Jonathan Demme was born on February 22, 1944, in Baldwin, New York. He is an Academy Award winning American film director, producer and writer.

After several more films for Corman, Demme was hired to direct the Hitchcockian thriller 'Last Embrace', and, in 1980, he landed 'Melvin and Howard'. While the film was only a modest commercial success, the New York Film Critics Circle named it the Best Film of 1980.

The director's next movie was a concert film documenting the rock band Talking Heads. In 1991he directed The Silence of the Lambs (1991) that propelled Demme into the first rank of American filmmakers, earning him an Oscar for Best Director. Demme directed an Oscar-winning turn from Tom Hanks in his next feature, Philadelphia.

He also directed Beloved (1998) and The Manchurian Candidate (2004).

For television, Demme has directed Beth Henley's A Family Tree, Accumulation with Talking Plus Water Motor, a dance film featuring Trisha Brown, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s Who Am I This Time? as well as music videos for the Neville Brothers, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Suzanne Vega, KRS-1, Sandra Bernhardt, the Feelies, and UB40, among others. He also produced Women & Men II - A Domestic Dilemma for HBO and serves as executive producer on HBO's Subway Stories series.

He has been married twice, first to director/producer Evelyn Purcell and later artist Joanne Howard.

Director

• He Comes in Peace (2008)
• Neil Young: Heart of Gold (2006)
• The Manchurian Candidate (2004)
• The Agronomist (2003)
• The Truth About Charlie (2002)
• Bruce Springsteen: The Complete Video Anthology 1978-2000 (2001)
• Beloved (1998)
• Storefront Hitchcock (1998)
• SUBWAYStories: Tales from the Underground (1997)
• Murder Incorporated (1995)
• The Complex Sessions (1994)
• Philadelphia (1993)
• Cousin Bobby (1992)
• The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
• New Order: Substance (1989) (V)
• Married to the Mob (1988)
• Haiti Dreams of Democracy (1988) (TV)
• Famous All Over Town (1988)
• "Trying Times" (1 episode, 1987)
• Swimming to Cambodia (1987)
• Something Wild (1986)
• Stop Making Sense (1984)
• Swing Shift (1984)
• "Alive from Off Center" (1984) TV Series
• Who Am I This Time? (1982) (TV)
• "Saturday Night Live" (1 episode, 1980)
• Melvin and Howard (1980)
• Last Embrace (1979)
• Columbo: Murder Under Glass (1978) (TV)
• Handle with Care (1977)
• Fighting Mad (1976)
• Crazy Mama (1975)
• Caged Heat (1974)

Awards

• National Board of Review Billy Wilder Award Excellence in Directing 2006
• Berlin Film Festival Best Director Award "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
• Chicago Film Critics Association Award Best Director "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
• Directors Guild of America Award Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
• IFP Gotham Filmmaker Award 1991
• National Board of Review Award Best Director "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
• New York Film Critics Circle Award Best Director "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
• Oscar Best Director "The Silence of the Lambs" 1991
• National Society of Film Critics Award Best Documentary "Stop Making Sense" 1984
• New York Film Critics Circle Award Best Director "Melvin and Howard" 1980