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Steven Shainberg

Steven Shainberg

Producer, director and writer · Born February 5, 1963 (63) · USA

Steven Shainberg (born 5 February 1963) is an American film director and producer. He is the nephew of author Lawrence Shainberg. Both are part of the Shainberg family of Memphis, Tennessee, founder of the Shainberg's chain of stores, which is now part of Dollar General. Shainberg received his BA from Yale University in English Literature and East Asian studies. After graduation, he worked as a location manager, assistant director, production coordinator, and assistant editor on a number of films, commercials, and rock videos. He also worked as an independent producer developing adaptations of Joseph Conrad’s The Secret Agent and Henry James’ The Americans. At the American Film Institute, he directed and wrote four short films including The Prom starring Jennifer Jason Leigh and J. T. Walsh. The Prom won the Grand Prize at the Houston International Film Festival, the Critics’ Award at the Breckenridge Film Festival, and the Silver Medal for Drama at the New York Film Festival. In 1998, his short film series “Mr. Virgil” ran for almost six months on MTV as well as his video for Debbie Harry’s "Strike Me Pink". Description above from the Wikipedia Steven Shainberg, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
February 5, 1963 (63)
From
USA
Works as
Producer, director and writer
Titles
10 on MovieCove · 14 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 38% in 30 days

What are Steven Shainberg's films like?

Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Bonds.

Themes

share of theme weight
Self
42%
Bonds
23%
Morality
17%
Society
11%
Survival
4%
Ideas
3%
Romantic love4 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeSelf-worth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice2 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 8 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 1 · Dark 4

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 2 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 1

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 1 · Charged 6 · Intense 1

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 2 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 2

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

A split, not a type: Casual 4 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 3 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Melancholic
6
Tense
4
Romantic
3
Contemplative
2
Warm
3
Other
5

How their films linger

Hopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 2 with a twist

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet3
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous3

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Steven Shainberg's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 10 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (5).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Steven Shainberg's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

14 credits, 10 with a MovieCove page.

  • Last Looks(2021)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films

  • Civil War (or, Who Do We Think We Are)(2021)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • Rupture(2016)

    Director · Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all films

  • Big Men(2013)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • Broken English(2007)

    Co-Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • Never Forever (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Co-Executive Producer

  • Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus(2006)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Feel(2006)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • Secretary(2002)

    Director · Producer · Writer · as Richard Arevalos (Sex Therapist on Tape) (voice) (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Hit Me(1996)

    Director · Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films

  • Alice & Viril (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Director

  • Angela & Viril (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Director

  • The Prom (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Director · Writer

  • At Close Range(1986)

    Other

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

Career shape

A full career of 13 titles from 1986 to 2022.

Biggest box office

Secretary (2002)

$9.3M worldwide

Highest rated

Secretary (2002)

Midcredits 77th

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 13: 0 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting7 of 13: 3 only directing, 4 with another roleWriting2 of 13: 0 only writing, 2 with another roleProducing8 of 13: 5 only producing, 3 with another role · typical Midcredits score54thOther crew1 of 13: 1 only other crew, 0 with another role

13 titles, 4 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

1980s1 · crew1990s4 · crew2000s4 · 1 acting · 4 crew2010s2 · crew2020s2 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Steven Shainberg's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 56th percentile, the median of all 10; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 45th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

45thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Approval · how many liked their films

44thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Reach · how many have seen their films

77thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 8

Midcredits score across 10 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up3
  • 50th to 74th3
  • 25th to 49th2
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

5 of their 10 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Divisive1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser5
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · producer

Civil War (or, Who Do We Think We Are) (2021)

96th percentile spread · 32% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · producer

Big Men (2013)

Midcredits 85th · 75% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 64/100 and the pacing 35/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Steven Shainberg's work okay for kids?

Across up to 5 MovieCove titles with content scores, 1 of the 4 categories sits near the median of all films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore3 titlesmedian 59 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity5 titles20–68 · median 31 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity3 titlesmedian 58 · moderateMedian of all films: 36
Frightening / Intense3 titlesmedian 51 · moderateMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Steven Shainberg work with?

People who share at least 2 of Steven Shainberg's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Christina Weiss Lurie shares the most, 4.

Writers

Composers

Producers