Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck
Fleck (left) and Boden in 2008
Born	Anna Boden (1979-10-20) October 20, 1979 (age 45) Newton, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma mater	Columbia University
Occupation	Filmmaker
Years active	2000–present
Children	1
Born	Ryan K. Fleck (1976-09-20) September 20, 1976 (age 48) Berkeley, California, U.S.
Alma mater	New York University Tisch School of the Arts
Occupation	Filmmaker
Years active	2000–present

Anna Boden and Ryan K. Fleck are a talented American filmmaking team. They became well-known for their short film Gowanus, Brooklyn in 2004. This film won a special award at the Sundance Film Festival.

They later worked together on Half Nelson, which was nominated for an Academy Award. Their movie Sugar (2008) was named one of the top films of 2009 by the American Film Institute Awards.

Boden and Fleck are most famous for writing and directing Captain Marvel. This superhero movie made over $1 billion worldwide, making it one of the highest-grossing films of all time. Anna Boden became the first woman to direct a live-action movie that earned $1 billion.

They also received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for being executive producers on the TV series Mrs. America (2020). Other films they are known for include It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010), Mississippi Grind (2015), and Freaky Tales (2024).

Early Life and How They Met

Anna Boden's Early Life

Anna Boden grew up in Newton, Massachusetts. She loved movies, English books, and photography from a young age. In high school, she discovered filmmaking when she joined an "Intro to Film" class. She even wrote a report about the famous filmmaker Robert Altman.

Anna studied film and English at Columbia University in New York City. She took a year off to join an AmeriCorps program in Seattle. There, she helped create a filmmaking course for students.

Ryan Fleck's Early Life

Ryan Fleck was born in Berkeley, California, and grew up there and in Oakland. His stepfather was an extra in a John Wayne movie called The Flying Leathernecks.

Ryan went to Diablo Valley College, where he focused on theater, acting, writing, and directing. He then moved to New York to study film at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.

Meeting at NYU

After returning to Columbia for her last year, Anna took a summer filmmaking class at NYU. This is where she met Ryan Fleck. Ryan was working in the film editing department at NYU after he had graduated.

They quickly connected over their shared love for the films of Robert Altman. After Ryan finished his short film called Struggle, they decided to work together on several student films. They also started dating.

Their Filmmaking Journey

Starting with Short Films

Anna and Ryan first made short documentaries like Have You Seen This Man? and Young Rebels. Then, they wrote and directed the short film Gowanus, Brooklyn. This short film was made to show to investors and help them get money for their bigger script, Half Nelson.

Gowanus, Brooklyn won an award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. Because of this, Anna and Ryan were invited to the Sundance Writer's Lab. Here, they got professional advice on their Half Nelson screenplay.

Challenges with Half Nelson

It took years for Half Nelson to get enough money to be made. Anna and Ryan often went back to rewrite the script between other projects. Ryan said that the long wait was helpful because it gave them time to make the script as good as possible.

They sometimes disagreed while writing, but their system of rewriting each other's work always helped them create something great. Even though Ryan was the only one officially credited as director for Half Nelson, he said they both directed the film equally.

The New York Sun newspaper called them "partners in work and life." They said Anna and Ryan truly work as a team, from the first script idea to the finished movie.

Success of Half Nelson

Even after all the hard work on the script, Ryan encouraged the actors in Half Nelson to ad lib and make up some lines. The film was praised by critics. The main actor, Ryan Gosling, won an Independent Spirit Award for his performance. He was also nominated for many other awards, including an Academy Award.

More Films and Collaborations

After Half Nelson, Anna and Ryan wrote and directed Sugar in 2008. This film premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. It tells the story of a 19-year-old man from the Dominican Republic who comes to the United States to play minor league baseball. They wrote the script after learning about many Dominican immigrants who come to America to play in small towns.

They also worked together on a movie based on Ned Vizzini's young adult novel, It's Kind of a Funny Story. This film was released in 2010.

In 2012, the duo started working on a movie about gambling called Mississippi Grind. The idea came to them when they visited riverboat casinos in Iowa. By this time, Anna and Ryan fully trusted each other as creative partners. Anna said that having a partner you can completely trust is a wonderful thing.

Directing Captain Marvel

In 2017, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck were chosen to direct the Marvel Studios film Captain Marvel. They had been considered for another Marvel movie, Guardians of the Galaxy, before.

Producer Kevin Feige explained that Anna and Ryan had a great way of talking about the main character, Carol Danvers. He said Marvel wanted filmmakers who could focus on and improve the character's journey, so it wouldn't get lost in all the action. Captain Marvel was released in March 2019 and became a huge success, earning over $1 billion worldwide.

In 2019, it was announced they would direct the first two episodes of the TV show Mrs. America, starring Cate Blanchett.

Personal Life

Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck are filmmaking partners. While some people mistakenly think they are married, they are not. Anna Boden was pregnant when their film Mississippi Grind was released. Anna Boden is Jewish.

Filmography

Film

Television

Anna Boden

Ryan Fleck

See Also

In Spanish: Anna Boden y Ryan Fleck para niños