Florian Zeller

Florian Zeller
Zeller in 2009 Zeller in 2009
Born	(1979-06-28) 28 June 1979 Paris, France
Occupation	Novelist, Playwright
Nationality	French
Genre	literary fiction, theatre, librettos
Literary movement	Postmodernism
Years active	2002–present

Florian Zeller (born 28 June 1979) is a French novelist and playwright. His work has been translated into many languages. He won the prestigious Prix Interallié in 2004 for his novel La Fascination du Pire ("Fascination of Evil") and several Moliere Awards for his plays. He is, according to The Independent, "one of the hottest literary talents in France".

Biography

Zeller wrote his first novel Artificial Snow when he was twenty-two years old. Shortly thereafter, he was asked to teach at his Alma Mater. He taught literature at Sciences-Po for a few years. His second novel, Lovers or Something Like it was well received but it was his third novel, Fascination of Evil (the 2004 Prix Interallié winner) which made him a household name in France. The book, which explores the relationship of the West with Islam, caused some controversy. It was selected for the Prix Goncourt. Julien Parme, a first-person tale of an adolescent's fugue through Paris, was a departure from his earlier, more overtly sexual and intellectual, novels.

Zeller is also fast becoming one of France's most well-known contemporary playwrights. His first play, L'Autre, ("The Other") has had several runs. His third play, Si tu mourais ("If you were to die") was nominated for a Globe de Cristal' in France. "Elle t'attend", starring actress and model Laetitia Casta, opened in Paris in autumn 2008. La Mère ("The Mother") in 2011 received a Molière Award and La Vérité was a huge success in France and in Europe.

His work for the stage, Le Père ("The Father"), won the 2014 Molière Award for Best Play. The Molieres are considered France's highest theatrical honour.

Well-known actors such as Catherine Frot, Pierre Arditi, Fabrice Luchini, Daniel Auteuil and Robert Hirsch worked with him. His plays are translated by Christopher Hampton.

Personal life

Zeller lives in Paris. He is married to ex-model, actress and sculptor Marine Delterme, who played one of the main roles in the Parisian production of his play 'Le Manège´. They have a son, Roman, born in December 2008.

Novels

(and UK/US translations)

• Neiges artificielles, Flammarion, 2002 - translated as Artificial Snow, Pushkin Press
• Les Amants du n’importe quoi, Flammarion, 2003 - translated as Lovers or Something Like it', Pushkin Press
• La Fascination du pire, Flammarion, 2004 (Prix Interallié) - translated as The Fascination of Evil, Pushkin Press
• Julien Parme, Flammarion, 2006 - translated by William Rodarmor, Other Press
• La Jouissance, Gallimard, 2012

Plays

• L'Autre - 2004
• Le Manège - 2005
• Si tu mourais - 2006 (Prix Jeune Théâtre of the Académie française)
• Elle t'attend - 2008
• La Mère - 2010
• La Vérité - 2011
• Le Père - 2012
• Une Heure de tranquillité - 2013 (adapted into the 2014 film Do Not Disturb)
• Le Mensonge - 2014
• L'Envers du décor - 2016

References

• Flammarion (in French) [1]
• Flammarion foreign rights ( description of novels in English, and rights sold - but does seem out of date; ex. no mention of Julien Parme US rights having been sold) [2]
• New Statesman [3] and [4]
• The Independent [5]
• Other Press []
• Fondation Jean-Luc Lagardère [6]

External links

• Florian Zeller at IMDb