Christoph Silber
| Christoph Silber | |
|---|---|
 |
Christoph Silber is a screenwriter and film producer born in Berlin. One of Germany's leading screenwriters, he frequently collaborates on film projects in the United States, his adoptive home.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Raised in a German-English family, Silber studied English and French history and literature in Berlin and London. He worked as an actor, translator and journalist prior to his professional writing career. His adaptation of Puccini's Tosca for the Vienna Burgtheater in 1996 marked his debut as a playwright.
His screenwriting career began in the mid 90's with contributions to German television shows. A genre traveller, Silber worked as a head writer of sitcoms as well as crime series. Inspired by friends in the film business, he began to focus on writing feature films in the late 90's. His breakthrough came in 2001 when director Wolfgang Becker picked him as a co-writer for the final development phase of Good Bye, Lenin!,[1] which ended up winning multiple awards worldwide and breaking box office records for German language films. Since then he has collaborated on numerous films, including the award-winning North Face[2] and Arranged. Screen International listed him among the "hottest new screenwriters in Europe". Silber is a member of the German Film Academy and of the Writers Guild of America.
Together with his wife, a New York native, Silber moved to the United States in 2007 and founded the production company Silver Shepherd with writing and producing partner Stefan Schaefer in New York. For their 2010 film My Last Day Without You[3] starring Nicole Beharie and Ken Duken, the two also wrote the song lyrics collaborating with composer and producer Scott Jacoby. Based in Los Angeles since 2012, Silber continues to work on multiple projects with Schaefer.
From the early days of his career, Silber has been good friends with directors Philipp Stölzl, Christian Alvart and Academy Award winning filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff. In the late 2000s he worked on a script with Italian American film legend Terence Hill.
Teamed with Berlin associate Thorsten Wettcke, Silber wrote critically acclaimed episodes for Germany's legendary feature-length crime series Tatort. In 2008 the duo's new concept for the Hamburg Tatort was called "a triumph for German quality television" by Der Spiegel. In 2009 they received the Grimme Award, the highest honor in German television. Silber and Wettcke continue to collaborate on German-language feature films and TV series.
In 2011 the Vilcek Foundation honored Silber as "an immigrant filmmaker...whose creative spirit enlivens and inspires American cinema."
[edit] Filmography
[edit] Theatrical
- 2001: Brooklyn Bridge (short; writer)
- 2001: Julietta (writer)
- 2003: Good Bye, Lenin! (writer)
- 2004: The Ring Thing (writer, producer)
- 2006: Ice Wind (short; writer, director, actor)
- 2007: Arranged (script consultant)
- 2007: Mrs. Ratcliffe's Revolution (script consultant)
- 2008: Die Tränen meiner Mutter (writer)
- 2008: North Face (writer)
- 2010: Devil's Kickers (writer)
- 2010: The Albanian (writer)
- 2010: Young Goethe In Love (script consultant)
- 2011: My Last Day Without You (writer, producer)
[edit] Television
- 2000: Trivial Pursuit (writer)
- 2004: My Best Years (series; head writer)
- 2006-2010: Der Kriminalist (series; writer & head writer)
- 2006-today: Tatort (series, writer & head writer)
- 2010: Love Is Just A Word (writer)
- 2011: Girl On The Ocean Floor (writer)
- 2012: The Miracle Of Carinthia (writer)
[edit] Awards and nominations
- 2001 Brooklyn Film Festival: Best Film Julietta
- 2004 European Film Award: Best Screenplay, Best Film Good Bye, Lenin!
- 2005 Golden Globe Award: Best Foreign Film Good Bye, Lenin! (nominated)
- 2007 Brooklyn Film Festival: Best Film Arranged
- 2009 German Film Critics Award: Best Screenplay North Face
- 2009 Golden Camera: Best TV Film Tatort: Auf der Sonnenseite (nominated)
- 2009 Adolf Grimme Awards: Audience Award Tatort: Auf der Sonnenseite
- 2011 Max Ophüls Award: Best Film The Albanian
- 2011 Brooklyn Film Festival: Best Producer My Last Day Without You
- 2011 Hawaii International Film Festival: AIFP honoree, sponsored by the Vilcek Foundation
- 2012 Black Reel Awards: Best Independent Film My Last Day Without You
- 2012 Black Reel Awards: Best Original Song My Last Day Without You (nominated)
- 2012 Romy Award: Best Film The Miracle Of Carinthia
[edit] References
- ^ "Reelviews Good Bye Lenin Review". http://www.reelviews.net/movies/g/good_bye.html.
- ^ Holden, Stephen (2010-01-29). "New York Times North Face Review". The New York Times. http://movies.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/movies/29north.html. Retrieved 2010-04-30.
- ^ "Screen Daily My Last Day Without You announcement". http://www.screendaily.com/news/production/cameras-set-to-roll-on-us-german-romance-my-last-day-without-you/5015319.article.
[edit] External links
- Christoph Silber at the Internet Movie Database
- [1] Personal Blog
