Profile of Helen Shaver on Famous Like Me

Helen Shaver (born February 24, 1951 in St. Thomas, Ontario Canada) is a Canadian actress and film and television director.

Shaver has worked with such directors as Sam Peckinpah, Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Brian De Palma. In 1978 she won a Canadian Film Award for her role as Ann MacDonald in the film In Praise of Older Women. In 1985 she appeared in the film Desert Hearts as a 1950s university professor who falls in love with another woman, for which she won the Bronze Leopard Award at the Locarno International Film Festival. In 2000, she won a Genie Award for her portrayal of a drug-addicted prostitute in the independent feature We All Fall Down. In 2003 she won a Gemini award for best direction in a dramatic series for the Just Cause television series.

Shaver grew up in a small town near Toronto, Ontario with her five sisters. As a child, she suffered from rheumatic fever and was forced to spend six months of each year in bed. She says this allowed her to use her imagination, which helps her as an actor.

Shaver has also carved out a career for herself as a director with a number of television shows and cable movies to her credit, including Judging Amy, Joan of Arcadia, Dead Like Me and The OC.

Shaver made her feature-length directorial debut in 1999 with Summer's End; the film went on to win an Emmy. Most recently, she joined the staff of the hit CBS series Judging Amy. In addition to directing some of this season's episodes, she is now one of the show's producers.

Shaver is married to top key grip Steve Smith (whom she met on the set of Desert Hearts) and they have a son.

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