Hardwicke directed Prisoner's Daughter, a drama written by Mark Bacci. It stars Kate Beckinsale, Brian Cox, Ernie Hudson, Christopher Convery, and Tyson Ritter. It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 14, 2022 and had a mixed critical reception. Themes A common theme in her movies, specifically Thirteen and Lords of Dogtown, is teen angst. These movies revolve around the trouble that comes with adolescence and depict it realistically. In Thirteen, she shows the trials and tribulations that come with growing out of adolescence and into adulthood, and girls becoming women. Her film Lords of Dogtown features the laid-back California lifestyle and focuses on boys growing up in the streets of Venice. Hardwicke purposely casts young teens from indie films, "both of Hardwicke's pics are marked by the believable performances she elicits from young actors, something she says comes from respecting their creativity and a lot of time spent ‘just hanging out’". Hardwicke addresses teenage problems as real ones, rather than simply dismissing them: "I care about difficult emotional moments and I want to be there for those moments and not cut away". Hardwicke's films are notable for their realistic depiction of teen lives and emotions. Other endeavors Hardwicke has worked with many tween idols of the 2000s: Evan Rachel Wood, Nikki Reed (Thirteen), Emile Hirsch (Lords of Dogtown), Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner (Twilight), whose breakthrough roles were in her highly successful films. Hardwicke's films have been considered "dark" in story and tone. In 2009, she was awarded the Women in Film Dorothy Arzner Directors Award. In 2012, Hardwicke helped create a public service announcement for the National Women's History Museum. Hardwicke came up with the idea for the announcement and contributed to the script. Filmography Feature films Television series Music videos See also List of female film and television directors List of LGBT-related films directed by women References External links 1955 births Living people 21st-century American women American production designers American women film directors American women screenwriters Film directors from Texas People from Cameron County, Texas People from McAllen, Texas Screenwriters from Texas UCLA Film School alumni Women production designers