Maya Deren - IMDb

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Maya Deren came to the USA in 1922 as Eleanora Derenkowsky. Together with her father, a psychiatrist, and her mother, an artist, she fled the pogroms against Russian Jews. She studied journalism and political science in at Syracuse University in New York, finishing her BA at NYU in June 1936 and then received her MA in English literature from Smith... See full bio »

Born:

April 29, 1917 in Kiev, Russia [now Ukraine]

Died:

October 13, 1961 (age 44) in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

4 photos | 1 video »

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Known For

Meshes of the Afternoon Director

(1943)

At Land Director

(1944)

Ensemble for Somnambulists Director

(1951)

Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti Director

(1985)

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Filmography

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Director (11 credits)

2017 Early Women Filmmakers

1985 Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti (Documentary) (original footage)

1958 The Very Eye of Night (Short)

1951 Ensemble for Somnambulists (Short)

1949 Meditation on Violence (Short)

1947 The Private Life of a Cat (Documentary short) (co-director)

1946 Ritual in Transfigured Time (Short)

1946 A Study in Choreography for Camera (Short)

1944 At Land (Short)

1944 Witch's Cradle (Short)

1943 Meshes of the Afternoon (Short)

Show

Writer (9 credits)

2018 Vever (Short)

2017 Early Women Filmmakers

1985 Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti (Documentary) (book)

1961 Maeva

1958 The Very Eye of Night (Short) (writer)

1951 Ensemble for Somnambulists (Short)

1949 Meditation on Violence (Short) (writer)

1944 At Land (Short)

1943 Meshes of the Afternoon (Short) (writer)

Show

Actress (3 credits)

1946 Ritual in Transfigured Time (Short)

1944 At Land (Short)

1943 Meshes of the Afternoon (Short)
The Woman

Show

Cinematographer (3 credits)

1985 Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti (Documentary) (original footage)

1958 The Very Eye of Night (Short)

1949 Meditation on Violence (Short)

Show

Editor (2 credits)

1958 The Very Eye of Night (Short)

1943 Meshes of the Afternoon (Short)

Show

Composer (1 credit)

2012 Maya Deren, Take 0 (Documentary short)

Show

Producer (1 credit)

1951 Ensemble for Somnambulists (Short) (producer)

Show

Miscellaneous Crew (1 credit)

1951 Ensemble for Somnambulists (Short) (choreographer)

Show

Thanks (5 credits)

2019/II Mother (Short) (in memory of) (completed)

2017 Eschew (Short) (in memory of)

2013 Julie's Smile (dedicatee)

2011 Reminiscences of Yearning (dedicatee)

2006 Satan's Playground (special thanks)

Show

Self (1 credit)

1957 Probe and Night Beat (TV Series documentary)
Herself - Guest

- Episode dated 30 May 1957 (1957) ... Herself - Guest

Show

Archive footage (4 credits)

2018 Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema (Documentary)
Herself

2001 Im Spiegel der Maya Deren (Documentary)
Herself

1999 History's Mysteries (TV Series documentary)
Herself

- Voodoo Secrets (1999) ... Herself

1987 Invocation: Maya Deren (Documentary)
Herself

Personal Details

Other Works:

Book: "Diving Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti". It is considered one of the most useful books on Haitian voodoo. See more »

Publicity Listings:

2 Biographical Movies | 7 Print Biographies | See more »

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Did You Know?

Personal Quote:

[on filmmaking] It would be so much easier to be a painter or a writer. You don't have to have equipment. You don't have to do all the things. You're not at the mercy of the laboratories. You're not here and you're not there. It's a terrible pain to be a filmmaker, because you not only have the creative problems, but you have financial problems that they don't have. You have technical problems ... See more »

Trivia:

In 1960, she married longtime lover Teiji Ito and the next year, they traveled to New England, where Ito was to claim an inheritance following the death of his father. However, Ito's family tried to block the claim, and when Deren found out, she became apoplectic and had a stroke. She lapsed into a coma and died two weeks later, on Friday, October 13, 1961. Some believe she was the victim of a ... See more »