Andrea Dorfman facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Andrea Dorfman
Dorfman at IFFI 2014
Born	(1968-10-29) October 29, 1968 (age 56) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Screenwriter, film director

Andrea Dorfman, born on October 29, 1968, is a Canadian filmmaker. She is a talented screenwriter and director who lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Andrea is known for directing films that won Emmy Awards, like Flawed (2010) and Big Mouth (2012).

She is also one of the creators of a project called Blowhard. Andrea mostly makes short films and full-length movies. She also creates small documentaries for The Equality Effect, which is a group that works for human rights. She lives in Halifax with her family and pets. Andrea has been making films since 1995. Sometimes, she teaches classes at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design.

Early Life and Inspiration

Andrea Dorfman was born in Toronto, Ontario. This was on October 29, 1968. She discovered her love for filmmaking when she was 12 years old. Her father gave her a camera, and that's how her journey began. She studied at McGill University. Later, she also graduated from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design.

Andrea Dorfman's Film Career

Andrea Dorfman's first important film was Swerve (1998). This movie tells the story of friends on a road trip. In the same year, she made Nine (1998). This was a docudrama about a nine-year-old girl. These two films helped her win an award. She received the Most Promising New Director Award in 1998. This was at the Atlantic Film Festival.

First Feature Film: Parsley Days

Her first full-length movie was Parsley Days (2000). It first showed at the Toronto International Film Festival. This film is a comedy about a young woman named Kate. She is dating Ollie but is not happy. The movie was filmed in just eleven days. It had a budget of $65,000. Andrea found local actors and musicians in Halifax. She was the writer, producer, director, and even the photographer for the film. She used a hand-held camera.

Parsley Days got different reviews. Eye magazine called it "well-executed." The Globe and Mail said it was "endlessly charming." After showing at the Atlantic Film Festival, the film got a deal. A company called Mongrel Media helped distribute it.

Other Notable Films

Andrea's second feature film was Love that Boy. It starred Nadia Litz as a university student. She becomes close with her teenage neighbor. The film also featured Elliot Page in a small part. It first showed at the 2003 Atlantic Film Festival. People described the film as charming.

In 2005, she made a short film called There's a Flower in My Pedal. This film was a runner-up for best short film. This happened at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2005.

Exploring Animation and Documentaries

Andrea started exploring animation in 2008. She created Art, a short animated film. It was set to a song by Tanya Davis. She also filmed Lost and Found (2008). This film was about a local artist named Jane Kansas. Jane had a lot of knowledge about Harper Lee. Harper Lee wrote the famous book To Kill a Mockingbird.

In 2009, Andrea made another animated short film. It was based on a poem by Tanya Davis. The film was called How to Be Alone. In 2010, Andrea put this film on YouTube. It became very popular. It got over a million views in just a few months. Famous film critic Roger Ebert praised it. She also made Thoughts on My Bike (2009). This was for the NYC Bicycle Film Festival.

In 2020, Andrea made a follow-up film. It was called How to Be At Home. This film was also based on a poem by Tanya Davis. It was about dealing with feeling alone during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. This film was chosen for the Toronto International Film Festival's top ten list for 2020.

Andrea continued to work with animation. She made Flawed in 2010. This was a short animated documentary. It used stop-motion animation and hand-painted images. Flawed was made in Halifax. It was produced by Annette Clarke for the National Film Board of Canada. Andrea then made more short films and animations. These often used colorful, 2D watercolor images.

Working for Human Rights

In 2010, Andrea began making films for The Equality Effect. This is a human rights organization. She started with two short animated public service announcements (PSAs). They were called 160 Girls (2010) and The Equality Effect (2010). These films helped people learn about challenges faced by girls in Kenya, Malawi, and Ghana.

She later worked on Fogo Island, Newfoundland. There, she filmed Tilting Quilting (2010). This film was about quilts made by people on the island. In 2010, she also created Summer Stairs. This was a short 2D animation for a song her boyfriend wrote. Her last film that year was The Drums. This was another short animation based on a Tanya Davis song.

In 2012, she continued her work with The Art of Equality (2012). She made a mini-documentary. It showed the work of Kenyan lawyers. They were working to make the Kenyan Government protect young girls. That year, she also released Big Mouth (2012). This was an animated film. It used 2D puppet stop motion. The National Film Board of Canada produced and shared it.

In 2013, she created the short animation Eulogy for You and Me (2013).

Recent Feature Films

In 2014, Andrea Dorfman returned to making full-length films. She directed Heartbeat. This film is about a young woman. She is trying to overcome her fears of becoming a musician. The film starred musician Tanya Davis. It first showed at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival. It also screened at the Atlantic Film Festival.

In 2018, she announced a new film called Spinster. This movie stars Chelsea Peretti. It is about a woman who thinks she will be single forever. This happens after she is left by someone on her 39th birthday.

Andrea Dorfman is currently working on a film. It is called The Playground. She is making it with Jennifer Deyell. Andrea has made many important contributions to the Canadian film industry. She is especially known for her animation work.

How Andrea Dorfman Works

Andrea Dorfman used to pay for her films in a special way. She would work as a camera assistant or cinematographer. This was on other people's films and music videos.

She is known for taking difficult topics and making them unique. She uses a funny and unusual sense of humor. This helps viewers think differently about serious subjects. This style is clear in her films Parsley Days and Love that Boy. She is also recognized for trying new things with animation.

Filmography