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Maya Forbes
Maya Forbes
Maya Forbes
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Maya Forbes (born July 23, 1968) is an American screenwriter and television producer. She made her debut as a film director with Infinitely Polar Bear (2014).[2][3] Her other writing credits include the screenplay of The Rocker (2008) and many episodes of The Larry Sanders Show. She was a co-executive producer of The Larry Sanders Show in its later seasons and executive producer of the sitcom The Naked Truth.

Key Information

Forbes received Emmy and WGA Award nominations for her work on The Larry Sanders Show.

Life and career

[edit]

Forbes was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the daughter of Peggy (née Woodford) and Donald Cameron Forbes (1939–1998). Her father was of French/Scottish descent, and her mother is African American.

Forbes is married to Wally Wolodarsky,[4] who was co-screenwriter of The Rocker and a producer of Infinitely Polar Bear. China Forbes (lead singer of Pink Martini) is Maya Forbes's sister.[2] Both she and her sister attended Phillips Exeter Academy, as did their father, graduating in 1986, 1988, and 1957, respectively.[5] She attended Harvard, where she wrote for the Harvard Lampoon, graduating in 1990.[6] Both her sister and father also attended Harvard, graduating in 1992 and 1961, respectively. Part of the prominent Boston Brahmin elite Forbes family through her father's side, she is related to U.S. Secretary of State John Forbes Kerry and his brother acting U.S. Secretary of Commerce Cameron Forbes Kerry.

Forbes based Infinitely Polar Bear on her own experiences as a child in Cambridge, Massachusetts, when her father—who had bipolar disorder—was the primary caregiver for Forbes and her sister while their mother was studying for an MBA at Columbia Business School in New York City.[2] Her mother, upon graduating, went to work for Wall Street, first in the futures market at E. F. Hutton, and then for Merrill Lynch, where she remained for nearly a decade. Her mother was the first African American woman to start an investment management firm in growth equity management in the United States.[7]

Imogene Wolodarsky, Forbes's 12-year-old daughter, plays a fictionalized version of Forbes in Infinitely Polar Bear.[8] (The character's name is Amelia Stuart, but the film is described as autobiographical.)

References

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Maya Forbes

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from Grokipedia
Maya Forbes is an American screenwriter, , and best known for her semi-autobiographical debut feature (2014), which explores her childhood experiences with her father's . Born July 23, 1968, in , Forbes grew up in a biracial family; her mother, Peggy, an African American woman from a middle-class background, pursued an MBA in New York when Forbes was 10, leaving her and her younger sister, (lead singer of the band ), in the care of their father, Cameron, a white man from a wealthy family who struggled with manic depression. Forbes attended Harvard University, where she contributed to the humor publication The Harvard Lampoon. After graduating, she launched her career in Los Angeles as a writer and producer on the HBO comedy series The Larry Sanders Show for four seasons in the 1990s. She later co-wrote screenplays for films including Seeing Other People (2004) and the animated Monsters vs. Aliens (2009), often collaborating with her husband, fellow writer and director Wallace Wolodarsky. In addition to Infinitely Polar Bear, which premiered at the and earned critical acclaim for its heartfelt portrayal of family dynamics, Forbes co-directed (2017), a starring based on a true story, and The Good House (2021), an adaptation of Ann Leary's novel featuring . Forbes and Wolodarsky, married since the early 2000s and parents to three children, continue to work together on projects that blend humor with personal and social themes.

