Spike Lee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Spike Lee
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Lee in June 2024
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| Born |
Shelton Jackson Lee
March 20, 1957 |
| Education | Morehouse College (BA) New York University (MFA) |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1977–present |
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Works
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Filmography |
| Board member of | 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks |
| Spouse(s) |
Tonya Lewis
(m. 1993) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Bill Lee |
| Relatives |
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| Awards | Full list |
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American filmmaker. He is a director, producer, writer, and actor. His movies often explore topics like race relations, life in the black community, and how media affects our lives. He also looks at issues like city crime and poverty.
Spike Lee has won many awards for his work. These include an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a BAFTA Award. He also received special honors like an Honorary BAFTA Award in 2002 and an Academy Honorary Award in 2015.
His company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has made over 35 films since 1983. His first movie as a director was She's Gotta Have It (1986). He has since written and directed many famous films. These include Do the Right Thing (1989), Malcolm X (1992), and BlacKkKlansman (2018). Lee has also acted in many of his own movies. He is also known for directing documentaries like 4 Little Girls (1997) and When the Levees Broke (2006).
Many actors have become famous through Lee's films. Some of these include Denzel Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, and Rosie Perez. Several of Lee's films have been chosen by the Library of Congress for the National Film Registry. This means they are seen as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."
Contents
Early Life and Education
Shelton Jackson Lee was born in Atlanta, Georgia. His mother, Jacqueline Carroll, was an arts and literature teacher. His father, William James Edward Lee III, was a jazz musician. Spike has five younger siblings. Three of them, Joie, David, and Cinqué, have worked on his films. Director Malcolm D. Lee is his cousin.
When Spike was a child, his family moved from Atlanta to Brooklyn, New York. His mother gave him the nickname "Spike." He went to John Dewey High School in Brooklyn.
Lee then went to Morehouse College in Atlanta. This is a college mainly for black students. There, he made his first student film, Last Hustle in Brooklyn. He studied film at Clark Atlanta University and earned a degree in mass communication from Morehouse. He later got a master's degree in film and television from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
Film Career
Starting Out in the 1980s
In 1983, Lee showed his first short film, Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads. This film was his master's degree project at Tisch School of the Arts. His classmates, like Ang Lee, worked on the film. It was the first student film to be shown at the Lincoln Center's New Directors New Films Festival. The film won a Student Academy Award.
In 1985, Lee started making his first full-length movie, She's Gotta Have It. This black-and-white film is about a young woman who dates three men. Lee wrote, directed, produced, starred in, and edited the film. He made it with a small budget of $175,000 and filmed it in just two weeks. When it came out in 1986, it made over $7 million. Critics said it helped start the independent film movement of the 1980s.
In 1989, Lee made one of his most important films, Do the Right Thing. This movie shows the growing racial tension in a Brooklyn neighborhood on a very hot summer day. The film was praised by many critics. Film critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert both called it one of the best films of 1989. Ebert later added it to his list of The Great Movies.
Many people were surprised that Do the Right Thing was not nominated for Best Picture or Best Director at the Academy Awards. It only received two nominations: one for Best Original Screenplay for Spike Lee, and one for Best Supporting Actor for Danny Aiello.
Movies in the 1990s
After his 1990 film Mo' Better Blues, some people accused Lee of showing negative stereotypes. Lee disagreed, saying he wanted to show how black artists faced challenges.
In 1992, Spike released his big movie Malcolm X. It was based on the book Autobiography of Malcolm X. Denzel Washington played the famous civil rights leader. The film shows important parts of Malcolm X's life, from his time in prison to his leadership in the Nation of Islam. It also shows his journey to Mecca and his later assassination. The film was highly praised. Roger Ebert called it "one of the great screen biographies." Denzel Washington's acting as Malcolm X was especially admired. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor.
In 1997, Lee directed the documentary 4 Little Girls. This film is about four girls killed in a church bombing in Alabama in 1963. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. In 2017, this film was also chosen for the United States National Film Registry.
Films in the 2000s
In 2002, Lee directed 25th Hour, starring Edward Norton. This movie received very good reviews. Many critics have called it one of the best films of its decade. Roger Ebert added it to his "Great Movies" list. The film also did well financially, earning almost $24 million.
In 2006, Lee directed Inside Man. This movie starred Denzel Washington, Jodie Foster, and Clive Owen. It was a different kind of movie for Lee, as it was a studio heist thriller. The film was a big success, earning $186 million. Critics praised it as a fast-paced and well-made movie.
In 2007, the San Francisco International Film Festival honored Spike Lee with a Directing Award. In 2013, he won The Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize, a very valuable award in American arts.
Work in the 2010s
In 2015, Lee received an Academy Honorary Award for his important contributions to film. His friends and frequent collaborators, Wesley Snipes, Denzel Washington, and Samuel L. Jackson, presented him with the award.
Lee also directed the story mode for the video game NBA 2K16. Later in 2015, Lee released Chi-Raq, a musical drama. This film is a modern version of an ancient Greek play, set in Chicago. It explores issues of race, sex, and violence in America. The film received mostly positive reviews.
Lee's 2018 film BlacKkKlansman is a true crime story set in the 1970s. It is about a black police officer, Ron Stallworth, who goes undercover to join the Ku Klux Klan. The film premiered at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival and won a major award called the Grand Prix. It received widespread praise from critics. In 2019, BlacKkKlansman was nominated for six Academy Awards. Lee himself was nominated for Best Picture and Best Director. He won his first competitive Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Projects in the 2020s
Lee's Vietnam War film Da 5 Bloods was released on Netflix in 2020. The movie follows a group of older Vietnam War veterans who return to Vietnam. They are looking for the remains of their leader and a treasure they buried. The film received great reviews from critics.
