Craig William Macneill is an American film director, writer, and editor. His feature film ''Lizzie'', starring

Chloë Sevigny Chloë Stevens Sevigny ( ; born November 18, 1974) is an American actress. Known for her work in independent films with controversial or experimental themes, her accolades include a Golden Globe Award, in addition to a nomination for an Acade ...

and Kristen Stewart, premiered in the U.S Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. The film was acquired by Roadside Attractions and Saban Films and released theatrically in the fall of 2018. Macneill's first feature film, '' The Boy'', premiered in the narrative competition at the 2015 SXSW Film Festival and which was also based on a previous short film he co-wrote, directed, and edited titled ''Henley'', which screened in competition at the

2012 Sundance Film Festival The 2012 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 19 until January 29, 2012 in Park City, Utah. 64 short films were selected for the festival from 7,675 submissions, including 27 international shorts from 3,592 submissions. Non-competitio ...

and won the grand jury prize for "Best Short Film" at the Gen Art Film Festival and

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western (genre), Western TV series ''Rawhide (TV series), Rawhide'', Eastwood rose to international fame with his role as the "Ma ...

’s Carmel Film and Arts Film Festival. In 2016. On the Television side, Macneill directed two episodes for HBO’s Emmy winning series, ''Westworld'', along with Amazon Prime Series ''Them'' which was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award. Macneill is currently developing an original series, titled UNKNOWN, for Amazon Prime with Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy’s Kilter Films producing. Macneill's other TV directorial work include episodes for Jordan Peele's ''Twilight Zone'', ''Castle Rock'', ''NOS4A2'', '' Monsterland,'' and the first season of the limited anthology television series ''Channel Zero'''': Candle Cove''. The show was created by Nick Antosca and starred Paul Schneider and Fiona Shaw.

Early life and education

Macneill was born in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

, and moved to

Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several County (United States), counties and independent city (United States), independent cities in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. ...

where he attended high school. He graduated from the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...

with a Bachelor of Fine Arts after having studied under filmmakers including

Stan Brakhage James Stanley Brakhage ( ; January 14, 1933 – March 9, 2003) was an American experimental filmmaker. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in 20th-century experimental film. Over the course of five decades, Brakhage cr ...

Career

Feature films

Macneill directed ''

Lizzie Lizzie or Lizzy is a nickname for Elizabeth or Elisabet, often given as an independent name in the United States, especially in the late 19th century. Lizzie can also be the shortened version of Lizeth, Lissette or Lizette. People * Elizabe ...

'', a psychological thriller starring Chloe Sevigny and Kristen Stewart. ''Lizzie'' premiered in the U.S Dramatic Competition section at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Macneill directed and co-wrote the 2015 feature film '' The Boy'', starring David Morse, Rainn Wilson,

Jared Breeze Jared Breeze (born 2005) is an American child actor. He starred in the title role of the 2015 film, '' The Boy''. Career Breeze's first film appearance was in 2014, in '' Cooties'', and his performance brought him to the attention of the produ ...

, Mike Vogel, Bill Sage,

Zuleikha Robinson Zuleikha Robinson born in 1977 is a British actress. She first came to attention as Yves Adele Harlow, a mysterious thief on the 2001 series ''The Lone Gunmen (TV series), The Lone Gunmen''. She has appeared in the films ''Hidalgo (film), Hidalg ...

, and Aiden Lovecamp. The film was produced by

Elijah Wood Elijah Jordan Wood (born January 28, 1981) is an American actor and producer. Wood made his film debut with a minor part in ''Back to the Future Part II'' (1989) at the age of eight and achieved recognition in the early 1990s as a child acto ...

, Daniel Noah, and Josh C. Waller and the company SpectreVision.

Television

Macneill directed the first season of the limited anthology television series '' Channel Zero: Candle Cove''. The show was created by Nick Antosca and stars Paul Schneider and Fiona Shaw. Macneill directed 2 episodes for HBO's

Westworld ''Westworld'' is an American science fiction dystopia media franchise that began with the Westworld (film), 1973 film ''Westworld'', written and directed by Michael Crichton. The film depicts a technologically advanced Wild West, Wild-West-th ...

, 2 episodes for the first season of Amazon Prime's Them, and an episode for Jordan Peele's

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

anthology reboot television series, titled The Blue Scorpion, starring Chris O'Dowd. He also directed an episode of the horror drama series, '' Castle Rock'', 2 episodes of the horror drama series, '' NOS4A2'', 1 episode of the horror drama series, '' Monsterland'', and 2 episodes for the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

Short films

Macneill has written, produced, edited, and directed a number of short films before ''The Boy''. Among them is a 2011 short ''Henley'', which won a "Best Short Film" award at the 2011 Gen Art Film Festival Film Festival and the 2012 Carmel Film and Arts Film Festival. ''Henley'' was one of 64 short films selected from 7,675 submissions to screen in competition at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. Among the short films that Macneill has both directed, produced, co-wrote, and edited include the award winning short film ''Late Bloomer'', which screened as an official selection at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. It won the audience award at the 2004 Lake Placid Film Festival, and was screened at film festivals worldwide

Experimental film

In 2009, Macneill, along with co-director Alexei Kaleina, completed an experimental film titled '' The Afterlight'', which had its world premiere at the International Rome Film Festival and was acquired for limited theatrical distribution through Cinema Purgatorio. The film stars Michael Kelly, Ana Asensio, Jicky Schnee, and Rip Torn.

Personal life

Macneill lives 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 ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

with his wife, director/actress Ana Asensio. He was the recipient of a 2009 Jerome Foundation Grant.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Macneill, Craig William Film directors from Virginia People from Virginia University of Colorado alumni Living people Year of birth missing (living people)