Christian Alvart

German writer/director Christian Alvart confesses to a fascination with moral issues in his films which, he admits, may spring from growing up in a conservative, religious household where television and movies were prohibited. In order to hide that he had not seen the films his school friends were discussing, Alvart read avidly about them, developing his eventual scriptwriting skills. Once of age to attend the cinema, Alvart went frequently, seeing films every night of the week and later joining a video and small-gauge filmmaking club. Alvart's first job was at the film journal "XO-Filmmagazin," where he rose to the position of editor-in-chief and co-owner. Deciding to try his hand at film production, Alvart moved to Berlin, starting from the bottom in the industry, working his way up from runner to first assistant director. In 1999, Alvart wrote and directed his first feature film, the thriller "Curiosity & the Cat." After working on numerous television series including "Wolff's Turf," Alvart wrote and directed his second feature in 2005, the taut crime-thriller "Antibodies," with a chilling villain reminiscent of Hannibal Lecter. The film became an international hit, and Alvart came to America to direct the chiller "Case 39," starring Renée Zellwegger and Ian McShane, and the sci-fi horror "Pandorum," with Dennis Quaid. After neither film managed to find any success at the box office, Alvart returned to Germany to direct the 2010 crime romance "8 Uhr 28."