Lee has signed a deal with Netflix to direct and produce more movies. In 2024, it was announced that Spike Lee would direct a remake of the 1963 Japanese film High and Low. Denzel Washington is set to star in this new film.
Teaching and Academic Career
In 1991, Lee taught a filmmaking course at Harvard University. In 1993, he started teaching at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He became the artistic director of the school in 2002. He is now a tenured professor at NYU.
Commercials
In the mid-1990s, Levi's hired Lee to direct TV commercials for their jeans. Nike also hired Lee to direct commercials. They wanted to feature Lee's character, Mars Blackmon, with basketball star Michael Jordan for the Air Jordan shoes. Lee has also directed commercials for other companies like Converse, Jaguar, and Ben & Jerry's.
Artistic Style and Themes
Lee's films are often called "Spike Lee Joints." His movies usually end with phrases like "By Any Means Necessary" and "Ya Dig."
Themes
Spike Lee's films often explore important themes. These include race relations, different skin tones within the black community, and the role of media in daily life. He also looks at city crime, poverty, and other political topics. His films are known for their unique style, like using special camera shots that make characters seem to "float."
Influences
In 2018, Lee mentioned some of his favorite films. These included On the Waterfront (1954) and A Face in the Crowd (1957). He also liked Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets (1973). Lee became friends with Scorsese after seeing one of his films.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Distributor |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | She's Gotta Have It | Island Pictures |
| 1988 | School Daze | Columbia Pictures |
| 1989 | Do the Right Thing | Universal Pictures |
| 1990 | Mo' Better Blues | |
| 1991 | Jungle Fever | |
| 1992 | Malcolm X | Warner Bros. |
| 1994 | Crooklyn | Universal Pictures |
| 1995 | Clockers | |
| 1996 | Girl 6 | 20th Century Fox |
| Get on the Bus | Columbia Pictures | |
| 1998 | He Got Game | Touchstone Pictures |
| 1999 | Summer of Sam | |
| 2000 | Bamboozled | New Line Cinema |
| 2002 | 25th Hour | Touchstone Pictures |
| 2004 | She Hate Me | Sony Pictures Classics |
| 2006 | Inside Man | Universal Pictures |
| 2008 | Miracle at St. Anna | Touchstone Pictures |
| 2012 | Red Hook Summer | Variance Films |
| 2013 | Oldboy | FilmDistrict |
| 2014 | Da Sweet Blood of Jesus | Gravitas Ventures |
| 2015 | Chi-Raq | Roadside Attractions |
| 2018 | Pass Over | Amazon Studios |
| BlacKkKlansman | Focus Features | |
| 2020 | Da 5 Bloods | Netflix |
| TBA | Highest 2 Lowest | A24 Apple TV |
Awards and Honors
In 1983, Lee won a Student Academy Award for his film Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads. He has won awards at the Black Reel Awards and the Berlin International Film Festival. He also won a BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman.
Lee was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay for Do the Right Thing and Best Documentary for 4 Little Girls. In November 2015, he received an Academy Honorary Award for his work in filmmaking. In 2019, he received his first nominations for Best Picture and Best Director.
At 58, Lee became the youngest person to receive an Honorary Academy Award. This award recognized him as a "champion of independent film" and an "inspiration to young filmmakers."
In 2019, Lee's film BlacKkKlansman received six Academy Award nominations. Lee himself was nominated for three Oscars. He won the Best Adapted Screenplay, which was his first competitive Academy Award.
Two of his films have competed for the top award at the Cannes Film Festival, the Palme d'Or. BlacKkKlansman won the Grand Prix in 2018.
Lee's films Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, 4 Little Girls, She's Gotta Have It, and Bamboozled have all been chosen for the National Film Registry.
In 2016, Lee gave the graduation speech at The Johns Hopkins University. He was also named the recipient of the Ebert Director Award at the TIFF Tribute Awards for the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. In March 2024, Lee received a Board of Governor's Award from the American Society of Cinematographers.
Personal Life
Family
Lee met his wife, attorney Tonya Lewis Lee, in 1992. They got married a year later in New York and have two children.
When asked if he believed in God, Lee said he has faith in a higher being. Lee still has an office in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. He and his wife live in Manhattan.
Sports
Spike Lee is a big fan of sports teams. He supports the New York Knicks basketball team, the New York Yankees baseball team, and the New York Rangers ice hockey team. He also likes the English football club Arsenal. A documentary called Winning Time: Reggie Miller vs. The New York Knicks shows how Lee interacted with Reggie Miller at Knicks games. Lee also attends New York Liberty games, sitting courtside during the 2024 WNBA playoffs.
Political Views
Spike Lee has often spoken about political issues. In 1999, he made a comment about the National Rifle Association of America (NRA) and its president, Charlton Heston. Lee said it was a joke, and that the real problem was guns, not Hollywood movies.
In 2005, after Hurricane Katrina, Lee questioned whether the government had ignored the struggles of black Americans in New Orleans. He said he would not be surprised if there was an attempt to move black people out of the city.
In May 2020, Lee released a short film called NEW YORK NEW YORK about the city. He celebrated Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election in Brooklyn. Lee supported Kamala Harris in the 2024 United States presidential election and spoke at one of her rallies.
See also
In Spanish: Spike Lee para niños
