Gus Van Sant facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gus Van Sant
Van Sant at the Berlin Film Festival 2018
Born	Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (1952-07-24) July 24, 1952 (age 72) Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
Education	Rhode Island School of Design
Occupation	Film director film producer screenwriter film editor photographer painter musician
Years active	1982–present

Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American filmmaker, photographer, painter, and musician. He is known for making unique and independent films. His movies often explore the lives of people who might feel like outsiders.

In his early career, Gus Van Sant directed TV commercials. He made his first full-length movie, Mala Noche, in 1985. His second film, Drugstore Cowboy (1989), was highly praised. It won him awards for screenwriting and best director. His next film, My Own Private Idaho (1991), was also very popular. Other successful films include the comedy To Die For (1995), the drama Good Will Hunting (1997), and the true story film Milk (2008). For Good Will Hunting and Milk, Van Sant was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director. Both films were also nominated for Best Picture.

In 2003, Van Sant's film Elephant won the top prize, the Palme d'Or, at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. He also won the Best Director Award at the same festival. This made him one of only two filmmakers to win both awards in the same year. While many of his films, like Finding Forrester (2000) and Paranoid Park (2007), received good reviews, some others, like Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993) and his 1998 remake of Psycho, were not as successful.

Van Sant has written the screenplays for several of his early films. He also wrote a novel called Pink. A book of his photographs, 108 Portraits, has been published, and he has released two music albums. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

Early Life and Education

Gus Van Sant was born and grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. His father was a clothing manufacturer, so his family moved around a lot when Gus was a child. The name "Van Sant" comes from a Dutch name, "Van Zandt," and his family came to America in the 1600s.

Gus went to high school in Darien, Connecticut, and Portland, Oregon. From a young age, he was very interested in visual arts, especially painting and making short films. He made small, personal films that cost very little money. In 1970, Van Sant went to the Rhode Island School of Design. There, he learned about many different kinds of directors, which made him change his main focus from painting to filmmaking.

Filmmaking Career

Starting Out (1982–1989)

After spending some time in Europe, Gus Van Sant moved to Los Angeles in 1976. He worked as a production assistant and started observing people living on the streets of Hollywood. He was interested in how these people lived alongside the more ordinary, successful parts of the city. This interest often showed up in his films.

In 1985, Van Sant made his first feature film, Mala Noche. He saved money from working at an advertising agency to help fund it. The film was shot in black-and-white and quickly became popular at film festivals. The Los Angeles Times even called it the best independent film of the year. This success caught the attention of big Hollywood studios, but they weren't interested in his ideas for future films.

So, Van Sant went back to Portland, Oregon, and started working on the ideas the studios had rejected. One of these was Drugstore Cowboy (1989). This film was a big success and helped the career of actor Matt Dillon.

Independent Film Success (1990–1995)

Drugstore Cowboy explored the lives of people living on the edges of society, and Van Sant continued this theme in his next film, My Own Private Idaho (1991). After the success of Drugstore Cowboy, Van Sant finally got permission to make Idaho, a film he had wanted to make for a long time. He worked hard to get River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves to star in it.

My Own Private Idaho won Van Sant an Independent Spirit Award for his screenplay, just like Drugstore Cowboy had. It also helped Keanu Reeves gain more respect as an actor.

Van Sant's 1993 film, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, was not successful. It had a larger budget and a big cast, but the final movie didn't do well with critics or audiences.

However, Van Sant's 1995 film To Die For helped him regain his success. This was his first film for a major studio, and its success allowed him to choose his next projects. In the same year, he also helped produce Larry Clark's film Kids.

Mainstream Recognition (1997–2003)

In 1997, Gus Van Sant became widely known with the film Good Will Hunting. This movie was written by and starred Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. It was about a smart young man from a tough background who was a math genius. The film was a huge success and was nominated for nine Academy Awards. Van Sant was nominated for Best Director. The film won two Oscars, including Best Screenplay for Damon and Affleck, and Best Supporting Actor for Robin Williams.

After this success, Van Sant decided to remake Alfred Hitchcock's famous film Psycho. He chose to recreate the original film shot-for-shot, but in color and with new actors. This decision was very unusual, and the film received mixed reactions. It starred Anne Heche, Vince Vaughn, and Julianne Moore, but it didn't do well at the box office.

In 2000, Van Sant directed Finding Forrester. This film was about a high school student who becomes friends with a reclusive author. It received positive reviews and was a box office success. During this time, Van Sant also released two music albums and published his novel, Pink.

Return to Independent Films (2003–Present)

Van Sant and Joaquin Phoenix at the press conference of Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot (Berlin Film Festival 2018)

In 2002, Van Sant made Gerry. This film was loosely planned and mostly improvised, showing two characters named Gerry (played by Matt Damon and Casey Affleck) wandering through the desert.

His next film was Elephant. He was asked to make a fictional film based on a school tragedy that happened in 1999. Van Sant chose to film in his hometown of Portland, using many untrained teenage actors. The film was shown at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival and received strong reactions. The festival jury awarded Elephant their top prize, the Palme d'Or, and Van Sant also won the Best Director award.

In 2005, Van Sant released Last Days. This film was the last part of what he calls his "Death Trilogy," which also included Gerry and Elephant. Last Days is a fictional story about a famous musician in the days leading up to his death. In 2006, Van Sant began working on Paranoid Park, based on a book about a skateboarding teenager.

