Carl-Jan Colpaert is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and chairman of
Cineville.com, Inc.
Early life
Carl-Jan Colpaert was born in
Kortrijk
Kortrijk ( , ; or ''Kortrik''; ), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of We ...
,
West Flanders
West Flanders is the westernmost province of the Flemish Region, in Belgium. It is the only coastal Belgian province, facing the North Sea to the northwest. It has land borders with the Dutch province of Zeeland to the northeast, the Flemis ...
,
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
to father Roger Colpaert, who was a member of the executive committee at
Bekaert and his mother, Marie-Therese Soens. He is the second of four children, Ann Colpaert, Chris Colpaert and Tom Colpaert. Carl Colpaert attended the
Catholic University of Leuven and the National Radio and Film institute in Brussels. He moved to Los Angeles in 1983 to attend
The American Film Institute
Biography
Carl-Jan Colpaert was born in Belgium.
He attended 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 ...
, and started his professional career as a film editor for
Roger Corman.
He founded the production and distribution company
Cineville in 1990 with
Christoph Henkel. Since October 2023
Cineville has also been operating as a streaming platform specializing in programming a curated selection of indie content.
Colpaert made his directorial debut in 1991 with ''
Delusion'', which he co-wrote with
Kurt Voss.
Three years later he helmed ''The Crew'' in an directorial effort that ''
Variety'' called "misguided".
''Drowning on Dry Land'', a 1999 film that he wrote and directed, drew praise for
Barbara Hershey and criticism for a screenplay that made the film "destined for half-inch".
His 2004 film ''
The Affair'' was similarly panned, with ''Variety'' calling it a "homevid-bound indie drama that recalls the most pretentious pseudo-artsy product of the 1960s and '70s".
Two years later his film ''
G.I. Jesus'', about a Marine returning from the
Iraq War
The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...
, won the Grand Jury Prize at
CineVegas.
It was reviewed by
Matt Zoller Seitz in ''
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 ...
'' as "so impressive in so many ways that it demands to be taken seriously".
Colpaert has a star on the walk of fame in
Ostend
Ostend ( ; ; ; ) is a coastal city and municipality in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke, Raversijde, Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the la ...
Personal life
Colpaert resides in
Malibu, California. He has two daughters, Jacqueline Dufwa-Colpaert (born in New York) and Celine Colpaert (born in Santa Monica), (
Yves Dessca is godfather to Celine).
Selected filmography
Producer
*''
Gas Food Lodging'' (1992) - Columbia Tristar
*''
Mi Vida Loca'' (1993) - Sony Classics
*''
Swimming with Sharks'' (1994) - Lionsgate
*''
Cafe Society (film)'' (1995) - Showtime
*''
The Whole Wide World'' (1996) - Sony Classics
*''
Nevada (film)'' (1997) - Columbia Tristar
*''
The Velocity of Gary'' (1997) - Columbia Tristar
*''
Hurlyburly (film)'' (1997) - New Line Cinema
*''
Where Eskimos Live'' (2000) - Cineville
*''
Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont'' (2006) - Cineville/ BBC
*''
Disconnected'' (2016) - Warner Bros.
*''
Female Fight Club'' (2017) - Lionsgate
*''Afterward (film)'' (2020) - Lionsgate
*''
Paul Is Dead (film)'' (2021) - Cineville
*''
Dime Detective'' (2024) - Cineville
*''
Yucatan (film)'' (2024) - Lionsgate
Director
*''
In the Aftermath'' (1988) – New World International
*''
Delusion'' (1991) – Columbia Tristar
*''
The Crew'' (1994) – Lionsgate
*''
Drowning on Dry Land'' (1999) -Unipix
*''
Façade'' (2000) – Sony
*''
The Affair'' (2004) – Cineville
*''
G.I. Jesús'' (2006) – Cineville
*''
Black Limousine'' (2012) – Anchor Bay Films
*''
Something About Her'' (2020) – Amazon Prime
*''
Yucatan'' (2024) - Cineville
References
External links
Cineville homepage*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Colpaert, Carl
1963 births
Film directors from Los Angeles
Film producers from Los Angeles
American male screenwriters
Living people