{{short description|American filmmaker and actor}}
{{Infobox person | name = Stephen Cone | birth_name = | birth_place = Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | death_cause = | years_active = 2005–present | occupation = Actor, film director, editor, producer, writer | spouse = }}
'''Stephen Cone''' is an American filmmaker, best known for ''Henry Gamble's Birthday Party'' and ''Princess Cyd''. He has received early career retrospectives on the Criterion Channel, Mubi, and at the Museum of the Moving Image, Berlin's Unknown Pleasures Festival and Manchester's Bigger Than Life.<ref>[https://www.criterionchannel.com/three-by-stephen-cone Three by Stephen Cone - The Criterion Channel]</ref>
==Early life== Cone was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and raised in South Carolina.<ref>{{cite web |last=Cohen |first=Susan |title=Director returns to Charleston to film newest feature: Stephen Cone coming back to the Lowcountry |work=Charleston City Paper |date=June 10, 2010 |url=http://www.charlestoncitypaper.com/charleston/director-returns-to-charleston-to-film-newest-feature/Content?oid=2057306 |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> He moved to Chicago in 2004 and, in his words, taught himself to make movies "by making movies."<ref>{{cite web |title=The Wise Kids |work=Kickstarter |url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/184333136/the-wise-kids |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref>
==Career== In 2006, Cone wrote, produced and directed his first short film ''Church Story'', starring Isabel Liss, Bill McGough and Arian Moayed. In 2007, Cone followed with the short film ''Young Wives''. A medium-length film, a metaphysical drama called ''The Christians'', was completed in 2008 and featured performances by J. Kingsford Goode, Bill McGough, Arian Moayed, Sadie Rogers, Laurel Schroeder, Krissy Shields and Robert Belushi, oldest son of actor Jim Belushi.
Cone's feature film ''In Memoriam'', was released in 2011, and follows a group of college students reenacting the last hours of two dead peers who fell to their deaths attempting to make love. ''In Memoriam'' was praised by film critic Roger Ebert as "a touching film."<ref name="Ebert">{{cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |authorlink=Roger Ebert |title=In Memoriam |work=Chicago Sun-Times |date=June 22, 2011 |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/in-memoriam-2011 |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> Cone later reflected on the effect Ebert's review had, writing:{{blockquote|I had had almost zero success or exposure up to that point. ''In Memoriam'' was bombing with festival programmers. I, to this day, do not know why he reviewed that film, and I can't believe he actually liked it. (I'm too hard on that film, I think.) I'm not sure I would've kept going without a) those Ebert reviews, and b) programmer Kim Yutani programming ''The Wise Kids'' at Outfest.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ross |first=Brad S. |title=Interview with Stephen Cone |work=ArtsComment |date=January 4, 2018 |url=https://artscomment.com/2018/01/04/interview-with-stephen-cone/ |accessdate=April 9, 2018}}</ref>}}
Cone's third theatrical film, the coming-of-age drama ''The Wise Kids'', also released in 2011, was a critical success. It also garnered praise from Ebert,<ref>{{cite web |last=Ebert |first=Roger |authorlink=Roger Ebert |title=The Wise Kids |work=Chicago Sun-Times |date=October 26, 2011 |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-wise-kids-2011 |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> ''Variety''{{'}}s Robert Koehler<ref>{{cite web |last=Koehler |first=Robert |authorlink= |title=Review: 'The Wise Kids' |work=Variety |date=July 31, 2011 |url=https://variety.com/2011/film/reviews/the-wise-kids-1117945739/ |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> and Stephen Holden of ''The New York Times''.<ref name="NYT">{{cite web |last=Holden |first=Stephen |authorlink=Stephen Holden |title=Teenagers Perplexed About Faith and Sexuality: 'The Wise Kids,' a Coming-of-Age Story by Stephen Cone |work=The New York Times |date=March 15, 2012 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/16/movies/the-wise-kids-a-coming-of-age-story-by-stephen-cone.html |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> The film was a Critics' Pick for ''The New York Times'' and won the Grand Jury Prizes for U.S. Feature and Best Screenplay at Outfest.<ref name="NYT" /><ref name="Wolfe Video">{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Nigel M. |title=Wolfe Video Acquires DVD/VOD Rights to Outfest Winner 'The Wise Kids' |work=Indiewire |date=July 31, 2012 |url=https://www.indiewire.com/article/wolfe-video-acquires-dvd-vod-rights-to-the-wise-kids |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> It was subsequently released on cable/VOD and DVD by Wolfe Video.<ref name="Wolfe Video" />
In 2013, Cone released his fourth theatrical film ''Black Box''. While not as widely seen as ''The Wise Kids'', due to an initial lack of distribution,<ref>{{cite web |last=Tully |first=Michael |title=Indiewire 2013 Year-End Critics Poll Ballots: Best Undistributed Film |work=Indiewire |date=2013 |url=https://www.indiewire.com/survey/indiewire-2013-year-end-critics-poll/best-undistributed-film/michael-tully |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> the film garnered praise from ''Newcity''{{'}}s Ray Pride<ref>{{cite web |last=Pride |first=Ray |title=Review: Black Box |work=Newcity |date=May 28, 2014 |url=http://newcityfilm.com/2014/05/28/review-black-box/ |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> and Michael Phillips of the ''Chicago Tribune'', who gave the film 3½ out of 4 stars, and called it "a worthy follow-up to Cone's previous film."<ref>{{cite web |last=Phillips |first=Michael |authorlink=Michael Phillips (critic) |title=Review: 'Black Box' |work=Chicago Tribune |date=May 29, 2014 |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/ct-black-box-review-20140529-column.html |accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> ''Black Box'' was later acquired by Devolver Digital Films for a late 2014 cable/VOD release.
