Thomas A. DiCillo (born August 14, 1953) is an American

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

Early life

He was born in Camp Le Jeune,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

. His father was Italian and his mother was from

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

. He studied creative writing at Old Dominion University in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia B ...

and went on to study filmmaking at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

's Film School alongside Jim Jarmusch,

Howard Brookner Howard Brookner (April 30, 1954 – April 27, 1989) was an American film director. He produced and directed the documentary '' Burroughs: the Movie'' about William S. Burroughs (1983), '' Robert Wilson and the Civil Wars'' on theatre director R ...

Sara Driver Sara Miller Driver (born December 15, 1955) is an American independent filmmaker and actress from Westfield, New Jersey. A participant in the independent film scene that flourished in lower Manhattan from the late 1970s through the 1990s, she gain ...

and

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

. Subsequently, he worked as an actor, then cinematographer, before making his own films.

Career

For his first film, '' Johnny Suede'' (1991), DiCillo cast the then-unknown

Brad Pitt William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Awar ...

and Catherine Keener in what would be their first starring roles. It received a nomination for a Grand Jury Prize at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,6 ...

. For his second film, '' Living in Oblivion'', DiCillo received acclaim for his satire of independent film-making. This 1995

black comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to disc ...

, itself a low-budget

independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...

, features

Steve Buscemi Steven Vincent Buscemi ( ,As stated in interviews by Buscemi himself, some may insist that his pronunciation of his own name is "wrong" because it does not match the original Italian pronunciation as well. It is not uncommon for people to pronou ...

as a director driven to near-madness by his cast and crew, including a vain Hollywood actor. Describing the inspiration for and origin of ''Living in Oblivion'' in an interview with ''Salon'', DiCillo described making a movie as "one of the most tedious, boring, painful experiences, and that's just when something goes right". In 2001, his film '' Double Whammy'' was released straight to video. ''Delirious'' (2006), a comedy starring Steve Buscemi, Michael Pitt, Alison Lohman and

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nom ...

, was screened at the San Sebastian Film Festival where it won three awards (Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and the Signis Award for originality). The film also screened at the

in 2007 and won Best Director at the HBO Comedy Film Festival in Aspen, Colorado. DiCillo wrote and directed ''

When You're Strange ''When You're Strange'' is a 2009 music documentary film about the American rock band the Doors. It was written and directed by Tom DiCillo and narrated by Johnny Depp. The film begins with the band's formation in 1965, its development over the ne ...

'' (2009), a documentary about the rock band

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for a Grand Jury Prize. It was subsequently nominated for both an Emmy Award, after airing on PBS' American Masters series, and a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Video. He has published books of two of his screenplays, '' Living in Oblivion'' and '' Box of Moonlight''. Both books contain the full scripts along with commentary, stories and anecdotes. DiCillo also directed "

Weeping Willow ''Salix babylonica'' (Babylon willow or weeping willow; ) is a species of willow native to dry areas of northern China, but cultivated for millennia elsewhere in Asia, being traded along the Silk Road to southwest Asia and Europe.Flora of Chin ...

", a sixth season episode of the television series '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'', inspired by the lonelygirl15 videos on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

. In the episode, a vlogger named Weeping Willow ( Michelle Trachtenberg) is kidnapped during a live Internet video, and the kidnappers demand ransom through additional videos.

Filmography

As director

* '' Johnny Suede'' (1991) * '' Living in Oblivion'' (1995) * '' Box of Moonlight'' (1996) * '' The Real Blonde'' (1997) * '' Double Whammy'' (2001) * ''

Delirious Delirious may refer to: * A state of delirium Film and television * ''Delirious'' (1991 film), an American comedy directed by Tom Mankiewicz, starring John Candy * ''Delirious'' (2006 film), an American comedy-drama directed by Tom DiCillo, sta ...

'' (2006) * ''

'' (Documentary) (2009) * '' Down in Shadowland'' (Documentary) (2014)

As cinematographer

* '' Permanent Vacation'' (1980) * ''Underground USA'' (1980) * '' Burroughs: the Movie'' (1983) * '' Variety'' (1983) * ''

Stranger Than Paradise ''Stranger Than Paradise'' is a 1984 American black-and-white absurdist deadpan comedy film, co-written, directed and co-edited by Jim Jarmusch, and starring jazz musician John Lurie, former Sonic Youth drummer-turned-actor Richard Edson, an ...

'' (1984) * '' Robert Wilson and the Civil Wars'' (1987) * ''Robinson's Garden'' (1987) * ''The Beat'' (1987) * ''Laura Ley'' (1989) * ''End of the Night'' (1990) * '' Coffee and Cigarettes'' (2003)

References

External links

Official site
*
Audio interview with DiCillo regarding his entire career. Jekyll and Hyde, 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dicillo, Tom 1953 births Living people Tisch School of the Arts alumni People from Jacksonville, North Carolina American film directors of Italian descent Film directors from North Carolina