Ilene Chaiken facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ilene Chaiken
Chaiken at the White House in 2023
Born	(1957-06-30) June 30, 1957 (age 67) Elkins Park, Pennsylvania
Nationality	American
Occupation	Television director, producer and screenwriter
Years active	1988–present
Known for	The L Word
Partner(s)	LouAnne Brickhouse
Children	2

Ilene Chaiken (born June 30, 1957) is an American television producer, director, and writer. She also founded a company called Little Chicken Productions. Chaiken is well-known for co-creating, writing, and producing the TV series The L Word. She has also been a producer for other popular shows like Empire, The Handmaid's Tale, and Law & Order: Organized Crime.

Early Life and Education

Ilene Chaiken was born in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania. She went to the Rhode Island School of Design. In 1979, she earned a degree in graphic design.

Career Highlights

Chaiken started her career as a trainee at Creative Artists Agency. She also worked as an executive for Aaron Spelling and Quincy Jones Entertainment. In 1988, she was a producer for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She also worked as an associate producer for the film Satisfaction.

Later, she wrote screenplays for movies like Barb Wire (1996). She also wrote for TV films such as Dirty Pictures (2000) and Damaged Care (2002). Dirty Pictures won a Golden Globe Award in 2000.

In 2004, Chaiken helped create The L Word. This show explored the lives and relationships of a group of women.

In 2014, Chaiken produced a documentary for Showtime called L Word Mississippi: Hate the Sin. Around the same time, she was also a showrunner for ABC's show The Black Box. This show was canceled after one season.

Chaiken is known for first developing the TV version of The Handmaid's Tale. This show became a very successful Hulu original series. Chaiken later left the project to become the showrunner for Fox's Empire. However, she still received credit as an executive producer for The Handmaid's Tale.

In January 2019, Showtime announced a new season for The L Word. The new show, called The L Word: Generation Q, started airing on December 8, 2019. It continues the story of the original series ten years later.

More recently, Chaiken's company, Little Chicken Productions, made a deal with Universal Television. In 2020, Chaiken also helped create Law & Order: Organized Crime. This show is a spin-off from the popular Law & Order series. She worked as a writer and showrunner for the show in 2021.

Personal Life

Ilene Chaiken married LouAnne Brickhouse in 2013. LouAnne Brickhouse used to be an executive at Disney. They live in the Laurel Canyon area of Los Angeles. They enjoy documenting the many birds and other animals that visit their home on Instagram.

Chaiken also has twin daughters, Tallulah and Augusta. She co-parents them with her former partner, Miggi Hood.

Filmography

Television

Awards and Recognition

See Also

In Spanish: Ilene Chaiken para niños

• List of female film and television directors
• List of lesbian filmmakers
• List of LGBT-related films directed by women