Joe Swanberg

Directing

Joe Swanberg

Born 1981-08-31 · Detroit, Michigan, USA

Joe Swanberg (born August 31, 1981) is an American independent film director, producer, writer, and actor. Known for micro-budget films which make extensive use of improvisation, Swanberg is considered a major figure in the mumblecore film movement. His films often focus on relationships, sex, technology, and the filmmaking process, and include V/H/S (2012), Hannah Takes the Stairs (2007), Win It All (2017), Digging For Fire (2015), and Nights and Weekends (2008), the last of which was co-directed by Academy Award nominee Greta Gerwig.

Acting credits

You're Next poster
6.6

When the Davison family comes under attack during their wedding anniversary getaway, the gang of mysterious killers soon learns that one of their victims harbors a secret talent for fighting back.

You're Next

2013

V/H/S poster
6.1

When a group of misfits is hired by an unknown third party to burglarize a desolate house and acquire one rare VHS tape, they discover more found footage than they had bargained for.

V/H/S

2012

The Sun Never Sets poster
NR

Wendy’s life is thrown into chaos when her boyfriend, Jack, who is older and divorced with children, insists they take space to evaluate the relationship. During their break, Wendy runs into her ex, Chuck, forcing them into a volatile triangle.

The Sun Never Sets

2026

Killing the Canary poster
NR

Multiple perspectives of an open and shut home invasion converge to create this folkloric noir of deception and deceit.

Killing the Canary

Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever poster
4.5

A high school prom faces a deadly threat: a flesh-eating virus that spreads via a popular brand of bottled water.

Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever

2009

The Sacrament poster
6.0

Two journalists set out to document their friend's journey to reunite with his estranged sister. They track her to an undisclosed location where they are welcomed into the remote world of "Eden Parish," a self-sustained rural utopia composed of nearly two hundred members and overseen by a mysterious leader known only as "Father." It quickly becomes evident to the newcomers that this paradise may not be as it seems. Eden Parish harbors a twisted secret. What started as just another documentary shoot soon becomes a fight for survival.

The Sacrament

2014

Proxy poster
5.5

While walking home from her latest OB appointment, a very pregnant Esther Woodhouse is brutally attacked and disfigured by a hooded assailant. This horrible event seems to be a blessing in disguise when Esther finds consolation in a support group. Her life of sadness and solitude is opened up to friendship, understanding, and even acceptance. However, friendship and understanding can be very dangerous things when accepted by the wrong people.

Proxy

2014

Drinking Buddies poster
6.0

Weekend trips, office parties, late night conversations, drinking on the job, marriage pressure, biological clocks, holding eye contact a second too long… you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer.

Drinking Buddies

2013

Happy Christmas poster
5.1

After a breakup with her boyfriend, a young woman moves in with her older brother, his wife, and their 2-year-old son.

Happy Christmas

2014

Invention poster
5.7

In the aftermath of a conspiracy-minded father’s sudden death, his daughter inherits his patent for an experimental healing device.

Invention

2025

Art History poster
4.4

Tension mounts between a director and his lead actress on the set of a sexually explicit low-budget film. As the actress and her co-star develop real feelings for each other, the director's jealousy erupts and he begins sabotaging his own production.

Art History

2011

Offseason poster
5.2

Upon receiving a mysterious letter that her mother's grave has been vandalized, Marie travels to the desolate island town where she's buried. Just as she arrives, the island closes for the season, leaving Marie trapped in a nightmare.

Offseason

2022

Joshy poster
5.6

After his engagement ends badly, Josh decides to take advantage of his bachelor-party plans in Ojai, California, with the few friends still willing to join him. Focused on drugs and their own hangups, his self-absorbed friends refuse to confront the elephant in the room and ask Josh how he’s feeling. As welcome and unwelcome guests stop by, Josh will attempt to find some closure over this weekend with the guys.

Joshy

2016

Loafers poster
NR

Amid a post-grad haze, best friends Isaac and Cameron navigate the shifting terrain of their relationships, grappling with the deeper question of whether their once unbreakable friendship can survive the weight of change.

