Zuzanna Szadkowski is a Polish American

Polish American

A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...

 actress, best known for her performance as Dorota Kishlovsky in the CW

CW

-Arts:* Carl Wheezer, a character in Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius* Creative writing* Cryptic Writings, an album by Megadeth-Companies:* Cable & Wireless, a British telecommunications company* Colonial Williamsburg...

 series Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl (TV series)

Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...

.

Early and personal life

Zuzanna Szadkowski was born on August 9, 1978, in Warsaw

Warsaw

Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...

, Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

, but she moved to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 when she was only three. About her national identity and Polish accent she displays in Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl (TV series)

Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...

, she said, "I was born in Poland, so I am able to identify with her that way. The accent is modeled after people in my own family, so hopefully I am doing it justice". Szadkowski and her family moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Fort Wayne is a city in the US state of Indiana and the county seat of Allen County. The population was 253,691 at the 2010 Census making it the 74th largest city in the United States and the second largest in Indiana...

, where she graduated from the R. Nelson Snider High School

R. Nelson Snider High School

R. Nelson Snider High School is a secondary school in the Fort Wayne Community Schools system, serving the north central and northeast neighborhoods of Fort Wayne, Indiana.- History :...

 in 1997. She attended Barnard College

Barnard College

Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...

 in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, and went on to earn an Master of Fine Arts

Master of Fine Arts

A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...

 diploma in acting from Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

.

Szadkowski currently resides in Downtown Brooklyn

Downtown Brooklyn

Downtown Brooklyn is the third largest central business district in New York City , and is located in the northwestern section of the borough of Brooklyn...

. In 2010, she partnered with Sam Weisman

Sam Weisman

Sam Weisman is an American film director. He has directed the films D2: The Mighty Ducks, Bye Bye Love, George of the Jungle, The Out-of-Towners, What's the Worst That Could Happen?, and Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star....

 to open an acting school, the Sam Weisman Studio, in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

.

Career

Szadkowski made her acting debut in 2006, portraying two characters in Law & Order: Criminal Intent

Law & Order: Criminal Intent

Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...

season 5

Law & Order: Criminal Intent (season 5)

The fifth season of Law & Order: Criminal Intent premiered September 25, 2005 and ended May 14, 2006.Chris Noth and Annabella Sciorra joined the cast and the show began alternating episodes with Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe on account of D'Onofrio's health at the time. Annabella Sciorra,...

 episode "Watch". She would reprise these roles in the season 7

Law & Order: Criminal Intent (season 7)

The seventh season of Law & Order: Criminal Intent premiered October 4, 2007 and the season ended August 24, 2008 on USA Network.The first ten episodes of the seventh season aired on Thursday night's at 10:00PM/9:00PM , filling a slot previously occupied by the first season of Burn Notice...

 episode "Lonelyville". In 2007, Szadkowski appeared in two episodes of The Sopranos

The Sopranos

The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...

, "Soprano Home Movies

Soprano Home Movies

"Soprano Home Movies" is the thirteenth episode of the sixth season of the HBO television drama series The Sopranos and seventy-eighth episode overall. It served as the midseason premiere to the second part of the show's sixth season, the broadcast of which was split into two...

" and "Kennedy and Heidi

Kennedy and Heidi

"Kennedy and Heidi" is the eighteenth episode of the two-part sixth season—the sixth episode of the second part—of the HBO television drama series The Sopranos and the show's eighty-third overall episode. It was written by Matthew Weiner and series creator and showrunner David Chase,...

". The same year, she was cast as Dorota Kishlovsky, the Polish maid of Blair Waldorf

Blair Waldorf

Blair Cornelia Waldorf is the main character of Gossip Girl, introduced in the original series of novels and also appearing in their television and manga adaptations. Described as "a girl of extremes" by creator Cecily von Ziegesar, she is a comical overachiever who possesses both snobbish and...

 (Leighton Meester

Leighton Meester

Leighton Marissa Meester is an American actress and singer. Meester first garnered attention for playing Blair Waldorf in the CW television series Gossip Girl...

), in the CW

CW

-Arts:* Carl Wheezer, a character in Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius* Creative writing* Cryptic Writings, an album by Megadeth-Companies:* Cable & Wireless, a British telecommunications company* Colonial Williamsburg...

 series Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl (TV series)

Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...

. In 2009, the CW produced the Gossip Girl six–episode spin–off Chasing Dorota.

In 2009, Szadkowski had a small role in independent film

Independent film

An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...

 Where Is Joel Baum?. She also appeared in three episodes of television series Guiding Light

Guiding Light

Guiding Light is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running drama in television and radio history, running from 1937 until 2009...

. In 2011, Szadkowski acted in short film The Pilot Season Survival Guide. She is currently working on a new film, Legacy, which will be released in 2012.

Filmography

Title	Year	Role	Notes
Law & Order: Criminal Intent Law & Order: Criminal Intent Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...	2006-07	Olga / Trina	(TV Series) 2006–07; 2 episodes
The Sopranos The Sopranos The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...	2007	Elzbieta	(TV Series) 2 episodes
Gossip Girl Gossip Girl (TV series) Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...	2007	Dorota Kishlovsky	(TV Series) 2007–present; 52 episodes
Where Is Joel Baum?	2009	Polish Cleaning Lady
Chasing Dorota	2009	Dorota Kishlovsky	(TV Series) 6 episodes
Guiding Light Guiding Light Guiding Light is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running drama in television and radio history, running from 1937 until 2009...	2009	Sister Angelica	(TV Series) 3 episodes
The Pilot Season Survival Guide	2011	Martha	(Short Film)
Tower Heist Tower Heist Tower Heist is a 2011 crime comedy film directed by Brett Ratner and written by Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson based on a story by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper, and Griffin. It was released on November 2, 2011 in the United Kingdom, with a United States release following two days later...	2011	Polish Maid	Uncredited (deleted scene)
Legacy	2012	Joyce	(Pre–production)

External links