Italian-born filmmaker Giada Colagrande has written and directed several films and documentaries during her career spanning more than two decades. As an actress, she has played leading roles in many of her own films as well as in other projects. Recently, this multi-talented artist has also ventured into music, which gives her yet another pen. In addition to her illustrious career, Colagrande is also known for her long marriage to Hollywood actor Willem Dafoe. Learn more about her below.
Giada Colagrande – Bio (Age)
Giada Colagrande was born on 16 October 1975 in the city of Pescara in the Italian region of Abruzzo. She grew up attending an Italian boarding school in Lausanne, Switzerland. She also trained as an exchange student in Australia and later completed her higher education at the University of Rome. While still a student, she began making videos and documentaries about modern art. After graduating from college, however, she moved to New York but later returned to Rome, Italy.
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Facts About Willem Dafoe’s Wife
Career Beginning
In the late 1990s, Colagrande was part of a video art project called “VOLUME”, in which video portraits were made of a number of contemporary artists. During this time she also worked on her own personal projects, including three short films – “Carnaval” (1997), “Fetus – 4 brings death” (1999), and “n.3” (2000).
Her Feature Film Debut
Giada Colagrande worked on her first feature film Aprimi il Cuore (Open my heart) in 2001. She not only played the leading role in the film, but also acted as author, co-producer, and director. The film had its premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September 2002 and was selected by several other international film festivals on different continents.
As expected, the talented filmmaker received a number of awards for her work in Aprimi il Cuore (2002). The film was awarded the “Prix de l’avenir” at the opening festival of Paris Cinéma in 2003. Colagrande was also nominated for the Nastro d’Argento (Silver Ribbon Award) as the best director in 2003.
Other Works
The talented filmmaker worked on her second feature film Before it Had a Name (2005), which featured Hollywood’s A-Lister Willem Dafoe. In addition to her work as a director, she was also co-author and co-star in the film. It premiered at the 2005 Venice Film Festival and has also been shown at several international film festivals around the world. The film was later released on DVD under the title The Black Widow.
Giada Colagrande’s third film A Woman (2010) also starred Willem Dafoe and was premiered at the 2010 Venice Film Festival. In 2012 she worked on the short film The Woman Dress and also released Bob Wilson’s Life & Death of Marina Abramovic, a feature-length documentary based on the biography of performance artist Marina Abramovic. Both projects were premiered at the 2012 Venice Film Festival.
Colagrande’s collaboration with Abramovic also resulted in another documentary film, The Abramovic Method (2013), which was shown in several museums around the world after its premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September 2013.
Giada’s next project was the drama Padre (2016), which she wrote, directed, and starred in. Her regular collaborators Willem Dafoe and Marina Abramovic also played roles in the film.
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Giada Colagrande Music Career
Giada Colagrande ventured into music in 2017. She worked on a music project entitled “THE MAGIC DOOR” in collaboration with the other two Italian-born musicians Arthuan Rebis and Vincenzo Zitello. American-born drummer Glen Velez also contributed to this project.
Husband and Family
Colagrande has been married to the prolific Hollywood actor Willem Dafoe for more than a decade. The couple first met in the city of Rome in 2004, and after being together for a while, they entered into a marriage on March 25, 2005. Their wedding was a private ceremony with only two witnesses present.
Interestingly, Colagrande is 20 years younger than her husband Dafoe, but despite this gaping age difference, their marriage has stood the test of time. They have also had several collaborations during their career. Willem Dafoe’s acting career spans more than four decades and he has no fewer than four Oscar nominations to his credit.
Giada Colagrande Height and Body Stats
Giada Colagrande stands on a height of 5′ 4¼” (163 cm) and she maintains a slender physique. The gorgeous filmmaker-actress has long black hair, which is one of her unique physical characteristics. Details of her other body measurements, including her chest, waist, and hip size, are not currently available.