Jonathan Caouette(I)

Jonathan Caouette has been making films since he was 8 years old. His shorts include "The Ankle Slasher" (1987), "The Techniques and Sciences of Eva" (1988), "Pig Nymph" (1990), "The Hospital" (2001), and "Fame" (2002). As a regional theater actor, Jonathan has appeared as a schizophrenic John the Baptist in Salome, Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar, and both John the Baptist and Judas in Godspell. He has toured with the European company of The Rocky Horror Show, The 30 Anniversary Of "Hair" in NYC, and has appeared in eight commercials, eleven MTV spots and seventeen student films. As an Actor, Jonathan received extensive training at the American Academy Of Dramatic Arts In New York City. More recently, as an actor, Jonathan starred in Ash Christian's the Texas, John Water's esque, "Fat Girls". He is also slated to star in Mathew Mishory's "Portland" and Michele Civetta's "Regular Boy". Jonathan presently lives part time in Astoria, NY with his partner David Sanin Paz and his son Joshua. Currently Jonathan is residing in Houston Texas working on his new screenplay. Jonathan just finished a documentary about the "All Tomorrow's Parties" Festivals in England. "All tomorrows Parties" The film has done the festival circuit extensively and won the LA weekly's "critics pick" at the Los Angeles film festival. "All Tomorrow's Parties" stars, Patti Smith, Iggy Pop, Belle And Sebastian, The Gossip and Nick Cave. "All Tomorrow's Parties" is going to have a screening at Houston's Museum Of Fine Arts Houston in March of 2010. Jonathan is also working on a screenplay entitled "Everything Somewhere Else" based on the acclaimed surrealistic Spanish novel,Todo en otra parte. He is also in development for a film with writer, David Henry Hwang (M. Butterfly, Aida) and producer Howard Gertler (Worlds greatest Dad with Robin Williams and Shortbus directed by John Cameron Mitchell) Jonathan is also currently shooting a new documentary about severely traumatized children. He is a recent recipient of a Rockerfeller Fellowship. Jonathan recently completed directing the film, "Rotaurorae" with Chloe Sevigny. "Rotaurorae" was commissioned by producers Asia Argento and Michele Civetta as part of the ONEDREAMRUSH film festival in Beijing, China as a part of a collective with the likes of Kenneth Anger, Sean Lennon, David Lynch, Gaspar Noe, Larry Clark, Abel Ferrara, and Harmony Korine among others. Currently, "Rotaurorae" is being fleshed out to a longer version of the film with the intent to submit it for the Cannes Film Festival in 2010 with a new title "All Flowers In Time". Jonathan is also going to be the executive producer of the film "Mountain Park", which is a documentary about a group of troubled children attending a post modern tough love camp in Texas.

In 2004, Jonathan directed starred and pieced together Tarnation on his Imac computer, using Apple's IMOVIE. Tarnation was produced by Gus Van Sant and John Cameron Mitchell. Part documentary, part narrative fiction, part home movie, and part acid trip. A psychedelic whirlwind of snapshots, Super-8 home movies, old answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, snippets of '80s pop culture, and dramatic reenactments to create an epic portrait of an American family travesty. The story begins in 2003 when Jonathan learns that his schizo-affected mother, Renee, has overdosed on her lithium medication. He is catapulted back into his real and horrifying family legacy of rape, abandonment, promiscuity, and psychosis. As he grows up on camera, he finds the escapist balm of musical theater and B horror flicks and reconnects to life through a chosen family. Then a look into the future shows Jonathan as he confronts the symbiotic and almost unbearable love he shares with his beautiful and tragically damaged mother.

Tarnation went on to Sundance and the Cannes Film Festival as well as many others and was nominated for the GLAAD Media Award, Grand Prix Asturias, Best documentary for the Gotham Award, Independent Spirit Award, and won the Stanley Kubrick Award at the Michael Moore Film Festival (Traverse City), as well as winning the BSFC Award for the Boston Society Of Film Critics, The Chlotrudis Award, The Glitter Award, The Sutherland trophy at The London Film Festival, Best documentary at the Los Angeles IFP/West Film Festival, The NSFC Award at The National Society Of Film Critics, And The San Diego Film Critics Society Award as well as many others. Tarnation was his first feature.