User:Cesco007/Safdie brothers

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Joshua Safdie (born April 3, 1984) and Benjamin Safdie (born February 24, 1986) are an American independent filmmaker and actor duo based in New York City, who frequently collaborate on their films. They are best known for writing and directing the crime thriller films Good Time (2017) starring Robert Pattinson and Uncut Gems (2019) starring Adam Sandler.

In addition to writing and directing, both Josh and Benny serve in a variety of key positions including casting, acting, editing, shooting, mixing sound, and producing their films. The brothers and their films are known for frequently mixing professional actors and first-timers, they street cast because they are "looking for the actors who are living the character’s lives". Casting director Jennifer Venditti claims that "the brothers have a knack for bringing something special out of first-time actors". They are frequent collaborators with Ronald Bronstein, a cowriter and editor on all of their narrative features, who met Josh on the street of the SXSW festival. Other recurring collaborators include composer Oneohtrix Point Never and cinematographer Sean Price Williams.

Article body - Early Life
The Safdie brothers were raised in New York, the children of Amy and Alberto Safdie. They spent their childhood living between their father in Queens and their mother and stepfather in Manhattan. The Safdie brothers are Jewish. Their father, who is a Sephardic Jew of Syrian-Jewish descent, was raised in France and in Italy. Their mother is an Ashkenazi Jew of Russian-Jewish descent.

The brothers began making films at a young age, inspired by their film-enthusiast father, Alberto. Using their father's video camera, they would film goofy horrors, parody documentaries, and satirical propaganda films. They graduated from Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School in Manhattan. At Boston University, they co-founded the creative collective Red Bucket Films with Alex Kalman, Sam Lisenco, Brett Jutkiewicz, and Zachary Treitz. Josh and Benny Safdie graduated from Boston University College of Communication in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Benny spent years performing in New York City comedy clubs as the character "Ralph Handel", a failing comedian. They claim "turmoil of their youth", as children of divorced parents, became an inspiration for later work. Famed Israeli-Canadian architect Moshe Safdie is their great uncle, and they are also related to his son, playwright Oren Safdie.

The brothers grew up as fans of basketball and the New York Knicks. The duo try to watch every game together. Basketball is prominently featured in Lenny Cooke and Uncut Gems.

The Pleasure of Being Robbed
In 2007, Josh Safdie was hired by Andy Spade and Anthony Sperduti to create a short film featuring Kate Spade Handbags. He devised a concise story about the adventures of a kleptomaniac woman. Eleonore Hendricks, who co-wrote the screenplay, portrayed the lead role. Benny Safdie plays a friend of Eleonore that is brought on a trip to Boston. The project eventually turned into a feature film. The film, titled The Pleasure of Being Robbed, had its world premiere at the 2008 South by Southwest. It also screened in the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival, along with a short film The Acquaintances of a Lonely John directed by Benny Safdie.

Daddy Longlegs
Their second feature film, Daddy Longlegs, had its world premiere under the title Go Get Some Rosemary in the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival. Starring Ronald Bronstein, it was inspired by the filmmakers' younger years living with their father, Alberto. Bronstein won the Breakthrough Actor Award at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2010. The film won the John Cassavetes Award at the 26th Independent Spirit Awards.

The Trophy Hunter
Hired by the environmentalist group Turtle Conservancy in 2012, the brothers were tasked to direct promotional videos. The Trophy Hunter is a short format faux-documentary about the illegal wildlife trade, focusing on a smuggler in Hong Kong. The Conservancy later issued a statement "reassuring viewers that although the problem was real, the film was make-believe".

Lenny Cooke
Their first full-length documentary film, Lenny Cooke, is a non-narrated look into the life of Lenny Cooke, a once phenom high school basketball player, from adolescence to manhood. The film features cameos from professional basketball players like LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony. The film premiered at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival and received coverage from WorldStarHipHop.

Heaven Knows What
In 2014, the Safdie Brothers produced Heaven Knows What under their Elara Pictures banner. The film centers around the real-life stories written in a book titled Mad Love in New York City by lead actress Arielle Holmes who wrote the memoir in marathon sessions at a Manhattan Apple Store. The film had its world premiere at the 71st Venice International Film Festival. It also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, the New York Film Festival, and the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Good Time
The Safdies directed the 2017 crime film Good Time, starring Robert Pattinson and Benny Safdie as siblings. Pattinson's character Connie Nikas is based on personal journals about prisoners and conmen studied by Josh. The choice to have Benny play the developmentally-disabled Nick Nikas was partly due to the fast paced nature of shooting in an effort to avoid exploiting real-life people with disabilities. The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or in the main competition section at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival.

Uncut Gems
The Safdies directed Uncut Gems, starring Adam Sandler, with Martin Scorsese serving as an executive producer. The film was inspired by their father's time working in the Manhattan Diamond District. The cast is composed of long-time actors like Idina Menzel and LaKeith Stanfield, mixed with celebrities playing themselves like Kevin Garnett and The Weeknd, and first-timers like Julia Fox and Keith William Richards. It had its world premiere at the 2019 Telluride Film Festival. Theatrically released in the United States in 2019, it received critical acclaim and became one of A24's highest-grossing releases. The film has been added to the Criterion Collection and will release November 23, 2021.

Future projects
In December 2017, The Hollywood Reporter announced that The Safdies will helm the 48 Hrs. remake with the script being written by Josh Safdie, Ronald Bronstein, and Jerrod Carmichael. In December 2019, the Safdies elaborated in an interview with The A.V. Club, saying the film was still being made but it would no longer be a remake. Their script would instead be "re-shifted into something original."

In February 2020, Showtime ordered a half-hour pilot for dramedyThe Curse, a parody of HGTV starring Nathan Fielder, Benny Safdie, and Emma Stone. The show will follow a newlywed couple set on having a child while dealing with life on a new surveillance home show. Fielder is set to co-write the show with the Safdies, both brothers are to co-direct, and Stone will act as an executive producer.

In March 2021, HBO announced an untitled two-part documentary centered around the life of Paul Reubens, the actor-comedian known for his character Pee-wee Herman. The Safdie brothers are set to produce.

Acting credits[edit]
Josh Benny

Article Body - Influences
Their artistic influences includes the cinematic works of John Cassavetes, Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino as well as underground comix artist Robert Crumb and author Irvine Welsh. A majority of their work draws inspiration from '70s urban thrillers.

Benny Safdie named the Robert Bresson's film A Man Escaped as his favorite film of all time.