Kathryn Ann Bigelow (born November 27, 1951) is an American film director. Her best-known films are the cult horror film Near Dark (1987), the surfer/bank robbery action picture Point Break (1991), the science fiction/film noir Strange Days (1995), the historical/mystery film The Weight of Water (2000) and the war drama The Hurt Locker (2008). The Hurt Locker won the 2009 Academy Award for Best Picture, won the BAFTA Award for Best Film, and was nominated for the 2010 Golden Globe Award for Best Drama.
With The Hurt Locker, Bigelow became the first woman to win the Academy Award for Best Director, the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing,[2] the BAFTA Award for Best Direction,[3] and the Critics’ Choice Award for Best Director.
In April 2010, Bigelow was named to the Time 100 list of most influential people of the year.
Trade Mark
Frequently casts Tom Sizemore
Often uses first person perspectives (Wire trip scenes in Strange Days (1995) and the chase scenes in Point Break (1991)).
Trivia
Member of jury at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2003
Member of the jury at the Venice Film Festival in 1998.
Was member of the dramatic jury at the Sundance Film Festival in 1990.
Received a Dallas Star award from the AFI Dallas film festival in 2009.
The American Cinematheque honored Bigelow by showing all of her films at The Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, June 5-7 2009.
From July 1st to July 13th, 2009, the Harvard Film Archive hosted a retrospective of Bigelow’s career, showing all of her films from 1982′s The Loveless (1982) to 2008′s The Hurt Locker (2008). The retrospective was titled “Take It To The Edge: The Films Of Kathryn Bigelow” and featured a Question and Answer session with Bigelow.
Ex-sister-in-law of Mike Cameron.
The 2010 Santa Barbara International Film Festival hosted ‘A Celebration of Kathryn Bigelow’, which featured a retrospective of her work.
First woman to win the Director’s Guild of America Award for directing a feature film (for The Hurt Locker (2008)).
Taught at the California Institute of the Arts.
In 2010, she became the first woman in Oscar history to win the Best Director award.
First woman to win a BAFTA Award for Best Director.
A graduate from an elite Ivy League school – Columbia University School of Arts in New York City in 1979.
Was the fourth woman to be nominated for the Directing Academy Award. The other three were: Lina Wertmüller, Jane Campion and Sofia Coppola. Bigelow ended up becoming the first woman to win the award.
Competed with ex-husband James Cameron for the Best Director Oscar in 2010. This marked the first time that (ex-)spouses were nominated alongside each other in this category. She went on to win the award.
One of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World (2010).
Kathryn Bigelow has works in the Museum of Modern Art’s permanent collection, including Near Dark, a 1987 feature-length film, and her personal paper archive. In summer 2011, she will be the subject of a comprehensive retrospective.