Til Schweiger

Date of Birth

19 December 1963, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany

Birth Name

Tilman Valentin Schweiger

Height

5' 10" (1.78 m)

Actor, producer, writer and director Til Schweiger is Germany's most successful filmmaker and biggest movie star. With more than 51 Million admissions no other German filmmaker drew more people to the cinemas. He runs his own production company Barefoot Films in Berlin.

Born in Freiburg, Germany on December 19th in 1963, Til Schweiger was raised along with his two brothers in his hometown Giessen, Germany. Schweiger went on to attend University, where he studied German and Medicine. Collecting first acting experiences during this time, he decided to give up University for drama school in 1986. After graduation in 1989 he played at several theaters in Cologne and Bonn.

In front of the screen, Schweiger first appeared as an actor in 1991 in Manta, Manta (1991). Supported by his mentor, Germanys biggest Filmproducer Bernd Eichinger, he had his breakthrough role in Maybe... Maybe Not (1994). Following this role, Schweiger developed quite a fan base and began appearing on lists everywhere. His film career continued with big roles in several successful German movies.

In 1995 Schweiger married American model Dana Carlson on June 19th. A few months later their first child Valentin Florian was born.

In 1996 Schweiger was the first foreign actor who won the "Polish Oscar" at the International Warsaw Filmfestival for his performance in Bandyta (1997). In 1997 Schweigers first daughter, Luna Marie was born. In the same year, short before Christmas, Schweiger went to a bookstore to buy presents for his family. The same did Thomas Jahn who had written several scripts. They started talking and ended up making a movie together. Knockin' on Heaven's Door (1997) was Schweiger's debut as a producer and (uncredited) director. The film remains a cult favorite for audiences worldwide.

In 1998 his and Danas third child, Lilli Camille was born. In the same year Schweiger appeared in two remarkable international productions The Replacement Killers (1998) and SLC Punk! (1998). A wide range of American films were following. In 2002 his youngest daughter Emma was born.

Shooting successfully all over the world, Til and Dana Schweiger separated in 2005, but have not divorced.

In the same year Schweiger won numerous Awards for Barfuss (2005) in 2005 which he wrote, directed and starred in.

This absolute artistic freedom became a prosperous model for his following projects. The most famous one was Rabbit Without Ears (2007) which was also written, produced and directed by Schweiger and became the most successful film in German Theaters in 2008 with a box office result of USD 58.000.000. The film won a Bambi Award, a Bavarian Film Award, the German Comedy Award, two DIVA Awards, a Jupiter Award and the Ernst Lubitsch Award.

As an actor he received much attention on his big screen appearance as the legendary Hugo Stieglitz in Quentin Tarantinos Inglourious Basterds (2009). During this year he achieved more admissions than any other German actor since 1968, when the FFA started counting.

His latest film and seventh work as a director, co-writer, producer and actor is called Kokowääh (2011). The film is co-starring his youngest daughter Emma and a huge success in when it started in February 2011. IMDb Mini Biography By: Barefoot Films GmbH

Spouse

Dana Carlsen

(19 June 1995 - present) (separated) 4 children

Trivia

He and his wife Dana Carlsen have 4 children: Valentin Schweiger (born in 1995), Luna Schweiger (born in 1997), Lilli Schweiger (born in 1998) and Emma Schweiger (born in October 2002).

After studying German at the university for two years to become a teacher, he attended acting lessons at a drama school in Cologne.

Turned down the role of the German soldier, who shoots Tom Hanks's character (Captain John H. Miller) in Saving Private Ryan (1998) because he had reservations about the role's effect on his image at the American audience.

Lives in Berlin, Germany (2007).

First non-Polish actor who received the Best Actor Award at the Polish Film Festival (1998) for his role in Bandyta (1997).

After the separation from his wife Dana, he moved to Berlin (2006).

Attended acting lessons at "Der Keller" in Cologne and graduated in 1989.

His parents both were teachers.

Although being a box office hit in Germany, his movie Rabbit Without Ears (2007) wasn't nominated for a German Film Award. The reason for this was that the German Film Academy didn't accept watermarked DVDs for the jury. But Warner Bros. does not distribute copies to juries without anti-piracy measures. Thus, he angrily left the German Film Academy, but finally decided to re-enter some weeks later (2008).

