Ramón Menéndez (born January 21, 1950) is a Cuban-American film director and screenwriter. He is best known for writing and directing the 1988 film ''

Stand and Deliver ''Stand and Deliver'' is a 1988 American drama film directed by Ramón Menéndez, written by Menéndez and Tom Musca, based on the true story of a high school mathematics teacher, Jaime Escalante. For portraying Escalante, Edward James Olmo ...

''. His other film directing credits include '' Money for Nothing'' (1993) starring

John Cusack John Paul Cusack (; born June 28, 1966)(28 June 1996)Today's birthdays '' Santa Cruz Sentinel'', ("Actors John Cusack is 30") is an American actor, producer, screenwriter and political activist. He is a son of filmmaker Dick Cusack, and his o ...

and the Disney Channel original film '' Gotta Kick It Up!'' (2002). He also served as a screenwriter for all of the films he directed. His only film as a screenwriter and not as a director was the 2001 film ''

Tortilla Soup Tortilla soup ( es, sopa de tortilla) is a traditional Mexican soup made of fried corn tortilla pieces, submerged into a broth of tomato, garlic, onion, and ''chile de árbol'' and epazote. It is served with pieces of pasilla chiles, chicharr� ...

''. He has also worked in episodic television, directing episodes ''

Tales from the Crypt Tales from the Crypt may refer to: * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (album), by American rapper C-Bo * ''Tales from the Crypt'' (comics), published by EC Comics during the 1950s ** ''Tales from the Crypt'' (film), a 1972 Amicus film starring Ralph Ric ...

'' and ''

Perversions of Science ''Perversions of Science'' is an American science fiction/horror anthology television series that ran from June 7 to July 23, 1997, on the premium cable channel HBO, lasting one season. It is a spin-off of the horror series ''Tales from the Cry ...

'', in 1994 and 1997, respectively. Menéndez won two

Independent Spirit Award The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glass ...

s for his work on ''

''. Menéndez is a native of Cuba and grew up in California. He is an alumnus of

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different b ...

and

UCLA Film School The UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (UCLA TFT), is one of the 12 schools within the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) located in Los Angeles, California. Its creation was groundbreaking in that it was the first time a leadi ...

. His first credit in film industry was serving as an assistant director on the

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sca ...

-directed film ''

Salvador Salvador, meaning " salvation" (or "saviour") in Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese may refer to: * Salvador (name) Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Salvador (band), a Christian band that plays both English and Spanish music ** ''Salvador'' ...

'' (1986), he also had a small acting role in the film. He is a frequent collaborator with film producer

Tom Musca Tom Musca (born 1951) is an American filmmaker and professor. Biography Musca received a BA from Rutgers University in 1973 and an MFA from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1981. Musca's best known work was as the writer and produ ...

Filmography

*''

Madame X ''Madame X'' (original title ''La Femme X'') is a 1908 play by French playwright Alexandre Bisson (1848–1912). It was novelized in English and adapted for the American stage; it was also adapted for the screen twelve times over sixty-five ...

'' (1981, actor, as Luis) *''

'' (1986, first assistant director, also actor as Gomez) *''

Life Is Most Important ''Life Is Most Important'' ( es, Lo que importa es vivir) is a 1987 Mexican drama film directed by Luis Alcoriza. It was entered into the 15th Moscow International Film Festival. The film was selected as the Mexican entry for the Best Foreign Lan ...

'' (1987, actor, as Gregorio) *''

'' (1988, director and screenwriter) *'' Money for Nothing'' (1993, director and screenwriter) *''

'' (1994, director, episode: "The Bribe") *''

'' (1997, director, episode: "Given the Heir") *''

'' (2001, screenwriter) *'' Gotta Kick It Up!'' (2002, director, teleplay writer)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Menendez, Ramon 1950 births American male screenwriters Cuban emigrants to the United States Independent Spirit Award for Best Director winners Living people San Francisco State University alumni UCLA Film School alumni Cuban film directors Cuban screenwriters Cuban male writers