Wolfgang Petersen
Encyclopedia
Wolfgang Petersen is a German
film director
and screenwriter
. His films include The NeverEnding Story
, Enemy Mine
, Outbreak
, In the Line of Fire
, Air Force One
, The Perfect Storm
, Troy
, and Poseidon
. He was nominated for two Academy Awards
for the 1981 World War II
submarine
warfare film Das Boot
.
, Lower Saxony
, Germany
during World War II
on 14 March 1941. Emden is a small north German community near the Dutch border, where the Ems River flows into the North Sea
. He stayed there to the end of World War II. From 1953 to 1960, Petersen attended the Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums
in Hamburg
. In the 1960s he was directing plays at Hamburg's Ernst Deutsch Theater
. After studying theater in Berlin
and Hamburg, Petersen attended the Film and Television Academy in Berlin (1966–1970). His first film productions were for German television, and it was during his work on the popular German Tatort
(Crime Scene) TV series that he first met and worked with the actor Jürgen Prochnow
— who would later appear as the U-boat
captain in Petersen's famous Das Boot
.
, a b/w 16 mm adaptation of Alexander Ziegler's
autobiographical novel of homosexual love, a movie considered "one of the best `70s gay dramas". In its time, the film was considered so radical that when first broadcast in Germany, the Bavarian network
turned off the transmitters rather than broadcast it. As the 1980s began, he made the jump to action films, which occasionally featured straight heroes and a few who would ponder and dare fate itself.
His next feature was the World War II epic Das Boot
, released in early 1982. The film chronicles the experiences of a German submarine crew engaged in the "Battle of the Atlantic". Though not a financial success, the film received positive reviews and was nominated for six Academy Awards
, two of which (for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay) went to Petersen himself; he was also nominated for a BAFTA Award and DGA Award. The film also introduced Jürgen Prochnow
as the U-boat Captain, who became a good example of Peterson's action characters, a man at war and who dares danger and fate at sea.
After The NeverEnding Story (1984), Petersen's first full-blown Hollywood effort (although filmed at the Bavaria Film Studios
complex in Germany), Enemy Mine
(1985), was not a critical and box office success. He finally hit his stride in 1993 with the assassination thriller In the Line of Fire
. Starring Clint Eastwood
as an angst-ridden presidential Secret Service
guard, In the Line of Fire gave Petersen the box office clout he needed to direct another suspense thriller, Outbreak
(1995), starring Dustin Hoffman
. The 1997 Petersen blockbuster, Air Force One
, did very well at the box office, while getting a mix of opinions from movie critics. For both Air Force One and Outbreak
(but not for The Perfect Storm
) Petersen teamed up with the German cinematographer Michael Ballhaus
, who has also worked frequently with director Martin Scorsese
. In another project, Petersen was the executive producer for the film Red Corner
, starring Richard Gere
.
By 1998, Petersen was an established Hollywood director, with the power to both re-release his classic Das Boot in a new director's cut and to helm star-studded action-thrillers. As such, he was originally considered for the first movie in the Harry Potter film series
, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
. Petersen pulled out of the running in March 2000.
In May 2006, Petersen's $160 million epic film Poseidon
, a re-telling of the 1969 Paul Gallico
novel (and popular 1972 disaster film) The Poseidon Adventure, was released by Warner Bros., but performed poorly in the US, barely cracking $60 million in box office receipts by early August, although international profits surpassed $121 million.
Although hired to direct a film adaptation of Ender's Game
by Orson Scott Card
that was scheduled for release in 2008, he "moved on" from the project. Then producers of the film hoped for a 2009 release.
He is currently developing a live-action adaptation of the 2006 anime film Paprika. He is directing a film adaptation of the science fiction novel Old Man's War
, with a scheduled release date of 2012.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
. His films include The NeverEnding Story
The NeverEnding Story (film)
The NeverEnding Story is a 1984 German-American epic fantasy film based on the novel of the same name written by Michael Ende. The film was directed and co-written by Wolfgang Petersen and starred Barret Oliver, Noah Hathaway and Tami Stronach. At the time of its release, it was the most...
, Enemy Mine
Enemy Mine (film)
Enemy Mine is a 1985 science fiction film based on the story of the same title by Barry B. Longyear. It was produced by 20th Century Fox, directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and starred Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett, Jr...
, Outbreak
Outbreak (film)
Outbreak is a 1995 American disaster film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey. The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In addition, Outbreak features Cuba Gooding, Jr., Donald Sutherland, and Patrick Dempsey....
, In the Line of Fire
In the Line of Fire
In the Line of Fire is a 1993 American thriller film about a disillusioned and obsessed former CIA agent who attempts to assassinate the President of the United States and the Secret Service agent who tracks him...
