Known for Directing
Penelope Spheeris (born December 2, 1945) is an American director, producer and screenwriter. She is best known as a documentary film director whose works include the trilogy titled The Decline of Western Civilization. She has also directed feature films, including Wayne's World, her highest grossing film.
Born
December 2, 1945 (age 80)
Birthplace
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Filmography
74 films, 9 shows
The Real St. Nick
2012 · 1h 25m
country: United States
A pretty psychiatrist is saved from an accident by a man who, after hitting his head on a rock, believes he is Santa Claus. As she nurses him back to health at her institute, he brings the spirit of Christmas to the hospital.
Five
2011 · 1h 27m
country: United States
An anthology of five short films exploring the impact of breast cancer on people's lives.
Balls to the Wall
2011 · 1h 24m
country: United States
Ben's fiancée has her heart set on an expensive dream wedding, but her father, Jack, has secretly gambled away all his money. When Ben discovers he has a talent for exotic dancing, Jack pushes him to moonlight as a stripper to finance the wedding.
The Kid & I
2005 · 1h 33m
country: United States
Aaron Roman is a teenager with cerebral palsy who dreams of starring in a big-time action movie. When his father grants Aaron his wish for his eighteenth birthday, he experiences the reality a bit hard to manage.
The Crooked E: The Unshredded Truth About Enron
2003 · 1h 40m
country: United States
Brian Cruver, an ambitious 26-year-old lands a job at Enron. As he assimilates to the company's get-rich-quick mantra, spending sprees and wild corporate "gatherings" become the norm. But when Enron files for bankruptcy, Cruver discovers he's just a pawn in a failing game of corporate greed--one that made the rich richer...while the rest lost everything.
We Sold Our Souls for Rock 'n Roll
2001 · 1h 30m
country: United States
Penelope Spheeris presents an amazing chronicle of the travelling musical carnival known as OZZfest, the most successful summer concert tour for the last five years. Complete access to incredible material sends this documentary film into the realm of pure entertainment. Unforgettable moments from zealous religious protesters, outrageous fans and the guys (and girls) backstage provide an insightful view into the soul of white, middle-class America. A stunning and sometimes disturbing glimpse of a cultural movement, this film is sure to be a reference for historians for decades to come. This comment on Middle America skates the line between your worst nightmare and the best time you’ve ever had. Features interviews with, and performances by BLACK SABBATH, SYSTEM OF A DOWN, SLIPKNOT, PRIMUS, ROB ZOMBIE, GODSMACK and more.
Hollyweird
1999 · 6m
country: United States
Documents the making of BLOOD DOLLS, interviewing members of the cast and crew.
The Decline of Western Civilization Part III
1998 · 1h 26m
country: United States
A musical study of Los Angeles in the late 90s, where homeless teens roam the streets and profess to live a punk lifestyle of music, drugs, and flouting authority.
No Use Walkin' When You Can Stroll
No Use Walkin' When You Can Stroll
1998 · 11m
country: Unknown
One-time carny, bartender, and married 10 times, director Penelope Spheeris’ mother was an uncommon woman. In this sweet, funny, and moving video portrait, Spheeris gives us a vivid glimpse into the richness of her mother’s life and character. 35mm, color, 11 min. Director: Penelope Spheeris. 1998. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013.
Senseless
1998 · 1h 33m
country: United States
A student gets his senses enhanced by an experimental drug. But abuse is not an option.
Black Sheep
1996 · 1h 26m
country: United States
When dignified Albert Donnelly runs for Governor, his team moves to keep his slow-witted and klutzy younger brother, Mike, out of the eye of the media. To baby-sit Mike, the campaign assigns sarcastic Steve, who gets the experience of a lifetime when he tries to take Mike out of town during the election.
The Little Rascals
1994 · 1h 22m
country: United States
When nine-year-old Alfalfa falls for Darla, his "He-Man-Woman-Hating" friends attempt to sabotage their relationship.
The Beverly Hillbillies
1993 · 1h 33m
country: United States
Mild-mannered dirt-poor hill-dweller Jed Clampett strikes it rich when oil is discovered on his property. At cousin Pearl's insistence, he moves his family to Beverly Hills to better enjoy his newfound wealth.
Wayne's World
1992 · 1h 34m
country: United States
The adventures of two amiably aimless metal-head friends, Wayne and Garth. From Wayne's basement, the pair broadcast a talk-show called "Wayne's World" on local public access television. The show comes to the attention of a sleazy network executive who wants to produce a big-budget version of "Wayne's World"—and he also wants Wayne's girlfriend, a rock singer named Cassandra. Wayne and Garth have to battle the executive not only to save their show, but also Cassandra.
Rap's Most Wanted
Rap's Most Wanted
1991 · 1h 30m
country: United States
Documentery from 1991 where The 2 Live Crew, Chuck D (Public Enemy), Too Short, Ice-T, Geto Boys, H.W.A. drop real talk on different topics.
Visitors from the Unknown
1991 · 48m
country: Unknown
A look at the Travis Walton abduction
Lifers Group – World Tour: Rahway Prison, That's It
1991 · 29m
country: Unknown
A short documentary accompanying the first EP released by Lifers Group, a rap crew that grew out of the Lifers Group Juvenile Awareness Program — a youth crime prevention program founded in East Jersey State Prison in 1976 and made famous by the documentary Scared Straight! Released in 1991 and directed by Penelope Spheeris, the 29-minute documentary was nominated a 1992 Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video, but the group's members were disallowed by prison officials from attending the ceremony.
