Lawrence Jay Duplass Jr. (born March 7, 1973)[1] is an American filmmaker, actor, and author widely known for his films The Puffy Chair (2005), Cyrus (2010), and Jeff, Who Lives at Home (2011), made in collaboration with his younger brother, Mark Duplass.
Duplass was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of Cynthia (née Ernst) and Lawrence Duplass.[2][3][4] He was raised in a Catholic family,[5][6] and attended Jesuit High School. Duplass graduated from the University of Texas at Austin; he started a Masters of Fine Arts degree in film at UT but withdrew in the first few months to pursue independent film projects.[7] His ancestry includes French Cajun, Italian, Ashkenazi Jewish, and German.[8][9]
Career
Directing
Duplass attributes much of his and his brother's love for film to his appreciation for Raising Arizona. In an interview with Robert K. Elder for The Film That Changed My Life,[10] Duplass speculates on what might have happened had he not seen the film in his youth.
I probably wouldn't be making movies—seriously. It held over for so long. It really was the root of everything that Mark and I always hold ourselves to in making movies. That is to say that Raising Arizona is the most inspired movie that I have ever seen.[10]
In 2015, Mark and Jay Duplass via their Duplass Brothers Television label signed an overall deal with HBO.[11]
Prior to Transparent, Duplass had never acted in a featured part. He was talking with director Joey Soloway at a dinner party about the difficulty they were having finding an actor to play what would end up being Duplass's role. After suggesting many actors for the part to Soloway, Soloway turned to Duplass and told him that he should play the part.[12]
Favorite films
In 2012, Duplass participated in the Sight & Sound film polls of that year. Held every ten years to select the greatest films of all time, contemporary directors were asked to select ten films of their choice.[13]
