The youngest of seven, Matthew was born in Loma Linda, Ca, to Dolores
(Warner), a bookkeeper, and Mark Alexander Modine, a drive-in theater
manager. After graduating high school in Imperial Beach, Ca. Modine
moved to NYC (1979). Matthew studied with Stella Adler at her
Conservatory of Acting. While still a student of hers, he began landing
starring roles in film, and later theatre and television. Matthew has
worked with many of the most highly regarded directors including,
Christopher Nolan,
Oliver Stone, Sir
Alan Parker,
Stanley Kubrick,
Robert Altman,
Abel Ferrara,
Alan J. Pakula,
John Schlesinger,
Tony Richardson,
Robert Falls, Sir
Peter Hall,
Spike Lee,
Tom DiCillo,
Mike Figgis,
Jonathan Demme and
John Sayles. A partial list of his
films include:
The Dark Knight Rises (2012),
Birdy (1984),
Crazy for you - Liebe auf der Ringermatte (1985),
Full Metal Jacket (1987),
Die Mafiosi-Braut (1988),
Gross Anatomy (1989),
Memphis Belle (1990),
Fremde Schatten (1990),
Short Cuts (1993),
Schrei in die Vergangenheit (1994)
and An jedem verdammten Sonntag (1999).
Matthew is the recipient of a Golden Globe Award, Venice Film Festival
Volpi Cup and Golden Lion. Mary (2005),
directed by Abel Ferrara, co-starring
Juliette Binoche and
Forest Whitaker, won the Special Jury
Prize at the Venice Film Festival. Birdy won the Cannes Film Festival
Gran Prix. Equinox - Zwischen Tag und Nacht (1992), directed by
Alan Rudolph, received four
Independent Spirit Award nominations including Best Actor and Best
Film. For his work in television, Matthew was part of the Emmy winning
Showtime series Weeds - Kleine Deals unter Nachbarn (2005). He has
received Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominations for the M.O.W.
Explosion des Schweigens (1997)
and HBO's Emmy winning
...und das Leben geht weiter (1993).
Modine has directed several distinguished short films:
When I Was a Boy (1993),
Smoking (1994),
Ecce Pirate (1997),
I Think I Thought (2008) and
To Kill an American (2008).
