Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

Infobox Actor
bgcolour = silver
name = Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck


birthdate = birth date and age|1973|05|02
location = Cologne, Germany
birthname = Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
spouse = Christiane von Donnersmarck
yearsactive = 1996 - present
academyawards = Best Foreign Language Film
2007 "The Lives of Others"
baftaawards = Best Foreign Film
2007 "The Lives of Others"

Florian Maria Georg Christian Graf Henckel von Donnersmarck (b. May 2 1973, Cologne) is an Academy Award-winning German director and screenwriter.

Personal life

He grew up in New York, Brussels, Frankfurt and West Berlin and speaks English, German, French, Russian and Italian fluently. After graduating from high school at the top of his class, he studied Russian Literature in Leningrad for two years and passed the Soviet State Exam for Teachers of Russian as a Foreign Language. Florian holds an MA Oxon from his studies in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Oxford University (New College). He also holds a Diploma in Film Directing from the University of Television and Film Munich.

Florian is the son of Leo-Ferdinand Graf Henckel von Donnersmarck, a former President of the German division of the Order of Malta and Anna Maria von Berg. He holds German as well as Austrian citizenships, although he has never lived in Austria. He is the younger brother of Sebastian Graf Henckel von Donnersmarck. His uncle, Gregor Henckel-Donnersmarck, is a Cistercian abbot. To write the first draft of "Das Leben der Anderen", he spent a month at Heiligenkreuz Abbey in the Vienna Woods, which is led by his uncle.

Florian and his wife, Christiane (née Asschenfeldt), have three children: Lara Cosima (born in 2003), Leo Sylvester (born in 2005) and Alexis Jaguar (born in 2007). They live in Los Angeles, where Florian is writing an English-language screenplay. He is also very tall, standing 2.05 m (6' 9"). [ [http://blog.oregonlive.com/madaboutmovies/2007/02/the_lives_of_others_florian_he.html Interview: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck of "The Lives of Others" - OregonLive.com: Mad About Movies ] ]

Work

In 1996, he won a directing internship with Richard Attenborough on "In Love and War", and then went to study at the Fiction Directing Class of the Hochschule für Fernsehen und Film München (University of Television and Film Munich), Germany, alma mater of directors as diverse as Wim Wenders and Roland Emmerich.

His feature film "Das Leben der Anderen" ("The Lives of Others") won the European Film Award for Best Film, Best Actor and Best Screenplay in 2006. Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck went on to win the Los Angeles Film Critics Association's award for Best Foreign Film, was nominated for the Golden Globe (which went to Clint Eastwood instead), and on February 25 2007 won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

In June 2007, Henckel von Donnersmarck was invited to join AMPAS. [ [http://www.oscars.org/press/pressreleases/2007/07.06.18.html Academy Invites 115 to Become Members ] ]

Filmography

*2005 – "Das Leben der Anderen" ("The Lives of Others") - writer/director, co-producer
*1999 – "Dobermann" - writer/director, producer, editor

Awards

*2008 - BAFTA for "The Lives of Others"
*2008 - César Award for "The Lives of Others"
*2008 - New York Film Critics Circle Award for "The Lives of Others"
*2007 - Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film for "The Lives of Others"
*2007 - Los Angeles Film Critics Association for "The Lives of Others"
*2006 – European Film Awards for "The Lives of Others"
**"Best Film"
**"Best Screenplay"
*2006 - Deutscher Filmpreis (German Film Award) for "Das Leben der Anderen" ("The Lives of Others")
**"Best Direction"
**"Best Screenplay"
*2005 - Bavarian Film Award, Best Screenplay [ [http://www.bayern.de/Pressemitteilungen-.1255.19185/index.htm] ]
*2000 – Universal Studios Germany, Shocking Shorts Award for "Dobermann"
**"Best Short Film"
*2000 – Max Ophüls-Preis for "Dobermann"
**"Best Short Film"

Honours

*Commander of the Bavarian Order of Merit
*Commander of the Northrhine-Westfalian Order of Merit
*Voting Member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Literature

* Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck: "Das Leben der anderen." Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 2006, ISBN 3-518-45786-1
* Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck: "Das Leben der anderen. Geschwärzte Ausgabe." Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 2007, ISBN 3-518-45908-2

Notes

German title Graf When asked by talk show host Michael Naumann if he wanted to be addressed as "Your Highness Count Henckel von Donnersmarck", von Donnersmarck replied that, following the example of Richard Freiherr von Weizsäcker, (who wanted to be referred to only as "Mr. von Weizsäcker", although he was a Baron), he was happy to be called "Mr. von Donnersmarck" on formal occasions.

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0003697|name=Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
* [http://www.german-cinema.de/en/germanfilmsquaterly/seriesgermandirectors/florianhenckelvondonnersmarck/index.html Biography and Interview] in "German Films Quarterly"
* [http://www.donnersmarck.com photographs of Donnersmarck] on official site
* [http://www.indiewire.com/people/2007/02/people_florian.html Interview] in indieWIRE