Photo: Lyn Fairly Media / CC BY 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Siân Héder is a filmmaker I genuinely root for, because CODA felt like the kind of small, human story the industry usually overlooks until it sweeps the Oscars. Winning Best Adapted Screenplay while the film took Best Picture is a rare alignment, and it vindicated a quieter, more intimate approach to drama. I'd already taken note of her with Tallulah, which showed her instinct for messy, deeply felt characters. What I appreciate most is that she centered the deaf community without turning it into a lecture. That balance of warmth and craft is harder to pull off than the trophies suggest.
Overview
Siân Heder (; born June 23, 1977) is an American filmmaker who is best known for writing and directing the films Tallulah and CODA. CODA earned Heder an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The film also won the Academy Award for Best Picture and the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Troy Kotsur.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Siân Héder
- Name (Japanese)
- シアン・ヘダー
- Reading
- しあん・へだー
- Born
- June 23, 1977 (age 48)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Snake
- Origin
- Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- screenwriter / film director / filmmaker / actor / film producer
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Carnegie Mellon College of Fine Arts
Awards & achievements
- Peabody Awards
- 2022 Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay
- 2021 Crystal Award
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Tallulah | — |
6. Links
Screenwriter — see all → · Film director — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.