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Jennifer Kent
Jennifer Kent is an Australian director, screenwriter, and former actress. She is best known for writing and directing the psychological horror film The Babadook (2014). Her second film, The Nightingale (2018), premiered at the 75th Venice International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Lion.
Jennifer Kent was born in Brisbane, Queensland. She says that she put on her first play when she was seven and also wrote stories. In an interview with Paul Risker, she states, "I actually started writing my own plays as a kid: directing and acting in them," and that "it was something that was very organic for me." In her late teens, she chose acting as she "wasn't really aware at that stage that women could direct films". While growing up, there weren't many female filmmakers in her region, so she aspired to become an actress and attend the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).
She graduated in 1991 from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Performing Arts (Acting).
By the end of her journey with education, she claims she "was burnt out and had terrible stage fright," in a masterclass interview that took place in August of 2020. After a while, she figured that acting wasn't for her after all, but wanted to continue writing and directing. Kent described her writing process as bad, resulting in her becoming doubtful of her ability to be a director. As she continued writing, however, the feeling that she could succeed became more apparent. A strong, memorable moment for her is when she viewed the film Dancer in the Dark, a film written and directed by Lars von Trier. At the end of the viewing, she leaped into the air and stated, "I'm going to work with the man who made this film." She was eventually offered the opportunity to spend a day on set, and after that experience, she ultimately realized that she was capable of becoming a director and writer.
Kent began her career as an actress, working primarily in television. She was a main cast member of Murder Call, from creator Hal McElroy, playing Constable, Dee Suzeraine, in all 31 episodes of the series. She also appeared in several episodes of other Australian TV series such as All Saints, Police Rescue and Above the Law. Kent also had a small role in Babe: Pig in the City and The New Adventures of Black Beauty. She has also been an acting teacher for 13 years at major institutions such as NIDA and the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS).
After losing interest in acting, Kent was inspired after seeing Dancer in the Dark to pursue a career as a filmmaker. She wrote to the director Lars von Trier, asking to study under him and explaining that she found the idea of film school repellent. In 2002 von Trier allowed her to assist him as part of a directing attachment on the set of his film Dogville (2003) starring Nicole Kidman. In a journal by Paul Risker, which speaks about "The Quarterly Review of Film & Video", Kent shared her journey on becoming a director. While working with Lars von Trier, she "learned a lot about directing watching him at work." In 2006 Kent directed an episode of Two Twisted, an Australian series following in the tradition of The Twilight Zone.
In 2005 Kent directed her short film Monster, which was screened at over 50 festivals around the world, including Telluride, Montreal World, and Slamdance film festivals, SXSW, and Aspen Shortsfest.
While she didn't make this short film with the idea of The Babadook already in mind, she says people think otherwise. She claims that without this short film, The Babadook wouldn't have been possible. Before making The Babadook, Kent made three to four full-length feature scripts that couldn't get funded within Australia. She was left with two choices: give up or go outside of Australia. She states that Binger, a film lab in Amsterdam that acts as a creative residence for writers and directors, helped support Kent through the creation of The Babadook and, ultimately, saved her creative life. In 2014 she adapted her short into a feature-length film The Babadook starring Essie Davis whom Kent had known through drama school. The film tells the story of a single mother played by Davis who must confront a sinister presence in her home while dealing with the emotional fallout of her husband's death. Kent explains "[she] was always quite fascinated by people who could suppress really dark, deep, painful experiences and [she] wanted to explore the idea that perhaps pushing down on those terrible experiences is harder than facing them". The Babadook premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, and was quickly picked up for distribution in the U.S. by IFC Films. Kent did five drafts of the feature script, received most of her funding from the South Australian Film Corporation, then conducted a Kickstarter campaign to help raise US$30,000 to pay for set construction. The Babadook received widespread critical acclaim, and doubled its budget with $4.9 million in the worldwide box office. The Babadook script won the Betty Roland Prize for Scriptwriting at the 2015 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards.
