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43-631: Fruitvale Station is a 2013 American biographical drama film written and directed by Ryan Coogler . It is Coogler's feature directorial debut , and is based on the events leading to the death of Oscar Grant , a young man killed in 2009 by Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) police officer Johannes Mehserle at the Fruitvale district BART station in Oakland, California . The film stars Michael B. Jordan as Grant, with Kevin Durand and Chad Michael Murray playing

86-423: A production company that produces multi-cultural feature films, documentaries, and television series. Bongiovi and Whitaker produced the 2013 American film Fruitvale Station , written and directed by Ryan Coogler and based on the story of the shooting of Oscar Grant in 2009. Bongiovi became involved with the project after film professor at USC, Jed Dannenbaum, contacted her to introduce her to Coogler, then

129-547: A Fairytale (2006), and Howard Stern in Private Parts (1997). In 2018, the musical biopic Bohemian Rhapsody , based on the life of Queen singer Freddie Mercury , became the highest-grossing biopic in history at the time. In 2023, it was surpassed by Oppenheimer , based on the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer and the creation of the atomic bomb in World War II. Nina Yang Bongiovi Nina Yang Bongiovi

172-462: A celebration of life, a condemnation of death, and a triumph for star Michael B. Jordan." On Metacritic , the film has a weighted average score of 85 out of 100 based on reviews from 46 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of A on an A+ to F scale. Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter called the film "a compelling debut" and "a powerful dramatic feature film". He also praised

215-536: A co-executive producer credit as she directly participated in funding the film and contacted investors when a deal was lost during the filming. Notable investors included Kathryn Stockett , author of The Help , a bestselling novel adapted as a successful film , for which Spencer won an Oscar. In April 2012, Hannah Beachler signed on as the film's production designer. Fruitvale Station was shot in Oakland, California , for 20 days in July 2012. Scenes were shot at and around

258-450: A dark ambient synth sound and I used it almost throughout the whole BART platform scene. The other element in the score is lots of layered and manipulated guitars sounding almost like haunting pads. Coogler added: One thing that we always wanted to be conscious of with the score was to make sure that it always felt organic. A lot of the film would play without score, so Ludwig made sure that whenever we brought score in came out of sounds in

301-561: A human being, you know that life means something." Coogler met the Grant family's attorney, John Burris , through a mutual friend, and also met with and worked with Grant's family. In January 2011, Forest Whitaker 's production company was looking for new young filmmakers to mentor. Coogler met the Head of Production Nina Yang Bongiovi and showed her his projects. He soon had a meeting with Whitaker, who supported Fruitvale . Coogler met with advisers of

344-428: A human face on the tragic headlines surrounding Oscar Grant." He praised Jordan's performance, but critiqued the "relentlessly positive portrayal" of the film's subject, saying: "Best viewed as an ode to victim's rights, Fruitvale forgoes nuanced drama for heart-tugging, head-shaking and rabble-rousing." The film appeared on several critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2013: Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt praised

387-505: A per-theater average of $ 53,898. This was the third-highest opening of the year for a film in limited release (behind Spring Breakers and The Place Beyond the Pines ), and one of the best openings for a Sundance festival top prize winner. A week after its debut, Fruitvale Station expanded to 35 theaters and earned $ 742,272, for a $ 21,832 per-screen average. On July 26, the film opened nationwide in more than 1,000 locations. It ranked #10 at

430-527: A student of Dannenbaum. Fruitvale Station met with critical acclaim, winning the 2013 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award as well as the 2013 Cannes Film Festival L'Avenir Award. For their work on the film, Bongiovi and Whitaker won the Producers Guild of America Stanley Kramer Award, which is given for films that highlight social issues. In 2014, Bongiovi and Whitaker produced Repentance , also starring Whitaker, followed by

473-639: Is an American film producer and Associate Chair of the Peter Stark Producing Program at the USC School of Cinematic Arts . In 2010, she partnered with actor Forest Whitaker to create Significant Productions; together, they have produced Fruitvale Station (2013) by Ryan Coogler, Dope (2015) by Rick Famuyiwa, Songs My Brothers Taught Me (2015) by Chloe Zhao, Roxanne Roxanne (2017) by Michael Larnell, Sorry to Bother You (2018) by Boots Riley, and Passing (2021) by Rebecca Hall. She

