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Marc Forster

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Not to be confused with Mark Forster, Mac Foster, or Marc Hostert.
Marc Forster
Forster in 2013
Born (1969-01-27) 27 January 1969 (age 55)
Illertissen, Neu-Ulm, Bavaria, West Germany
NationalitySwiss
Occupations
  • Film director
  • film producer
  • screenwriter
Years active1995–present

Marc Forster (born 30 November 1969) is a Swiss filmmaker. He is best known for directing the feature films Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland, Stranger than Fiction, Quantum of Solace, World War Z, and Christopher Robin, and has directed numerous television commercials as well. He is a BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Independent Spirit Award nominee.

Life and career

Forster was born on 30 November 1969 in Au (today Illertissen), in the Neu-Ulm district of Bavaria, Germany. His parents, a German doctor and a Swiss architect moved to Switzerland when Forster was 9 years old. He spent his adolescence in Davos, a winter resort in eastern Switzerland, and as well as at the international boarding school Institut Montana Zugerberg in central Switzerland.

In 1990, when he was 20 years old, Forster moved to New York, in the United States. For the next three years, he attended New York University's film school, making several documentary films. In 1995, he moved to Hollywood and shot an experimental low-budget film for $10,000 called Loungers, which won the Audience Award at the Slamdance Film Festival.[1] Forster's first feature-length motion picture was the psychological drama Everything Put Together (2000), which was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.[2]

His breakthrough film was Monster's Ball (2001), in which he directed Halle Berry in her Academy Award-winning performance as the wife of a man on death row. The film also starred Billy Bob Thornton, Heath Ledger, Peter Boyle, and Sean Combs. His next film, Finding Neverland (2004), was based on the life of author J.M. Barrie. The film was nominated for five Golden Globe Awards and seven Academy Awards, including the Best Picture. Forster received BAFTA, Directors Guild of America, and Golden Globe nominations for his direction.

Forster's next film, the thriller Stay (2005) starred Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts and grossed $8 million (USD) in the United States on an estimated budget of $50 million.[3] Stranger than Fiction (2006), a surreal romantic comedy starring Will Ferrell, was a critical success.[4] The film grossed $54 million worldwide [5] and earned Will Ferrell a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

Forster then directed an adaptation of best-seller Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner, scripted by repeat collaborator David Benioff and starring British newcomer Khalid Abdalla. The film follows an Afghani-American man who returns to his war-ravaged country to save the son of his former best friend. The Kite Runner was released on December 14, 2007, and grossed $73 million worldwide.[6] It also earned a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film and a BAFTA bid for Film Not In the English Language.

Additionally, Forster directed the 22nd James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, which began shooting on January 2, 2008, shortly after his 38th birthday, making him the youngest director in the series' history (beating the previous record set by Guy Hamilton, who was 41 when he directed Goldfinger five years before Forster's birth). Quantum of Solace was released in the United Kingdom on October 31, 2008.[7][8] It became one of the highest grossing Bond films in the franchise's history, with a worldwide box office of more than $586 million.[9]

Marc Forster on set shooting Quantum of Solace.

Forster directed the film adaptation of the novel World War Z, starring Brad Pitt, which Paramount announced at the July 2010 San Diego Comic-Con.[10] The film opened June 21, 2013 to more than $66 million and has grossed more than $540 million worldwide. To date, it is the highest-grossing film of Brad Pitt's career and is the most successful Zombie movie of all time.[11]

Forster directed his screenplay of All I See Is You, a visually driven drama following a blind woman (Blake Lively) and her husband (Jason Clarke) who, upon the restoration of her sight, begin to discover previously unseen and disturbing details about themselves and their marriage, released in 2016.

In November 2016, Walt Disney Pictures announced that Forster would direct the live-action film adaptation of Winnie the Pooh, which was titled Christopher Robin. The film had its world premiere on July 30, 2018, and was theatrically released on August 3, 2018.[12] Forster along with Will Smith bought German rights group Telepool in June 2018.[13][14]

In October 2020, Mattel announced that Forster will be directing and producing an animated/live-action Thomas & Friends film based on the franchise of the same name.[15]