Loafers

2026

Quiet City poster
5.8

Jamie is 21. She's from Atlanta. She's come to Brooklyn to visit her friend Samantha, but she can't find her. Jamie meets a stranger named Charlie on the subway and spends 24 hours hanging out with him.

Quiet City

2007

Blackmail Boys poster
4.2

After moving to Chicago for art school, Sam begins turning tricks to help pay the bills.

Blackmail Boys

2010

Uncle Kent 2 poster
5.4

In a desperate search to create a follow-up to Joe Swanberg's 2011 film Uncle Kent, Kent Osborne travels to a comic book convention in San Diego where he loses his mind and confronts the end of the world.

Uncle Kent 2

2016

Stage Brother poster
2.0

A family takes a journey into the world of adult entertainment.

Stage Brother

2012

Good Guy with a Gun poster
8.0

Follows a young man who after his father is murdered starts making bad choices, goes through life-threatening consequences and, of course, gets into guns.

Good Guy with a Gun

2022

Bloomin Mud Shuffle poster
3.9

Middle-aged Lonnie hasn't done much since he graduated high school. His only shot at greatness is to take his relationship to the next level.

Bloomin Mud Shuffle

2015

Audrey the Trainwreck poster
5.7

The story of two people caught in the routines of work and circles of friends. The days begin with an alarm and end with the fading sound of a television. Ron Hogan, a 28-year-old ATM parts purchaser, and Stacy Ryan, a 27-year-old, oddly charming courier, meet through a matchmaking Internet service and go through the routine of falling for one another.

Audrey the Trainwreck

2010

Be Good poster
NR

Paul - a workaholic independent filmmaker - takes charge of his sleepless baby, Pearl, when his wife, Mary, returns to work. He is slowly driven crazy by his inability to work and becomes the jerk he thought he'd never be.

Be Good

2012

Autoerotic poster
4.1

Four interconnected Chicago couples explore the boundaries of self-pleasure and sexual exploration.

Autoerotic

2011

No artwork available
NR

Filmmakers Joe Swanberg and Spencer Parsons discuss the Midwestern roots and work ethic of Lewis' output and how The Gore Gore Girls represents the shift into transgressive '70s cinema that would dominate the American horror landscape.

Regional Bloodshed

2016

Behind the camera

Yellow Eyes poster
4.8

A young couple inherits a house containing a mysterious relic that hosts the spirit of a powerful demon, and the wife of the man it possesses must find an exorcist to save him.

Yellow Eyes

2026

The Rental poster
5.5

Two couples on an oceanside getaway grow suspicious that the host of their seemingly perfect rental house may be spying on them. Before long, what should have been a celebratory weekend trip turns into something far more sinister.

The Rental

2020

The Rental poster
5.5

Two couples on an oceanside getaway grow suspicious that the host of their seemingly perfect rental house may be spying on them. Before long, what should have been a celebratory weekend trip turns into something far more sinister.

The Rental

2020

V/H/S poster
6.1

When a group of misfits is hired by an unknown third party to burglarize a desolate house and acquire one rare VHS tape, they discover more found footage than they had bargained for.

V/H/S

2012

The Sun Never Sets poster
NR

Wendy’s life is thrown into chaos when her boyfriend, Jack, who is older and divorced with children, insists they take space to evaluate the relationship. During their break, Wendy runs into her ex, Chuck, forcing them into a volatile triangle.

The Sun Never Sets

2026

The Sun Never Sets poster
NR

Wendy’s life is thrown into chaos when her boyfriend, Jack, who is older and divorced with children, insists they take space to evaluate the relationship. During their break, Wendy runs into her ex, Chuck, forcing them into a volatile triangle.

The Sun Never Sets

2026

The Sun Never Sets poster
NR

Wendy’s life is thrown into chaos when her boyfriend, Jack, who is older and divorced with children, insists they take space to evaluate the relationship. During their break, Wendy runs into her ex, Chuck, forcing them into a volatile triangle.

The Sun Never Sets

2026

Monkey’s Magic Merry Go Round poster
8.0

After a mysterious bout of amnesia, a beloved children’s television host struggles to piece together his fractured memories, only to find his once-cheerful puppet co-stars behaving with sinister intent. As reality unravels, the line between performance and nightmare begins to blur.

