James Schamus

Production

James Schamus

Born 1959-09-07 · Detroit, Michigan, USA

James Allan Schamus (born September 7, 1959) is an American screenwriter, producer, business executive, film historian, professor, and director. He is a frequent collaborator of Ang Lee, the co-founder of the production company Good Machine, and the co-founder and former CEO of motion picture production, financing, and worldwide distribution company Focus Features, a subsidiary of NBCUniversal. He is currently president of the New York–based production company Symbolic Exchange and is Professor of Professional Practice at Columbia University, where he has taught film history and theory since 1989. Schamus was born in Detroit, Michigan, to a Jewish family.He is the son of Clarita (Gershowitz) Karlin and Julian John Schamus and was raised in Los Angeles. He is married to writer Nancy Kricorian, with whom he has two children. His output includes writing or co-writing The Ice Storm, Eat, Drink, Man, Woman, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Hulk (all directed by Ang Lee) and producing Brokeback Mountain and Alone in Berlin. At Focus he oversaw the production and distribution of Lost in Translation, Milk, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Coraline, and The Kids Are All Right. In addition to his tenure at Columbia University, he has also taught at Yale University and at Rutgers University. He is the author of Carl Theodor Dreyer's Gertrud: The Moving Word, published by the University of Washington Press. He earned his BA, MA, and Ph.D. in English from the University of California, Berkeley. Schamus made his feature directorial debut with Indignation, an adaptation of Philip Roth's novel of the same name. Schamus also wrote the script for the film, which stars Logan Lerman, Sarah Gadon, and Tracy Letts, and is the story of a Jewish student at an Ohio college in 1951. The film premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and was theatrically released by Roadside Attractions on July 29, 2016. He was president of the jury for the 64th Berlin International Film Festival. He has also been on the jury of the New York International Children's Film Festival and has served on the editorial boards of Film Quarterly and Cinema Journal, as well as on the board of Creative Capital and the Heyman Centre for the Humanities. Description above from the Wikipedia article Stephen Rosenbaum, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Acting credits

These Amazing Shadows poster
7.4

Tells the history and importance of The National Film Registry, a roll call of American cinema treasures that reflects the diversity of film, and indeed the American experience itself.

These Amazing Shadows

2011

No artwork available
NR

Documentary on the cast and crew, stunts, special effects, and score of 'Hulk' (2003).

The Making of 'Hulk'

2003

Attack of the Hollywood Clichés! poster
6.0

One-man armies, meet-cutes, casual strolls away from huge explosions — stars and industry insiders toast and roast these cinematic chestnuts and more.

Attack of the Hollywood Clichés!

2021

No artwork available
8.0

A documentary about the influential independent film production company The Shooting Gallery.

Misfire: The Rise and Fall of the Shooting Gallery

2013

No artwork available
NR

Documentary on the characters and themes of the 1995 film 'Sense and Sensibility'.

A Sense of Character

2009

Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema poster
5.4

A chronological look at films by, for, or about gays and lesbians in the United States, from 1947 to 2005, Kenneth Anger's "Fireworks" to "Brokeback Mountain". Talking heads, anchored by critic and scholar B. Ruby Rich, are interspersed with an advancing timeline and with clips from two dozen films. The narrative groups the pictures around various firsts, movements, and triumphs: experimental films, indie films, sex on screen, outlaw culture and bad guys, lesbian lovers, films about AIDS and dying, emergence of romantic comedy, transgender films, films about diversity and various cultures, documentaries and then mainstream Hollywood drama. What might come next?

Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema

2006

No artwork available
NR

A look at director Ang Lee's work on 'Hulk' (2003).

The Incredible Ang Lee

2003

Keep It for Yourself poster
6.4

Sophie comes to New York from France with the intention of joining a man she met a few months before. She finds herself alone in the apartment of the guy, who left town because he was scared stiff at the idea of seeing her. Originally commissioned as one third of an omnibus feature showcasing the Figaro, a Japan-only retro throwback car.