He runs his own production company Barefoot Films in Berlin.

Emmy Rossum

Emmanuelle Grey "Emmy" Rossum (born September 12, 1986) is an American actress and singer-songwriter. She first starred in a string of movies including Songcatcher (2000), An American Rhapsody (2001) and Passionada (2002). Her role in Mystic River (2003) garnered her wider fame.

She then starred in the blockbuster film The Day After Tomorrow (2004) and The Phantom of the Opera (2004) for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe.

She has since starred in Poseidon (2006), Dragonball: Evolution (2009) and Dare (2009). Rossum has since joined the cast of the Showtime television drama series Shameless in a leading role. The series, which stars William H. Macy, premiered in January 2011.

In 2007, Rossum released her debut album, Inside Out. She also released a Christmas EP the same year titled Carol of the Bells.

Rossum was born in New York City, New York,the only child of Cheryl, a single mother who worked as a corporate photographer and an investment banker. She was named after her grandfather, whose first name was Emanuel, using the feminine spelling Emmanuelle.Rossum was raised by her mother and has only met her father twice. She is the niece of Vera Wang, to whom she is related by marriage. Her mother is Jewish and her father is "a WASP".Rossum's parents divorced before she was born.

Upon singing "Happy Birthday" in all 12 keys, Rossum was welcomed to join the Metropolitan Opera Children's Chorus by chorus director Elena Doria at the age of 7. Over the course of five years, she sang onstage with the chorus and had the chance to perform with other opera greats, such as Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti.

For $5–10 a night, Rossum sang in six different languages, in 20 different operas, including La bohème, Turandot, a Carnegie Hall presentation of La damnation de Faust and A Midsummer Night's Dream. She also worked under the direction of Franco Zeffirelli in Carmen. Rossum joked in interviews that her vocal talent and affinity for music developed because her mother always listened to classical music and operas while she was pregnant with her.
By age 12, Rossum had grown too big for the children's costumes. An increasing interest in pursuing acting led to taking classes with Flo Salant Greenberg of The New Actors Workshop in New York City. She also hired an agent and auditioned for many acting roles.

Rossum attended the Spence School, a private school in Manhattan, for a year before dropping out to pursue career opportunities. She received her high school diploma at 15 years old via online extension courses offered by Stanford University's Education Program for Gifted Youth (EPGY) She currently attends Columbia University.
Rossum has celiac disease, an autoimmune disease in which the body can't tolerate any foods containing gluten or wheat. She revealed her condition on MTV News after being given a cupcake on-camera to celebrate her 22nd birthday; she was only able to eat the frosting. One of her best friends is actress Leighton Meester, a member of the Gossip Girl cast.
Rossum was married to music executive Justin Siegel for a year and a half before he filed for divorce on September 25, 2009. Rossum began dating Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz after touring with the band in the summer of 2009.They broke up in September 2010.

Agnes Monica

Agnes Monica (born Agnes Monica Muljoto; July 1, 1986) is an Indonesian recording artist and actress of Chinese ancestry. Born in Jakarta, Indonesia, she started her career in entertainment industry at the age of six as a child singer. She has recorded three albums which established herself as one of the most popular child singers in the 1990s.

She also became a presenter of several children's television programs. At her teen age, Agnes expanded her career into the world of acting. Her role in the soap opera Pernikahan Dini rocketed her name in the showbiz industry. Following her rising popularity after starring in few series of soap operas, she became the highest-paid teenage artist. In 2003, she released her first album And the Story Goes that marked her transition from a child singer to a female singer.

Agnes is known as a controversial figure in Indonesia, for her dream to bring her music to international stage is considered as a pompous proclamation.But despite of that, she has done many things to make her dream come true and made herself as an inspiration of young people.

On her second studio album Whaddup A.. '?!, she collaborated with an American R&B singer Keith Martin. In 2005, she appeared in two Taiwanese drama series, The Hospital and Romance In the White House. She participated in 2008 and 2009 Asia Song Festival, which took place in Seoul, South Korea; and she received "Best Asian Artist Award" for each her participation there from the chairman of Korea Foundation for International Culture and Exchange. In 2010, she was one of the international hosts on the red carpet of American Music Awards of 2010 in Los Angeles, United States.