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Jennifer Kent
Jennifer Kent is an Australian director, screenwriter, and former actress. She is best known for writing and directing the psychological horror film The Babadook (2014). Her second film, The Nightingale (2018), premiered at the 75th Venice International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Lion.
Jennifer Kent was born in Brisbane, Queensland. She says that she put on her first play when she was seven and also wrote stories. In an interview with Paul Risker, she states, "I actually started writing my own plays as a kid: directing and acting in them," and that "it was something that was very organic for me." In her late teens, she chose acting as she "wasn't really aware at that stage that women could direct films". While growing up, there weren't many female filmmakers in her region, so she aspired to become an actress and attend the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).
She graduated in 1991 from the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) in Performing Arts (Acting).
By the end of her journey with education, she claims she "was burnt out and had terrible stage fright," in a masterclass interview that took place in August of 2020. After a while, she figured that acting wasn't for her after all, but wanted to continue writing and directing. Kent described her writing process as bad, resulting in her becoming doubtful of her ability to be a director. As she continued writing, however, the feeling that she could succeed became more apparent. A strong, memorable moment for her is when she viewed the film Dancer in the Dark, a film written and directed by Lars von Trier. At the end of the viewing, she leaped into the air and stated, "I'm going to work with the man who made this film." She was eventually offered the opportunity to spend a day on set, and after that experience, she ultimately realized that she was capable of becoming a director and writer.
Kent began her career as an actress, working primarily in television. She was a main cast member of Murder Call, from creator Hal McElroy, playing Constable, Dee Suzeraine, in all 31 episodes of the series. She also appeared in several episodes of other Australian TV series such as All Saints, Police Rescue and Above the Law. Kent also had a small role in Babe: Pig in the City and The New Adventures of Black Beauty. She has also been an acting teacher for 13 years at major institutions such as NIDA and the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS).
After losing interest in acting, Kent was inspired after seeing Dancer in the Dark to pursue a career as a filmmaker. She wrote to the director Lars von Trier, asking to study under him and explaining that she found the idea of film school repellent. In 2002 von Trier allowed her to assist him as part of a directing attachment on the set of his film Dogville (2003) starring Nicole Kidman. In a journal by Paul Risker, which speaks about "The Quarterly Review of Film & Video", Kent shared her journey on becoming a director. While working with Lars von Trier, she "learned a lot about directing watching him at work." In 2006 Kent directed an episode of Two Twisted, an Australian series following in the tradition of The Twilight Zone.
In 2005 Kent directed her short film Monster, which was screened at over 50 festivals around the world, including Telluride, Montreal World, and Slamdance film festivals, SXSW, and Aspen Shortsfest.
While she didn't make this short film with the idea of The Babadook already in mind, she says people think otherwise. She claims that without this short film, The Babadook wouldn't have been possible. Before making The Babadook, Kent made three to four full-length feature scripts that couldn't get funded within Australia. She was left with two choices: give up or go outside of Australia. She states that Binger, a film lab in Amsterdam that acts as a creative residence for writers and directors, helped support Kent through the creation of The Babadook and, ultimately, saved her creative life. In 2014 she adapted her short into a feature-length film The Babadook starring Essie Davis whom Kent had known through drama school. The film tells the story of a single mother played by Davis who must confront a sinister presence in her home while dealing with the emotional fallout of her husband's death. Kent explains "[she] was always quite fascinated by people who could suppress really dark, deep, painful experiences and [she] wanted to explore the idea that perhaps pushing down on those terrible experiences is harder than facing them". The Babadook premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, and was quickly picked up for distribution in the U.S. by IFC Films. Kent did five drafts of the feature script, received most of her funding from the South Australian Film Corporation, then conducted a Kickstarter campaign to help raise US$30,000 to pay for set construction. The Babadook received widespread critical acclaim, and doubled its budget with $4.9 million in the worldwide box office. The Babadook script won the Betty Roland Prize for Scriptwriting at the 2015 New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards.