American film director
Donna Deitch |
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| Born | (1945-06-08) June 8, 1945 (age 78)
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| Occupation(s) | Director, producer, writer |
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| Years active | 1975-present |
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| Known for | Desert Hearts |
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| Website | donnadeitch.com |
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Donna Deitch (born June 8, 1945, San Francisco, California) is an American film and television director, producer, and writer best known for her 1985 film Desert Hearts. The movie was the first feature film to "de-sensationalize lesbianism" by presenting a lesbian romance story with positive and respectful themes.[1][2]
Career
Deitch segued from documentary filmmaker to producing and directing Desert Hearts, the landmark hit of the 1985 Telluride and Toronto International film festivals, and the 1986 Sundance Film Festival. The film was picked up for worldwide distribution by The Samuel Goldwyn Company. Shortly after seeing the film, Oprah Winfrey hired Deitch to direct the Emmy-nominated four-hour miniseries The Women of Brewster Place.
After the success of Brewster Place, Deitch directed four pilots, three of which were picked up for series, including Second Noah. She has directed numerous episodes of one-hour dramas including NYPD Blue, ER, Murder One, Law and Order: SVU, EZ Streets, The Visitor, Dragnet, Crossing Jordan, Heroes, Private Practice, and others. She directed the pilot episode of The N's South of Nowhere.
She directed Prison Stories: Women on the Inside for HBO; Showtime's The Devil's Arithmetic starring Kirsten Dunst and Brittany Murphy, and Common Ground, written by Terrence McNally, Paula Vogel, and Harvey Fierstein (also for Showtime).
Deitch directed, photographed, and edited Angel On My Shoulder, a feature-length documentary about the experience of her best friend, actress Gwen Welles (Nashville), dying of cancer. The film won the Gold Hugo for Best Documentary at the 1998 Chicago International Film Festival.[3]
In a 2008 interview, she said she was working on obtaining financing for Blonde Ghost, a screenplay adapted from Stella, the 1992 non-fiction book by Peter Wyden about Stella Goldschlag, which takes place in Berlin during World War II.[4][5] That same year, Deitch said that she was writing a sequel to Desert Hearts which would be set "in NYC in the late 60s".[6]
Personal life
Deitch is openly lesbian.[7] Her partner is writer Terri Jentz.[8]
