Lorene Scafaria

Lorene Scafaria (born May 1, 1978) is an American filmmaker and actress. She wrote and directed the films Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, The Meddler (2015), and Hustlers (2019), and wrote the film Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008).

Scafaria's television work includes directing episodes of Succession, New Girl, and Childrens Hospital. She directed the Succession episodes "Too Much Birthday" (2021), "Honeymoon States" (2023), and "Living+" (2023), earning nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for "Too Much Birthday" and "Living+", as well as a nomination for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series for "Too Much Birthday".

Scafaria is also a singer, songwriter, and pianist who has released two albums of original songs called Garden Party and Laughter and Forgetting. Some of her songs have been featured in films such as Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist and Whip It! (2009).

Early life Scafaria was born in Holmdel, New Jersey, on May 1, 1978, the daughter of Gail (née Kiernan) and Joseph Scafaria (1939–2009). Her mother is a Canadian-American, while her father was an Italian immigrant from Gioia Tauro. She has a brother named Vincent. By the age of 17, she had written and staged her first play in Red Bank, New Jersey. After graduating from Holmdel High School in 1995, she attended Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. Unable to afford the tuition fees, she transferred to Montclair State University in Montclair, New Jersey, where she earned a BA in English with a minor in theater.

Career Scafaria moved to New York City and wrote, directed, and acted in a play at the Producer's Club Theatre called That Guy and Others Like Him. She had a small role in the acclaimed short film Bullet in the Brain, which won awards at festivals. She told MovieMaker, "I grew up in suburban New Jersey, so I immediately identified with the characters, especially Norah. Everything from feeling uncomfortable in my own skin to having a father who's larger than life (even if only in your mind), her plight really spoke to me and seemed like it would speak to a lot of young girls. It wasn't hard to get inside the characters' heads—the authors' voices are so strong." She said the film Before Sunrise was a big inspiration for the structure of her adaptation and that she wanted to bring a nostalgic take on the teen comedy: "It was just a real challenge to kind of bring it back to those movies that I grew up on in the '80s, John Hughes movies and Cameron Crowe."

In 2012, the Fempire (a trio of writers consisting of Scafaria and her close friends Diablo Cody and Liz Meriwether) Scafaria wrote the Iraq War docudrama Sweet Relief for Paramount Pictures and The Mighty Flynn, a spec script for Warner Brothers. She also wrote the film Man and Wife, which had Gabriele Muccino attached to direct. making her directorial debut. She said of the film, "Two people at the end of the world—all the chaos that's around them that they're sort of wheeling through—and obviously some people are just mowing their lawn and other people are doing heroin... but there's something to me that becomes even more romantic, and that's what I was excited to explore and see. I love relationships. I love intimate stories about people; whether it's a guy and a girl or whatever it is, I like intimate stories of people and how they relate to each other."

Scafaria next wrote and directed the comedy-drama film The Meddler (2015). It follows a mother and daughter trying to move on with life after the loss of their husband and father. Scafaria told The New York Times, "There's a reason that it's all from [the daughter]'s perspective because I never wanted to get a break from her. More than anything I wanted it to inspire empathy from people who might find themselves in this situation, whether it's through loss or some other circumstance that creates strife. Once I started showing people the script [there was] something so relatable about being the adult child of someone and trying to stay best friends."

Scafaria next wrote and directed the crime drama film Hustlers (2019), which was based on a 2015 New York article by Jessica Pressler. The film was a critical and commercial success. Scafaria said of the real story, "There are a lot of movies that I think have touched upon these themes—The Wolf of Wall Street or movies like The Big Short—which explain [financial downturns] from the bullpen. But I'm really interested in seeing the impact that the 2008 recession had on these women who worked in Wall Street's backyard." When mentioning the relationship between the characters of Destiny and Ramona, she said, "It felt like there was something more in between the lines—the story of these two women who became friends and formed this business together, and then here they are being interviewed separately years later." Rosie Keo, the stripper on whom one of the characters was based, praised Scafaria and said that the film portrayed events accurately.

In 2021, Scafaria directed the Succession episode "Too Much Birthday", which earned her nominations for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series. In 2023, she directed the episodes "Honeymoon States" and "Living+", with the latter earning her another nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series.

Personal life Scafaria lives in Los Angeles. She was in a relationship with musical comedian Bo Burnham from 2013 to 2022.

Filmography Film Year Title Director Writer Producer Notes 2008 Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist Song: "12 Gays of Christmas"2009 Whip It Song: "28" 1045 Mercy Street Short film 2012 Seeking a Friend for the End of the World 2015 Ricki and the Flash The Meddler 2019 Hustlers 2023 Under the Boardwalk

Acting roles Year Title Role Notes 1999 Big Helium Dog Chastity 2001 A Million Miles Jodi Mayhem Motel Abby Bullet in the Brain Eager Student Short film 2004 Unbound Girl Short film 2007 The Nines Game Night Guest 2008 Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist Drunk Girl in Yugo 2013 Coherence Lee 2022 Jennifer Lopez: Halftime Herself Documentary

Television

As herself Made in Hollywood (2012) (1 episode)

Awards and nominations