Kimberly Peirce

Born in 1967 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Kimberly Peirce attended the University of Chicago, where she got experience with photography and graduated with a degree in English and Japanese literature. She then went on to Columbia where she made a short film about the life and death of Brandon Teena, a young trans man who was raped and murdered in Nebraska. The short earned a number of awards and garnered the attention of producer Christine Vachon, who helped Peirce turn it into the feature length film "Boys Don't Cry" (1999). The film was widely recognized as an important milestone for the LGBTQ community and earned a Best Actress Oscar® for star Hilary Swank, as well as a number of other awards and nominations, and Peirce herself became an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ causes. Her next film, "Stop-Loss" (2005), was inspired by her brother, who served during the US military campaign in Iraq. Peirce testified before the US Congress on behalf of the Stop-Loss Compensation Act, which was designed to pay soldiers unwillingly pressed back into active duty. A remake of "Carrie" (2013) was next, with Chloe Grace Moretz filling the role played by Sissy Spacek in the original. After finishing "Carrie," Peirce turned to television, directing episodes of "TURN: Washington's Spies" (AMC, 2014-17), "American Crime" (ABC, 2015-17), and "Six" (History, 2017-18) among others.