Jane Anderson

Jane Anderson grew up in the Bay Area of Northern California where her father, an inventor and electronics engineer, was one of the early entrepreneurs of Silicon Valley. Passionate about the theater, Ms. Anderson dropped out of college after two years and moved to New York City to become an actress. She was cast in the New York premiere of David Mamet's "Sexual Perversity in Chicago", which ran for over a year and put Mamet on the map. Later she turned to writing and performing her own material in cabarets and comedy clubs. She moved to Los Angeles in the early 80's where she began to write for film and television and, ironically, also discovered her voice as a serious playwright. Her career as a film director began in the late 90's when actor and producer Jodie Foster gave Ms. Anderson the opportunity to direct the film adaptation of her play "The Baby Dance", which received multiple honors and awards. Her plays have been produced Off-Broadway and in theaters around the country, including Actors Theater of Louisville, The McCarter Theater, Long Wharf, ACT, the Geffen Theater and The Pasadena Playhouse. Her published plays: "Looking for Normal", "The Baby Dance", "Defying Gravity", "Smart Choices for the New Century", "Lynette at 3AM" and "The Last Time We Saw Her . Her most recent play, "The Quality of Life", premiered at the Geffen Playhouse and was directed by Ms. Anderson.

Works

7.1

The Wife

A wife questions her life choices as she travels to Stockholm with her husband, where he is slated to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Release Date: 2018-08-02

Department: Writing

Job: Screenplay

Vote Count: 1078

7.6

Packed In A Trunk: The Lost Art of Edith Lake Wilkinson

The story of artist Edith Lake Wilkinson, a painter who was committed to an asylum in 1924 and never heard from again. All her worldly possessions were packed into trunks and shipped to a relative in West Virginia where they sat in an attic for 40 years. Edith's great-niece, Emmy Award winning writer and director Jane Anderson, grew up surrounded by Edith's paintings, thanks to her mother who had gone poking through that dusty attic and rescued Edith's work. The film follows Jane in her decades-long journey to find the answers to the mystery of Edith's buried life, return the work to Provincetown and have Edith's contributions recognized by the larger art world.

Release Date: 2015-07-20

Department: Writing

Job: Co-Writer

Character: 

Vote Count: 10

Olive Kitteridge
7.6

Olive Kitteridge

A look at a seemingly placid New England town that is actually wrought with illicit affairs, crime and tragedy, all told through the lens of Olive, whose wicked wit and harsh demeanor mask a warm but troubled heart and staunch moral center. The story spans 25 years and focuses on Olive's relationships with her husband, Henry, the good-hearted and kindly town pharmacist; their son, Christopher, who resents his mother's approach to parenting; and other members of their community.

Release Date: 2014-11-02

Department: Writing

Job: Teleplay

Episode Count: 4

Vote Count: 273

Mad Men
8.1

Mad Men

Set in 1960-1970 New York, this sexy, stylized and provocative drama follows the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of Madison Avenue advertising.

Release Date: 2007-07-19

Department: Writing

Job: Writer

Episode Count: 1

Vote Count: 1296

6.7

The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio

A Midwestern housewife supports her large family by entering contests for ad slogans sponsored by consumer product companies, while dealing with abuse from her alcoholic husband. Based on a true story.

Release Date: 2005-09-28

Department: Directing

Job: Director

Vote Count: 83

6.8

Normal

A Midwestern husband and father announces his plan to have a sex change operation.

Release Date: 2003-01-21

Department: Directing

Job: Director

Vote Count: 37

5.5

When Billie Beat Bobby

The historic 1973 tennis match between middle-aged champion Bobby Riggs and young feminist Billie Jean King.

Release Date: 2001-04-16

Department: Directing

Job: Director

Vote Count: 15

6.6

If These Walls Could Talk 2

The stories of three lesbian couples -- who live in the same house at different periods of time -- who are at a crossroads in their lives. In 1961, Edith loses her lover, Abby, to a stroke. Linda and Amy struggle with feminist issues in 1972. And, in 2000, Kal and Fran try to have a baby with the help of sperm donor.

