Joseph Kosinski is an American film director best known for his

computer graphics Computer graphics deals with generating images with the aid of computers. Today, computer graphics is a core technology in digital photography, film, video games, cell phone and computer displays, and many specialized applications. A great de ...

and computer-generated imagery (CGI) work, and for his work in action films. He made his big-screen directorial debut with the 2010 science fiction film '' Tron: Legacy'', the sequel to the 1982 film ''

Tron ''Tron'' (stylized as ''TRON'') is a 1982 American science fiction action- adventure film written and directed by Steven Lisberger from a story by Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird. The film stars Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer ...

''. He also directed the 2013 science fiction film '' Oblivion'' and the 2022 action drama film '' Top Gun: Maverick'', the sequel to the 1986 film '' Top Gun''. His previous work has primarily been with CGI-related television commercials including the "Starry Night" commercial for ''

Halo 3 ''Halo 3'' is a 2007 first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie for the Xbox 360 console. The third installment in the ''Halo'' franchise, the game concludes the story arc begun in 2001's '' Halo: Combat Evolved'' and continued in ...

'' and the award-winning "Mad World" commercial for '' Gears of War''.

Life and career

Kosinski grew up in

Marshalltown, Iowa Marshalltown is a city in and the county seat of Marshall County, Iowa, United States, located along the Iowa River. It is the seat and most populous settlement of Marshall County and the 16th largest city in Iowa, with a population of 27,591 at ...

, the son of Patricia (née Provost) of French-Canadian descent, and Joel Kosinski, a doctor of Polish descent. His first major film was the special effects-heavy '' Tron: Legacy''. The film was in Disney Digital 3-D and IMAX 3D, with a release of December 2010 and grossed $400 million worldwide. After moving to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

in 2005, he began writing a

film treatment A film treatment (or simply treatment) is a piece of prose, typically the step between scene cards (index cards) and the first draft of a screenplay for a motion picture, television program, or radio play. It is generally longer and more detail ...

which would eventually develop into an unpublished

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

by the title ''Oblivion'' for

Radical Comics Radical Studios is an American multimedia studio. It had branches in feature films, television, physical and digital publishing, merchandise, recorded music, digital and online media applications and mobile and social games. History Radical Pub ...

. In August 2010,

Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney Pictures is an American film production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios unit ...

acquired the rights to the work.

William Monahan William J. Monahan (born November 3, 1960) is an American screenwriter and novelist. His second produced screenplay was ''The Departed'', a film that earned him a Writers Guild of America Award and Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. ...

worked on the screenplay for a film adaptation. In March 2011, it was reported that Karl Gajdusek would rewrite the screenplay. Attempts to keep the film with a PG rating were unsuccessful, leading to Disney giving up the rights which were acquired by

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

, and agreed to a

PG-13 The Motion Picture Association film rating system is used in the United States and its territories to rate a motion picture's suitability for certain audiences based on its content. The system and the ratings applied to individual motion pictures ...

rating. The $120-million-budgeted '' Oblivion'' began filming in March 2012, with

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Go ...

in the lead role, and was released in April 2013 to mixed reviews and grossed $286 million worldwide. Top Gun Maveric Global Premiere May 2022

Kosinski was confirmed to direct the third ''Tron'' film in early 2015, but in May of the same year it was announced that Disney had canceled the project. In 2017, he directed '' Only the Brave'', originally titled ''Granite Mountain'', based on the true story of the

Granite Mountain Hotshots The Prescott Fire Department is the municipal fire department for the city of Prescott, Arizona. Additionally, the PFD provides aircraft rescue and firefighting for the Prescott Municipal Airport. Founded in 1885, it is the oldest fire departme ...

(wildland firefighters). In June 2017 it was announced he was set to direct the sequel to '' Top Gun'', titled '' Top Gun: Maverick''. In June 2020, he was hired direct the remake of ''

Twister Twister may refer to: Weather * Tornado Aviation * Pipistrel Twister, a Slovenian ultralight trike * Silence Twister, a German homebuilt aircraft design * Wings of Change Twister, an Austrian paraglider design Entertainment * ''Twister'' (1989 ...

'', which was announced by Universal Pictures, the original film's international distributor. Kosinski is also set to direct an untitled

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

racing film, reteaming with ''Top Gun: Maverick'' producer

Jerry Bruckheimer Jerome Leon Bruckheimer (born September 21, 1943) is an American film and television producer. He has been active in the genres of action, drama, fantasy, and science fiction. His films include '' Flashdance'', ''Top Gun'', '' The Rock'', '' ...

and screenwriter

Ehren Kruger Ehren Kruger (born October 5, 1972) is an American film screenwriter and producer. He is best known for writing three of the five installments in the original ''Transformers'' film series: '' Revenge of the Fallen'', '' Dark of the Moon'', and ' ...

, with racing driver

Lewis Hamilton Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Mercedes. In Formula One, Hamilton has won a joint-record seven World Drivers' Championship titles (tied with Mic ...

also serving as producer. The project, acquired by

Apple Studios Apple Studios is an American film and television production company and a distributor that is a subsidiary of Apple Inc. It specializes in developing and producing television series and films for Apple's digital video streaming service Apple TV ...

in June 2022, will star Brad Pitt and receive an exclusive theatrical run "of at least 30 days" before streaming on

Apple TV+ Apple TV is a digital media player and microconsole developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is a small network appliance hardware that plays received media data such as video and audio to a television set or external display. Since its secon ...

. Kosinski has been attached to several as-of-now-unmade projects, including remakes of '70s science-fiction films '' Logan's Run'', ''

The Black Hole ''The Black Hole'' is a 1979 American science fiction film directed by Gary Nelson and produced by Walt Disney Productions. The film stars Maximilian Schell, Robert Forster, Joseph Bottoms, Yvette Mimieux, Anthony Perkins and Ernest Borgnin ...

'', the science-fiction film ''Archangels'', an untitled action-thriller from ''Halt and Catch Fire'' writers

Christopher Cantwell Christopher Charles Cantwell (born November 12, 1980), also known as the Crying Nazi, is an American white supremacist, neo-Nazi, antisemitic conspiracy theorist, and federal informant. A member of the broader alt-right movement, Cantwell ea ...

and Christopher C. Rogers, and ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

''.

Academia

Kosinski is an alumnus of Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP), and currently an adjunct assistant professor of architecture where he helps students in 3D modeling and graphics. In 2008, he spoke in detail about his education in architecture, pushing the technological envelope in commercials and his eventual progression to feature films.

Awards

*2007 AICP Show – Best Visual Effects for the '' Gears of War'' commercial "Mad World" – Nominated *AICP Best Visual Effects Award for his Assassin's Creed "Unity" and Destiny "Become Legend" commercials – Nominated *

47th Saturn Awards The 47th Saturn Awards, officially known as the 50th Anniversary Saturn Awards to celebrate the 50 years of the Saturn Awards (created in 1972), presented by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films and honoring the best in scie ...

for Best Film Director for '' Top Gun: Maverick'' – Nominated

Filmography

Short film Feature film Music video *" Hold My Hand" –

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

(2022)

Frequent collaborators

References

External links

Personal website
including professional reel * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kosinski, Joseph Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Film directors from Iowa People from Marshalltown, Iowa Screenwriters from Iowa Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation alumni Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation faculty American male screenwriters American people of Polish descent English-language film directors Television commercial directors Action film directors Science fiction film directors