- Born
- Birth nameGreta Celeste Gerwig
- Height5′ 8½″ (1.74 m)
- Greta Gerwig is an American actress, playwright, screenwriter, and director. She has collaborated with Noah Baumbach on several films, including Greenberg (2010), Frances Ha (2012), for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination, and Mistress America (2015). Gerwig made her solo directorial debut with the critically acclaimed comedy-drama film Lady Bird (2017), which she also wrote, and has also had starring roles in the films Damsels in Distress (2011), Jackie (2016), and 20th Century Women (2016).
Greta Celeste Gerwig was born in Sacramento, California, to Christine Gerwig (née Sauer), a nurse, and Gordon Gerwig, a financial consultant and computer programmer. She has German, Irish, and English ancestry. Gerwig was raised as a Unitarian Universalist, but also attended an all-girls Catholic school. She has described herself as "an intense child". With an early interest in dance, she intended to get a degree in musical theatre in New York. She graduated from Barnard College in NY, where she studied English and philosophy, instead. Originally intending to become a playwright, after meeting young film director Joe Swanberg, she became the star of a series of intellectual low budget movies made by first-time filmmakers, a trend dubbed "mumblecore".
Gerwig was cast in a minor role in Swanberg's LOL (2006) in 2006, while still studying at Barnard. She then appeared in many of Swanberg's films, and personally co-directed, co-wrote and co-produced one entitled Nights and Weekends (2008). She has worked with good quality directors such as Ti West (The House of the Devil (2009)), Whit Stillman (Damsels in Distress (2011)), or Woody Allen (To Rome with Love (2012)) but success and (international) recognition did not come until Frances Ha (2012), directed by Noah Baumbach, a film she also co-wrote. Both tall and immature, awkward and graceful, blundering and candid, annoying and engaging, Greta has won all hearts in the title role of Frances Ha(liday).
In 2017, she wrote and directed the highly acclaimed, semi-autobiographical teen movie Lady Bird (2017), set in 2002-2003, and starring Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, and Timothée Chalamet.
In 2011, Gerwig received an award for Acting from the Athena Film Festival for her artistry as one of Hollywood's definitive screen actresses of her generation.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Lily S. and and Pedro Borges
- SpouseNoah Baumbach(December 2023 - present) (2 children)
- ChildrenHarold
- Parents
- Overlapping or parallel dialogue
- Female characters in her films have a monologue about feminism and women's rights.
- Wrote in detail about the 42 takes she did of one 28-second scene in Frances Ha (2012) in a N.Y. Times Magazine article titled 'I Know I'm Doing the Scene Badly, But I Can't Figure Out How to Do It Well' [May 2013].
- Her real-life parents, Gordon Gerwig and Christine Gerwig, portrayed the parents to her character in Frances Ha (2012). Her father declared that he was reluctant to do it, even though he doesn't have any lines, as he believed the role should be given to a professional actor.
- Never officially attended film school, instead learning everything she could about filmmaking from on-set observations as an actress and writer.
- Studied philosophy at Barnard College.
- Has been in a relationship with Noah Baumbach since 2011. On March 19, 2019, it was announced they had welcomed a son, Harold.
- When I was a kid, I used to do my homework in the living room, where there was a picture window. I was hoping that someone would walk by and see me looking very studious in my living room.
- Some of the independent movies that make money have a very specific thing that you can tell audiences they'll feel about it. 'This will make you feel so happy'. 'This will make you feel something about your family'. And anything that's not that, if it's 'This will make you feel perhaps uncomfortable about choices you've made in your life. [Frances Ha (2012)] will touch your deep feelings of failure and unworthiness. [My father said about it:] 'You know they play that Steve Miller song in the beginning? You think, This is really gonna make you feel great'. He was 'Yes!' and then 'What?'
- [on her screenplay for Frances Ha (2012)] So much of writing is like baking a cake. I can't tell you where the sugar is.
- Sitting and waiting is such an awful way to live, but it's a big part of being an actor. Creating projects is really what's happening these days. The chance to participate in your own career is a lot more exciting than just hoping that it all works out.
- [on her meticulous preparation] If I fall on my face and it's dreadful and everybody says it's dreadful, I'd rather have tried than not.
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