Charlie Kaufman

Charlie Kaufman

Charles Stuart "Charlie" Kaufman (born November 19, 1958) is an American screenwriter, producer, director and lyricist. His writing works includes critically acclaimed films Being John Malkovich, Adaptation. and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. He made his directing debut in 2008 with Synecdoche, New York, which was met with positive reception as well; famous film critic Roger Ebert called it "the best movie of the decade" in 2009.

Kaufman is often praised for being highly original and imaginative: Being John Malkovich stars John Malkovich as a fictional version of himself, Human Nature is mostly told by flashbacks, Adaptation tells the story of Kaufman himself, trying to write the film itself and to understand the book from which it is adapted with the presence of his fictional twin brother Donald Kaufman who never existed (but was credited as a writer of the film as well), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind mainly takes place in the mind of the main character while his memory is erased and Synecdoche, New York is a postmodern film with many complex non-realistic elements.

He has been nominated for three Academy Awards: twice for Best Original Screenplay for Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, winning the award for the latter, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Adaptation. He also won two BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplays, one BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and a Saturn Award for Best Writing.