Alex Garland
Encyclopedia
Alexander Medawar "Alex" Garland (born 1970) is a British novelist and screenwriter.
. His maternal grandparents were zoologist Peter Medawar
and author Jean Medawar
. Garland attended the independent University College School
, in Hampstead
, London, and the University of Manchester
, where he studied art history.
, was published in 1996 and drew on his experiences as a backpacker
. The novel quickly became a cult classic and was made into a film
by Danny Boyle
, with Leonardo DiCaprio
. The Tesseract
, Garland's second novel, was published in 1998. This was also made into a film
, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers. In 2002, he wrote the screenplay for Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later
, starring Cillian Murphy
. His third novel, The Coma
, was published in 2004 and was illustrated with woodcut
s by his father.
In 2005, a script for a film adaptation of Halo
was written by Garland (he was paid $1,000,000 to write it) – which D. B. Weiss
and Josh Olson
rewrote during 2006 for a 2008 release, though the film remains in development hell
. In 2007, he wrote the screenplay for the film Sunshine
– his third screenplay to be directed by Danny Boyle and the second to star Cillian Murphy
. Garland also served as an executive producer on 28 Weeks Later
, the sequel to 28 Days Later. He is the co-writer on the video game Enslaved: Odyssey to the West for the PlayStation 3
and Xbox 360
. He wrote the screenplay for the film Never Let Me Go
, based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro
. He also wrote the script for Dredd, an adaptation of the Judge Dredd
comic book series from 2000 AD Currently in post-production.
Early life
Garland was born in London, England, the son of psychoanalyst Caroline (née Medawar) and political cartoonist Nicholas GarlandNicholas Garland
Nicholas Withycombe Garland is a political cartoonist for the Daily Telegraph. He had previously drawn for The New Statesman, The Spectator and The Independent....
. His maternal grandparents were zoologist Peter Medawar
Peter Medawar
Sir Peter Brian Medawar OM CBE FRS was a British biologist, whose work on graft rejection and the discovery of acquired immune tolerance was fundamental to the practice of tissue and organ transplants...
and author Jean Medawar
Jean Medawar
Jean Shinglewood Medawar was a British author and a former chairman of the Family Planning Association, and wife of the British Nobelist Peter Brian Medawar....
. Garland attended the independent University College School
University College School
University College School, generally known as UCS, is an Independent school charity situated in Hampstead, north west London, England. The school was founded in 1830 by University College London and inherited many of that institution's progressive and secular views...
, in Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
, London, and the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
, where he studied art history.
Career
His first novel, The BeachThe Beach (novel)
The Beach is a novel by Alex Garland about backpackers in Thailand. Influenced by such literary works as Heart of Darkness and Lord of the Flies, it describes the adventures of a young Englishman in search of and on a legendary, idyllic beach untouched by tourism.-Plot summary:In a cheap hostel on...
, was published in 1996 and drew on his experiences as a backpacker
Backpacking (travel)
Backpacking is a term that has historically been used to denote a form of low-cost, independent international travel. Terms such as independent travel and/or budget travel are often used...
. The novel quickly became a cult classic and was made into a film
The Beach (film)
The Beach is a 2000 adventure drama film directed by Danny Boyle and based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Alex Garland, which was adapted for the film by John Hodge. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and features Tilda Swinton, Robert Carlyle, Virginie Ledoyen and Guillaume Canet...
by Danny Boyle
Danny Boyle
Daniel "Danny" Boyle is an English filmmaker and producer. He is best known for his work on films such as Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours, 28 Days Later, Sunshine and Trainspotting. For Slumdog Millionaire, Boyle won numerous awards in 2008, including the Academy Award for Best Director...
, with Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is an American actor and film producer. He has received many awards, including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Aviator , and has been nominated by the Academy Awards, Screen Actors Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television...
. The Tesseract
The Tesseract (novel)
The Tesseract is a 1998 English-language novel by Alex Garland. The story intertwines the lives of Manila gangsters, mothers and street children. The novel chronicles numerous characters in non-linear storylines and explores themes of love, adultery, fate, violence, power, and choices...
, Garland's second novel, was published in 1998. This was also made into a film
The Tesseract (film)
The Tesseract, is a 2003 thriller film starring Jonathan Rhys-Meyers. Based on the novel of the same name by Alex Garland, it is directed by Oxide Pang....
, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers. In 2002, he wrote the screenplay for Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later
28 Days Later
28 Days Later is an acclaimed 2002 British horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston...
, starring Cillian Murphy
Cillian Murphy
Cillian Murphy is an Irish film and theatre actor. He is often noted by critics for his chameleonic performances in diverse roles and distinctive blue eyes and general sex appeal....
. His third novel, The Coma
The Coma
The Coma, is novel by Alex Garland, illustrated by his father, Nicholas Garland. It explores the boundary between the conscious and subconscious mind. The Coma was published in 2004, eight years after Garland's first novel, The Beach....
, was published in 2004 and was illustrated with woodcut
Woodcut
Woodcut—occasionally known as xylography—is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges...
s by his father.
