Darnell Martin

Martin was born in Bronx, New York, the daughter of Marilyn, a dancer of Irish-American descent, and an African-American attorney.[1] From the Bronx, she went on to Sarah Lawrence College and New York University Film School. Along the way, she worked in film labs and camera rental houses and as a bartender, made music videos and short films, and wrote the first draft of I Like It Like That.[2]

Sofia Sondervan and Martin at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival

In 1992, Martin's first short film, Suspect, which examined the treatment of young black people as assumed criminals, won critical acclaim at the New York Public Theater's Young Black Cinema showcase. After directing Suspect, Martin served as assistant camera operator for Jonathan Demme's documentary Cousin Bobby, about his cousin Robert Castle, an Episcopal pastor who works in Harlem. The film was well-received from the majority of critics.[3]

In 1994, Martin directed the Columbia Pictures release I Like It Like That, a romantic comedy-drama film about a young woman trying to love her man, keep her family together, assert her self-worth, and keep her sanity all at the same time. The film was well received by critics, but it didn't perform well at the box office.[4] In 2001 Martin directed Prison Song.

Martin has since directed episodes of TV shows such as Law & Order, Grey's Anatomy and The Walking Dead.[5] In 2008, Martin returned to the big screen, writing and directing Cadillac Records, a musical-drama film based on the work of Leonard Chess and the singers who recorded for Chess Records through the early days of R&B and rock 'n' roll. In 2012, she directed the well-received television film Firelight. In 2016, she directed The Walking Dead episode "Go Getters" during season 7. In 2020, she directed an episode on The Good Lord Bird.[6] Also in 2020, she directed episode 4 of Netflix’s series Grand Army (TV series).

• Darnell Martin at IMDb