Lucia Aniello (born 1983) is an Italian-born[2] American director, writer, and producer best known for her work on Hacks, for which she won multiple Emmy Awards, and Broad City. She has directed and written episodes of both shows, as well as the miniseries Time Traveling Bong and the 2017 film Rough Night.
Aniello was born in Italy and grew up in Hadley, Massachusetts, where her parents owned Italian restaurants, before moving to New York City.[3][2] In 2004, she graduated from Columbia University, where she was a film and media studies major and studied with film critic Andrew Sarris.[4][5] She was in Sigma Delta Tau sorority. She also played varsity tennis for Columbia.[6]
Careeredit
Aniello is an alumna of the Upright Citizens Brigade, an improvisational and sketch comedy group founded in 1990 by a group of comedians including Amy Poehler who is an executive producer of Broad City.[7]
Aniello and Paul W. Downs met at a Upright Citizens Brigade Level One improvisational comedy class.[7] Aniello and Downs began working together on a series of digital shorts and improv.[7] They started their own website and comedy production company called Paulilu Productions. Together they have been writing, directing and acting in digital shorts since 2007. Some of their most well-known web series include The Diary of Zac Efron and The Real Housewives of South Boston.[3]
Work on Broad Cityedit
Aniello also met Ilana Glazer of Broad City through the same Upright Citizens Brigade class where she met Downs. As Aniello and Downs began to make digital shorts and build the foundations of Paulilu, Glazer and Abbi Jacobson worked on the prototype of Broad City. The two comedic duos occasionally acted in each other's shorts or directed them.[3] When Broad City moved to television Glazer and Jacobson asked Aniello to direct the pilot and cast Downs as Trey, the trainer and boss of Jacobson's character on the show. After the show was picked up by Comedy Central, they asked both Aniello and Downs to join the group of writers for the show.[8]
Current workedit
Aniello also co-created Time Traveling Bong. Her interest in the subject began in college when she wrote a thesis on time-travel movies at Columbia University. The movie is a stoner film comedy about two cousins who acquire a bong that acts as a time traveling device.[9]
^ abHolmes, Marie (14 March 2022). "Jean Smart Dedicates Critics Choice Award To In-Labor 'Hacks' Director". Scary Mommy. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
^ abZoladz, Lindsay (June 16, 2017). "Lucia Aniello's Broad Appeal". The Ringer. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
^ abcFutterweit, Alexa. "Interview: Lucia Aniello and Paul W. Downs Talk Paulilu Comedy and the Hilarity of Hilary [sic] Clinton." Complex Magazine. Complex, 11 Aug. 2012. Web. 11 November 2016
^"Take Five with Lucia Aniello '04". Columbia College Today. 8 March 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
^"DIRECTOR LUCIA ANIELLO CC'04 MAKES BIG-SCREEN DEBUT WITH "ROUGH NIGHT"". Columbia College. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
^"Strong Play of Mittal and Weintraub Insufficient in Tennis Loss". Columbia Daily Spectator. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
^Press, Joy. "The Secret Weapons of ‘Broad City’ Make Fine Art From Crude Humor." New York Times. New York Times, 12 Feb. 2016. Web. 11 Nov. 2016.
^Handler, Rachel. "Time Traveling Bong's Ilana Glazer, Paul W. Downs, and Lucia Aniello on The First Time They Got High and Kidnapping Michael Jackson." MTV News. MTV, 19 Apr. 2016. Web. 11 Nov. 2016.
^Berger, Laura. "Female Spin-Off of ’21 Jump Street’ in the Works." IndieWire. Penske Business Media, 30 Apr. 2015. Web. 11 Nov. 2016.
^Keegan, Rebecca. "The Audacity of Rough Night, the First R-rated Studio Comedy Directed by a Woman in Nearly 20 Years". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
^"Hacks: Awards & Nominations". Television Academy. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^THR Staff (September 19, 2021). "Emmys: 'The Crown' Reigns; Full Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Littleton, Cynthia (March 20, 2022). "'CODA,' 'Don't Look Up,' 'Hacks' and 'Succession' Win Top Prizes at 2022 Writers Guild Awards". Variety. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Chuba, Kirsten (March 12, 2022). "DGA Awards: Jane Campion and 'The Power of the Dog' Take Top Honor". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Hill, Libby (January 10, 2022). "Golden Globes 2022: 'Succession' and 'Hacks' Triumph — Does It Matter". IndieWire. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^"HACKS – AFI Movie Club". AFI. April 1, 2022. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Schneider, Michael (June 7, 2022). "'Hacks,' 'Philly D.A.' Among Second Round of Peabody Awards 2022 Winners (FULL LIST)". Variety. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Hipes, Patrick (January 12, 2022). "SAG Awards Nominations: 'House Of Gucci', 'Power Of The Dog', 'Succession', 'Ted Lasso' Top Lists". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Pedersen, Erik (December 6, 2021). "Critics Choice TV Nominations: 'Succession' Leads Field As HBO Edges Netflix". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Pedersen, Erik (January 27, 2022). "PGA Awards Nominations: 'Licorice Pizza', 'Don't Look Up', 'Dune', 'King Richard' & 'CODA' Among Pics Vying For Marquee Prize". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^Lang, Brent (January 27, 2022). "'Passing,' 'The Lost Daughter' Lead 2021 Gotham Awards Nominations (Full List)". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
^"Hacks: Awards and Nominations". Television Academy. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
^Pedersen, Erik (January 15, 2023). "'Everything Everywhere All At Once' Takes Best Picture At Critics Choice Awards – Complete Winners List". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
^Rich, Katey (January 10, 2023). "Golden Globes 2023: See All the Nominations Here". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
^Davis, Clayton (January 11, 2023). "SAG Awards 2023 Nominations: 'Banshees' and 'Everything Everywhere' Tie for Most Nods in History". Variety. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
^Davis, Clayton (January 12, 2023). "PGA Awards Nominations: 'The Whale' and Four Blockbuster Sequels Recognized, Films Directed by Women Shut Out". Variety. Retrieved 2023-04-13.
^D'Alessandro, Anthony (2021-08-30). "'Hacks' Co-Creators Lucia Aniello & Paul W. Downs Ink Overall Deal With Warner Bros. Television Group". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-08-31.