Contributor

Alex Stapleton

Director, Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel

Alex Stapleton made her directorial debut with Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel.

Earlier this year Stapleton was commissioned by LEVI’S to direct a film surveying the groundbreaking street art and graffiti exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. Outside In: The Story of Art in the Streets features the work of artists including Shepard Fairey, Banksy, Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat.

Stapleton’s first project as a producer was Just For Kicks (Canal Plus/MTV Networks, 2005), a documentary film that traced the roots of urban sneaker culture and hip-hop. She has also produced for renowned, theatre director Robert Wilson. In 2008, they partnered with NIKE to make a series of HD video portraits featuring iconic athletes for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

A devout cinephile, Stapleton is a contributing film columnist for various publications such as Flaunt, Tokion and The New Cinema. She also recently hosted a TV series, The American Revolutionaries, on The Ovation Network. On the show Stapleton interviewed legendary, American film directors such as Peter Bogdanovich, Joe Dante and Roger Corman.

Originally from Houston, Stapleton moved to New York City as a teenager. At nineteen, she met horror film director Frank Henenlotter (Basketcase, Brain Damage, Frankenhooker). Henenlotter took her under his wing and schooled her on the wild, wacky world of exploitation. He also exposed her to the great masters of cinema such as Billy Wilder, John Ford, Stanley Kubrick, Hitchcock, Orson Welles and Elia Kazan. She considers her time spent with Mr. Henenolotter more valuable than any film class.

Stapleton now calls L.A. home.

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