# Fabrice Ziolkowski

Fabrice Ziolkowski (born January 28, 1954) is a French-born screenwriter, best known for writing Cartoon Saloon's debut Oscar-nominated film The Secret of Kells, the animated series Gawayn, and directing and producing the avant-garde documentary film L.A.X..

## Background

Fabrice Ziolkowski was born on January 28, 1954, in Charleville-Mézières, France. His family emigrated, first to Montreal, Quebec, Canada, then to the United States. He studied at the Brooks Institute of Photography, received a BA and MA in film and literature from the University of California at Santa Barbara, and did doctoral work at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

## Career

Ziolkowski started his career as a member of the Lumina film group which included experimental filmmaker MM Serra. He is foremost a screenwriter, but has also directed and produced films. Since the 2000s, he has emerged as a voice director. . He was development executive of TF1 subsidiary Protecrea from 1999 to 2002.

## Personal

Ziolkowski resides in France with his spouse Luli Barzman (daughter of Ben Barzman and Norma Barzman). He met Barzman at UCLA; the two have collaborated on various projects for years, from screenwriting to producing and directing documentaries.
His daughter, Marina Ziolkowski, is now a third-generation filmmaker in the family.

## Works

Ziolkowski is best known for his screenplay of the acclaimed animated film The Secret of Kells. The Hollywood Reporter described it as a "stirring tale" of "universal themes of the transcendent power of imagination and following one's dreams" in an "Irish-legend-and-lore-laced script " The New York Times noted that "A gentle spirit of syncretism suffuses The Secret of Kells." Variety called it a "Gorgeous hand-drawn 2D animation, which is so retro that it looks like a direct descendent of the medieval illuminated manuscript tradition, perfectly complements its tale... A tour-de-force."
His documentary L.A.X. continues to receive notice: film scholar David James has called it "a disabused, skeptical rendering of the city's grittier underside" which reveals "the noir realities behind the sunshine." It has been described as "an essay" on Los Angeles, an "experimental documentary, and "a fictional structure... a journey through the city."

### Filmography

Ziolkowski has directed, written, produced, and/or voice-directed feature films, television films and series in live-action and animation.

#### Director and producer

* Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! (2012) documentary
* Mazopo (2004) music video
* Death Letters (2000) documentary
* L.A.X. (1980) documentary

#### Producer

* The 1001 Lives of Lia Rodrigues (2006) documentary
* Back to Kinshasa (2003) documentary

#### Screenwriter

Ziolkowski has written, co-written, or edited scores of films, television series and episodes, particularly animation.
* Sadie Sparks (2019) television series
* Alvin and the Chipmunks (2015) television series
* Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! (2012) documentary
* The Bellflower Bunnies (2010) television series
* Gawayn (2009–2012) animated television series
* The Secret of Kells (2009) feature film
* Hairy Scary (2008) television series
* Atout 5 (2007) television series
* Khochkhach (Flower of Oblivion) (2006) feature movie
* Viva Carthago (2005) television series
* Les énigmes de providence (The Mysteries of Providence) (2002) television series
* The Southern Star (2001) animation movie
* Mysterious Island (2001) animation movie
* The Greatest Show on Ice (2001) animation movie
* Death Letters (2000) documentary film
* Baby Monitor (1997) television movie
* L'amerloque (1996) television movie
* Billy the Cat (1996) television series
* Highlander (1993) television series
* Counterstrike (1992) television series
* Tattle Tale (1992) television movie
* The Venture (1992) feature film
* Hot Chocolate (1992) television movie
* Fly by Night (1991) television series
* The New Adventures of the Black Stallion (1990) television series
* Circles in a Forest (1991) feature film (with Luli Barzman)
* L.A.X. (1980) documentary film

#### Voice

Ziolkowski has served as voice director, actor or dialogue coach on the following:
* My Knight and Me (2017) voice direction
* Scary Larry (2012) voice direction
* Sherlock Yack: Zoo-Detective (2011) television series – voice direction
* Lulu Vroumette (2010) television series – voice direction
* Tales of Tatonka (2010) television series – voice and voice direction
* Miss Missouri (1990) feature film – dialogue coach
* Nocturne indien (1989) feature film – dialogue coach and script translation
* Man on Fire (1987) dialogue coach and uncredited translation

### Books and articles

Ziolkowski has written non-fiction and fiction books and articles, which include:
* Introduction au scenario (Introduction To The Screenplay) (1999, reprinted 2006)
* "Comedies and Proverbs: An Interview with Eric Rohmer" (1981)