In 2005, a script for a film adaptation of Halo
Halo (series)
Halo is a multi-million dollar science fiction video game franchise created by Bungie and now managed by 343 Industries and owned by Microsoft Studios. The series centers on an interstellar war between humanity and a theocratic alliance of aliens known as the Covenant...
was written by Garland (he was paid $1,000,000 to write it) – which D. B. Weiss
D. B. Weiss
Daniel B. Weiss is an American author. His debut novel Lucky Wander Boy was themed around video games and has since been linked with the screen adaptations of various science-fiction and fantasy stories...
and Josh Olson
Josh Olson
Josh Olson is an American screenwriter and director. Olson began his career working as a production assistant in the art department on the 1987 film Masters of the Universe...
rewrote during 2006 for a 2008 release, though the film remains in development hell
Development hell
In the jargon of the media-industry, "development hell" is a period during which a film or other project is trapped in development...
. In 2007, he wrote the screenplay for the film Sunshine
Sunshine (2007 film)
Sunshine is a 2007 British science fiction film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland about the crew of a spacecraft on a dangerous mission to the Sun. In 2057, with the Earth in peril from the dying Sun, the crew is sent to reignite the Sun with a massive stellar bomb with the mass...
– his third screenplay to be directed by Danny Boyle and the second to star Cillian Murphy
Cillian Murphy
Cillian Murphy is an Irish film and theatre actor. He is often noted by critics for his chameleonic performances in diverse roles and distinctive blue eyes and general sex appeal....
. Garland also served as an executive producer on 28 Weeks Later
28 Weeks Later
28 Weeks Later is a 2007 British/Spanish film sequel to the 2002 post-apocalyptic horror film 28 Days Later. 28 Weeks Later was directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and released in the United Kingdom and United States on 11 May 2007...
, the sequel to 28 Days Later. He is the co-writer on the video game Enslaved: Odyssey to the West for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
. He wrote the screenplay for the film Never Let Me Go
Never Let Me Go (2010 film)
Never Let Me Go is a 2010 British dystopian drama film based on Kazuo Ishiguro's 2005 novel of the same name. The film was directed by Mark Romanek from a screenplay by Alex Garland. Never Let Me Go is set in an alternate history and centers on Kathy, Ruth and Tommy who are portrayed by Carey...
, based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro
Kazuo Ishiguro
Kazuo Ishiguro OBE or ; born 8 November 1954) is a Japanese–English novelist. He was born in Nagasaki, Japan, and his family moved to England in 1960. Ishiguro obtained his Bachelor's degree from University of Kent in 1978 and his Master's from the University of East Anglia's creative writing...
. He also wrote the script for Dredd, an adaptation of the Judge Dredd
Judge Dredd
Judge Joseph Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is an American law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
comic book series from 2000 AD Currently in post-production.
Novels
- The BeachThe Beach (novel)The Beach is a novel by Alex Garland about backpackers in Thailand. Influenced by such literary works as Heart of Darkness and Lord of the Flies, it describes the adventures of a young Englishman in search of and on a legendary, idyllic beach untouched by tourism.-Plot summary:In a cheap hostel on...
(1996) - The TesseractThe Tesseract (novel)The Tesseract is a 1998 English-language novel by Alex Garland. The story intertwines the lives of Manila gangsters, mothers and street children. The novel chronicles numerous characters in non-linear storylines and explores themes of love, adultery, fate, violence, power, and choices...
(1998) - The ComaThe ComaThe Coma, is novel by Alex Garland, illustrated by his father, Nicholas Garland. It explores the boundary between the conscious and subconscious mind. The Coma was published in 2004, eight years after Garland's first novel, The Beach....
(2004)
Filmography
- The BeachThe Beach (film)The Beach is a 2000 adventure drama film directed by Danny Boyle and based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Alex Garland, which was adapted for the film by John Hodge. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and features Tilda Swinton, Robert Carlyle, Virginie Ledoyen and Guillaume Canet...
(screenplay) (2000) - 28 Days Later28 Days Later28 Days Later is an acclaimed 2002 British horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston...
(screenplay) (2002) - SunshineSunshine (2007 film)Sunshine is a 2007 British science fiction film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland about the crew of a spacecraft on a dangerous mission to the Sun. In 2057, with the Earth in peril from the dying Sun, the crew is sent to reignite the Sun with a massive stellar bomb with the mass...
(screenplay) (2007) - Never Let Me GoNever Let Me Go (2010 film)Never Let Me Go is a 2010 British dystopian drama film based on Kazuo Ishiguro's 2005 novel of the same name. The film was directed by Mark Romanek from a screenplay by Alex Garland. Never Let Me Go is set in an alternate history and centers on Kathy, Ruth and Tommy who are portrayed by Carey...
(screenplay) (2010) - Dredd (screenplay) (2011) (filming)
Awards and nominations
- 2004: Nominated for Saturn AwardSaturn AwardThe Saturn Award is an award presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor the top works in science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, television, and home video. The Saturn Awards were devised by Dr. Donald A. Reed in 1972, who felt that films within...
by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA: Writing for 28 Days Later28 Days Later28 Days Later is an acclaimed 2002 British horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston... - 2004: Nominated for Chlotrudis Awards 2004Chlotrudis Awards 2004The 10th Annual Chlotrudis Awards were presented March 28, 2004, by the Chlotrudis Society for Independent Film. Honoring the best of the past year's independent, documentary and international film, the awards ceremony took place at the venerable Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts...
: Best Original Screenplay for 28 Days Later28 Days Later28 Days Later is an acclaimed 2002 British horror film directed by Danny Boyle. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the film stars Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Brendan Gleeson, Megan Burns, and Christopher Eccleston...