Jay Duplass

JAY DUPLASS

Date of Birth: March 7, 1973

After watching the 1987 film Raising Arizona, Jay Duplass knew he wanted to be a filmmaker, calling it "the most inspired movie" he had ever seen. He started out writing and directing a series of short films, some of which starred his younger brother Mark. In 2005, Jay co-wrote and directed his first full-length feature called The Puffy Chair. Much of the film was done using improvisation and is considered to be part of the mumblecore genre in American filmmaking, characterized by indie films with low-budget production and amateur casting. Jay cast his brother and co-director in a lead role and also his own mother and father for the roles of the parents. Despite this, The Puffy Chair was still well received when it screened at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. It also won the Audience Award at the 2005 SXSW Film Festival.

The Duplass directing duo, Mark and Jay, continued to work together over the next several years to release more films, like Baghead in 2008. As their body of work grew, so did their ability to cast several big names. Their 2010 comedy Cyrus starred Jonah Hill, Marisa Tomei and John C. Reilly and their latest release, Jeff, Who Lives at Home (2012) stars Jason Segel, Ed Helms, Judy Greer and Susan Sarandon. The brothers will once again be teaming up for the upcoming comedy, The Do-Deca-Pentathlon, about two brothers who compete in their own 25-event Olympics. The film is expected to be released sometime in 2012.

Filmography (Director):

The Do-Deca-Pentathlon (2012)
Jeff, Who Lives at Home (2012)
Cyrus (2010)
Baghead (2008)
The Puffy Chair (2005)