Nia DaCosta

Nia DaCosta (born November 8, 1989) is an American filmmaker. She wrote and directed the crime thriller film Little Woods (2018), winning the Nora Ephron Prize at the Tribeca Film Festival. She also directed the horror film Candyman (2021). In August 2020, DaCosta was hired to direct The Marvels (2023), becoming the youngest filmmaker to direct a Marvel film, beating the record set by Ryan Coogler. She is currently in production on an adaptation of Hedda Gabler. Early life DaCosta was born on November 8, 1989, in Brooklyn and raised in Harlem. Her original aspiration was to become a poet. When DaCosta was 16 years old, she took an A.P. English class, where she was exposed to the work of Joseph Conrad upon reading his book Heart of Darkness. DaCosta became obsessed with films after watching Apocalypse Now, which led her to study cinema from the New Hollywood era, finding inspiration in directors such as Francis Ford Coppola, Sidney Lumet, Martin Scorsese, and Steven Spielberg. Citing Scorsese in particular as her primary influence, DaCosta enrolled at his alma mater, New York University Tisch School of the Arts. There, she met Scorsese while working as a television production assistant. Career After finishing school, DaCosta began working as a television production assistant, where she worked with filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese, Steve McQueen, and Steven Soderbergh. After DaCosta wrote the script for Little Woods, it was one of the 12 projects chosen for the 2015 Sundance Screenwriters and Directors Labs, where she became friends with Tessa Thompson, who was later cast in the role of Ollie. She funded a short film version of what would eventually become her first feature film through Kickstarter with the help of 72 backers, who eventually raised $5,100. After finishing Little Woods, DaCosta directed two episodes of the third season of the crime drama Top Boy. While working on the series in London, she learned that she was on the shortlist to direct Jordan Peele's revival of the classic horror film Candyman. DaCosta's film Candyman made her the first African-American female director to have a film debut at the top of the box office. Little Woods