Katja Blichfeld (born 1979) is an American writer, director, producer and casting director. She is known for co-creating and directing High Maintenance, a Vimeo web series and HBO television series. She won a Primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Casting on a Comedy Series for her work on 30 Rock.[1]
When Blichfeld was nine years old she wrote, filmed, and starred in a short film about the dangers of marijuana.[4]
In 2005, Blichfield began her casting career on Comedy Central's Roast of Jeff Foxworthy as an assistant. The next year, she worked as a casting associate on the mystery-thriller Freedomland.[5] In 2010, she transitioned from film to TV by joining Jennifer McNamara as a casting director for NBC’s 30 Rock.[1] She won an Emmy in 2013 and was nominated for two more in 2010 and 2011 for her work on 30 Rock.[6]
Blichfeld is the co-creator and director of the Vimeo and HBO television series High Maintenance. Blichfeld and her co-creator, Ben Sinclair, initially started the show as a passion project.[7] The pair were the sole writers for 18 of the 19 webisodes, which they produced for less than $1,000 apiece before it was picked up by HBO.[4] Prior to meeting Sinclair, Blichfeld had never professionally written or directed.[3]
Personal life
In 2009, Blichfeld met aspiring actor Ben Sinclair at a barbecue in Los Angeles.[8] They began writing together only days after becoming a couple and moved in together in the span of months.[2] In 2010, the pair married.[4] While on a bike ride across the Williamsburg Bridge in New York City, the couple devised the idea for High Maintenance.[2] They launched the show together in 2012.
The couple separated in 2016 following Blichfeld's admission of infidelity with a woman.[2] Their divorce was finalised prior to the commencement of season two of High Maintenance.[4] The pair continued to collaborate on three more seasons of High Maintenance, until the 2021 announcement of the show's indefinite hiatus.[9]
At 37, Blichfeld came out as a lesbian and began to openly date women.[1]
Blichfeld has been open about her struggles with anxiety and depression. A few years into High Maintenance's production, Blichfeld sought therapy and began taking antidepressants.[2] Following her coming out, Blichfeld’s struggles with anxiety began to subside. She no longer takes antidepressants, but still regularly goes to therapy.[2]
At the 2010 Primetime Emmy Awards, Blichfeld was nominated alongside Jennifer McNamara for Outstanding Casting For A Comedy Series for their work on 30 Rock. They were nominated for the same award in 2011 before finally winning in the same category in 2013.[6]
Blichfeld was awarded Stareable Fest's inaugural Creator Achievement Award in 2020 for creating High Maintenance.[10]