Release Date: 2000-03-05

Department: Directing

Job: Director

Vote Count: 103

6.1

The Baby Dance

Six months pregnant and living in a beat-up tiny mobile home, Wanda LeFauve thinks she has found the solution to her problems when she agrees to meet well-to-do Rachel Luckman and her husband. The childless Luckmans are desperate to raise a baby and Wanda is anxious to find a home for her latest. They strike a deal, but as the birth parents and the potential adoptive parents get to know each other, fundamental differences emerge.

Release Date: 1998-08-23

Department: Directing

Job: Director

Vote Count: 10

6.4

How to Make an American Quilt

Soon-to-be-wed graduate student Finn Dodd develops cold feet when she suspects her fiancé is cheating on her. In order to clear her head, Finn visits her grandmother, Hy, and great aunt, Glady Joe Cleary, in Grasse, Calif. There, Finn learns that Hy and Glady Joe are members of a group of passionate quilters, and over the course of her visit she is regaled with tales of love and life by women who have collected rich experiences and much wisdom.

Release Date: 1995-10-06

Department: Writing

Job: Screenplay

Vote Count: 186

6.7

It Could Happen to You

Charlie Lang is a simple, kindhearted New York City cop. When he realizes he has no money to tip waitress Yvonne Biasi, Lang offers her half the winnings of his lottery ticket. Amazingly, the ticket happens to be a winner, in the sum of $4 million. True to his word, Lang proceeds to share the prize money with Biasi, which infuriates his greedy wife, Muriel. Not content with the arrangement, Muriel begins scheming to take all the money.

Release Date: 1994-07-16

Department: Writing

Job: Screenplay

Vote Count: 828

6.5

The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom

A Texas housewife plots hire a hit man to kill the girl who beat out her daughter for a place on the cheerleading squad.

Release Date: 1993-04-10

Department: Writing

Job: Writer

Vote Count: 20

Last Night at the Lobster

The Red Lobster perched in the far corner of a run-down New England mall hasn't been making its numbers and headquarters has pulled the plug. But manager Manny DeLeon still needs to navigate a tricky last shift with a near-mutinous staff. All the while, he's wondering how to handle the waitress he's still in love with, what to do about his pregnant girlfriend, and where to find the present that will make everything better.

Department: Writing

Job: Screenplay

Raising Miranda
5.0

Raising Miranda

Raising Miranda is a television series aired on CBS in 1988 as part of its fall lineup. Raising Miranda is the story of Donald Marshack, a Racine, Wisconsin contractor who suddenly found himself a single parent when his wife Bonnie had abandoned him and their 15 year old daughter, Miranda, in order to go and "find herself". Despite this rather grim premise, the show was billed as a situation comedy, the humor being derived from undomestic Donald now being forced to serve as both father and mother to a teenage girl. Bryan Cranston played Donald's brother-in-law, Russell. Audiences apparently found the premise a little too grim and the program lasted only two months.

Release Date: 1988-11-05

Department: Writing

Job: Writer

Episode Count: 2

Vote Count: 1

The Wonder Years
8.3

The Wonder Years

The story of Kevin Arnold facing the trials and tribulations of youth while growing up during the 1960s and 70s. Told through narration from an adult Kevin, Kevin faces the difficulties of maintaining relationships and friendships on his enthralling journey into adulthood.

Release Date: 1988-01-31

Department: Writing

Job: Writer

Episode Count: 1

Vote Count: 1020

The Facts of Life
7.0

The Facts of Life

Mrs. Edna Garrett, housemother and dietitian at the Eastland School, teaches a group of girls in her charge how to solve those problems that every teenager has to face.

Release Date: 1979-08-24

Department: Writing

Job: Writer

Episode Count: 3

Vote Count: 94

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