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516-798: Is married to Anthony Bongiovi, the younger brother of musician Jon Bon Jovi . Bongiovi received her graduate degree in Entertainment Management at the University of Southern California . She spent the first decade of her career working in the United States and Hong Kong film industries . During this time, she was involved in productions including China Strike Force (2000, Hong Kong), Mail Order Wife (2004, U.S.), Confessions of an Action Star (2005, U.S.), and The Children of Huang Shi (2008, China). In 2010, she met actor Forest Whitaker and they partnered to form Significant Productions,

559-619: Is often a balance between similarity in looks and ability to portray the characteristics of the person. Anthony Hopkins felt that he should not have played Richard Nixon in Nixon because of a lack of resemblance between the two. The casting of John Wayne as Genghis Khan in The Conqueror was objected to because of the American Wayne being cast as the Mongol warlord. Egyptian critics criticized

602-446: Is shot in the back by Ingram. A stunned Caruso demands to know what happened. Oscar is rushed to the hospital and dies just hours after undergoing emergency surgery. Onscreen text describes the aftermath: Oscar's killing sparked a series of protests and riots across the city after several witnesses recorded the incident with cellphones and video cameras. The BART officers involved were fired, and "Ingram" (the officers' names were changed)

645-495: The 2013 Cannes Film Festival , where it won the award for Best First Film. It received critical acclaim, and was released in theaters on July 12, 2013, grossing over $ 17 million against its $ 900,000 budget. The film depicts the last day of the life of Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old from Hayward, California , before he was fatally shot by BART Police in the early morning hours of January 1, 2009. It begins with actual footage of Oscar and his friends being detained by BART Police at

688-555: The Bay Area Rapid Transit platform where Grant was killed. BART agreed to let the crew film at Fruitvale station for three four-hour nights. Most of the platform scenes were shot over the course of two nights (with another night dedicated to the sequences on the train that led up to the police confrontation). San Quentin State Prison served as a filming location for a flashback scene with prisoners featured as extras. The film

731-638: The "I am __" campaign to encourage people to share stories of overcoming acts of social injustice or mistreatment, and to upload photos or other artworks related to those experiences. Fruitvale Station premiered on January 19, 2013, at the Sundance Film Festival , where it was screened as " Fruitvale ", its original title. It became the center of a bidding war that included studios such as Fox Searchlight , Paramount Pictures , Focus Features , and CBS Films , and The Weinstein Company ultimately acquired

774-573: The BART train to see fireworks and other New Year's festivities in San Francisco, since she worries about him driving. On the return train, Katie, a customer at the grocery store where Oscar used to work, recognizes him and calls out his name. This causes a man Oscar knew in prison to notice him, and a fight breaks out. BART police respond to the scene, and Oscar is among the passengers who are detained. While being restrained by officers Caruso and Ingram, Oscar

817-535: The Fruitvale station in Oakland on January 1, 2009, at 2:15 a.m., right before the shooting. Oscar and his girlfriend Sophina argue about Grant's recent infidelity. He unsuccessfully attempts to get his job back at Farmer Joe's, a grocery store. He briefly considers returning to dealing marijuana , but instead decides to dump his stash. In the evening, he attends a birthday party for his mother, Wanda, and agrees to take

860-759: The Moon (1999), Downey as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin (1992) and as Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer (2023), Foxx as Ray Charles in Ray (2004), Thompson and Hanks as P. L. Travers and Walt Disney in Saving Mr. Banks (2013), Redmayne as Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything (2014), and Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer in Oppenheimer (2023). Some biopics purposely stretch

903-601: The Sundance Screenwriters Lab and developed the script with the help of creative advisors Tyger Williams, Jessie Nelson and Zach Sklar. The film received funding from the Feature Film Program (FFP) and the San Francisco Film Society. Coogler had Michael B. Jordan in mind to play Grant before writing the script. In April 2012, Jordan and Octavia Spencer joined the cast. Spencer also received