Besides her commercial success, Agnes has also achieved numerous awards, including ten Anugerah Musik Indonesia, seven Panasonic Awards, four MTV Indonesia Awards, and seven JpopAsia International Music Awards.

She has also earned 2011 Nugraha Bhakti Musik Indonesia (NBMI) from The Minister of Culture and Tourism and the Union of Indonesian Singers, Songwriters and Music Record Producers for her contribution and support for the Indonesian music.

For her clean image and healthy life, which she has always presented, Agnes was appointed as the anti-drug ambassador of Asia as well as the ambassador of MTV EXIT in combating human trafficking.

Agnes has conducted fundraising activities for victims of the 2004 Tsunami in Aceh and the 2006 earthquake in Java. In 2009 Agnes visited Situ Gintung, where a dam failure had come about and led to flood; not only did she donated sum of cash there, but she also sang few songs to cheer the victims up.

Agnes Monica also helped raise over Rp. 400 million for Persis, Surakarta’s soccer team, through a benefit concert held at the Diamond Convention Center in Surakarta.

THE SAW

THE SAW

I was at the movie theater last week and during the previews, I was not surprised to see that another Saw sequel is due out just in time for Halloween. Every year, a new sequel to the Saw movie series comes out around Halloween time and millions are made off people who go to see it. Rumor has it that the Saw movie series will reach at least nine movies - which means that there are five more to go after this Halloween. I personally enjoy going to the movies and, so far, I have seen Saw I, Saw II and Saw III at the movie theater. This year, however, I think that I am going to try to put my foot down. The Saw movie series really needs to be put to rest and here are some of the reasons why.

1. The Storyline of the Saw Movies is Sick
I am not going to drop any spoilers here, but if you have seen any of the Saw movies, then you already know that the storyline of the Saw movies is pretty sick. The whole entire idea that the Saw movies have been based on is completely disgusting. Of course, there are sicker movies which have been released, such as the Hostel movies. All in all, however, anyone will probably agree that the storyline of the Saw movies is just plain morbid.

2. Each Saw Sequel Just Keeps Getting Sicker
I was able to stomach the first Saw movie, although there is no doubt that it had its "moments." Saw II was a little bit grosser than the first movie, but there was only one or two parts that really freaked me out. However, there were long periods of time during Saw III when I was just completely mortified by the disgusting actions. Although I have never personally vomited because of a movie, I can honestly say that I came pretty close when I watched Saw III.

In my previous look at the Saw phenomenon - covering the first three films - I mentioned a personal fascination with film series' that go long, and the evolution that begins to occur within. I mused about some of the possibilities of how the Saw series might progress, possibly through introducing more humor (which may be welcome considering how deadly serious the series had been), or perhaps introducing a note of meta-commentary as a way of examining the omnipresence of the series as a whole.

While the first point certainly never revealed itself - the only humor ever present is the sheer disbelief at the complexity of some of the murder devices - there is a touch of the second point in the series' 6th installment, which introduces a few "ripped from the headlines" elements regarding insurance companies and housing loan scams that were particularly topical at the time the film was made.

One element of the series that had already started to develop in the first three films, and certainly continued throughout the next three, was the progression of Jigsaw/John Kramer as a sort of sympathetic anti-hero. While his methods are obviously brutal, since the death of character in Saw III the films have begun filling in his back-story and revealing the demented, but concrete, method behind his madness.

This softening - if you can call it that - is obviously intentional, and shows a recognition that Kramer (and Tobin Bell's continually terrific performance) are what the fans come to see. It also reflects a similar evolution to that which occurred in the Friday the 13th series, where many of the victims were introduced as despicable and unlikeable characters, so the crowd would get more satisfaction from their eventual gory deaths.

Slasher films, somewhat incongruously, are often very puritanical, with excessive sexuality and drug use being punished by death. The crimes of the victims in the Saw series tend to be a little more complicated, but the idea has begun to be the same - while we develop an emotional connection, we're always at a distance thanks to their eventually revealed despicable behavior.

However, the common criticism involving the near comical levels of complexity regarding the death devices in the series has been replaced with the disbelief at the sheer level of back-story that has been able to be filled in. While the creators have been smart to - even peripherally - keep Jigsaw at the forefront of the films, it seems that there would have to be limits to what audiences would accept as elements that can be continually filled in. The web of events being weaved remains interesting, and I respect the filmmakers for taking small details from previous films and tying them into the greater picture, but by the end of this second trilogy of films it seems we've nearly reached the limit of this sort of retroactive
continuity.