Early life and education

Childhood and family

Maya Forbes was born on July 23, 1968, in . Her mother, Peggy Woodford, is African American and worked in public television, where she met Forbes' father, Donald Cameron Forbes, in the 1960s. Donald, often called Cam or Cameron, was born in 1939 into a prominent family and suffered from ; he died in 1998. During Forbes' childhood, her father served as the primary caregiver for her and her sister while their mother pursued an MBA at in New York. Forbes has a younger sister, , who is two years her junior and the lead singer of the band . Through her father's Forbes lineage, Maya Forbes is related to U.S. Senator John Forbes Kerry and his brother, , as distant cousins in the influential , which traces back to early American merchants and has ties to Boston's elite. The family benefited from this heritage, including access to a rent-controlled apartment in subsidized by her great-grandmother, though broader familial support was limited due to the biracial marriage and her father's condition. Forbes' early years were marked by a mix of privilege and hardship in during the late 1970s, living in a small with her sister and father amid his struggles. Her father's bipolar episodes brought manic highs that were initially fun and engaging—such as playful interactions and teaching —but often escalated into frightening breakdowns requiring hospitalization at , followed by sedated recovery periods that left him withdrawn. These experiences created a challenging household dynamic, where Forbes and her sister navigated confusion and instability while their mother managed finances from afar, yet the period also highlighted her father's devoted caregiving as a stabilizing force. This upbringing in a wealthy but troubled environment profoundly shaped her perspective and later inspired elements of her filmmaking.

Academic background

Maya Forbes attended , a prestigious boarding school in , where she graduated in 1986. Supported by her family's emphasis on education, she then pursued higher studies at in . Forbes earned her degree from Harvard in 1990. During her college years, she developed an early interest in storytelling through her contributions to The Harvard Lampoon, the university's renowned humor publication, which honed her skills in satirical and narrative writing. This academic foundation in led Forbes to initial pursuits in scriptwriting immediately after graduation. In 1990, she relocated to , , to embark on a career in film and television writing.

Professional career

Television production and writing

Maya Forbes began her professional career in television after moving to Los Angeles following her college graduation, where she joined the writing staff of HBO's satirical comedy series (1992–1998). As a writer, she contributed to multiple episodes, including the season 2 episode "Larry's Agent," for which she shared a 1994 Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing for a Comedy Series. In later seasons, Forbes advanced to the role of co-executive producer, helping shape the show's behind-the-scenes Hollywood parody that earned widespread acclaim for its innovative mockumentary style. Her work on the series also garnered a 1998 Writers Guild of America nomination for Episodic Comedy for the episode "The Book." Building on her experience with , Forbes took on greater production responsibilities as an for the ABC/NBC sitcom The Naked Truth (1995–1998), starring Tea Leoni as a tabloid navigating absurd professional mishaps. Over the show's three seasons, she oversaw the comedic tone and story development, contributing to its despite network changes and cast shifts. This role highlighted her expertise in fast-paced ensemble comedy, a staple of her early television output. Throughout the late and into the , Forbes remained active in production and writing, focusing on character-driven series that blended humor with workplace dynamics. By the mid-, she began transitioning toward , marking a shift from episodic to longer-form narrative projects.

Screenwriting for films

Maya Forbes began her screenwriting career for feature films with the 2004 romantic comedy Seeing Other People, co-written with Wallace Wolodarsky. She continued with the 2008 comedy The Rocker, for which she co-wrote the screenplay with Wolodarsky, based on a story by Ryan Jaffe. The film follows a middle-aged drummer, played by Rainn Wilson, who gets a second chance at rock stardom by joining his nephew's band, blending underdog humor with themes of reinvention and family dynamics. Despite a modest box office performance of $8.8 million worldwide against a $15 million budget, the script showcased Forbes' knack for character-driven comedy. In 2009, Forbes co-wrote the animated blockbuster Monsters vs. Aliens alongside Wolodarsky, Jonathan Aibel, and Glenn Berger. This DreamWorks production reimagines classic monster tropes through a female-led ensemble, with Susan Murphy (voiced by Reese Witherspoon) transforming into a giantess and joining forces against an alien invasion. The screenplay's witty dialogue and action sequences contributed to the film's commercial success, grossing $381 million worldwide on a $175 million budget. Forbes' television background in ensemble comedy informed the project's fast-paced, humorous tone. Forbes adapted Jeff Kinney's novel for the 2012 family comedy Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days, co-writing the screenplay with Wolodarsky. The story centers on middle-schooler Greg Heffley's disastrous summer vacation filled with lies, mishaps, and family antics, emphasizing relatable adolescent struggles with lighthearted exaggeration. The film earned $77 million worldwide, solidifying the franchise's appeal to young audiences. She continued with family-oriented projects, co-writing A Dog's Purpose (2017) with , Cathryn Michon, , and , and its sequel A Dog's Journey (2019) with , Cathryn Michon, and . Adapted from Cameron's novels, explores a dog's multiple lives and the emotional bonds it forms with humans across reincarnations, while the sequel follows the dog's journey to reunite with its owner. These scripts highlight themes of loyalty and life's cycles through heartfelt narratives and comedic animal perspectives, with the first film achieving $205 million in global earnings. Forbes also contributed to the animated Trolls World Tour (2020), co-writing the screenplay with Wolodarsky, Elizabeth Tippet, , which expands the musical adventure with themes of musical diversity and unity among troll tribes, generating over $100 million in premium video-on-demand revenue amid the pandemic. Forbes' film screenplays often blend sharp humor with accessible, family-friendly themes, drawing from her collaborative TV roots to craft mainstream comedies that balance entertainment with emotional resonance.