Keep It for Yourself

1991

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: A Retrospective poster
NR

A three-part feature in which Cultural Critic/Film Journalist Tasha R. Robinson interviews three key members of the filmmaking team. The first features Director Ang Lee discussing the film in In Conversation with Ang Lee. In Conversation with Tim Squyres looks at how the American-born Editor cut the film, which was shot in Mandarin. Finally, In Conversation with James Schamus features the Screenwriter and Producer discussing the film's worldwide success and his relationship with Ang Lee.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: A Retrospective

2016

No artwork available
NR

A look at the history of this popular character. The piece begins by examining the character's origin in depression-era America, glossing over the history of Marvel comics, and further examining the development of the character in the comics, the animated series, the CBS television series, and finally, the 2003 film adaptation.

Evolution of the Hulk

2003

Lost Forever: The Art of Film Preservation poster
5.0

This documentary short takes you inside the fascinating world of film preservation and restoration.

Lost Forever: The Art of Film Preservation

2011

No artwork available
NR

Documentary on Ang Lee and his direction of the 1995 film 'Sense and Sensibility'.

A Very Quiet Man

2009

Frames poster
NR

James’s film provides us with a thoughtful history of photography and the moving image that both pays tribute to the past and celebrates how advancements in technology support the ever-evolving nature of cinema. His film elaborates on a history of storytelling through image and how we can use the iPhone and other new technologies to create, reflect and inspire in our day-to-day lives.

Frames

2019

A Feast for the Eyes: Ang Lee in Taipei poster
NR

Documentary featuring interviews with director Ang Lee and co-writer/producer James Schamus. Produced for the "Eat Drink Man Woman" DVD Special Edition.

A Feast for the Eyes: Ang Lee in Taipei

2002

That Film About Money poster
NR

What is the real value of a dollar? You think that a dollar bill is money and that banks are where your cash is stored and safeguarded. Well, you’re wrong. Like, really wrong.

That Film About Money

2014

Behind the camera

Hulk poster
5.6

Bruce Banner, a genetics researcher with a tragic past, suffers massive radiation exposure in his laboratory that causes him to transform into a raging green monster when he gets angry.

Hulk

2003

Hulk poster
5.6

Bruce Banner, a genetics researcher with a tragic past, suffers massive radiation exposure in his laboratory that causes him to transform into a raging green monster when he gets angry.

Hulk

2003

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon poster
7.4

Two warriors in pursuit of a stolen sword and a notorious fugitive are led to an impetuous, physically-skilled, teenage nobleman's daughter, who is at a crossroads in her life.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

2000

Brokeback Mountain poster
7.8

In 1960s Wyoming, two men develop a strong emotional and sexual relationship that endures as a lifelong connection complicating their lives as they get married and start families of their own.

Brokeback Mountain

2005

Lust, Caution poster
7.3

During World War II, a secret agent must seduce, then assassinate an official who works for the Japanese puppet government in Shanghai. Her mission becomes clouded when she finds herself falling in love with the man she is assigned to kill.

Lust, Caution

2007

Pushing Hands poster
7.3

Mr. Chu is an elderly widower who teaches tai chi chuan in Beijing. He moves to America to live with his son's family, but finds the cultural adjustment difficult. Since his daughter-in-law is a white woman who does not speak Chinese, Mr. Chu's son, Alex, must mediate.

Pushing Hands

1991

Eat Drink Man Woman poster
7.6

Retired and widowed Chinese master chef Chu lives in modern day Taipei, with his three attractive daughters, all of whom are unattached. Soon, each daughter encounters a new man in their lives. When these new relationships blossom, stereotypes are broken and the living situation within the family changes.

Eat Drink Man Woman

1994

The King's Daughter poster
7.0

King Louis XIV's quest for immortality leads him to capture and steal a mermaid's life force, a move that is further complicated by his illegitimate daughter's discovery of the creature.

The King's Daughter

2022

The Ice Storm poster
6.9

In the weekend after thanksgiving 1973 the Hood family is skidding out of control. Then an ice storm hits, the worst in a century.

The Ice Storm

1997

The Ice Storm poster
6.9

In the weekend after thanksgiving 1973 the Hood family is skidding out of control. Then an ice storm hits, the worst in a century.

The Ice Storm

1997

Taking Woodstock poster
6.2

The story of Elliot Tiber and his family, who inadvertently played a pivotal role in making the famed Woodstock Music and Arts Festival into the happening that it was. When Elliot hears that a neighboring town has pulled the permit on a hippie music festival, he calls the producers thinking he could drum up some much-needed business for his parents' run-down motel. Three weeks later, half a million people are on their way to his neighbor’s farm in White Lake, New York, and Elliot finds himself swept up in a generation-defining experience that would change his life–and American culture–forever.

