Charlie Kaufman  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

Related e

Wikipedia Wiktionary Shop Featured: Rhombicuboctahedron by Leonardo da Vinci

Charles Stuart Kaufman (born November 1, 1958) is an American playwright, film producer, theater and film director, noted for such metafictional films as Being John Malkovich.

Kaufman's works are cited as being surrealist and focused on an introverted, somewhat shy male protagonist and a more dominant female figure. This is true of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Joel/Clementine), Adaptation. (Charlie/Susan), and Being John Malkovich (Craig/Maxine). He sometimes includes fictionalized "facts" about his life in his work, notably Adaptation and Hope Leaves the Theater. Apes recur in Kaufman's work: in Being John Malkovich Lotte has a pet chimp named Elijah, in Human Nature Puff was raised as an ape, and in Adaptation the original deus ex machina was a swamp ape.

Credits

Films

• Being John Malkovich (1999; writer)
• Human Nature (2001; writer)
• Adaptation. (2002; writer)
• Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002; writer)
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004; writer)
• Synecdoche, New York (2008; writer, director)
• Anomalisa (2015)

Television

• Get a Life (1991-92)
• The Dana Carvey Show (1993)
• The Trouble With Larry (1993)
• The Edge (93-94)
• Ned and Stacy (96-97)

Plays

• Hope Leaves the Theater (2005; playwright, director)