Quinn Shephard (born February 28, 1995)[2] is an American actress, film director, producer, screenwriter and film editor. She played the roles of Donna Malone in the Christmas comedy Unaccompanied Minors and Morgan Sanders in the television series Hostages. In 2017, her feature film directorial debut, Blame (which she also wrote, produced, edited, and starred in), screened at several film festivals and earned critical attention.[3]
Quinn Shephard | |
|---|---|
 Shephard in 2017 | |
| Born | February 28, 1995 New Jersey, U.S.[1] |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Partner | Nadia Alexander (2015–2023) |
Early life
editShephard grew up in Metuchen, New Jersey[4] and the surrounding New York area.[5] She attended Metuchen High School, which was used to film scenes from her movie Blame.[6]
Career
editShephard's big screen debut was in the 2001 French film Harrison's Flowers at the age of five.[7] Shephard's first starring role was in the holiday comedy feature film Unaccompanied Minors. Shephard and her co-stars were nominated for Best Young Ensemble in a Feature Film at the 29th Young Artist Awards.[8] She later appeared in the comedy film Assassination of a High School President (2008) and the horror film Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl (2016).
Shephard has also appeared on television. In 2013, she played the recurring role of Morgan Sanders in the CBS thriller series Hostages. From 2014 to 2015, she portrayed Claire Mahoney in the fourth season of Person of Interest. Shephard has played guest roles in several television series, including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2011), Made in Jersey (2012), The Blacklist (2013), and Believe (2014).[1]
In 2015, she was the recipient of the Rising Star Award at the Garden State Film Festival.[9] In 2018, she appeared in the film The Miseducation of Cameron Post, which had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival; it won the Grand Jury Prize for U.S. Drama, the festival's highest honor.[10]
Directorial debut
editShephard developed the script for her first feature film, Blame, for several years.[11] In 2015, after her financier fell through during the first week of shooting, Shephard partially self-financed Blame using money from her college fund.[11] The film was shot in 19 days, and Shephard produced it with her mother, Laurie Shephard.[11] Shephard also starred in the film as Abigail Grey, alongside Chris Messina, Nadia Alexander, and Tate Donovan.[12]
Blame screened at the Tribeca Film Festival, making Shephard the youngest female director to debut a film there.[13] It was nominated for several awards at Tribeca and won the award for Best Actress in a U.S. Narrative Feature (for Alexander's performance).[14] The film received generally positive reviews from critics; it holds an 80% rating on Rotten Tomatoes,[15] while on Metacritic it holds a 54/100 rating.[16] IndieWire called it a "solid debut", while writing that, though it "isn't fully realized", it establishes Shephard as "someone to watch".[3] Glenn Kenny of The New York Times described the film as "earnest but underdeveloped".[17] Filmmaker called the film "a poignant and incisive examination of modern American adolescence."[18] The Hollywood Reporter called it "a mixed bag of a directorial debut".[19]
Personal life
editShephard identifies as queer.[20] She was formerly in a relationship with Blame co-star Nadia Alexander.[21]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Harrison's Flowers | Margaux Lloyd | |
| 2004 | From Other Worlds | Linda Schwartzbaum | |
| 2006 | Unaccompanied Minors | Donna Malone | |
| 2008 | Assassination of a High School President | Eye Patch Girl | |
| 2015 | Windsor | Kat | |
| 2016 | Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl | Beth | |
| 2017 | Blame | Abigail Grey | |
| 2018 | The Miseducation of Cameron Post | Coley Taylor | |
| Midnight Sun | Morgan | ||
| 2020 | The Man in the Woods | Jean Fenny | |
| 2022 | Not Okay | Herself |
Filmmaking credits
edit| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Blame | Yes | Yes | Yes | Also editor |
| 2022 | Not Okay | Yes | Yes | No | |
| 2024 | Under the Bridge | Yes (2 episodes) | Yes (2 episodes) | Yes | Miniseries |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Emma Butler | Episode: “Lost Traveller” |
| 2012 | Made in Jersey | Kate Garretti | Episode: "Ridgewell" |
| 2013 | Trooper | Olive Flaxton | Television film |
| 2013–2014 | Hostages | Morgan Sanders | Main role |
| 2013 | The Blacklist | Abby Fisher | Episode: "Ivan" |
| 2014 | And, We're Out of Time | Scarlett | Television film |
| Believe | Sasha Ferrel | Episode: "Collapse" | |
| 2014–2015 | Person of Interest | Claire Mahoney | Episodes: "Nautilus", "Q & A" |
| 2015 | Almost There | Scarlett | 4 episodes |
| 2017 | Redliners | Katie Rhymer | Television film |
| 2018–2019 | God Friended Me | Rachel Blake | Episode: "Unfriended", "The Greater Good" |
| 2018 | Bull | Tally North | Episode: "A Girl Without Feelings" |
References
edit- ^ a b "Garden State Film Festival Seeks Submissions For 2016 Rising Star Award". New Jersey Stage. 21 October 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
- ^ "This day in history". The Boston Globe. 28 February 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
- ^ a b Nordine, Michael (30 April 2017). "'Blame' Review: Quinn Shephard Makes a Strong First Impression in Her Debut as Writer, Director, and Star". IndieWire. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- ^ "The 22-Year-Old Filmmaker To Keep Watching". Suited Magazine. 24 April 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
- ^ Steve Weintraub (8 December 2006). "Tyler James Williams and Quinn Shephard Interviewed – 'Unaccompanied Minors'". Collider. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
- ^ Makin, Bob (April 8, 2017). "Young Metuchen artist's feature directorial debut to premiere at Tribeca". Courier News. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
- ^ "Quinn Shephard attends her film premiere of "Harrison's Flowers"". United Press International. 12 March 2002. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
- ^ "28th Annual Young Artist Awards". Young Artist Awards. 10 March 2007. Archived from the original on February 18, 2007. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
- ^ "Ed Asner & More Wrap Up 2015 Garden State Film Festival". Broadway World. 26 March 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
- ^ "Sundance awards grand jury prize to 'The Miseducation of Cameron Post'". USA Today. January 28, 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- ^ a b c "After an investor bailed, a 20-year-old filmmaker spent her entire college fund finishing her award-winning debut". Business Insider. January 3, 2018. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- ^ Hipes, Patrick (25 November 2015). "Chris Messina & Tate Donovan Topline Indie Drama 'Blame'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
- ^ Carucci, John (May 3, 2017). "Young director Quinn Shepard makes a bit of history with film debut". Athens Banner-Herald. Retrieved March 9, 2018.
- ^ "Award Screening: Best Actress, US Narrative Competition: Blame | 2017 Tribeca Film Festival". Tribeca. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- ^ "Blame". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "Blame". Metacritic. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ Kenny, Glenn (January 4, 2018). "Review: 'Blame' Conjures 'Carrie,' but Without Telekinesis". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- ^ Astle, Randy (April 27, 2017). "Tribeca 2017: Five Questions with Blame Director Quinn Shephard | Filmmaker Magazine". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- ^ "'Blame': Film Review | Tribeca 2017". The Hollywood Reporter. April 23, 2017. Retrieved 11 February 2018.
- ^ Shephard, Quinn [@quinnshephardofficial] (June 14, 2019). "Happy pride month! I am queer! 🏳️🌈✨". Archived from the original on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 12 September 2020 – via Instagram.
- ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-10-17.