Haskell's collaborations with such world-class filmmakers as Elia Kazan, Milos Forman, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and Mike Nichols include such works as WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?, AMERICAN GRAFFITI, COMING HOME, BOUND FOR GLORY and ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST, and the film features interviews with these artists, along with such luminaries as Jane Fonda, Michael Douglas, Ron Howard and Julia Roberts.
But the true "star" of TELL THEM WHO YOU ARE is Haskell himself, a larger-than-life character who challenges his son's choices about camera placement, lighting, and storytelling while announcing with complete conviction that he could have done a better job directing most of the films he's shot. As these two men swap positions on camera and behind it-sometimes shooting one another simultaneously-the film explores the specifics of this particular father/son dynamic, while also revealing more universal truths about how our parents teach us to see the world, and how legacies, both personal and artistic, are created.
Mark S. Wexler is one of America's foremost photojournalists and a noted documentary filmmaker. His work has appeared in such publications as Time, Life, National Geographic and The New York Times. He is the recipient of numerous World Press Awards for Outstanding Photojournalism.
He has covered assignments in over fifty-six countries in the last twenty years. These have included: a report on Japanese youth for Smithsonian Magazine; a portrait of the American South for National Geographic; a picture portfolio for Fortune Magazine on the cruise ship industry; a Photo essay for Life Magazine on a 16 year-old boy with Progeria, an extremely rare disease which causes rapid aging; a journey retracing Columbus' trip by boat to America for Conde Nast Traveler Magazine; and a story on salt water crocodiles in Australia for Smithsonian Magazine.
In addition to periodicals, Mark has been a major contributor to eight volumes in the popular Day in the Life...book series, covering such diverse locations as Spain, Hawaii, Russia, Japan, Italy, Ireland, and America.
His work is also prominently featured in the books, The Power to Heat, Passage to Vietnam, and 24 Hours in Cyberspace. His own book, Hollywood, was published by Random House. Mark's photographs have been exhibited in several countries as well as the International Center
of Photography in New York.
In 1993, Wexler turned to documentary filmmaking with Seeing Double, a wry and engaging short about identical twins made for National Geographic television. More recently, he made the critically acclaimed Me and My Matchmaker, a personal portrait of an irrepressible Jewish matchmaker in Chicago, which manages to explore contemporary American romance, as well as Wexler's own dating life. Respected American film critic Roger Ebert hailed it as "amazing and touching..." as well as "entertaining, funny, absorbing, honest, revealing, surprising and convincing!"
Mark's latest film, Air Force One, aired as a one-hour primetime PBS - National Geographic special in July 2001 to some of the highest ratings ever for a documentary. After five years of negotiation, Mark became the first filmmaker granted full access behind the scenes to the world's most famous and secret airplane. The film weaves together the story of the technological marvel of the "Flying White House" with the history of the President's personal plane. It includes original interviews with Presidents Ford, Carter, Bush, Clinton, Bush, as well as pilots, engineers, stewards, and Cabinet advisors.
Wexler has a long standing interest in aviation and travel and has spent much of his life on planes - USA Today called him a "mileage maniac" and The Washington Post referred to him as "our latter day Phineas Fogg". When not in the air, Mark enjoys reading, swimming, drinking green tea and going out to dinner with friends.
Mark Wexler's Film "Tell Them Who You Are" opens in Los Angeles Friday, May 13th at the Arclight Cinemas and in New York at the Lincoln Plaza E and Angelika Theatres. Subsequent cities are Chicago, May 20th at the Music Box; San Francisco, May 27th at the Lumiere or Opera Plaza; Philadelphia, June 3rd at the Ritz Theatres; Seattle, June 10th at the NW Film Forum and Boston at the Brattle Theatre; St. Louis, July 8th at the Webster Film Series.
APPEARANCES IN "TELL THEM WHO YOU ARE" BY
Peter Bart
James Becket
Verna Bloom
Bill Butler, ASC
Billy Crystal
Michael Douglas
Jane Fonda
Milos Forman
Conrad L. Hall, ASC
Conrad W. Hall, ASC
Dennis Hopper
Ron Howard
Norman Jewison
Elia Kazan
Irvin Kershner
Saul Landau
George Lucas
Albert Maysles
Paul Newman
Sidney Poitier
Julia Roberts
John Sayles
Martin Sheen
Lee Tamahori
Studs Terkel
Jonathan Winters
Pamela Yates