Cone completed two unreleased experimental features in 2014, ''The Mystery of Life'' and ''This Afternoon'', and in 2015 completed the coming-of-age drama ''Henry Gamble's Birthday Party''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Newman |first=Nick |title=Pat Healy, Tyler Ross, and Cole Doman to Lead Stephen Cone-Helmed 'Henry Gamble's Birthday Party' |work=The Film Stage |date=2014 |url=http://thefilmstage.com/news/pat-healy-and-tyler-ross-to-lead-stephen-cone-helmed-henry-gambles-birthday-party/ |accessdate=July 8, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Phillips |first=Michael |authorlink=Michael Phillips (critic) |title=Today's Chicago film festival pick: 'This Afternoon' |work=Chicago Tribune |date=October 12, 2014 |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-todays-chicago-film-festival-pick-this-afternoon-20141012-premiumvideo.html |accessdate=May 20, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Phillips |first=Michael |authorlink=Michael Phillips (critic) |title=Young filmmaker plays intriguing long game |work=Chicago Tribune |date=September 12, 2014 |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/ct-stephen-cone-director-20140912-column.html |accessdate=April 20, 2016}}</ref> ''Henry Gamble'' was featured in ''The New York Times''{{'}} "Anatomy of a Scene" series, screened within BAMcinemaFest and BFI Flare, and was the winner of the Silver Q Hugo Award at the 2015 Chicago International Film Festival. His next feature film, ''Princess Cyd'',<ref>{{cite web |last=Hipes |first=Patrick |title=Wolfe Releasing Acquires Coming-Of-Age Pic Princess Cyd'; CinTel To Open 'The Toybox' |website=Deadline Hollywood |date=May 4, 2017 |url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/princess-cyd-rebecca-spence-the-toybox-denise-richards-mischa-barton-1202082933/ |accessdate=June 23, 2017}}</ref> appeared on ''Vanity Fair''{{'}}s Ten Best Films of the 2010s after appearing on multiple Best of 2017 lists, including ''IndieWire'', ''Vulture'', ''Vanity Fair'', ''Vox'' and NPR, and screening at dozens of festivals worldwide, including the BFI London Film Festival, BAMcinemaFest, Frameline and the Maryland Film Festival. It was acquired for distribution by Wolfe Releasing.
==Filmography== {| class="wikitable sortable" |- ! style="width:26px;"|Year !|Film ! width=65 |Credited Director ! width=65 |Credited Producer ! width=65 |Credited Writer ! width=65 |Credited Actor ! Credited Role ! Notes |- | 2006 | ''Church Story'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Short film |- | 2007 | ''Young Wives'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | Short film |- | 2008 | ''The Christians'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |- | rowspan=2 | 2011 | ''In Memoriam'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | Eric | |- | ''The Wise Kids'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | Austin | |- | 2013 | ''Black Box'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |- | rowspan=2 | 2014 | ''This Afternoon'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |- | ''The Mystery of Life'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |- | 2015 | ''Henry Gamble's Birthday Party'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |- | 2016 | ''Show Yourself'' | | | | {{yes}} | Daniel | |- | 2017 | ''Princess Cyd'' | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | {{yes}} | | | |- |}
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
==External links== *{{IMDb name|3265508}} *[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukehSkuedbE Criterion Channel interview clip] *[https://www.criterionchannel.com/three-by-stephen-cone/season:1/videos/the-wise-kids Three] [https://www.criterionchannel.com/three-by-stephen-cone/season:1/videos/henry-gamble-s-birthday-party of his films] [https://www.criterionchannel.com/three-by-stephen-cone/season:1/videos/princess-cyd on The Criterion Channel] {{Stephen Cone}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cone, Stephen}} Category:21st-century American male actors Category:21st-century American screenwriters Category:American male film actors Category:American male screenwriters Category:Film directors from Illinois Category:Film directors from Kentucky Category:Film directors from South Carolina Category:LGBTQ people from Kentucky Category:Living people Category:Male actors from Chicago Category:Male actors from Louisville, Kentucky Category:Screenwriters from Illinois Category:Screenwriters from Kentucky Category:Screenwriters from South Carolina Category:Year of birth missing (living people)