Zack Snyder facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Zack Snyder
Snyder at the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con
Born	Zachary Edward Snyder (1966-03-01) March 1, 1966 (age 59) Green Bay, Wisconsin, U.S.
Education	Art Center College of Design (BFA)
Occupation	Film director film producer screenwriter cinematographer
Years active	1990–present
Spouse(s)	Denise Weber (divorced) Deborah Johnson ​ (m. 2004)​
Children	8

Zachary Edward Snyder (born March 1, 1966) is an American filmmaker. He is well-known for directing and producing many popular movies. His first big film was Dawn of the Dead in 2004. This was a remake of an older horror movie.

Since then, Zack Snyder has worked on many comic book and superhero films. These include 300 (2006) and Watchmen (2009). He also directed the Superman movie Man of Steel (2013). This film started the DC Extended Universe. He continued with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) and Justice League (2017). A special "director's cut" of Justice League was released in 2021.

Snyder has also directed other types of films. These include the animated movie Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010). He also made the action film Sucker Punch (2011). More recently, he directed the zombie heist movie Army of the Dead (2021). He also made the two-part space adventure films Rebel Moon (2023) and Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver (2024).

In 2004, he started a film company called The Stone Quarry. He founded it with his wife Deborah Snyder and partner Wesley Coller.

Early life and education

Zachary Edward Snyder was born on March 1, 1966. He was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, in the United States. He grew up in Riverside, Connecticut and Greenwich, Connecticut. His mother, Marsha Manley, was a painter and a photography teacher. She encouraged his artistic interests. His father, Charles Edward "Ed" Snyder, worked as an executive recruiter. Zack has an older sister named Audrey.

Snyder was raised as a Christian Scientist. He went to a summer camp run by the church in Harrison, Maine.

After high school, he studied painting for a year in England. This was at the Heatherley School of Fine Art. He had already started making films in high school. Snyder had dyslexia, which made school challenging. He made his first film in high school using a camera his mother bought him. This film was about his school's leaders and led to him being expelled. After that, Snyder went to Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. He studied film there and graduated in 1989.

When he was young, Snyder loved comic books and horror films. This passion later influenced his career.

Career highlights

Snyder at the Sydney premiere for Man of Steel

After college, Snyder directed commercials and music videos. He worked for bands like ZZ Top and Morrissey. He met his future wife, Deborah, while working on music videos. She was a music producer at the time. One famous commercial he directed was "Respect" for Budweiser in 2002. It showed horses traveling to the site of the 9/11 attacks to pay their respects.

Snyder's first feature film was the horror remake Dawn of the Dead (2004). He then had a big success with the fantasy war film 300 (2006). This movie was based on a comic book series by Frank Miller. His film Watchmen was released in 2009. It earned a lot of money worldwide.

His first animated movie was Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, released in 2010. Snyder also produced, co-wrote, and directed Sucker Punch. This film was about a young woman in a mental hospital who dreams of escaping.

In 2013, he directed Man of Steel for Warner Bros. This movie brought Superman back to the big screen. It also launched the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). He also produced 300: Rise of an Empire (2014), a follow-up to 300.

At Comic Con in 2013, Snyder announced that Batman and Superman would appear together. This happened in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, released in 2016. Snyder directed the film, with Ben Affleck playing Batman. Snyder also directed Warner Bros.' 2017 film Justice League. However, he left during the final stages of making the movie. This was due to the sad death of his daughter, Autumn Snyder. Another director, Joss Whedon, finished the film.

In 2019, Snyder announced he would direct Army of the Dead. This was a zombie heist movie for Netflix. He directed and produced it with his wife, Deborah Snyder. His agreement with Netflix has grown to include more Army of the Dead projects. These include Army of Thieves, a prequel from 2021, and a future sequel called Planet of the Dead.

On May 20, 2020, Snyder announced that Zack Snyder's Justice League would be released. This special version of the film came out on HBO Max in 2021.

In 2021, Snyder started developing the film Rebel Moon for Netflix. This movie was inspired by Star Wars and the films of Akira Kurosawa. It was planned as a two-part film. Snyder also produced and directed two episodes of Twilight of the Gods. This is an anime-style web series about Norse mythology for Netflix.

Future projects

As of February 2021^[update], Snyder was working on a King Arthur film. He said it would be a "faithful retelling" set during the American Gold rush era.

After Rebel Moon, Snyder plans to direct Planet of the Dead. This will be a sequel to Army of the Dead. He also has a special deal with Netflix to make more movies.

In 2022, Snyder shared his interest in directing a science fiction film based on the Adult Swim cartoon Rick and Morty. He felt it would be the closest he could get to making a comedy film.

In November 2023, Snyder said he was no longer interested in directing superhero comic book movies. However, he would consider returning to the DC Universe. This would only happen if James Gunn asked him to direct a faithful version of Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns comic book.

As of November 2024^[update], Snyder is set to direct a new action film for Netflix. It will be about the Los Angeles Police Department. He is writing the script with his frequent partner, Kurt Johnstad.

Blood and Ashes was a movie Snyder and Johnstad wrote during the COVID-19 pandemic. It would have been the third film in the 300 world. Warner Bros. did not pick up the project. It was meant to be a love story about Alexander the Great and Hephaestion during wartime. In 2023, Snyder's company, The Stone Quarry, got the movie rights back from Warner Bros.

Filmmaking style

Snyder often uses slow motion in his films. He especially uses a technique called speed ramping. This means he quickly changes between slow and normal speed during action scenes. This is different from other directors who use many quick cuts in fights. For example, a minute-long shot in 300 shows King Leonidas fighting. The camera zooms in and out to highlight each move.

Snyder has explained his approach to action. He said, "There are other superhero movies where they joke about how basically no one's getting hurt. That's not us. What is that message? That it's okay that there's this massive destruction with zero consequence for anyone? That's what Watchmen was about in a lot of ways too." He likes to show the real impact of violence in his films.

For the Netflix movie Army of the Dead, Snyder was his own cinematographer. This means he was in charge of how the film was shot. It was also his first movie filmed using digital cameras.

Personal life

In 2009, Snyder shared his five favorite films. They were Excalibur, Mad Max 2, A Clockwork Orange, Blue Velvet, and RoboCop.

Family

Snyder lives in Pasadena, California. He lives with his second wife, producer Deborah Johnson. They met in 1996 and started dating in 2002. They got married on September 25, 2004. He was previously married to Denise Weber.

Snyder has eight children.

Helping others

Snyder has used his platform to help others. He supported efforts to raise money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. In May 2021, it was announced that these efforts had raised over $750,000 for the charity.

To further help with suicide prevention, Snyder included a billboard in Zack Snyder's Justice League. The billboard had the message "You are not alone." The film also includes other tributes to his late daughter.

In 2018, Snyder directed two public service announcements (PSAs) for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

In 2021, Snyder worked with Save the Children. This organization helps children around the world. They built a 100-bed temporary hospital in New Delhi to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

Political views

Snyder is a Democrat. He supported Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election.

Filmography

Films

Snyder at 2013 San Diego Comic-Con

Short films

Music videos

Television

Awards and recognition

Zack Snyder has won many awards for his work. He received two Clio Awards and a Gold Lion Award for a Jeep commercial. He also won the Society of British Advertisers Award for Humor for an EB Beer commercial.

See also

In Spanish: Zack Snyder para niños