I will admit that the details of the individual films tend to run together in Saw IV, V and VI, as the muddle of flashbacks and "shock" reveals begin to take their toll. It also seems that we've passed the point of no return regarding the level of violence in these films - as the comparative restraint of the first two films has given way to an expectation of bloodshed that actually serves to reduce much of the film's suspense. If there's a device that is meant to mutilate someone, the filmmakers will inevitably be showing you the evisceration in grand detail - at least in some capacity. Anyone who has watched up to this point already realizes that nobody escapes unscathed, which is just how the audiences seem to like it.

Marisa Lee Miller

Marisa Lee Miller (née Bertetta; born August 6, 1978) is an American model best known for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues and her work for lingerie retailer Victoria's Secret.

After a stint shooting with photographer Mario Testino for fashion magazines like Vogue, Miller began working for both companies in 2002. In 2007, she became a Victoria's Secret Angel, and graced the cover of the 2008 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue to record-setting numbers.

Her accomplishments have led to her being dubbed the "return of the great American supermodel."
She is also known for contracts with companies like Harley-Davidson, for whom she is the first spokesperson in the history of the company.

Miller is considered a sex symbol; she ranked #1 on Maxim magazine's 2008 "Hot 100" list and in FHM's global 2010 "Sexiest Women in the World" poll. Aside from modeling, she is an ambassador for both the American Cancer Society and the USO.

Born Marisa Lee Bertetta in Santa Cruz, California, to parents Marc and Krista Bertetta. Miller attended high school at Aptos High and Monte Vista Christian School.[citation needed] She considered herself a tomboy growing up, with mostly male friends and little awareness of anything girly. Out of shyness, she often wore large t-shirts to hide her body and would get fully dressed just to go to the trash-can while at the beach.
Miller was first "discovered" at age sixteen walking through a San Francisco café by two Italian modeling agents.

After talking to her mother, she was on a plane to Italy with her mother a few months later, despite her "shy and conservative" personality.

Miller gained attention in 1997 when she appeared in the first issue of Perfect 10 magazine.

Although she came in third behind Ashley Degenford and Monica Hansen in Perfect 10 magazine's first annual model search, she was repeatedly showcased in following issues, including the covers of the Winter 1998 and August/September 1999 editions, as well as a reprint for the Fall 2004 edition cover.

Freida Pinto

Freida Pinto

(born 18 October 1984) is an Indian actress and model best known for her portrayal of Latika in the 2008 Academy Award winning film Slumdog Millionaire, for which she won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. In 2010, she starred in the films You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger and as the title character in Miral.

Freida Pinto was born on 18 October 1984 to a Mangalorean Catholic family in Mumbai. Her mother, Sylvia, is a principal of St John's Universal High School (Goregaon), and her father, Frederick, is a senior branch manager at the Bank of Baroda.

Her older sister Sharon is an associate producer for the NDTV news channel.Pinto dreamed of becoming an actress since she was five years old. When Freida was ten, Indian model Sushmita Sen won Miss Universe 1994, which turned out to be a defining point in Freida's life.

She studied at Carmel of St. Joseph School in Malad, Mumbai and completed her Bachelor of Arts (BA) with a major in English Literature, and minors in Psychology and Economics, from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai.

She also acted in plays and amateur theater while attending St. Xavier's.She later joined Elite Model Management and modeled for two and a half years.

Pinto was engaged to her former publicist and boyfriend of two years, Rohan Antao. In January 2009, Pinto called off her engagement to Rohan and started dating her Slumdog Millionaire co-star Dev Patel. Antao gave an interview to a British tabloid about their relationship and Indian newspapers claimed the two had in fact been secretly married.

Pinto is trained in different forms of Indian classical dance as well as Salsa. She currently resides in the Orlem locality of the Malad suburb of Mumbai.

Liv Tyler Loose Ponytail

Monday May 3 2010..Liv Tyler at The Costume Institute Gala celebrating the new exhibition 'American Woman - Fashioning a National Identity', held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan, New York.