Date of Birth

Mini Biography

Ted Hope, together with partners Anthony Bregman and Anne Carey, formed 'This is that' out of the production and development arms of the groundbreaking Good Machine. The company's initial year yielded three features: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's award-winning 21 Grams (starring Sean Penn, Benicio Del Toro (who both garnered Oscar-nominations), and Naomi Watts), Michel Gondry and Charlie Kaufman's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet), and Kip Williams' The Door in the Floor (starring Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger, based on the novel, A Widow For One Year by John Irving). In addition, This is that is currently in post-production on Mike Mills' Thumbsucker (starring Tilda Swinton, Vince Vaughn, Keanu Reeves, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Benjamin Bratt) which Hope executive produced with his partners. He is currently in post-production on John Waters' A Dirty Shame (starring Johnny Knoxville, Tracey Ullman, Selma Blair, and Chris Isaak) which he is producing with Christine Vachon.

His production of American Splendor won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival as well as the FIPRESCI Award at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival, the Critics prize at the 2003 Deuville Film Festival and was nominated for five Independent Spirit Awards including Best Feature. Based on the life and comics of Harvey Pekar and written and directed by Shari Berman and Bob Pulcini, American Splendor marked Hope's 14th official selection to the Sundance Film Festival. American Splendor was also nominated for an Academy Award" for Best Adapted Screenplay.

In what was a banner year, Hope had three high profile and critically acclaimed films in the 2002 Sundance Film Festival: Moises Kaufman's Emmy nominated The Laramie Project, Todd Solondz's Storytelling, and Michel Gondry's Human Nature, written by Charlie Kaufman. His production of Nicole Holofcener's Lovely & Amazing netted six Spirit Award nominations (2003), the most of any 2002 release. Hope executive produced Todd Field's In The Bedroom which earned five Academy Award" nominations in 2002 for Best Picture, Actress, Actor, Supporting Actress, and Adapted Screenplay. In addition it won the Best Actress (Drama) Golden Globe Award and was voted best First Feature, Best Actor, and Best Actress by the New York Film Critics Circle and won three Independent Spirit Awards (2002). Hope also produced the Cannes Critics' Prize-winning Happiness, directed by Todd Solondz, which Hope and his partners at Good Machine released themselves, when its distributors dropped the film.

Hope has produced, with James Schamus, many of Ang Lee's films, including Ride With The Devil, The Ice Storm, Pushing Hands, the Academy Award nominated The Wedding Banquet and Eat Drink Man Woman. He has executive produced two Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winners: Edward Burns' The Brothers McMullen (1995) and Tom Noonan's What Happened Was.. . (1994), and produced two films that were, according to Variety, the most commercially successful films (ratio to budget) in 1995 and 1993, respectively: Burns' The Brothers McMullen and Lee's The Wedding Banquet. Hope got his start as a producer from his early collaborations with Hal Hartley, for whom he produced eight films in all including Amateur, Simple Men, and Trust.

Hope, who is credited with having produced more than 50 films to date, has been awarded numerous honors and citations. He takes particular joy working on first features, and enjoys a reputation as an unparalleled spotter of new talent.

Recently he plated a key role in the organization of the successful campaign in opposition to the MPAA's screener ban.

Trivia

Partner in Good Machine, an indie-film company, with screenwriter friend James Schamus and David Linde. Bought by Universal Pictures and merged into a new division of the studio called Focus, June 2002.

Was member of the dramatic jury at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004.

Ted Hope responded to the ...

Ted Hope