, Air Force One
Air Force One (film)
Air Force One is a 1997 American action-thriller film written by Andrew W. Marlowe and directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It stars Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, and Glenn Close, and also features Xander Berkeley, William H. Macy, Dean Stockwell and Paul Guilfoyle...
, The Perfect Storm
The Perfect Storm (film)
The Perfect Storm is a 2000 dramatic disaster film directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It is an adaptation of the 1997 non-fiction book of the same title by Sebastian Junger about the crew of the Andrea Gail that got caught in the Perfect Storm of 1991. The film stars George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg,...
, Troy
Troy (film)
Troy is a 2004 epic war film written by David Benioff and directed by Wolfgang Petersen based on the events of the Trojan War. Its cast includes Brad Pitt as Achilles, Eric Bana as Hector.It was nominated for the Academy Award for Costume Design.-Plot:...
, and Poseidon
Poseidon (film)
Poseidon is a 2006 disaster film directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the third film adaptation of the novel The Poseidon Adventure written by Paul Gallico, and a loose remake of the 1972 film of the same name. It stars Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas and Richard Dreyfuss. It was directed by Wolfgang Petersen...
. He was nominated for two Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for the 1981 World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
warfare film Das Boot
Das Boot
Das Boot is a 1981 German epic war film written and directed by Wolfgang Petersen, produced by Günter Rohrbach, and starring Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, and Klaus Wennemann...
.
Early life
Petersen was born in EmdenEmden
Emden is a city and seaport in the northwest of Germany, on the river Ems. It is the main city of the region of East Frisia; in 2006, the city had a total population of 51,692.-History:...
, Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
on 14 March 1941. Emden is a small north German community near the Dutch border, where the Ems River flows into the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
. He stayed there to the end of World War II. From 1953 to 1960, Petersen attended the Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums
Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums
The Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums is a Gymnasium in Hamburg, Germany. It is Hamburg's oldest school and was founded in 1529 by Johannes Bugenhagen. The school's motto is The Future needs a Heritage...
in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. In the 1960s he was directing plays at Hamburg's Ernst Deutsch Theater
Ernst Deutsch Theater
Ernst Deutsch Theater is a theatre in Hamburg, Germany....
. After studying theater in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and Hamburg, Petersen attended the Film and Television Academy in Berlin (1966–1970). His first film productions were for German television, and it was during his work on the popular German Tatort
Tatort
Tatort is a long-running German/Austrian/Swiss , crime television series set in various parts of these countries. The show is broadcast on the channels of ARD in Germany, ORF 2 in Austria and SF1 in Switzerland...
(Crime Scene) TV series that he first met and worked with the actor Jürgen Prochnow
Jürgen Prochnow
Jürgen Prochnow is a German actor. His most well-known roles internationally have been as the sympathetic submarine captain in Das Boot , Duke Leto Atreides I in Dune , the minor, but important role of Neo-Stalinist dictator General Ivan Radek in Air Force One and the villain Maxwell Dent in...
— who would later appear as the U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
captain in Petersen's famous Das Boot
Das Boot
Das Boot is a 1981 German epic war film written and directed by Wolfgang Petersen, produced by Günter Rohrbach, and starring Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, and Klaus Wennemann...
.
Film work
One of his first efforts was the 1977 Die KonsequenzDie Konsequenz
Die Konsequenz is a West German film from 1977. It is an adaptation of the 1975 autobiographical novel with the same name by Swiss author Alexander Ziegler and directed by Wolfgang Petersen. The film has a pederastic theme...
, a b/w 16 mm adaptation of Alexander Ziegler's
Alexander Ziegler
Alexander Ziegler was a Swiss author and actor.Ziegler studied drama at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Wien . He was an actor in Spring Awakening, a play by Frank Wedekind, in 1964...
autobiographical novel of homosexual love, a movie considered "one of the best `70s gay dramas". In its time, the film was considered so radical that when first broadcast in Germany, the Bavarian network
Bayerischer Rundfunk
Bayerischer Rundfunk [Bavarian Broadcasting] is the public broadcasting authority for the German Freistaat of Bavaria, with its main offices located in Munich. BR is a member of ARD.- Legal foundation :...
turned off the transmitters rather than broadcast it. As the 1980s began, he made the jump to action films, which occasionally featured straight heroes and a few who would ponder and dare fate itself.
His next feature was the World War II epic Das Boot
Das Boot
Das Boot is a 1981 German epic war film written and directed by Wolfgang Petersen, produced by Günter Rohrbach, and starring Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, and Klaus Wennemann...
