The Bite Magazine - Spring/Summer 2023 - Issue 33

bitefilmawards Lee has delved into and explored black lives through visionary cinematic works of art for feature-length films, documentaries, television, music, commercials and books. From the begin- ning of his cinematic journey, the director brave- ly explored authentic points of view on different subjects by constantly critiquing and challenging cultural notions about race, class and gender identity. He expresses his perspective through his films with keen direction, fresh dialogue, striking visual style and pitch-perfect music. He was born Shelton Jackson Lee in 1957 in At- lanta, Georgia but moved to Brooklyn, New York City, at age four. The city became integral to his development, where he studied film produc- tion and gained an MFA (Master of Fine Arts) at NYU Tisch. After completing his studies, Lee founded his production companies 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, both based in Brooklyn. As a new filmmaker, he used his creative genius to produce his first feature film, She’s Gotta Have It, which premiered at Cannes Film Festival, for which he received the Prix de la Jeunesse award. In 1990, Lee earned his first nomination for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards for Do The Right Thing . His extensive filmography involves a fascinating mix of genres, including real-life crime thriller Summer of Sam (1999) and crime drama BlacKkKlansman (2000); heist movie Inside Man (2006); sports film He Got Game (1998) and the biopic Malcolm X (1992). He also directed and produced musical and crime comedies School Daze and Chi-Raq (2015); revenge thriller Oldboy (2013); war dra- ma Da 5 Bloods (2020); and satirical comedies Bamboozled (2000), and She Hates Me (2004). The director had always been interested in documentaries and produced the Academy Award-nominated 4 Little Girls (1997). He won the Peabody Award for When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts (2006) and If God is Willing and Da Creek Don't Rise (2010). In addition to directing 19 episodes of the Netflix series She's Gotta Have It, Lee recently partnered with the streamer to direct and produce narrative feature films under a multi-year deal. Actor: Clive Owen