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946-454: The casting of Louis Gossett Jr. , an African American actor, as Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in the 1983 TV miniseries Sadat . Also, some objected to the casting of Jennifer Lopez in Selena because she is a New York City native of Puerto Rican descent while Selena was Mexican American . Because the figures portrayed are actual people, whose actions and characteristics are known to

989-421: The decision to have a poster for the film in the actual Fruitvale Station, but a BART spokeswoman said: There was no debate whether to allow Fruitvale Station [advertisements] on BART. None whatsoever. We really support Ryan. He's just an amazing person ... I think that Ryan had said it was his intention to show his love for Oakland and the people of Oakland, and he really succeeded. Promotional material used on

1032-468: The environment. A soundtrack album, Fruitvale Station: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack , was released through Lakeshore Records , digitally on September 24, 2013, and on CD on October 15. The Weinstein Company commissioned three murals to be painted in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco by street artists Ron English , Lydia Emily , and LNY in anticipation of the film. Some people questioned

1075-593: The film as the "best film" of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, and singer Billie Eilish has stated that it is her favorite film four years in a row in her annual Vanity Fair interview. Biographical film Biopic scholars include George F. Custen of the College of Staten Island and Dennis P. Bingham of Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis . Custen, in Bio/Pics: How Hollywood Constructed Public History (1992), regards

1118-520: The film's Facebook page and website referred to the controversial killing of Trayvon Martin in Florida, which was in the news at the time of the film's release. This drew some criticism, with publicist Angie Meyer stating: "It's absolutely inappropriate and morally wrong to use a high-profile case to create publicity and buzz around a movie release." As part of its film promotion , the Weinstein Co. set up

1161-534: The film's distribution rights for about $ 2 million. In May 2013, Fruitvale Station appeared at the 66th Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section, which recognizes unique and innovative films, and won the award for Best First Film. The film's Oakland premiere was a private screening held at the Grand Lake Theater on June 20, 2013, and it opened in select additional markets on July 12, about

1204-427: The film: "Made with assurance and quiet emotion, this unexpectedly devastating drama based on the real life 2009 shooting of an unarmed young black man at an Oakland Fruitvale Station of BART (San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit System - Fruitvale Station) impressed everyone as the work of an exceptional filmmaker." In a more mixed review, Geoff Berkshire of Variety called the film "a well-intentioned attempt to put

1247-463: The gender norms that underlie the biopic in his article, "Taking Hollywood Back" in the 2009 issue of Cinema Journal . Roger Ebert defended The Hurricane and distortions in biographical films in general, stating "those who seek the truth about a man from the film of his life might as well seek it from his loving grandmother. ... The Hurricane is not a documentary but a parable ." Casting can be controversial for biographical films. Casting

1290-478: The genre as having died with the Hollywood studio era , and in particular, Darryl F. Zanuck . On the other hand, Bingham's 2010 study Whose Lives Are They Anyway? The Biopic as Contemporary Film Genre shows how it perpetuates as a codified genre using many of the same tropes used in the studio era that has followed a similar trajectory as that shown by Rick Altman in his study, Film/Genre . Bingham also addresses

1333-505: The lead performances, writing that, "As Oscar, Jordan at moments gives off vibes of a very young Denzel Washington in the way he combines gentleness and toughness; he effortlessly draws the viewer in toward him. Diaz is vibrant as his patient and loyal girlfriend, while Spencer brings her gravitas to the proceedings as his stalwart mother." Writing for The Village Voice , chief film critic Stephanie Zacharek called Fruitvale Station "a restrained but forceful picture that captures some of

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1376-419: The male biopic and the female biopic as distinct genres from each other, the former generally dealing with great accomplishments, the latter generally dealing with female victimization. Ellen Cheshire's Bio-Pics: a life in pictures (2014) examines UK/US films from the 1990s and 2000s. Each chapter reviews key films linked by profession and concludes with further viewing list. Christopher Robé has also written on

1419-803: The public (or at least historically documented), biopic roles are considered some of the most demanding of actors and actresses. Warren Beatty , Faye Dunaway , Ben Kingsley , Johnny Depp , Jim Carrey , Jamie Foxx , Robert Downey Jr. , Brad Pitt , Emma Thompson , Tom Hanks , Eddie Redmayne , and Cillian Murphy all gained new-found respect as dramatic actors after starring in biopics: Beatty and Dunaway as Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker in Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi in Gandhi (1982), Depp as Ed Wood in Ed Wood (1994), Carrey as Andy Kaufman in Man on