, released in early 1982. The film chronicles the experiences of a German submarine crew engaged in the "Battle of the Atlantic". Though not a financial success, the film received positive reviews and was nominated for six Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
, two of which (for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay) went to Petersen himself; he was also nominated for a BAFTA Award and DGA Award. The film also introduced Jürgen Prochnow
Jürgen Prochnow
Jürgen Prochnow is a German actor. His most well-known roles internationally have been as the sympathetic submarine captain in Das Boot , Duke Leto Atreides I in Dune , the minor, but important role of Neo-Stalinist dictator General Ivan Radek in Air Force One and the villain Maxwell Dent in...
as the U-boat Captain, who became a good example of Peterson's action characters, a man at war and who dares danger and fate at sea.
After The NeverEnding Story (1984), Petersen's first full-blown Hollywood effort (although filmed at the Bavaria Film Studios
Bavaria Film Studios
The Bavaria Film in Geiselgasteig, a district of Munich's suburb Grünwald, Bavaria belongs to one of Europe's biggest and most famous film production companies.- History :...
complex in Germany), Enemy Mine
Enemy Mine (film)
Enemy Mine is a 1985 science fiction film based on the story of the same title by Barry B. Longyear. It was produced by 20th Century Fox, directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and starred Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett, Jr...
(1985), was not a critical and box office success. He finally hit his stride in 1993 with the assassination thriller In the Line of Fire
In the Line of Fire
In the Line of Fire is a 1993 American thriller film about a disillusioned and obsessed former CIA agent who attempts to assassinate the President of the United States and the Secret Service agent who tracks him...
. Starring Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
as an angst-ridden presidential Secret Service
United States Secret Service
The United States Secret Service is a United States federal law enforcement agency that is part of the United States Department of Homeland Security. The sworn members are divided among the Special Agents and the Uniformed Division. Until March 1, 2003, the Service was part of the United States...
guard, In the Line of Fire gave Petersen the box office clout he needed to direct another suspense thriller, Outbreak
Outbreak (film)
Outbreak is a 1995 American disaster film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey. The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In addition, Outbreak features Cuba Gooding, Jr., Donald Sutherland, and Patrick Dempsey....
(1995), starring Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
. The 1997 Petersen blockbuster, Air Force One
Air Force One (film)
Air Force One is a 1997 American action-thriller film written by Andrew W. Marlowe and directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It stars Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, and Glenn Close, and also features Xander Berkeley, William H. Macy, Dean Stockwell and Paul Guilfoyle...
, did very well at the box office, while getting a mix of opinions from movie critics. For both Air Force One and Outbreak
Outbreak (film)
Outbreak is a 1995 American disaster film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey. The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In addition, Outbreak features Cuba Gooding, Jr., Donald Sutherland, and Patrick Dempsey....
(but not for The Perfect Storm
The Perfect Storm (film)
The Perfect Storm is a 2000 dramatic disaster film directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It is an adaptation of the 1997 non-fiction book of the same title by Sebastian Junger about the crew of the Andrea Gail that got caught in the Perfect Storm of 1991. The film stars George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg,...
) Petersen teamed up with the German cinematographer Michael Ballhaus
Michael Ballhaus
Michael Ballhaus, A.S.C. is a German cinematographer. In 1990, he was the Head of the Jury at the 40th Berlin International Film Festival.- Life and career :...
, who has also worked frequently with director Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
. In another project, Petersen was the executive producer for the film Red Corner
Red Corner
Red Corner is a drama film produced in 1997, directed by Jon Avnet and written by Robert King.- Plot :It tells the story of a wealthy American businessman named Jack Moore working in China and attempting to put together a satellite communications deal as part of a joint venture with the Chinese...
, starring Richard Gere
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...
.
By 1998, Petersen was an established Hollywood director, with the power to both re-release his classic Das Boot in a new director's cut and to helm star-studded action-thrillers. As such, he was originally considered for the first movie in the Harry Potter film series
Harry Potter (film series)
The Harry Potter film series is a British-American film series based on the Harry Potter novels by the British author J. K. Rowling...
, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, released in the United States and India as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, is a 2001 fantasy film directed by Chris Columbus and based on the novel of the same name by J. K. Rowling. The film is the first instalment in the Harry Potter film series,...
. Petersen pulled out of the running in March 2000.
In May 2006, Petersen's $160 million epic film Poseidon
Poseidon (film)
Poseidon is a 2006 disaster film directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the third film adaptation of the novel The Poseidon Adventure written by Paul Gallico, and a loose remake of the 1972 film of the same name. It stars Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas and Richard Dreyfuss. It was directed by Wolfgang Petersen...