Taking Woodstock

2009

Taking Woodstock poster
6.2

The story of Elliot Tiber and his family, who inadvertently played a pivotal role in making the famed Woodstock Music and Arts Festival into the happening that it was. When Elliot hears that a neighboring town has pulled the permit on a hippie music festival, he calls the producers thinking he could drum up some much-needed business for his parents' run-down motel. Three weeks later, half a million people are on their way to his neighbor’s farm in White Lake, New York, and Elliot finds himself swept up in a generation-defining experience that would change his life–and American culture–forever.

Taking Woodstock

2009

The Assistant poster
6.3

A searing look at a day in the life of an assistant to a powerful executive. As Jane follows her daily routine, she grows increasingly aware of the insidious abuse that threatens every aspect of her position.

The Assistant

2020

Son-in-Law poster
5.3

José Sánchez has big ambitions, terrible instincts, and a mustache to match. After a string of bad deals, he accidentally bluffs his way into becoming El Serpiente, a political boss feared for all the wrong reasons. Now he must pull off one final deal to stay alive — a deal far beyond anything he can fake.

Son-in-Law

2026

Son-in-Law poster
5.3

José Sánchez has big ambitions, terrible instincts, and a mustache to match. After a string of bad deals, he accidentally bluffs his way into becoming El Serpiente, a political boss feared for all the wrong reasons. Now he must pull off one final deal to stay alive — a deal far beyond anything he can fake.

Son-in-Law

2026

The Wedding Banquet poster
6.7

Frustrated with his commitment-phobic boyfriend Chris and running out of time, Min makes a proposal: a green-card marriage with their friend Angela in exchange for her partner Lee's expensive IVF. Elopement plans are upended, however, when Min's grandmother surprises them with an extravagant Korean wedding banquet.

The Wedding Banquet

2025

The Wedding Banquet poster
6.7

Frustrated with his commitment-phobic boyfriend Chris and running out of time, Min makes a proposal: a green-card marriage with their friend Angela in exchange for her partner Lee's expensive IVF. Elopement plans are upended, however, when Min's grandmother surprises them with an extravagant Korean wedding banquet.

The Wedding Banquet

2025

The Wedding Banquet poster
7.2

A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.

The Wedding Banquet

1993

The Wedding Banquet poster
7.2

A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.

The Wedding Banquet

1993

30/30 Vision: Three Decades of Strand Releasing poster
5.3

Over 30 filmmakers and friends of Strand Releasing have come together to honor the company’s indelible contribution to independent cinema over the past thirty years. The participating filmmakers have each created a short film for the project, all shot on iPhones.

30/30 Vision: Three Decades of Strand Releasing

2019

Ride with the Devil poster
6.3

Friends Jake and Jack Bull join up with Civil War guerrilla fighters, yet after the realities of war set in, they must decide what honor truly means.

Ride with the Devil

1999

Ride with the Devil poster
6.3

Friends Jake and Jack Bull join up with Civil War guerrilla fighters, yet after the realities of war set in, they must decide what honor truly means.

Ride with the Devil

1999

She's the One poster
5.5

Mickey, a free-spirited New York cabbie, and Francis, a materialistic Wall Street stockbroker, are extremely competitive and confused about women as a result of their father's influence. They disagree on everything, but they have one thing in common: Mickey's ex-fiance Heather is Francis's secret love. Although both brothers are already married, Heather triggers their longtime sibling rivalry.

She's the One

1996

Alone in Berlin poster
6.7

Berlin in June of 1940. While Nazi propaganda celebrates the regime’s victory over France, a kitchen-cum-living room in Prenzlauer Berg is filled with grief. Anna and Otto Quangel’s son has been killed at the front. This working class couple had long believed in the ‘Führer’ and followed him willingly, but now they realise that his promises are nothing but lies and deceit. They begin writing postcards as a form of resistance and in a bid to raise awareness: Stop the war machine! Kill Hitler! Putting their lives at risk, they distribute these cards in the entrances of tenement buildings and in stairwells. But the SS and the Gestapo are soon onto them, and even their neighbours pose a threat.

Alone in Berlin

2016