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Darren Aronofsky

Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American film director, screenwriter and film producer.

Early life

Aronofsky was born in the Brooklyn borough of New York City to Abraham "Abe" Aronofsky and Charlotte, both school teachers. His father taught science and was a dean at Bushwick High School.

He graduated from Edward R. Murrow High School, during which he was selected to attend Camp Rising Sun, the Louis August Jonas Foundation's international summer scholarship program. Upon graduating early, he backpacked around the Middle East, Europe and Guatemala for six months and, in 1987, entered Harvard University where he studied anthropology, live action film and animation. His senior thesis film, Supermarket Sweep, starred his fellow student and friend Sean Gullette. It was a finalist in the 1991 Student Academy Awards. He graduated in 1991 with honors, later attending the AFI Conservatory but was cut from the program after the first year, despite the protests of fellow classmates.

Features

π

The film is about a mathematical genius, Maximillian Cohen, who narrates much of the movie. Max, a number theorist, theorizes that everything in nature can be understood through numbers, and that if you graph the numbers properly patterns will emerge. He is working on finding patterns within the stock market, using its billions upon billions of variables as his data set with the assistance of his homemade supercomputer, Euclid.

Batman project

After Joel Schumacher's poorly received Batman & Robin in 1997, many directors tried to bring a darker take on Batman to the big screen. Aronofsky came close to getting one started by signing on to do a low-budget take on Frank Miller's Batman: Year One. Christian Bale even said that he was about to sign on to the project just before it stalled in 2002. After Aronofsky's project failed, Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer developed and completed Batman Begins in which Bale did eventually play the title role. Also during this time Arronofsky was attached to film adaptions of Watchmen (film) and Ronin, both of which ultimately fell through.

Requiem for a Dream

One of Aronofsky's favorite books is Hubert Selby Jr.'s Last Exit to Brooklyn. While editing π, producer Eric Watson convinced Aronofsky to read another Selby book, Requiem for a Dream, which Aronofsky had actually started reading years before but never finished. He was moved by the novel and wanted to film an adaptation, quickly beginning work on the script with Selby. Aronofsky delivered a relentless and disturbing movie of hopes and dreams shattered and lives laid waste by drug addiction. The film was a clinical depiction of the depths to which some people will sink to in the hope of attaining their dreams. The film premiered at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival and was greeted by a 13 minute standing ovation. It was released in the United States in October, 2000. Ellen Burstyn was nominated for an Academy Award for her performance as Sara Goldfarb.

The Fountain

Aronofsky next commenced writing an original screenplay entitled "The Last Man", later changed to "The Fountain" to star Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. In 2002, days away from the start of filming, Pitt pulled out due to "creative differences", and the film collapsed. Sets were auctioned off once Warner Bros. Productions shut down filming. Warner Bros. however, decided to simply shelve the project and keep it as an option, so long as Aronofsky could find the proper cast. In 2005, The Fountain was resurrected with Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. However, the film was not a commercial success, with worldwide box office sales of only $15 million from a $35 million budget.

The Fountain was released in the United States on November 22, 2006. It was released on DVD in the United States and Canada on May 15, 2007.

The Wrestler

Aronofsky directed the The Wrestler, about professional wrestler Randy "The Ram" Robinson. Set in the 1980s, the film tells the story of Robinson's decline, and eventual reentry into the pro wrestling scene. Filming began late January 2008 and wrapped two months later. The Wrestler won the prestigious Golden Lion prize at the 2008 Venice Film Festival.

Future projects

Aronofsky has signed on to direct The Fighter, the tale of the rise of Boston boxer "Irish" Micky Ward, who nabbed the world lightweight title with the help of his once down-and-out half-brother Dicky, who became a trainer. The film is expected to star Brad Pitt and Mark Wahlberg. In an appearance on Friday night with Jonathan Ross, Mark Wahlberg informed Jonathan Ross that he was training for a boxing film, which was due to begin production in October.

Currently, Aronofsky has also been confirmed to direct a new Robocop movie, the film is intended to be a reboot instead of a remake; the film is scheduled to be released sometime in 2010.

Other future projects that Aronofsky has been linked to include the Biblical story of Noah's Ark, in which the title character would be portrayed as an alcoholic, an adaptation of Theodore Roszak's novel Flicker, Dan Simmons' novel Song of Kali, and Black Flies which is based on the novel Safelight by Shannon Burke. However, Aronofsky denies his next films will be Lone Wolf and Cub or Flicker in an interview by the AV Club.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1990	Supermarket Sweep	Director	Student film — never distributed
1993	Protozoa	Director	Student film — never distributed
1998	π	Director, Producer, Writer
2000	Requiem for a Dream	Director, Producer, Writer	aka Delusion Over Addiction
2002	Below	Producer and Writer
2006	The Fountain	Director, Producer, Writer
2008	The Wrestler	Director, Producer	Winner of 2008 Golden Lion award
2009	The Fighter	Director	Begins production October 2008
2010	RoboCop	Director

Personal life

Aronofsky is engaged to English actress Rachel Weisz. They began dating in 2002 and have a son, Henry Chance, born on May 31, 2006 in New York City. The couple reside in Brooklyn.

His upbringing was marked by his Jewish heritage, although in an interview he once disparagingly referred to himself as a "classically hypocritical high holiday Jew"