caption relations years_active children birth_place president party office parents birth_date term_start image article_title birth_name occupation
penn of walter mitty '' , 2013 new york film festival at the premiere of '' the secret life chris -rrb- penn -lrb- brother -rrb- michael penn -lrb- brother 1974 -- present dylan penn hopper penn los angeles county , california , united states michel martelly democrat ambassador-at-large for haiti leo penn eileen ryan 17 august 1960 january 31 , 2012 sean jpg penn by sachyn mital -lrb- cropped -rrb- . sean penn
 sean justin penn actor , filmmaker .
sean penn

sean justin penn -lrb- born august 17 , 1960 -rrb- is an american actor , film director and political activist .
he has won two academy awards , for his roles in the mystery drama `` mystic river '' -lrb- 2003 -rrb- and the biopic `` milk '' -lrb- 2008 -rrb- .
penn began his acting career in television with a brief appearance in a 1974 episode of `` little house on the prairie '' , directed by his father leo penn. .
following his film debut in 1981 's drama `` taps '' and a diverse range of film roles in the 1980s , including `` fast times at ridgemont high '' , penn garnered critical attention for his role in the crime drama `` carlito 's way '' -lrb- 1993 -rrb- .
he became known as a prominent leading actor with the 1995 drama `` dead man walking '' , for which he earned his first academy award nomination and the best actor award at the berlin film festival .
penn received another two oscar nominations for woody allen 's comedy-drama `` sweet and lowdown '' -lrb- 1999 -rrb- and the drama `` i am sam '' -lrb- 2001 -rrb- , before winning his first academy award for best actor in 2003 for `` mystic river '' and a second one in 2008 for `` milk '' .
he has also won a best actor award of the cannes film festival for the nick cassavetes-directed `` she 's so lovely '' -lrb- 1997 -rrb- , and two best actor awards at the venice film festival for the indie film `` hurlyburly '' -lrb- 1998 -rrb- and the drama `` 21 grams '' -lrb- 2003 -rrb- .
penn made his feature film directorial debut with 1991 's `` the indian runner '' , followed by the drama film `` the crossing guard '' -lrb- 1995 -rrb- and the mystery film `` the pledge '' -lrb- 2001 -rrb- .
in 2002 , penn directed one of the 11 segments of `` 11 ' 09 `` 01 september 11 '' , a compilation film made in response to the september 11 attacks .
his fourth feature film , the biographical drama survival movie `` into the wild '' -lrb- 2007 -rrb- , garnered critical acclaim and two academy award nominations .
in addition to his film work , penn is known for his political and social activism , most notably his criticism of the george w. bush administration , his contact with the presidents of venezuela and cuba , and his humanitarian work in the aftermath of hurricane katrina and the 2010 haiti earthquake .
penn also attracted media attention for his previous marriages to madonna and actress robin wright .
