American playwright and screenwriter Tarell Alvin McCraney was BOTD in 1980. Born in Miami, Florida, he studied acting in DePaul University and playwriting at Yale School of Drama. In 2010, he joined the prestigious Steppenwolf Theatre Ensemble in Chicago. His plays include the Brother/Sister trilogy, re-setting Yoruba mythology in contemporary Louisiana; Choirboy, which was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play; and Ms Blakk for President, based on the true story of drag queen Joan Jett Black who ran for the US Presidency during the 1980s AIDS crisis. He is best known for co-writing the screenplay for Moonlight, based on his semi-autobiographical play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue about a young gay Black man’s painful coming-of-age. The resulting film, co-written and directed by Barry Jenkins, won the Oscar for Best Picture, with McCraney and Jenkins sharing the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. McCraney’s recent writing projects include the TV series David Makes Man and the 2019 sports film High Flying Bird. Openly gay since forever, his current relationship status is unknown.