Adam Marcus (born 1969) is an American
film director
A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...
,
screenwriter
A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...
, and
actor
An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
.
Early life and education
Marcus was born in
Westport, Connecticut
Westport is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Located in the Gold Coast (Connecticut), Gold Coast along the Long Island Sound, it is northeast of New York City and is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connec ...
, and attended
Staples High School
Staples High School is a public high school in Westport, Connecticut, United States. It is named after Horace Staples, who founded the school on April 26, 1884. Westport is one of eight school districts in District Reference Group A (along with ...
. His brother,
Kipp Marcus, is also an actor.
He was raised in a
Reform Judaism
Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish religious movements, Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its Jewish ethics, ethical aspects to its ceremo ...
.
He studied film at the
New York University Tisch School of the Arts
The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic, and media arts school of New York University.
Founded on August 17, 1965, as the School of the Arts at New York University, Tisch ...
, where he received the Best Picture Award at the 1990
Student Academy Awards
The Student Academy Awards are presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in an annual competition for college and university filmmakers.
Description
The awards were originally named the Student Film Awards and were first pres ...
for his short film ''So You Like This Girl''.
Career
In 1991, Marcus was hired by filmmaker
Sean S. Cunningham
Sean Sexton Cunningham (born December 31, 1941) is an American film director, producer, and writer. He is best known for directing and producing several horror films, beginning in the early 1970s.
Raised in Connecticut, Cunningham graduated from ...
to work on feature film production. He relocated to
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, where he co-produced
''My Boyfriend's Back'' (1993) for Cunningham and Disney. That same year, Marcus wrote the story for and directed ''Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday'', the ninth installment in the
''Friday the 13th'' franchise, for
New Line Cinema
New Line Productions, Inc., Trade name, doing business as New Line Cinema, is an American film production, film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, a division of the Major film studios, ...
.
Working with his writing partner Debra Sullivan, Marcus developed screenplays for various studios, including ''Cradle and All'' (an adaptation of
James Patterson
James Brendan Patterson (born March 22, 1947) is an American author. Among his works are the '' Alex Cross'', '' Michael Bennett'', '' Women's Murder Club'', '' Maximum Ride'', '' Daniel X'', '' NYPD Red'', '' Witch & Wizard'', '' Private'' and ...
’s ''Virgin'') for
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
, and ''Black Autumn'' for
20th Century Fox
20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...
.
In 1995, Marcus founded Damn Skippy Theater Works, a theater company based in Los Angeles. In 1998, he directed the independently produced comedy
''Let It Snow'' (also known as ''Snow Days'').
The film was showcased at the Independent Feature Film Market (IFFM) in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
and premiered in the New Visions category at the
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...
’s Los Angeles International Film Festival, where it received awards for Best New Writer and Best Editing.
It was later selected for the 2000
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023.
The festival has acted ...
in the American Spectrum section. The film received coverage from outlets including ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'', ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'',
''Ain't It Cool News'', ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', and ''The Gore Score''.
In 2008, Marcus directed
''Conspiracy'' for
Sony Pictures
Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio conglomerate that produces, acquires, and distributes filmed entertainment (theatrical motion pictures, television programs, and rec ...
, a film he co-wrote with Sullivan. Shot in
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe ( ; , literal translation, lit. "Holy Faith") is the capital city, capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Santa Fe County. With over 89,000 residents, Santa Fe is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, fourt ...
, the film starred
Val Kilmer
Val Edward Kilmer (December 31, 1959 – April 1, 2025) was an American actor. Initially a stage actor, he later found fame as a Leading actor, leading man in films in a wide variety of genres, including Comedy film, comedies, dramas, action fi ...
,
Jennifer Esposito
Jennifer Esposito (born April 11, 1973) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in the feature films ''Summer of Sam'' (1999), ''Don't Say a Word'' (2001), ''The Master of Disguise'' (2002), ''Welcome to Collinwood'' (2002), ''Crash (2 ...
, and
Gary Cole
Gary Michael Cole (born September 20, 1956) is an American actor. He began his professional acting career on stage at Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1985. His breakout role was playing Jack 'Nighthawk' Killian in the NBC series '' M ...
.
In 2009, he appeared in the documentary film ''
His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th'', where he provided commentary on the franchise.
In 2012, Marcus co-wrote
''Texas Chainsaw 3D'', a direct sequel to ''
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'' is a 1974 American independent horror film produced, co-composed, and directed by Tobe Hooper, who co-wrote it with Kim Henkel. The film stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, ...
'' (1974), along with Sullivan and Kirsten Elms.
He also co-wrote ''Cabin Fever: Outbreak'' with Sullivan and was involved in ''The Plantation'', a project based on the 1943 film,
''I Walked with a Zombie''''.
''. In 2013, he appeared in the documentary film ''
Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th''.
Marcus and Sullivan’s screenplay
''Momentum'' (2015) entered production in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
in January 2014. Directed by
Stephen Campanelli
Stephen Campanelli is a Canadian movie cameraman and film director. He has been a long-term member of Clint Eastwood's film production crew.
Early life
Campanelli's mother Carmela emigrated from Italy to Canada. He traces his film interests to his ...
, the film starred
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, producer, and narrator. In a career spanning six decades, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as a nomination for a Tony ...
,
James Purefoy
James Brian Mark Purefoy (born 3 June 1964) is an English actor. He played Marcus Antonius in the HBO series ''Rome'', Nick Jenkins in '' A Dance to the Music of Time'', college professor turned serial killer Joe Carroll in the series '' The Fo ...
, and
Olga Kurylenko
Olga Kostyantynivna Kurylenko (born 14 November 1979) is a Ukrainian-born French actress. She rose to prominence by playing the Bond girl Camille Montes in the James Bond film '' Quantum of Solace'' (2008).
Kurylenko began her career modellin ...
. ''Momentum'' screened at several international film festivals, including the 2015
Fantasia International Film Festival
Fantasia International Film Festival, also known as Fantasia Fest or simply Fantasia, is a genre film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. It focuses on fantasy, horror, sci-fi and cult genre films. Regular ...
.
[Stephen Campanelli at the Fantasia premiere on 22 July 2015 in Montreal]
Filmography
Sources
* ''Gorezone Magazine'' (
USA
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
) 1993, Iss. 26, pg. 9–12, +61, by:
Marc Shapiro, "Starting Work on a Friday"
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marcus, Adam
1968 births
Male actors from Connecticut
American male film actors
American male screenwriters
20th-century American Jews
Living people
People from Westport, Connecticut
Tisch School of the Arts alumni
Film directors from Connecticut
Staples High School alumni
21st-century American Jews