Charles Burnett (director)
Charles Burnett | |
|---|---|
Burnett pictured in 2008 | |
| Born | April 13, 1944 Vicksburg, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, film producer, writer, editor, actor, photographer, cinematographer |
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Known for | Killer of Sheep To Sleep with Anger |
| Spouse | Gaye Shannon-Burnett |
| Children | 2 |
Charles Burnett (/bɜːrˈnɛt/; born April 13, 1944) is an American film director, film producer, writer, editor, actor, photographer, and cinematographer. His most popular films include Killer of Sheep (1978), My Brother's Wedding (1983), To Sleep with Anger (1990), The Glass Shield (1994), and Namibia: The Struggle for Liberation (2007). He has also directed several short films and documentary films.
Burnett has been named as "one of America's very best filmmakers" by the Chicago Tribune and "the nation's least-known great filmmaker and most gifted black director" by The New York Times. He received an Academy Honorary Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for being an "influential film pioneer who has chronicled the lives of black Americans with eloquence and insight" in 2017.