Barry Sonnenfeld

'Barry Sonnenfeld' (qv) was born and raised in New York City. He graduated from New York University Film School in 1978. He started work as director of photography on the Oscar-nominated _In Our Water (1982)_ (qv). Then 'Joel Coen' (qv) and 'Ethan Coen' (qv) hired him for _Blood Simple (1984)_ (qv). This film began his collaboration with the Coen Bros., who used him for their next two pictures, _Raising Arizona (1987)_ (qv) and _Miller's Crossing (1990)_ (qv). He also worked with 'Danny DeVito' (qv) on his _Throw Momma from the Train (1987)_ (qv) and 'Rob Reiner' (qv) on _When Harry Met Sally... (1989)_ (qv) and _Misery (1990)_ (qv). Sonnenfeld got his first work as a director from Orion Pictures on _The Addams Family (1991)_ (qv), a box-office success released in November 1991 followed by its sequel, _Addams Family Values (1993)_ (qv). He received critical acclaim for his fourth directorial effort, _Get Shorty (1995)_ (qv). Produced by Jersey Films and based on a novel by 'Elmore Leonard' (qv), the film won a Golden Globe for best male performance. In 1996 'Steven Spielberg' (qv) asked him to direct _Men in Black (1997)_ (qv). Starring 'Tommy Lee Jones' (qv) and 'Will Smith' (qv), the movie was a critical and financial smash. Producer 'Jon Peters' (qv) then asked Sonnenfeld to direct _Wild Wild West (1999)_ (qv), an adaptation of an old TV series. He also directed the comedy _Big Trouble (2002)_ (qv), after which he made his most successful film sequel, _Men in Black II (2002)_ (qv).::Alex Manca