Leonard Schrader

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Leonard Schrader (born November 30, 1943 in Grand Rapids , Michigan , † November 2, 2006 in Los Angeles , California ) was an American author , film director and producer , who was nominated for an Oscar in 1986 with the drama Kiss the Spider Woman . Schrader was also known to have a command of the Japanese language, both spoken and written.

Life

Leonard Schrader and his younger brother Paul were born in Grand Rapids in the US state of Michigan into a strictly Calvinist family. The parents were of Dutch descent. Paul Schrader once said that in their youth they were not allowed to watch television and that they were forbidden from all worldly entertainment. It wasn't until Leonard Schrader attended the University of Iowa in the 1960s that he saw a film for the first time. After completing his studies, he decided to live and work in Japan for a long time , where he also taught Japanese students in American literature at the Doshisha University in Kyoto and the University of Kyoto . He later taught screenwriting, the art of scriptwriting, to students at the American Film Institute (AFI). He has also taught at the University of Southern California and Chapman University.

Shortly after his return from Japan, he made his first film, the thriller Yakuza (1974), directed by Sydney Pollack . Leonard Schrader wrote the script together with his brother Paul, which was adapted by Robert Towne . The main roles were played by Robert Mitchum and Ken Takakura . In 1978 the crime film Blue Collar was made with Richard Pryor , Harvey Keitel and Yaphet Kotto and directed by Paul Schrader. The script, which takes a critical look at union work and the life of the workers, was written by the brothers together. Paul and Leonard Schrader also wrote the script together for the film Diane (1979). This was followed by the Japanese productions Taiyô wo nusunda otoko (named best film of 1980 in Japan) and Otoko wa tsurai yo: Torajirô haru no yume , for which Leonard Schrader wrote the screenplay under the name Renâdo Shureidâ.

A particular success in his career was the 1985 literary adaptation, Kiss of the Spider Woman , a production by David Weisman , with whom Schrader worked several times. He wrote the script for the film based on the novel by Manuel Puig . At the 1986 Academy Awards , he was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Adapted Screenplay category. However, the award went to Kurt Luedtke and the literary film adaptation Out of Africa .

The literary film adaptation Mishima - A Life in Four Chapters , which is based on the biography and work of the Japanese writer Yukio Mishima , was again a joint work by Paul and Leonard Schrader. Leonard Schrader wrote the screenplay and also directed the last film Nackter Tango , a mythical love story, which was released in 1990. The film reunited him with David Weisman, who acted as producer. In the short film Edie: Girl on Fire , which hit theaters in 2010 , passages from the script were penned by Schrader, as Weisman had already dealt with the life and decay of the Susan superstar alias Edie Sedgwick in his film Ciao! Manhattan dealt with and, with Schrader's help, wrote a script for his later film bit by bit.

Leonard Schrader died in November 2006 at the age of 62 as a result of heart failure . As announced by his brother Paul, he suffered from various diseases, including cancer . From 1977 until his death he was married to the Japanese Chieko. He had met his future wife during his stay in Japan. She also supported him in writing the scripts not only for his Japanese films. He was the brother-in-law of actress Mary Beth Hurt , to whom his brother Paul has been married since 1983.

Filmography (selection)

  • 1974: Yakuza ( The Yakuza ; author)
  • 1978: Blue Collar - Fight on the Assembly Line ( Blue Collar ; author)
  • 1979: Diane ( Old Boyfriends ; Author)
  • 1979: Taiyô wo nusunda otoko (screenplay and story, as Renâdo Shureidâ)
  • 1979: Otoko wa tsurai yo: Torajirô haru no yume (as before)
  • 1981: The Killing of America (documentary; writer, director, producer)
  • 1983: Shonben raidâ (Author)
  • 1985: Kiss of the Spider Woman ( Kiss of the Spider Woman ; screenplay)
  • 1985: Mishima - A Life in Four Chapters ( Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters ; screenplay, producer)
  • 1990: Naked Tango (screenplay, director)
  • 2003: Rules of the Game (short film; script advisor)
  • 2010: Edie: Girl on Fire (short film; based on experiences with the 1972 film Ciao! Manhattan )

Schrader received acknowledgments in the following films:

  • 2001: Last Breath (short film)
  • 2003: Rules of the Game (short film)
  • 2004: Childlike Violence (short film)
  • 2005: Reunion (short film)
  • 2006: The Pros and Cons of Breathing (short film)
  • 2006: House of the Rising Sun (short film)
  • 2007: The Walker (dedication)
  • 2007: The Quickie (short film)
  • 2008: The American Standards
  • 2008: Captain Abu Raed

Awards

literature

  • Leonard Schrader: Blue Collar - Novel of the film (1977)
  • Leonard Schrader: Hardcore - Novel of the film (1979)
  • Leonard Schrader: The Killing of America (Japanese only) American Violence - Nonfiction account of the documentary (1981)
  • Leonard Schrader: Kiss of the Spider Woman - screenplay (1986)
  • Leonard Schrader: The Yakuza , first published in 1987 under the title Yakuza by Bastei Lübbe
  • Leonard Schrader: Night Performance - German Anthology (1993)

Books about Leonard Schrader

  • Killing For Culture - Includes a chapter about The Killing of America
  • Mishima (only in Japanese) - Nonfiction account of making Mishima
  • Easy Riders , Raging Bulls - Leonard's Life, his upbringing with his brother Paul and his Hollywood Career
  • The Aesthetics of Murder - Includes a chapter on Mishima
  • Framing Latin American Cinema - Includes a chapter on Kiss of The Spider Woman

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Leonard Schrader. In: imdb.com. Internet Movie Database (English).
  2. ^ A b c Leonard Schrader, 62, Writer of Acclaimed Hollywood Films, Dies In: The New York Times , November 7, 2006 (English). Retrieved February 2, 2016.
  3. ↑ Leonard Schrader at alexander-verlag-com, accessed on February 2, 2016.
  4. ↑ The 58th Academy Awards | 1986 at oscars.org (English)
personal data
SURNAME Schrader, Leonard
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American writer, film director and producer
DATE OF BIRTH November 30, 1943
PLACE OF BIRTH Grand Rapids , Michigan , United States
DATE OF DEATH November 2, 2006
Place of death Los Angeles , California , United States