Life and career

Born in Rome, he starts his studies at the prestigious Sapienza University of Rome in Italian litterature but he drops the University in order to pursue is director career. Gabriele Muccino gained success with films such as L'ultimo bacio (One Last Kiss) and Remember Me, My Love (Ricordati di me). His first on-the-set film experience was volunteering as a director's assistant. This inspired his passion for filmmaking and drove him to take courses on screenwriting and enroll in a directing program at Rome's Experimental Cinematography Institute. Throughout his time there, Muccino created a few short films that were aired on Italian Television. He then began directing several documentaries. Following these accomplishments, Muccino got the opportunity to direct a segment of the Italian film, Intolerance (1996). . "Come te nessumo mai" (But Forever in My Mind) was the next film he directed starring his younger brother Silvio. Muccino's third feature film, "L'ultimo bacio" (The Last Kiss), was directed in 2001 and was his breakthrough that called upon international attention. The film's success led to Muccino signing a two-picture deal with Miramax. His success only continued to grow with his next film, "Ricordati di me" (Remember Me, My Love) in 2003.

He is currently making a switch to directing Hollywood films after L'ultimo bacio won the Audience Award for World Cinema at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival bringing him to the attention of the American film industry. Muccino was handpicked by Will Smith to serve as the director of The Pursuit of Happyness. Muccino said in a later interview, "Will had to defend me as a choice to the studio; I could barely speak English and I could barely express my vision. I felt protected and that I could push my ideas even when they weren't totally conventional. The reason why I found respect, and respect for my ideas, was because of Will." Muccino also directed Smith's later film, Seven Pounds. Playing for Keeps was his next big work that featured an very well-known celebrity cast featuring Gerard Butler, Dennis Quaid and Uma Thurman. Muccino's following film Fathers and Daughters also features A-list celebrities such as Amanda Seyfried, Russell Crowe, and Aaron Paul.

His latest film, Summertime, is a coming of age story of two Italian teenagers traveling to US for their first time during the summer between high school and college.

Awards and Nominations

Muccino has won several awards throughout his lifetime. The first being Best Film at the Torino International Festival of Young Cinema in 1998 for Ecco fatto (That's It). In 1999 his film, Come te nessuno mai, won him several awards including the Silver Iris at the Brussels International Film Festival for best film, the Golden Castle at the Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema, and the OCIC Award at the Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema. The Italian box office success L'ultimo bacio won Muccino Best Director and Best Screenplay at the David di Donatello Awards. This film also earned the Audience Award in 2002 at the Sundance Festival which introduced Muccino to the United States. Ricordita di me scored three Nastro d'Argento Prizes which are the Italian equivalent to the Oscars. This film also won Best Director, Best Film, and Best Screenplay at the Donatello Awards in 2003.

• Torino International Festival of Young Cinema: Best Film (1998)
• Brussels International Film Festival: Best Film (1999)
• Castellinaria International Festival of Young Cinema: Golden Castle (1999)
• Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema: OCIC Award (1999)
• David Di Donatello Award: Best Director and Best Screenplay - The Last Kiss (2001)
• Sundance Festival: Audience Award - The Last Kiss (2002)
• David Di Donatello Awards: Nominated ad Best Director, Best Film, and Best Screenplay for Remember Me (2003)
• Shanghai Film Festival: Kiss Me Again - Won as Best film (2010)

Filmography

• Intolerance (episode "Max suona il piano") (1996)
• Ecco fatto (1998)
• But Forever in My Mind (Come te nessuno mai) (1999)
• L'ultimo bacio (One Last Kiss) (2001)
• Remember Me, My Love (Ricordati di me) (2003)
• The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
• Seven Pounds (2008)
• Kiss Me Again (Baciami ancora) (2010)
• Playing for Keeps (2012)
• Fathers and Daughters (2015)

[ Source: Wikipedia ]