Maya Forbes (born July 23, 1968) is an American screenwriter and television producer. She made her debut as a film director with ''

Infinitely Polar Bear ''Infinitely Polar Bear'' is a 2014 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Maya Forbes, and starring Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky, and Ashley Aufderheide. The film premiered in competition at the 30th Sundance Fil ...

'' (2014). Her other writing credits include the screenplay of '' The Rocker'' (2008) and many episodes of ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO ...

''. She was a co-executive producer of ''The Larry Sanders Show'' in its later seasons and executive producer of the sitcom '' The Naked Truth''. Forbes received Emmy and WGA Award nominations for her work on ''The Larry Sanders Show''.

Life and career

Forbes was born in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, the daughter of Peggy (née Woodford) and Donald Cameron Forbes (1939–1998). Her father was of

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

descent, and her mother is

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

. Forbes is married to

Wally Wolodarsky Wallace Wolodarsky, also billed as Wally Wolodarsky, is an American actor, screenwriter, television producer, and film director known for being one of the writers for ''The Simpsons'' during the first four seasons with his writing partner Jay K ...

, who was co-screenwriter of ''The Rocker'' and a producer of ''Infinitely Polar Bear''. China Forbes (lead singer of

Pink Martini Pink Martini is an American band that was founded in 1994 by pianist Thomas Lauderdale in Portland, Oregon. Group members call it a little orchestra that crosses several styles, such as classical, latin, traditional pop, and jazz. The co-lead v ...

) is Maya Forbes's sister. Both she and her sister attended Phillips Exeter Academy, as did their father, graduating in 1986, 1988, and 1957, respectively. She attended Harvard, where she wrote for the Harvard Lampoon, graduating in 1990. Both her sister and father also attended Harvard, graduating in 1992 and 1961, respectively. Part of the prominent

Boston Brahmin The Boston Brahmins or Boston elite are members of Boston's traditional upper class. They are often associated with Harvard University; Anglicanism; and traditional Anglo-American customs and clothing. Descendants of the earliest English coloni ...

elite Forbes family through her father's side, she is related to U.S. Secretary of State John Forbes Kerry and his brother acting U.S. Secretary of Commerce Cameron Forbes Kerry. Forbes based ''Infinitely Polar Bear'' on her own experiences as a child in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most ...

, when her father—who had

bipolar disorder Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of depression and periods of abnormally elevated mood that last from days to weeks each. If the elevated mood is severe or associated with ...

—was the primary caregiver for Forbes and her sister while their mother was studying for an MBA at

Columbia Business School Columbia Business School (CBS) is the business school of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1916, Columbia Business School is one of six Ivy League business schools and is one of the oldest busin ...

in New York City. Her mother, upon graduating, went to work for

Wall Street Wall Street is an eight-block-long street in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs between Broadway in the west to South Street and the East River in the east. The term "Wall Street" has become a metonym for ...

, first in the futures market at

E. F. Hutton EF Hutton was an American stock brokerage firm founded in 1904 by Edward Francis Hutton and his brother, Franklyn Laws Hutton. Later, it was led by well known Wall Street trader Gerald M. Loeb. Under their leadership, EF Hutton became one of th ...

, and then for

Merrill Lynch Merrill (officially Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated), previously branded Merrill Lynch, is an American investment management and wealth management division of Bank of America. Along with BofA Securities, the investment banki ...

, where she remained for nearly a decade. Her mother was the first

woman to start an

investment management Investment management is the professional asset management of various securities, including shareholdings, bonds, and other assets, such as real estate, to meet specified investment goals for the benefit of investors. Investors may be instit ...

firm in growth equity management in the United States. Imogene Wolodarsky, Forbes's 12-year-old daughter, plays a fictionalized version of Forbes in ''Infinitely Polar Bear''. (The character's name is Amelia Stuart, but the film is described as autobiographical.)

References

External links

Meet the Artists 2014: Maya Forbes
( Sundance Institute video) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Forbes, Maya American women film directors American women screenwriters American television writers Television producers from Massachusetts American women television producers American people of French descent American people of Scottish descent African-American film directors Living people 1968 births Writers from Cambridge, Massachusetts Phillips Exeter Academy alumni The Harvard Lampoon alumni

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popu ...

Film directors from Massachusetts Screenwriters from Massachusetts American women television writers