, a re-telling of the 1969 Paul Gallico
Paul Gallico
Paul William Gallico was a successful American novelist, short story and sports writer. Many of his works were adapted for motion pictures...
novel (and popular 1972 disaster film) The Poseidon Adventure, was released by Warner Bros., but performed poorly in the US, barely cracking $60 million in box office receipts by early August, although international profits surpassed $121 million.
Although hired to direct a film adaptation of Ender's Game
Ender's Game
Ender's Game is a science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. The book originated as the short story "Ender's Game", published in the August 1977 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact. Elaborating on characters and plot lines depicted in the novel, Card later wrote additional...
by Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
that was scheduled for release in 2008, he "moved on" from the project. Then producers of the film hoped for a 2009 release.
He is currently developing a live-action adaptation of the 2006 anime film Paprika. He is directing a film adaptation of the science fiction novel Old Man's War
Old Man's War
Old Man's War is a science fiction novel by John Scalzi published in 2005. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 2006. It was optioned by Paramount Pictures in 2011...
, with a scheduled release date of 2012.
Filmography
| Year | Film | Director Film director A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:... |
(Executive Executive producer An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production... ) Producer Film producer A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The... |
Writer Screenwriter Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | One or the Other of Us One or the Other of Us One or the Other of Us is a 1974 West German film directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It was Petersen's first theatrical feature film, and was based on the novel of the same name by Horst Bosetzky, published anonymously under his pseudonym -ky. The film is a psychological thriller and focuses on the... |
|||
| 1977 | Die Konsequenz Die Konsequenz Die Konsequenz is a West German film from 1977. It is an adaptation of the 1975 autobiographical novel with the same name by Swiss author Alexander Ziegler and directed by Wolfgang Petersen. The film has a pederastic theme... |
|||
| 1981 | Das Boot Das Boot Das Boot is a 1981 German epic war film written and directed by Wolfgang Petersen, produced by Günter Rohrbach, and starring Jürgen Prochnow, Herbert Grönemeyer, and Klaus Wennemann... |
|||
| 1984 | The NeverEnding Story The NeverEnding Story (film) The NeverEnding Story is a 1984 German-American epic fantasy film based on the novel of the same name written by Michael Ende. The film was directed and co-written by Wolfgang Petersen and starred Barret Oliver, Noah Hathaway and Tami Stronach. At the time of its release, it was the most... |
|||
| 1985 | Enemy Mine Enemy Mine (film) Enemy Mine is a 1985 science fiction film based on the story of the same title by Barry B. Longyear. It was produced by 20th Century Fox, directed by Wolfgang Petersen, and starred Dennis Quaid and Louis Gossett, Jr... |
|||
| 1991 | Shattered | |||
| 1993 | In the Line of Fire In the Line of Fire In the Line of Fire is a 1993 American thriller film about a disillusioned and obsessed former CIA agent who attempts to assassinate the President of the United States and the Secret Service agent who tracks him... |
|||
| 1995 | Outbreak Outbreak (film) Outbreak is a 1995 American disaster film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, and Kevin Spacey. The film was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. In addition, Outbreak features Cuba Gooding, Jr., Donald Sutherland, and Patrick Dempsey.... |
|||
| 1997 | Red Corner Red Corner Red Corner is a drama film produced in 1997, directed by Jon Avnet and written by Robert King.- Plot :It tells the story of a wealthy American businessman named Jack Moore working in China and attempting to put together a satellite communications deal as part of a joint venture with the Chinese... |
|||
| Air Force One Air Force One (film) Air Force One is a 1997 American action-thriller film written by Andrew W. Marlowe and directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It stars Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, and Glenn Close, and also features Xander Berkeley, William H. Macy, Dean Stockwell and Paul Guilfoyle... |
||||
| 2000 | The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm (film) The Perfect Storm is a 2000 dramatic disaster film directed by Wolfgang Petersen. It is an adaptation of the 1997 non-fiction book of the same title by Sebastian Junger about the crew of the Andrea Gail that got caught in the Perfect Storm of 1991. The film stars George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg,... |
|||
| 2004 | Troy Troy (film) Troy is a 2004 epic war film written by David Benioff and directed by Wolfgang Petersen based on the events of the Trojan War. Its cast includes Brad Pitt as Achilles, Eric Bana as Hector.It was nominated for the Academy Award for Costume Design.-Plot:... |
|||
| 2006 | Poseidon Poseidon (film) Poseidon is a 2006 disaster film directed by Wolfgang Petersen, the third film adaptation of the novel The Poseidon Adventure written by Paul Gallico, and a loose remake of the 1972 film of the same name. It stars Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas and Richard Dreyfuss. It was directed by Wolfgang Petersen... |
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| 2012 | Old Man's War | |||