Early life

Davis was born the second out of four children in Studio City, California. She was exposed to the media industry at an early age by her grandfather, a comedy writer, and her grandmother, who was an actress at Fox. Davis and her family constantly watched films and she aspired to become an actress. In the 11th grade, Davis dropped out of high school and met Egyptian film producer Ibrahim Moussa. Ibrahim took Davis to Italy for six months to work.

Returning to the U.S., Davis worked at an art gallery but soon quit to work at American Zoetrope in an apprentice position. The studio was struggling to complete Francis Ford Coppola's Waterloo, "One From the Heart"; the hectic schedule allowed Davis to study Coppola's directing and the business. Coppola suggested to Davis that she go to school, at which point she then attended Los Angeles City College.

Career

As soon as she got out of school, Davis sent out a package of videos that she had done and was hired to do a video for the band Hüsker Dü. Davis states that music videos "played a huge role in developing my sensibility as a director. There's much less sexism in the video world and they're open to women. But more important, with video you're always being pushed to experiment and come up with something new." Over the past seven years, Tamra Davis has made a name for herself directing cutting-edge videos for some of the thorniest acts in popular music. As director of choice for performers such as N.W.A, Sonic Youth, and Black Flag. Davis is also known for directing films such as "Jean Michel Basquiat-The Radiant Child",CB4, Billy Madison, and Half Baked and television shows such as My Name Is Earl and Everybody Hates Chris. She also directed the film Crossroads, starring Britney Spears. Currently, Davis has a cooking show showcasing vegetarian fare called Tamra Davis Cooking Show accessible on her website www.tamradaviscookingshow.com. She also wrote a cookbook titled "Make Me Something Good to Eat".

Personal life

Davis has been married to Mike D of the Beastie Boys since 1993. They have two children, Skyler and Davis.

Praise

Davis' debut feature film Guncrazy received a review saying that "in Guncrazy, Davis delivers pow entertainment with a twist: It matters." Davis' co-worker Drew Barrymore praised her work ethic: "It's a real honor and much of the credit goes to Tamra because she's easily the best director I've ever worked with. Anyone who gets to work with her is lucky because the scope of her talent is huge and her vision is really pure."

Work

Books

• Make Me Something Good to Eat (2009)

Selected filmography

• Guncrazy (1992)
• CB4 (1993)
• No Alternative Girls (1993) (short film)
• Billy Madison (1995)
• Best Men (1997)
• Half-Baked (1998)
• Skipped Parts (2000)
• Crossroads (2002)
• Keep Your Eyes Open (2002) (documentary)
• Method & Red (2004) (TV)
• My Name Is Earl (2005) (TV)
• Everybody Hates Chris (2006) (TV)
• Love Monkey (2006) (TV)
• Men in Trees (2006) (TV)
• Ugly Betty (2007) (TV)
• Grey's Anatomy (2007) (TV)
• The Ex List (2008) (TV)
• Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child (2010)
• Sons of Tucson (2010) (TV)
• The Punk Singer (2013) (documentary)

Music videos

• Depeche Mode - "But Not Tonight" (1986)
• 54-40 - "Baby Ran" (1986)
• Faith No More - "Anne's Song" (1988)
• The Bangles - "In Your Room" (1988)
• Tone Lōc - "Wild Thing" (1988)
• Indigo Girls - "Closer to Fine" (1989)
• The D.O.C. - "It's Funky Enough" (1989)
• The D.O.C. - "The D.O.C. & The Doctor" (1989)
• MC Lyte - "Cha Cha Cha" (1989)
• Young MC - "Bust a Move" (1989)
• Young MC - "Principal's Office" (1989)
• Bette Midler - "From a Distance" (1990)
• Sonic Youth - "Kool Thing" (1990)
• Sonic Youth - "Dirty Boots" (1991)
• Beastie Boys - "Netty's Girl" (1992)
• Sonic Youth - "100%" (with Spike Jonze) (1992)
• Luscious Jackson - "Daughters of the Kaos" (1992)
• Cher (with Beavis & Butt-Head) - "I Got You, Babe" (1993)
• The Lemonheads - "It's About Time" (1993)
• The Lemonheads - "Big Gay Heart" (1994)
• Sonic Youth - "Bull in the Heather" (1994)
• Luscious Jackson - "City Song" (1994)
• Veruca Salt - "All Hail Me" (1995)
• Hanson - "MMMBop" (1997)
• Hanson - "Where's the Love" (1997)
• Tatyana Ali - "Boy, You Knock Me Out" (1998)
• Luscious Jackson - "Ladyfingers" (1999)

[ Source: Wikipedia ]