about eli
Eli Raphael Roth (born April 18, 1972) is an American film director, producer, writer and actor. Roth is known for making violent, low-budget horror films with box office success. Roth is an award-winning actor, most known for his role as Donny "The Bear Jew" Donowitz in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, for which he won both a SAG Award (Best Ensemble) and a BFCA Critic's Choice Award (Best Acting Ensemble).
Roth was born in Newton, Massachusetts, to Dr. Sheldon Roth, a psychiatrist/psychoanalyst and assistant clinical professor at Harvard Medical School, and Cora Roth, a painter. His grandparents emigrated from Austria, Russia and Poland, and Roth was raised Jewish.
Roth began shooting films at the age of eight after watching Ridley Scott's Alien (1979). He made over 50 short films with his brothers Adam and Gabe before graduating at Newton South High School and attending film school (the Tisch School of the Arts) at New York University, from which he graduated in 1994
Early Film Career...In his final years (1993/1994) at NYU film school, Roth wrote and directed a student film called Restaurant Dogs as an homage to Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs. The film was nominated for a Student Academy Award in 1995, and won its division (Division III.)
Through his internship with producer Fred Zollo in years prior, Roth met David Lynch and remained in contact with him over the years, eventually producing content for Lynch with his fledgling website in the late 1990s. Roth met film and TV composer Angelo Badalamenti through Lynch; he would later use Badalamenti's music in his first feature film. He also met a member of special effects company KNB EFX through Lynch; KNB EFX would later contribute to his first feature.
Roth moved from NYC to LA in 1999; shortly thereafter he wrote, directed, edited, produced, animated, and provided voices for a series of animated shorts called Chowdaheads for Mandalay Sports Entertainment. The shorts were intended to be shown between WCW Monday Nitro pro wrestling matches, but the C.E.O. of WCW who had green lit the project was fired the weekend before they were supposed to be aired, and they were never actually broadcast, despite being completed. Roth's friend Noah Belson co-wrote the shorts and provided the other character voices.
After receiving financial backup from the website Z.com to deliver a 5-minute pilot, Roth wrote, directed, animated and produced a series of stop-motion shorts in mid-2000 called The Rotten Fruit. The company (z.com) folded shortly after several episodes were completed. A portion of the work for The Rotten Fruit was done at the Snake Pit studios in Burbank using miniature sets, poseable clay and foam figures, two high-end digital still cameras, and a pair of Macintosh computers. Roth's friend Noah Belson co-wrote the shorts and performed the character voices along with Roth.
-adapted from wikipediadirecting filmography
Inglourious Basterds (2009) (segment "Nation's Pride") (uncredited)
Hostel: Part II (2007)
Grindhouse (2007) (fake trailer segment "Thanksgiving")
Hostel (2005)
The Rotten Fruit (2003)
Cabin Fever (2002)
"Chowdaheads" (1999) TV series
acting filmography
Piranha 3D (2010) .... Wet T-Shirt Host
Don't Look Up (2009) .... Béla Olt
Inglourious Basterds (2009) .... Sgt. Donny Donowitz
Grindhouse (2007) .... Dov (segment "Death Proof") / Tucker (segment "Thanksgiving")
Southland Tales (2006) (uncredited) .... Man who gets shot on Toilet
Disaster! (2005) (voice) .... Lumberjack
Hostel (2005) (uncredited) .... American Stoner
2001 Maniacs (2005) .... Justin
Tales from the Crapper (2004) .... Party Goer
The Rotten Fruit (2003) (voice) .... Various
Cabin Fever (2002) (as David Kaufbird) .... Justin / Grim
Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000) .... Beautiful Young Boy
"Chowdaheads" (1999) TV series (voice) .... Walter, Sully
Terror Firmer (1998) .... Shocked Onlooker
The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) (uncredited) .... Subway Man
Snapshots from a .500 Season (1997) .... Party animal
The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996) (uncredited) .... Student
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