Steve Zaillian

Steve Zaillian

Steven Zaillian is an award winning screenwriter, film director, editor and producer from Fresno, California. Though he has directed several feature films, he is most often cited as a screenwriter and has writing credit on Schindler's List, Gangs of New York and American Gangster.

Fast Facts

Born: January 30, 1953
Graduated from San Francisco State University
Of Armenian descent
Did uncredited rewrites on Patriot Games, Twister, Crimson Tide, Primal Fear and Amistad

Writing Accolades

Zaillian has received three Academy Award nominations for writing, winning one for his Schindler's List screenplay. The other two nominations were for Awakenings and Gangs of New York.

Several writers worked on a screenplay for Schindler's List before it fell to Zaillian. Thomas Keneally attempted to adapt his own novel. Out of Africa writer Kurt Luedtke wrote several drafts as well, eventually giving up on the project. The lack of a solid screenplay prevented directors Sydney Pollack and Martin Scorsese from working on the project. Steven Spielberg eventually settled on the project and used Zaillian's screenplay as his launching point.

As a Director

Zaillian has had mixed success as director of his own screenplays. Though both Searching for Bobby Fisher and A Civil Action received mostly positive reviews, they have not achieved the same status in the modern film canon as Schindler's List or Gangs of New York. Cinematographer Conrad L. Hall, however, received Oscar nominations for Zaillian's first two films.

Categories

Entertainment | Filmmakers and Producers | Film Directors and Producers | Screenwriters and Playwrights

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IMDb: Steven Zaillian
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Steve Zaillian News and Articles

IGN.com: IGN Chats With The Screenwriter Of American Gangster (November 2, 2007)
SFSU Magazine: "It's a Wrap" (June 14, 2006)
Boston Globe: Steve Zaillian Excerpts (September 22, 2006)
The Austin Chronicle: "Top Of His Craft: Writer and Director Steven Zaillian" (October 13, 2000)

Steve Zaillian Photos

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Steve Zaillian Videos

YouTube & Google Video: Steve Zaillian Search
Live Search Videos: Steve Zaillian
YouTube: American Gangster Trailer (Time: 1:55)
YouTube: All the King's Men Trailer (Time: 2:31)
YouTube: The Interpreter Trailer (Time: 2:00)
YouTube: Gangs of New York Trailer (Time: 2:25)
YouTube: Hannibal Trailer (Time: 2:19)

Steve Zaillian Gossip and Blogs

Screenhead.com: George W. Bush Documentary Inspires Romance Film - What?! (October 25, 2007)
Obsessed With Film: Zaillian Adapting A Thousand Splendid Suns (September 17, 2007)
Crushed by Inertia Blog: Two By Steven Zaillian (December 13, 2006)
Pop Machine Blog: Can All The King's Horses, Put This Career Back Together Again? (October 4, 2006)

Steve Zaillian Biographies and Profiles

Steve Zaillian Timeline

Note: Many of the links in this timeline are to IMDb, which has pop-ups.
January 30, 1953: Born
1985 The Falcon And The Snowman: IMDb
1990 Awakenings: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
1993 Schindler's List: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes | Mahalo
1996 Mission: Impossible: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
1998 A Civil Action: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
2001 Hannibal: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
2002 Gangs of New York: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
2005 The Interpreter: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
2006 All the King's Men: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes
2007 American Gangster: IMDb | Rotten Tomatoes | Mahalo

Steve Zaillian DVDs and Merchandise

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Half.com: Steve Zaillian Merchandise
DeepDiscount.com: Black Hawk Down: The Shooting Script
TBS Shop: Steven Zaillian Merchandise

Related Pages on Mahalo

American Gangster | Schindler's List | Ridley Scott | Denzel Washington | Russell Crowe | Chiwetel Ejiofor | Josh Brolin | Sean Penn | Jude Law | Anthony Hopkins | Kate Winslet | Julianne Moore | Ray Liotta | California | Armenia | Academy Awards | Golden Globe Awards