Baker was born and raised in
Summit, New Jersey.[2] His mother was a teacher and his father was a
patent attorney who once represented the director and his production company in 2005.[3][4] He has a sister who is a professional
synth-pop musician and
production designer who has contributed to his films in both capacities.[5][6][7] He became obsessed with homemade movies at a young age when his mother took him to see
Universal Monster films being
projected at the local library.[8]
Baker's first feature film was Four Letter Words, a film revolving around the looks, views, attitudes, and language of young men in America. Baker wrote, directed, and edited the film.[12] Baker then went on to make Take Out, which he co-wrote, co-directed, co-edited, and co-produced with
Shih-Ching Tsou on a budget of $3000.[13] The film revolves around an undocumented Chinese immigrant falling behind on payments on a smuggling debt, leaving him only one day to come up with the money. The film had its world premiere at the
Slamdance Film Festival on January 18, 2004 and had been screened at over 25 film festivals when a legal dispute with
Seth Landau, who was planning to release a film with the same name, delayed its release until June 6, 2008.[14][4]
Baker's third feature film, Prince of Broadway, premiered at the
Los Angeles Film Festival on June 22, 2008.[15] The film follows a Ghanaian immigrant selling knock off merchandise in Manhattan who discovers that he has a son.[16] Baker directed, wrote, co-produced, shot, and edited the film. Baker also self-financed the distribution and advertising of the film.[17]Take Out and Prince of Broadway were nominated for the
Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award at the same ceremony in 2008.[18]
The director's fourth feature, Starlet, was co-written with
Chris Bergoch, and stars
Dree Hemingway and
Besedka Johnson. Starlet explores the unlikely friendship between 21-year-old Jane (Hemingway) and 85-year-old Sadie (Johnson), two women whose lives intersect in California's
San Fernando Valley. The film had its world premiere at
SXSW on March 11, 2012[19] and was given a limited release on November 9, 2012.[20]
Baker's fifth feature, Tangerine, follows a
transgendersex worker who discovers her boyfriend and
pimp has been cheating on her. The film was shot using three
iPhone 5S smartphones and received praise for its groundbreaking filmmaking techniques.[21]Tangerine features
Kitana Kiki Rodriguez,
Mya Taylor, Karren Karagulian,
Mickey O'Hagan, and
James Ransone, and was executive-produced by
Mark Duplass and
Jay Duplass. Baker again co-wrote the script with Bergoch; he also co-produced, co-shot, and edited the film. It had its world premiere at the
2015 Sundance Film Festival on January 23, 2015,[22] and was given a limited release on July 10, 2015.[23] It received extremely positive reviews, and currently holds a 97% rating on
Rotten Tomatoes.[24]
In 2016, he directed Snowbird, a short fashion film starring model
Abbey Lee for
Kenzo. It was also shot only using iPhones.[25]
Baker's sixth feature, The Florida Project, premiered in the
Directors' Fortnight section of the
2017 Cannes Film Festival[26] and was theatrically released in the United States on October 6, 2017, by
A24. Once again, Baker edited the film himself and co-wrote the script with his frequent collaborator Chris Bergoch. The plot follows a 6-year-old girl living in a motel with her rebellious mother in
Greater Orlando as they try to stay out of trouble and make ends meet. The film was praised for its performances (particularly that of
Willem Dafoe as the motel manager and
Brooklynn Prince as Moonie, a six-year-old girl) as well as for Baker's direction, and was chosen by both the
National Board of Review and the
American Film Institute as one of the top 10 films of the year.[27][28] Dafoe earned Best Supporting Actor nominations at the
Oscars,
Golden Globes and
BAFTA Awards, and Prince won the Critics Choice Movie Award for Best Young Performer.[29][30][31]
I am an ally and have literally devoted my career to tell stories that remove stigma and normalize lifestyles that are under attack. I would never do anything that could possibly hurt the community.
In August 2020, actress
Bella Thorne announced that Baker would be directing a documentary about her experiences opening an
OnlyFans account, but Baker quickly denied the rumor as Thorne's suspicious behavior was blamed for restrictions affecting all sex workers on the site.[34][35][36]
In March 2021, Baker released short film Khaite FW21 produced for fashion line Khaite to promote its Fall/Winter 2021 lineup.
Sean Price Williams served as cinematographer.[37][38][39]
Baker's seventh feature film, Red Rocket, stars
Simon Rex as Mikey, a pornographic actor returning to his hometown in
Texas. Baker directed, co-wrote and co-produced the film with his usual team of
Bergoch and
Tsou among others. Filming took place in secret amidst the
COVID-19 pandemic, but "industry-standard safety protocols" were observed. The film received a
standing ovation at the
2021 Cannes Film Festival.[40][41] It was released in the US by A24 on December 10.[42]
In October 2023, Baker's next feature film Anora, starring
Mikey Madison, was officially announced after distribution rights were acquired by
FilmNation.[47][48]
Television
Baker is also one of the original creators of the sitcom Greg the Bunny (2002-2006), starring
Seth Green and
Eugene Levy. The show is based on a series of short segments that Baker directed and wrote, which aired on the
Independent Film Channel and which were in turn based on a public-access television show called Junktape. In 2010, Baker, Spencer Chinoy, and
Dan Milano created a spinoff called Warren the Ape; the series aired on MTV and was canceled after one season.[49]
Style and influences
Baker has established a reputation for portraying outcasts and characters from underrepresented and
marginalized subcultures, frequently
undocumented immigrants and
sex workers, in decidedly humane and compassionate scenarios.[50] He claims to have been directly inspired by
exploitation films but he has been described as the archetype of a "trustworthy male director" in a post
Me Too era.[51] His films have stirred and encouraged a debate about
sexual morality.[52]
^Whitty, Stephen (2017-12-01).
"NYFCC awards go to Saoirse Ronan, 'Girls Trip,' NJ director". nj.com. Archived from
the original on 2021-06-11. Retrieved 2022-12-21. And Summit native Sean Baker's heartbreaking The Florida Project, about a struggling single mother and her amazingly resilient daughter, was not far behind, with a best director award for Baker and a best supporting actor prize for Willem Dafoe.
^Cody, Alice Roche (2016-05-09).
"GSB Alumni Magazine: Winter 2016". GSB Alumni Magazine | Winter 2016. Gladstone, NJ. pp. 3–7.
Archived from the original on 2022-12-21. Retrieved 2018-06-26.{{
cite news}}: CS1 maint: date and year (
link)