset), New York, a premium sho ...

'' (1988) and directing the sci-fi film ''

Cherry 2000 ''Cherry 2000'' is a 1988 American science-fiction film directed by Steve De Jarnatt and starring Melanie Griffith and David Andrews (actor), David Andrews. It was produced by Edward R. Pressman and Caldecot Chubb. The screenplay was by Michael ...

'' (1987). In 1983, ''Miracle Mile'' was chosen by ''

American Film The cinema of the United States, consisting mainly of major film studios (also known as Hollywood) along with some independent film, has had a large effect on the global film industry since the early 20th century. The dominant style of Ame ...

'' magazine as one of the ten best unproduced screenplays circulating in Hollywood. That same year, De Jarnatt received his first screen credit as one of the writers of ''

Strange Brew ''Strange Brew'' (also known as ''The Adventures of Bob & Doug McKenzie: Strange Brew'') is a 1983 Canadian comedy film starring the popular '' SCTV'' characters Bob and Doug McKenzie, portrayed by Dave Thomas and Rick Moranis, who also served a ...

'', a comedy starring Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas as their respective '' SCTV'' characters Bob & Doug McKenzie. De Jarnatt has also directed episodic television, including ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

'', ''

Lizzie McGuire ''Lizzie McGuire'' is an American comedy television series created by Terri Minsky that premiered on Disney Channel on January 12, 2001. The series stars Hilary Duff as the titular character, who navigates the personal and social issues of her te ...

'', ''

Flight 29 Down ''Flight 29 Down'' is an American adventure comedy-drama television series about a group of teenagers who are stranded on an island. It was produced by Discovery Kids. The show was created by Stan Rogow (''Lizzie McGuire'', ''Darcy's Wild Life'') ...

'', '' ER'', and ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was ren ...

''. His short story, "Rubiaux Rising", appeared in the 2009 edition of ''

The Best American Short Stories The Best American Short Stories yearly anthology is a part of ''The Best American Series'' published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Since 1915, the BASS anthology has striven to contain the best short stories by some of the best-known writers in con ...

'', as selected by author

Alice Sebold Alice Sebold (born September 6, 1963) is an American author. She is known for her novels ''The Lovely Bones'' and '' The Almost Moon'', and a memoir, '' Lucky''. ''The Lovely Bones'' was on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list and was adapte ...

. A collection of De Jarnatt's stories, ''Grace for Grace'', was published in 2020.

Background and education

De Jarnatt grew up in

Longview, Washington Longview is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, United States. It is the principal city of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cowlitz County. Longview's population was 37,818 at the time of the 2 ...

. His father, Arlie De Jarnatt, was a teacher and public representative who taught history and civics at Monticello Middle School and later R.A. Long High School. He also served five terms as a Democratic Party member of the

Washington House of Representatives The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 ...

and six years as a

state senator A state senator is a member of a state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. Description A state senator is a member of an upper house in the bicameral legislatures of 49 U ...

. De Jarnatt's mother, Donna, was an artist who also taught at St. Helens Elementary School and Monticello Middle. De Jarnatt himself attended R.A. Long, graduating in 1970. Although he was a successful sprinter at high school (where he set several records), he chose

Occidental College Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is one of the oldes ...

in Los Angeles, rather than take a track scholarship to a local public university, because he preferred the Southern Californian climate and environment. De Jarnatt first took an interest in film during his time at Occidental; attracted by "access to good film equipment," he subsequently attended

The Evergreen State College The Evergreen State College is a public liberal arts college in Olympia, Washington. Founded in 1967, it offers a non-traditional undergraduate curriculum in which students have the option to design their own study towards a degree or follow a p ...

, from which he graduated in 1974. He later studied at the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

Selected filmography

* Unknown: ''Tarzana'' (writer, director) * 1983: ''

'' (writer) * 1987: ''

'' (director) * 1988: ''

'' (writer, director) * 1998: ''

Futuresport ''Futuresport'' is a 1998 American made-for-television sports film directed by Ernest Dickerson, starring Dean Cain, Vanessa Williams, and Wesley Snipes. It originally aired on ABC in October 1998, and was released on VHS and DVD in March 1999. ...

'' (writer)

References

External links

* 1951 births American male screenwriters American television directors American television producers American television writers American short story writers Living people People from Longview, Washington Occidental College alumni Evergreen State College alumni Place of birth missing (living people) American male short story writers American male television writers Film directors from Washington (state) Screenwriters from Washington (state) {{US-film-director-1950s-stub