Susan Seidelman Movies and Career Information

Susan Seidelman (born December 11, 1952, Philadelphia) is an American director, producer, writer, and actress. Susan Seidelman belongs to the first wave of female independent film makers in the American cinema of the 1980s. She graduated Abington Senior High School in 1969 , and went on to study fashion and arts at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Her first attempts in movie making at New York University Tisch School of the Arts Film school were awarded. In 1982, she made her debut feature film Smithereens, which was critically acclaimed as the first American independent film to be selected for competition at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. This film was written by screenwriter Ron Nyswaner, who received an Academy Award nomination for his screenplay to Philadelphia in 1994. In the same year she was a member of the jury at the 44th Berlin International Film Festival. Her second film Desperately Seeking Susan was the first step for Madonna into the movie business and it was the first major success for Susan Seidelman. Rosanna Arquette and Aidan Quinn came to prominence with that movie, as well. Seidelman's next two movies Making Mr. Right (starring John Malkovich) and Cookie didn't