Grady Cooper | |
|---|---|
| Born | Grady Cooper III Raleigh, North Carolina, US |
| Alma mater | University of North Carolina Broughton High School |
| Occupation(s) | Film editor, producer, director |
| Years active | 1987-present |
| Television | Bigger and Blacker Survivor The Unicorn The Voice |
| Awards | Nominated for an Emmy in 2018 and 2000 |
Grady Cooper III, known professionally as Grady Cooper, is an American director, producer and Emmy nominated film editor.[1][2]
Cooper is from Raleigh, North Carolina and graduated from Broughton High School.[3][4] In high school, "Grady convinced his teachers to let him make short films…instead of writing papers."[5] He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and graduated with a degree in English in 1987.[3]
While in college, Cooper worked on comedy shows for UNC Student Television along with Bill Martin and Peyton Reed.[6] He also produced a music video for the Chapel Hill band The Connells and was a production assistant for the feature film Bull Durham which was shot in Durham, North Carolina.[7][3]
In the 1990s, Cooper also produced music videos for Chapel Hill bands Archers of Loaf and Squirrel Nut Zippers.[3][8] After college, he took a position with West, Pausback & Vaughn as a traffic manager.[7] However, he soon moved to Los Angeles to work in film.[3][4]
Once in Los Angeles, Cooper worked as a post-production assistant for Andrew Solt who produced documentaries.[5] This allowed him to learn about editing and step up to bigger projects.[5] He edited D. L. Hughley's Going Home special in 1988, Chris Rock's HBO special Bigger and Blacker in 1999, and the television show Curb Your Enthusiasm in 2000-2001.[2][3] After one season of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Cooper decided to start his own editorial company.[5] This led to directing commercials, including one for Target.[5][3]
In 2003, Cooper and improv comic Lance Krall made Party Animals, a short film which premiered at the Los Angeles International Film Festival and was an official selection in the Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.[9] From 2004 to 2005, Cooper directed and produced the unscripted comedy sketch show, The Lance Krall Show, which aired on Spike (now Paramount) for one season.[9]Cooper was the editor for many television shows through the 2000s and 2010s, including Awkward, Hell's Kitchen, Last Comic Standing, Lopez, The Office, Survivor, Teachers, and The Voice.[2][3][5]
In 2019, Cooper created the CBS sitcom The Unicorn which is based on his own experiences as a widower and single parent, as well as his return to dating.[4] The concept for the show emerged when Cooper shared his experiences with college friends Bill Martin, now a television writer known for 3rd Rock from the Sun, and Peyton Reed, now a director and producer known for Ant-Man.[8][4] He asked them, "Do you think this could be a comedy?"[8] The trio began collaborating on The Unicorn, which aired for two seasons.[8][10]
Cooper has received two Emmy nominations:
Cooper lives in Studio City, Los Angeles, California.[1] In 1995, he married Jane DeVries and the couple had two daughters—Audrey and Ellen.[4][1][11] In 2015 when Jane was 49, she died of brain cancer.[4]