In January 2022, it was announced that Forster would reunite with Finding Neverland screenwriter David Magee and direct A Man Called Otto, an English-language remake of the Swedish film A Man Called Ove starring Tom Hanks.[16] Filming began in February 2022 in Pittsburgh, while Sony Pictures acquired the worldwide distribution rights for $60 million at the European Film Market, the highest-ever figure paid at the market for a film, for theatrical release in December 2022.[17][18] In July, Forster was announced as directing an adaptation of the Neil Gaiman fantasy novel The Graveyard Book for Walt Disney Pictures.[19]

Filmography

Films

Year Title Director Producer Writer Notes
1995 Loungers Yes No Yes Co-wrote with Sebastian Roche
2000 Everything Put Together Yes No Yes Co-wrote with Adam Forgash and Catherine Lloyd Burns
2001 Monster's Ball Yes No No
2004 Finding Neverland Yes No No Cameo as "Costume Room Worker"
2005 Stay Yes No No
2006 Stranger than Fiction Yes No No
2007 The Kite Runner Yes No No
2008 Quantum of Solace Yes No No
2011 Machine Gun Preacher Yes Yes No
2013 World War Z Yes Executive No
2016 All I See Is You Yes Yes Yes Co-wrote with Sean Conway
2018 Christopher Robin Yes No No
2022 A Man Called Otto Yes Executive No
2023 White Bird: A Wonder Story Yes No No Post-production
2024 Thomas & Friends: The Movie Yes Yes No

Producer

Executive producer

Short films

Year Title Director Producer Writer
2009 LX Forty Yes Yes Yes
2017 The Receipt: Lost & Found Yes No No

Television

Year Title Director Executive
Producer 		Notes
2014–17 Hand of God Yes Yes 20 episodes (executive producer);
2 episodes (director)

Awards

Title Notes
Everything Put Together Independent Spirit Award for Someone to Watch Award
Finding Neverland Nominated- BAFTA Award for Best Direction
Nominated- Golden Globe Award for Best Director
Nominated- DGA for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film
Nominated- Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Director

References

  1. ^ Clement, Nick (24 January 2019). "Slamdance's Greatest Hits". Variety. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  2. ^ "Sundance films in competition". CNN. 21 January 2000. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  3. ^ "Stay (2005) - Weekend Box Office Results - Box Office Mojo". www.boxofficemojo.com.
  4. ^ https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/stranger_than_fiction/ Rotten Tomatoes
  5. ^ https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=strangerthanfiction.htm Box office data at Box Office Mojo
  6. ^ "The Kite Runner (2007) - Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com.
  7. ^ "Forster back in action with 'Bond 22'". The Hollywood Reporter. 2007-06-19. Archived from the original on 2007-06-30. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
  8. ^ "New Bond film title is confirmed". BBC News Online. 2008-01-24. Retrieved 2008-01-24.
  9. ^ "Quantum of Solace (2008) - Box Office Mojo". boxofficemojo.com.
  10. ^ "Brad Pitt Officially Cast in Marc Forster's World War Z Movie «". Firstshowing.net. Retrieved 2010-09-25.
  11. ^ "The Highest-Grossing Zombie Movies of All Time". www.workandmoney.com. Retrieved 2021-08-23.
  12. ^ Kit, Borys (2016-11-18). "Marc Forster to Direct Live-Action Movie About Winnie the Pooh's Pal, 'Christopher Robin' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2016-11-18.
  13. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (2018-06-26). "Will Smith, Marc Forster Acquire German Film Distributor Telepool GmbH". Deadline. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  14. ^ "Will Smith and Director Marc Forster Buy German Rights Group Telepool". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  15. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (October 6, 2020). "Thomas & Friends New Movie In The Works From Mattel Films & Marc Forster's 2Dux²". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
  16. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (January 18, 2022). "Marc Forster To Direct Tom Hanks In 'A Man Called Ove' With SF Studios, Rita Wilson & Playtone Producing David Magee Script". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 13, 2022.
  17. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (January 31, 2022). "STX & CAA Board Sales On Tom Hanks Comedy 'A Man Called Otto' Ahead Of Pennsylvania Shoot; Supporting Cast Revealed For EFM Hot Pic". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  18. ^ Wiseman, Andreas; Fleming Jr., Mike (10 February 2022). "Tom Hanks Comedy 'Man Called Otto' Sells To Sony For $60M". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  19. ^ Kroll, Justin (July 19, 2022). "Marc Forster And Producing Partner Renée Wolfe Developing Adaptation Of Neil Gaiman's 'The Graveyard Book' At Disney". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
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