Sofia Coppola the top prize at the Venice Film Festival. In 2013, she directed the satirical crime film "The Bling Ring", based on the crime ring of the same name. At the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, Coppola became the second woman (and the first American woman) in the festival's history to win the Best Director award, for the drama film "The Beguiled". Sofia Coppola was born in New York City, the youngest child and only daughter of set decorator/artist Eleanor Coppola (née Neil) and director Francis Ford Coppola. Her father is of Italian descent. She was raised on her parents' farm in
Francis Ford Coppola began filming "Apocalypse Now", an adaptation of Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" set in Cambodia during the Vietnam War (Coppola himself briefly appears as a TV news director). The production of the film was plagued by numerous problems, including typhoons, nervous breakdowns, the firing of Harvey Keitel, Martin Sheen's heart attack, extras from the Philippine military and half of the supplied helicopters leaving in the middle of scenes to go fight rebels and an unprepared Brando with a bloated appearance (which Coppola attempted to hide by shooting him in the shadows). It was delayed so often it was nicknamed "Apocalypse