Directing films

Maya Forbes made her directorial debut with the 2014 comedy-drama Infinitely Polar Bear, which she also wrote and produced. The film stars Mark Ruffalo as a father managing bipolar disorder while caring for his daughters during his wife's pursuit of an MBA, and Zoe Saldana as his spouse. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, earning praise for its intimate portrayal of family dynamics. Forbes transitioned to collaborative directing with her husband, , on (2017), a biographical comedy-drama that she co-wrote and co-directed. The release stars as Polish-American polka musician , whose unravels amid his pursuit of fame. The film highlights Forbes' ability to blend humor with real-life eccentricity, drawing on her experience in character-driven narratives. In 2021, Forbes and Wolodarsky co-directed The Good House, with Forbes contributing to the screenplay alongside , adapted from Ann Leary's novel. Featuring as a confronting personal secrets and as her love interest, the drama explores themes of independence and hidden in a small . This project marked Forbes' expansion into studio-backed adaptations while maintaining her focus on strong female leads. Throughout these works, Forbes has evolved from a for hire—having penned scripts for films like —to a multifaceted in independent and streaming cinema, often producing her projects to ensure creative control. Her directorial efforts emphasize visual storytelling and personal vision, distinguishing them from her earlier writing assignments.

Personal life

Marriage and family

Maya Forbes married and director Wallace in 2004. The couple, who began collaborating professionally in 1999 around the time of their first child's birth, have three children together: daughters Imogene Wolodarsky and Wolodarsky, and son Hackley Wolodarsky. Their younger daughter, Imogene, made her acting debut at age 12 in Forbes' directorial feature (2014), where she played a fictionalized young version of her mother as one of the film's two sisters navigating family challenges. Older daughter also appeared briefly in the film in a non-speaking role as a lacrosse player. These family involvements highlight the blending of their personal and creative lives. Forbes and Wolodarsky have sustained a productive partnership in their marriage, co-writing and co-directing projects such as (2017), a biographical comedy-drama based on the life of polka Jan . Their collaborations often draw on shared storytelling sensibilities developed over two decades. The family is based in Los Angeles, where Forbes and Wolodarsky continue to balance their professional endeavors with raising their children.