Monkey’s Magic Merry Go Round

2026

Drinking Buddies poster
6.0

Weekend trips, office parties, late night conversations, drinking on the job, marriage pressure, biological clocks, holding eye contact a second too long… you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer.

Drinking Buddies

2013

Drinking Buddies poster
6.0

Weekend trips, office parties, late night conversations, drinking on the job, marriage pressure, biological clocks, holding eye contact a second too long… you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer.

Drinking Buddies

2013

Drinking Buddies poster
6.0

Weekend trips, office parties, late night conversations, drinking on the job, marriage pressure, biological clocks, holding eye contact a second too long… you know what makes the line between “friends” and “more than friends” really blurry? Beer.

Drinking Buddies

2013

Thingy poster
NR

A young woman will do anything to avoid her ex at a secluded house party. But a supernatural virus passing through the partygoers may take care of him for her.

Thingy

2026

Happy Christmas poster
5.1

After a breakup with her boyfriend, a young woman moves in with her older brother, his wife, and their 2-year-old son.

Happy Christmas

2014

Happy Christmas poster
5.1

After a breakup with her boyfriend, a young woman moves in with her older brother, his wife, and their 2-year-old son.

Happy Christmas

2014

Happy Christmas poster
5.1

After a breakup with her boyfriend, a young woman moves in with her older brother, his wife, and their 2-year-old son.

Happy Christmas

2014

Win It All poster
5.7

A gambling addict faces a conflict when entrusted with keeping a bunch of money that isn't his.

Win It All

2017

Win It All poster
5.7

A gambling addict faces a conflict when entrusted with keeping a bunch of money that isn't his.

Win It All

2017

Win It All poster
5.7

A gambling addict faces a conflict when entrusted with keeping a bunch of money that isn't his.

Win It All

2017

Art History poster
4.4

Tension mounts between a director and his lead actress on the set of a sexually explicit low-budget film. As the actress and her co-star develop real feelings for each other, the director's jealousy erupts and he begins sabotaging his own production.

Art History

2011

Art History poster
4.4

Tension mounts between a director and his lead actress on the set of a sexually explicit low-budget film. As the actress and her co-star develop real feelings for each other, the director's jealousy erupts and he begins sabotaging his own production.

Art History

2011

Art History poster
4.4

Tension mounts between a director and his lead actress on the set of a sexually explicit low-budget film. As the actress and her co-star develop real feelings for each other, the director's jealousy erupts and he begins sabotaging his own production.

Art History

2011

Digging for Fire poster
5.2

Tim and Lee are married with a young child. The chance to stay at a fancy home in the Hollywood Hills is complicated by Tim's discovery of a bone and a rusty old gun in the yard. Tim is excited by the idea of a mystery, but Lee doesn't want him to dig any further, preferring that he focus on the family taxes, which he promised to do weeks ago. This disagreement sends them on separate and unexpected adventures over the course of a weekend, as Tim and his friends seek clues to the mystery while Lee searches for answers to the bigger questions of marriage and parenthood.

Digging for Fire

2015

Digging for Fire poster
5.2

Tim and Lee are married with a young child. The chance to stay at a fancy home in the Hollywood Hills is complicated by Tim's discovery of a bone and a rusty old gun in the yard. Tim is excited by the idea of a mystery, but Lee doesn't want him to dig any further, preferring that he focus on the family taxes, which he promised to do weeks ago. This disagreement sends them on separate and unexpected adventures over the course of a weekend, as Tim and his friends seek clues to the mystery while Lee searches for answers to the bigger questions of marriage and parenthood.

Digging for Fire

2015

Digging for Fire poster
5.2

Tim and Lee are married with a young child. The chance to stay at a fancy home in the Hollywood Hills is complicated by Tim's discovery of a bone and a rusty old gun in the yard. Tim is excited by the idea of a mystery, but Lee doesn't want him to dig any further, preferring that he focus on the family taxes, which he promised to do weeks ago. This disagreement sends them on separate and unexpected adventures over the course of a weekend, as Tim and his friends seek clues to the mystery while Lee searches for answers to the bigger questions of marriage and parenthood.

Digging for Fire

2015