In 2008, Van Sant directed Milk. This film tells the true story of Harvey Milk, a politician in San Francisco who fought for the rights of gay people and was sadly assassinated. The film received eight Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. It won two Oscars: Best Actor for Sean Penn, who played Harvey Milk, and Best Original Screenplay. Van Sant was also nominated for Best Director.

His 2011 film Restless was shown at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. Van Sant's film Promised Land, starring Frances McDormand, Matt Damon, and John Krasinski, was released in 2012. After that, he directed The Sea of Trees (2015), which starred Matthew McConaughey. This film was not well-received by critics.

In 2016, it was announced that Van Sant would direct Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot, a film about cartoonist John Callahan. It starred Joaquin Phoenix. In 2024, he was reported to be directing Dead Man's Wire.

Other Creative Work

Gus Van Sant has released two music albums: Gus Van Sant and 18 Songs About Golf. He has also appeared as himself in TV shows like Entourage and Portlandia.

Van Sant directed the music video for "Under the Bridge" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He also directed the first episode of the TV show Boss, starring Kelsey Grammer. He has directed other TV series like When We Rise and Feud: Capote vs. The Swans.

Archive

The collection of Gus Van Sant's moving images is kept at the Academy Film Archive. This archive has preserved many of his short films, including The Happy Organ and Ken Death Gets Out of Jail.

Filmography

Feature Films

Executive Producer Only

• Kids (1995)
• Speedway Junky (1999)
• Tarnation (2003)
• Wild Tigers I Have Known (2006)
• Lightfield's Home Videos (2006)
• Howl (2010)
• Virginia (2010)
• Act Up! (2012)
• Laurence Anyways (2012)
• Revolution (2013)
• I Am Michael (2015)
• Age Out (2018)

Short Films

• Fun with a Bloodroot (1967)
• The Happy Organ (1971)
• Little Johnny (1972)
• 1/2 of a Telephone Conversation (1973)
• Late Morning Start (1975)
• The Discipline of DE (1978)
• Alice in Hollywood (1981)
• My Friend (1982)
• Where'd She Go? (1983)
• Nightmare Typhoon (1984)
• My New Friend (1984)
• Ken Death Gets Out of Jail (1985)
• Thanksgiving Prayer (1991)
• Four Boys on the Road in a Volvo (1996)
• Paris, je t'aime (2006) segment "Le Marais"
• To Each His Own Cinema (2007) segment "First Kiss"
• 8 (2008) segment "Mansion on the Hill"

Music Videos

• "Thanksgiving Prayer" by William Burroughs (1990)
• "Fame '90" by David Bowie (1990)
• "I'm Seventeen" by Tommy Conwell & The Young Rumblers (1991)
• "Under the Bridge" by Red Hot Chili Peppers (1992)
• "Bang Bang Bang" by Tracy Chapman (1992)
• "Runaway" by Deee-Lite (1992)
• "The Last Song" by Elton John (1992)
• "San Francisco Days" by Chris Isaak (1993)
• "Just Keep Me Moving" by k.d. lang (1993)
• "Creep" (alternative version) by Stone Temple Pilots (1993)
• "Understanding" by Candlebox (1995)
• "Ballad of the Skeletons" by Allen Ginsberg with Paul McCartney, Philip Glass, Lenny Kaye et al. (1996)
• "Weird" by Hanson (1998)
• "Who Did You Think I Was" (turntable version) by John Mayer Trio (2005)
• "Desecration Smile" by Red Hot Chili Peppers (2007)
• "Ain't it Funny" by Danny Brown (2016)

Recordings

• The Elvis of Letters (1985) with William S. Burroughs
• Millions of Images (1990) with William S. Burroughs
• 18 Songs About Golf (1998)

Actor Roles

• Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001) as Himself
• Entourage Season 5, Episode 12: "Return to Queens Blvd." (2008) as Himself
• The Canyons (2013) as Dr. Campbell
• The Trainer (2024)

Television Work

• Boss (2011) – Director, executive producer
• The Devil You Know (2015) – Director, executive producer
• When We Rise (2017) – Director, executive producer
• Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (2024) – Director, executive producer

Awards and Nominations

• Career achievement
  • Provincetown International Film Festival Filmmaker on the Edge Award (2002)
• Drugstore Cowboy (1989)
  • Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay
  • Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay
  • National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director
  • National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay
  • New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay
• My Own Private Idaho (1991)
  • Venice Film Festival Official Selection
  • Toronto Festival of Festivals FIPRESCI Prize
• Good Will Hunting (1997)
  • Berlin Film Festival Official Selection
  • Academy Award nomination for Best Director
  • Directors Guild of America (DGA) nomination for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures
  • Satellite Award nomination for Best Director
• Finding Forrester (2000)
  • Berlin Film Festival Prize of the Guild of German Art House Cinemas
• Elephant (2003)
  • Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or
  • Cannes Film Festival Prix de la mise en scène
• Last Days (2005)
  • Cannes Film Festival Official Selection
• Paranoid Park (2007)
  • Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director
  • Cannes Film Festival "Prix du 60ème anniversaire" (for his body of work)
• Milk (2008)
  • Academy Award nomination for Best Director
  • Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Director
  • Broadcast Film Critics Association Award nomination for Best Director
  • The Cinema for Peace Award for the Most Valuable Film of the Year
  • Directors Guild of America (DGA) nomination for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures
  • Satellite Award nomination for Best Director
• Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (2024)
  • Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

See also

In Spanish: Gus Van Sant para niños

• List of LGBT people from Portland, Oregon
• List of people from the Louisville metropolitan area
• List of Rhode Island School of Design people