1462-472: The same time as the verdict in the trial of George Zimmerman for shooting Trayvon Martin . Fruitvale Station was made available in Digital HD via Anchor Bay on December 31, 2013. DVD and Blu-ray combo packs were released on January 14, 2014. The film grossed an estimated $ 127,445 on the first day of its limited theatrical release and ended the weekend with a gross of $ 377,285 from seven theaters, for

1505-463: The texture and detail of one human life", and praised Coogler, writing that he "dramatizes Oscar's last day by choosing not to dramatize it: The events unfold casually, without any particular scheme. And yet because we know how this story will end, there's a shivery, understated tension running beneath." In his Sundance festival wrap-up, critic Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times wrote of

1548-474: The truth. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind was based on game show host Chuck Barris ' widely debunked yet popular memoir of the same name, in which he claimed to be a CIA agent. Kafka incorporated both the life of author Franz Kafka and the surreal aspects of his fiction. The Errol Flynn film They Died with Their Boots On tells the story of Custer but is highly romanticized. The Oliver Stone film The Doors , mainly about Jim Morrison ,

1591-517: The two BART police officers involved in Grant's death, although their names were changed for the film. Melonie Diaz , Ahna O'Reilly , and Octavia Spencer also star. The film debuted under its original title, Fruitvale , at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival , where it won the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award for U.S. dramatic film, and was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at

1634-483: The weekend box office, earning $ 4.59 million. In total, the film has grossed $ 16,101,339 in the United States and $ 1,284,491 elsewhere, for a worldwide box office total of $ 17,385,830. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 94% of 216 critics' reviews of the film are positive, with an average score of 8.1/10; the site's "critics consensus" states: "Passionate and powerfully acted, Fruitvale Station serves as

1677-412: Was a graduate student at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts when Grant was shot on January 1, 2009. Coogler expressed his desire to make a film about Grant's last day: "I wanted the audience to get to know this guy, to get attached, so that when the situation that happens to him happens, it's not just like you read it in the paper, you know what I mean? When you know somebody as

1720-399: Was a responsibility that we had to put that out there. The film's musical score is by Coogler's fellow USC graduate Ludwig Göransson , who said of the scoring process: Ryan and I talked a lot about how sound design was going to have a huge role in the movie and very early on I got sent the actual sound recordings of the BART train. I manipulated the train sound and made it almost feel like

1763-1056: Was highly praised for the similarities between Jim Morrison and actor Val Kilmer , look-wise and singing-wise, but fans and band members did not like the way Val Kilmer portrayed Jim Morrison, and a few of the scenes were even completely made up. In rare cases, sometimes called auto biopics , the subject of the film plays themself. Examples include Jackie Robinson in The Jackie Robinson Story (1950), Muhammad Ali in The Greatest (1977), Audie Murphy in To Hell and Back (1955), Patty Duke in Call Me Anna (1990), Bob Mathias in The Bob Mathias Story (1954), Arlo Guthrie in Alice's Restaurant (1969), Fantasia in Life Is Not

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1806-414: Was later tried and found guilty of involuntary manslaughter , claiming he mistook his gun for his Taser , and served an 11-month sentence. The final footage is of a gathering of people celebrating Oscar's life on January 1, 2013, with Grant's daughter, Tatiana, among them. Oscar Grant's real-life mother, Wanda Johnson, has a small role in the film as Mrs. Stacy, Tatiana's preschool teacher. Ryan Coogler

1849-613: Was shot in Super 16 mm format using Arriflex 416 cameras and Zeiss Ultra 16 lenses. The film includes actual amateur footage of the shooting, which Coogler initially did not want to use: I didn't want any real footage in the film. But you sometimes have to take a step back. Being from the Bay Area, I knew that footage like the back of my hand, but more people from around the world had no idea about this story. It made sense for them to see that footage and see what happened to Oscar, and I think it

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