David Kross
| David Kross | |
|---|---|
 Kross at 2009 Berlin International Film Festival |
|
| Born | David Kroß July 4, 1990 Henstedt-Ulzburg, Germany |
| Other names | David Kross |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2002–present |
David Kross (born July 4, 1990) is a German actor. He is best known internationally for his role as Michael Berg in The Reader.
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[edit] Early life
Kross was born in Henstedt-Ulzburg, 20 miles north of Hamburg. He grew up in Bargteheide, where he attended Eckhorst High School[1] until 2007. He has two brothers and one sister. He played basketball at the professional TSV between 2004 and 2006.
[edit] Career
His career started with a small appearance in the 2002 film Hilfe, ich bin ein Junge (English: Help, I'm a Boy!).[2] In December 2003, he joined Blaues Wölkchen, a small group from a children's theatre in Bargteheide. His first major theatrical appearance was in Auftritt in Kirsten Martensens Inszenierung Von Hilfe.[citation needed]
In 2005, Kross came to the attention of Detlev Buck through his daughter Bernadette, and auditioned for Tough Enough;[3] Buck hired Kross to play the lead,[4] a 15-year-old boy who moves with his mother from a rich neighborhood of Berlin (Zehlendorf) to the Neukoelln area, known at the time for its high number of Turkish immigrants and high crime level. Kross not only won praise at Berlinale in 2006, but also won Best Actor in Nuremberg at the 11th Filmfestival Deutschland/Tuerkei.[5]
In 2006, Kross worked again with Buck in the film Hands Off Mississippi (Hände weg von Mississippi in German), playing a baker apprentice. In the fall of the same year, he started shooting a film by Marco Kreuzpaintner, Krabat (The Satanic Mill in English). In this version of Otfried Preußler's children's book, Kross plays the title role, one of the apprentices of magic, with co-stars Daniel Brühl and Robert Stadlober. The film was released on September 19, 2007 in movie festivals and in October 2008 in theatres.
In September 2007,[6] The Reader began shooting in Berlin, Cologne,[7] and Gorlitz. In Stephen Daldry's adaption of the best-selling novel by Bernhard Schlink, Kross plays the lead role of Michael Berg, opposite Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes and Bruno Ganz. He had to learn to speak English to appear in the film.[8] The world premiere was at the Ziegfeld Theater in New York on December 3, 2008. The film was presented in the 2009 Berlinale but did not compete. In May 2009, Kross was honored for his performance in The Reader at the 62nd Cannes Festival, winning the Chopard trophy. Kross was nominated for an European Film Award as best actor.
His next work was in Same Same But Different (2009), again with Buck directing. The script is based on an autobiographical article by Benjamin Prüfer.
In July 2010, it was announced that Kross had been cast in Steven Spielberg's film, War Horse.[9] Filming started in August 2010, in Dartmoor, Devon, U.K. and the film was released in December 2011.[10]
[edit] Personal life
In 2009, Kross started a 3-year course of studies at London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).[11] His plan was to improve his acting skills and his English. However he dropped out at the end of the same year. Since then, he has been living in Berlin-Charlottenburg.
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Hilfe, ich bin ein Junge | Paddy | Help, I'm a Boy! |
| 2003 | Adam & Eva | Adams Sohn | Austrian film |
| 2006 | Knallhart | Michael Polischka | Tough Enough |
| 2007 | Hände weg von Mississippi | Bäckerlehrling Bröckel | Hands off Mississippi |
| 2008 | Krabat | Krabat | Adapted from a German language novel Krabat (The Satanic Mill in English) by Otfried Preußler |
| The Reader | Young Michael Berg | Las Vegas Film Critics Award for Youth in Film Nominated – Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Young Performer Nominated – Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Nominated – European Film Award for Best Actor |
|
| 2009 | Same Same But Different | Ben | Received Variety Piazza Grande Award at the International Film Festival organised in Locarno. |
| 2011 | Das Blaue vom Himmel[12] | Young Osvalds Kalnins | |
| War Horse[13] | Gunther | ||
| 2012 | Comrade[14] | Josef Auchtor | Filming |
[edit] Awards
- At the 11th Germany/Turkey Film Festival in Nuremberg, David won his first award as "Actor in a Leading Role" for his performance in Detlev Bucks Tough Enough ("Knallhart" in German).
- 2009 Shooting Stars Award, at the Berlin International Film Festival, annual acting awards for up-and-coming actors by European Film Promotion.
- 2010 Shooting Stars Award at Romy TV-Awards, together with Cristiana Capotondi.
[edit] References
- ^ Ruth Kastner: Bargteheide conquered Berlin. Hamburger Abendblatt, February 14, 2006.
- ^ "Hilfe, ich bin ein Junge (2002)". IMDb.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475317/.
- ^ "Knallhart (2006)". IMDb.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475317/.
- ^ "Teenage Talent of the 2000s". Spiegel. 6 January 2010. http://www.spiegel.de/schulspiegel/leben/0,1518,667188-12,00.html.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "Principal photography begins on "The Reader" in Berlin". Studio Babelsberg. 1 October 2007. http://www.studiobabelsberg.com/en/public-relations/press-releases/newsdetails/?tx_ttnews%5Bpointer%5D=11&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=80&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=49&cHash=012ee063d011e003f8b368b28bf3275e.
- ^ vgl. Meldung at WDR, March 3, 2008[dead link]
- ^ Kaminer, Ariel Translating Love and the Unspeakable. New York Times. December 5, 2008.
- ^ Exclusive: War Horse Cast Announced. Empireonline.com. Retrieved on 2012-01-13.
- ^ Spilligan, Mike. (2010-08-03) Steven Spielberg pictured filming new blockbuster War Horse on Dartmoor. Thisisplymouth.co.uk. Retrieved on 2012-01-13.
- ^ [2][dead link]
- ^ "Das Blaue von Himmel (2011)". IMDb.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1620444/.
- ^ "War Horse (2011)". IMDb.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1568911/.
- ^ "COMRADE – DIRECTOR'S NOTE". http://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/showthread.php?p=4547567.
