Emily Young is a British

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

who is currently also teaching screenwriting and directing at the London Film School.

Early life

Young was born in

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, the daughter of Helen Young (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Mason) and

Hugo Young Hugo John Smelter Young (13 October 1938 – 22 September 2003) was a British journalist and columnist and senior political commentator at ''The Guardian''. Early life and education Born in Sheffield into an old recusant Roman Catholic family, h ...

. Both her parents were

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

s and her mother was also a children's book author.

Career

After graduating from the Polish National Film School in Łódź, Young won the Cinefondation prize at the Cannes Film Festival for her graduation film, 'Second Hand'. Her first feature film, 'Kiss of Life' (2004) won a BAFTA award (the Carl Forman prize for best debut film). In 2009 Young directed ''

Veronika Decides to Die ''Veronika Decides to Die'' ( pt, Veronika Decide Morrer) is a novel by Paulo Coelho. It tells the story of Veronika, a 24-year-old Slovenian who appears to have everything in life going for her, but who decides to kill herself. This book is pa ...

'' in New York City. The film is based on the novel ''

'' written by Paulo Coelho and stars

Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Michelle Prinze ( ; born April 14, 1977) is an American actress. After being spotted at the age of four in New York City, she made her screen acting debut in the television film ''An Invasion of Privacy'' (1983). A leading role on the te ...

, and

David Thewlis David Wheeler (born 20 March 1963), better known as David Thewlis (), is a British actor, author, director and screenwriter. Thewlis rose to prominence when he starred in the film ''Naked'' (1993), for which he won the Cannes Film Festival Aw ...

. Young is currently developing an adaptation of the novel, 'White' by

Marie Darrieussecq Marie Darrieussecq (born 3 January 1969, Bayonne) is a French writer. She is also a translator, and has practised as a psychoanalyst. Her books explore the unspoken and abandoned territories in literature. Her work is dense, marked by a constant ...

with

Film Four Film4 is a British free-to-air television network owned by Channel Four Television Corporation launched on 1 November 1998, devoted to broadcasting films. While its standard-definition channel is available on Freeview and Freesat platforms, i ...

Education

Young studied English Literature at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

where she was awarded a First Class MA degree. She then learned Polish and trained as a film director at the

National Film School in Łódź National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

. In 2000 she was awarded a residency in Paris by the Festival de Cannes to develop a feature film of the memoir, 'Once in a House on Fire' by Andrea Ashworth.

Filmography

* '' Ziemia na górze'' (1996) * ''

Second Hand Used goods mean any item of personal property offered for sale not as new, including metals in any form except coins that are legal tender, but excluding books, magazines, and postage stamps. Risks Furniture, in particular bedding or upholstere ...

'' (1999) * '' Kiss of Life'' (2003) * ''

'' (2009)

Awards and nominations

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cer ...

Carl Foreman Award for Best Newcomer (2004): '' Kiss of Life'' *

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

Cinefondation Award (1999): ''Second Hand'' Nominations: *

British Independent Film Awards The British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) is an organisation that celebrates, supports and promotes British independent cinema and filmmaking talent in United Kingdom. Nominations for the annual awards ceremony are announced in early November, ...

Douglas Hiscox Award (2004): ''Kiss of Life'' * Copenhagen International Film Festival Golden Swan Award (2003): ''Kiss of Life'' *

Dinard Festival of British Cinema Dinard (; br, Dinarzh, ; Gallo: ''Dinard'') is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department, Brittany, northwestern France. Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a holiday destination, and this ...

Golden Hitchcock (2003): ''Kiss of Life''

External links

*
Emily Young interview
BBC, December 2003 1970 births Living people English film directors English screenwriters Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer BAFTA Award winners {{UK-film-director-stub