Gregg Araki

From the gruesome road-trip comedy The Doom Generation to the poignant psychological drama Mysterious Skin, writer and director Gregg Araki specializes in highly stylized films that celebrate the fluidity of identity, sex, and life itself. Araki became a significant presence on the independent scene in the 1990s with The Living End, about the troubled relationship between two HIV-positive gay men, and quickly established himself within the emerging New Queer Cinema as a boldly confrontational, sex-positive filmmaker. Many of his movies focus on the surrogate families and unorthodox relationships of his youthful characters; Totally F***ed Up, the first film in his "Teenage Apocalypse Trilogy," chronicles a dysfunctional group of alienated gay teenagers, while Splendor explores the unconventional relationship between a woman and her two live-in lovers. Araki frequently contrasts his rambling narratives and messily drawn characters with formalized scene titles and graphic jump cuts, and colors his movies in acid-drenched hues that match his anarchic and restless spirit. With teen-like enthusiasm, Araki obsessively fills his films, including the fizzy mystery tale Kaboom, with atmospheric tunes that range from electropop to shoegaze, often incorporating the work of former Cocteau Twins member Robin Guthrie. Araki's belief in the power of individuality has made him an icon in the gay community and a formidable filmmaking force.