Autobiographical influences

Maya Forbes' debut feature film Infinitely Polar Bear (2014) was deeply inspired by her childhood experiences living with her father, Cameron Forbes, who struggled with bipolar disorder, during the 18 months her mother pursued an MBA in New York, leaving Cameron as the primary caregiver for Forbes and her sister. Forbes has described this period, beginning when she was around 10 years old, as one marked by her father's manic energy and compassionate storytelling, which provided both joy and instability for the family. Central to Forbes' work are recurring themes of mental health challenges, family resilience, and unconventional parenting, drawn directly from these formative years. In Infinitely Polar Bear, she portrays the complexities of loving a parent with bipolar disorder, capturing the "super fun" highs of mania alongside the "scarier" lows and the frustration of witnessing unfulfilled potential, while emphasizing the enduring family bonds that sustained them. Forbes has noted how her father's condition affected the entire household, yet highlighted the resilience fostered by her parents' encouragement of independence and strength in their daughters. These elements reflect unconventional family dynamics, where vulnerability and love coexist amid illness, as seen in her depiction of a father's devoted, if erratic, caregiving. Forbes' decision to transition from commercial television writing to directing intimate, personal stories stemmed from a desire to protect the vulnerability inherent in her autobiographical material. After writing over two decades, starting in her youth and refining it as a mother, she chose to direct to ensure the film's tone—balancing humor, raw emotion, and —avoided misinterpretation by others. This shift allowed her to infuse her work with authentic emotional depth, prioritizing the "beautiful everydayness" of family life over polished narratives. In interviews, Forbes has frequently discussed drawing from life to achieve this authenticity, stating that the film enabled her to revisit painful yet loving memories without excessive justification, using fiction to honor her family's truth. She emphasized the importance of portraying mental illness's full impact on loved ones, noting, "It’s very painful to love someone who is wrestling with... a mental illness because you want the best for them," while crediting her father's influence on her humorous worldview as a key to the story's warmth. These reflections underscore how personal exposure shaped her filmmaking, transforming private struggles into universally resonant narratives.

References

  1. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/06/29/life-with-father-maya-forbes-infinitely-polar-bear
  2. https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/maya-forbes-on-how-she-turned-childhood-memories-into-a-fictional-sundance-film-60827/
  3. https://variety.com/2017/film/reviews/the-polka-king-review-jack-black-1201966779/
  4. https://variety.com/2021/film/news/the-good-house-sigourney-weaver-tiff-first-look-1235059474/
  5. https://www.creativescreenwriting.com/working-together-maya-forbes-and-wally-wolodarsky-discuss-the-good-house
  6. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0285379/bio/
  7. https://www.oregonlive.com/movies/2015/07/pink_martinis_china_forbes_see.html
  8. https://www.bostonherald.com/2015/07/03/maya-forbes-chronicles-cambridge-childhood-in-bear/
  9. https://www.npr.org/2015/06/22/416538082/infinitely-polar-bear-director-relives-childhood-with-mentally-ill-parent
  10. https://www.nndb.com/people/313/000397119/
  11. https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/movies/2015/06/27/her-bipolar-inspiration-was-messy-not-quirky/61xuCyjzXClu93OzEmefjP/story.html
  12. https://www.capecodtimes.com/story/entertainment/local/2015/07/24/ruffalo-helps-filmmaker-forbes-tell/33803236007/
  13. https://www.emmys.com/bios/maya-forbes
  14. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0285379/
  15. https://variety.com/1998/film/news/complete-list-of-wga-nominations-1117467460/
  16. https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_naked_truth
  17. https://genery.io/people/maya-forbes
  18. https://variety.com/2008/film/markets-festivals/the-rocker-1200508164/
  19. https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1031969/
  20. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-polar-bear-maya-forbes-20150618-story.html
  21. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2023453/fullcredits/
  22. https://amblin.com/movie/dogs-purpose/
  23. https://deadline.com/2020/04/trolls-world-tour-vod-revenue-universal-coronavirus-1202919723/
  24. https://www.filmink.com.au/unsung-auteurs-maya-forbes/
  25. https://variety.com/2013/film/features/10-directors-to-watch-maya-forbes-to-unleash-polar-bear-at-sundance-1200970673/
  26. https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/maya-forbes-stands-by-her-dad-in-directorial-debut-infinitely-polar-bear-187042/
  27. https://collider.com/the-polka-king-jack-black-cast-video-interview/
  28. https://www.cbc.ca/radio/q/schedule-for-friday-july-2-2015-1.3136203/maya-forbes-on-the-personal-story-behind-infinitely-polar-bear-1.3136851
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