Prison Stories: Women on the Inside
1991 · 1h 19m
country: United States
Three novels - three dramatic stories in the walls of the women's prison. The first story - a brand new, first went to prison inmates. The second - about a mother whose son has ceased to go to prison for visits. The third - about the experiences of women on the eve of its release.
Banned in the USA
1990 · 49m
country: Unknown
A video portrait of 2 Live Crew as they fought to release their album "Banned in the USA" during the censorship crisis of the late 80s and early 90s that ultimately resulted in the "PARENTAL ADVISORY EXPLICIT CONTENT" sticker. This 49-minute documentary was directed by Penelope Spheeris.
Thunder and Mud
1990 · 1h 28m
country: United States
An entertaining combination of heavy-metal rockers and female mud wrestlers hosted by Jessica Hahn.
The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years
1988 · 1h 33m
country: United States
An exploration of the heavy metal scene in Los Angeles, with particular emphasis on glam metal. It features concert footage and interviews of legendary heavy metal and hard rock bands and artists such as Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Megadeth, Motörhead, Ozzy Osbourne and W.A.S.P..
Dudes
1987 · 1h 30m
country: United States
Two punks from the big city, traveling across the country in a Volkswagen bug, embrace the western ethos when they must take revenge against a group of rednecks for killing their friend in this lighthearted road movie. Along the way, they enlist the help of a young woman who runs a wrecking service.
The Boys Next Door
1986 · 1h 31m
country: United States
Roy and Bo leave their small town the weekend after graduation for a short road trip to LA. Soon, they find themselves lashing out and leaving a trail of bodies behind them. The violence escalates throughout.
Hollywood Vice Squad
1986 · 1h 41m
country: United States
A mother goes to Hollywood to find her runaway daughter. She discovers that the girl has become involved in the pornography industry, and goes to the police to get help in finding her.
Suburbia
1984 · 1h 34m
country: United States
When household tensions and a sense of worthlessness overcome Evan, he finds escape when he clings with the orphans of a throw-away society. The runaways hold on to each other like a family until a tragedy tears them apart.
The Decline of Western Civilization
1981 · 1h 40m
country: United States
The Los Angeles punk music scene circa 1980 is the focus of this film. With Alice Bag Band, Black Flag, Catholic Discipline, Circle Jerks, Fear, Germs, and X.
Hats Off to Hollywood
1972 · 22m
country: United States
Picking up the story first presented in I Don’t Know (1970), Hats Off to Hollywood (1972) brazenly and brilliantly mixes documentary reality with fully staged recreations/reimaginings of episodes in the lives of Jennifer and Dana, a loving, bickering couple who challenge the notion of homonormativity. Drugs, poverty, disease, bigotry and prostitution all figure into this disarmingly candid and often hilarious film, a remarkable work that is the apotheosis of director Spheeris’ early work, and a luminous signpost leading directly to The Decline of Western Civilization (1979-1997). Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.
I Don't Know
1971 · 20m
country: United States
A truly major work, I Don’t Know observes the relationship between a lesbian and a transgender person who prefers to be identified somewhere in between male and female, in an expression of personal ambiguity suggested by the film’s title. This nonfiction film – an unusual, partly staged work of semi-verité – is the first of Spheeris’s films to fully embrace what would become her characteristic documentary style: probing, intimate, uncompromising. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2014.
Bath
1969 · 6m
country: United States
Made in an environment and at a time when frequent and gratuitous images of nude women permeated the work of her male counterparts, director Penelope Spheeris produced this intimate and sensual observation of a woman bathing. The appearance of Spheeris’ credit at the beginning of the film seems to ask the question: how does voyeurism change when we know the voyeur is actually a voyeuse? 16mm, b/w, 6 min. Director: Penelope Spheeris. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2014.
Shit
1969 · 4m
country: Unknown
An unfinished archival short, in which the titular substance plays a key role in determining an outmoded man’s role in a changing society. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013.
The National Rehabilitation Center
1969 · 12m
country: Unknown
Two years before Peter Watkins’ Punishment Park (1971), director Penelope Spheeris takes the McCarran Act to its inevitable next step and shows us—via an early use of mockumentary—what the U.S. might be like if potential subversives were simply locked up en masse before they had a chance to subvert anything. 16mm, color, 12 min. Director: Penelope Spheeris.1969. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2016.
Uncle Tom's Fairy Tales
1969 · 40m
country: United States
A white man goes on trial for having raped a black woman.
Synthesis
Synthesis
1968 · 8m
country: United States
Synthesis is director Penelope Spheeris' first film, made in 8mm Kodachrome while she was a student at UCLA. In a seemingly near-future control room devoid of people, various readouts and calculations suggest that humankind is not altogether compatible with the grand scheme of the universe. 1968. Color.
Boy and Crows
Boy and Crows
1968
country: Unknown
An early short film by Penelope Spheeris about a boy enjoying the age-old pleasures of making a wish on a dandelion. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2016.