Julian Schnabel Director Biography

Julian Schnabel was born in Brooklyn, New York, on October 26, 1951, and moved with his family to Brownsville, Texas, in 1965. His father, Jack Schnabel, was an immigrant from Czechoslovakia, while his mother, Esther, was from New York. During his youth in Texas, Schnabel developed an interest in art and surfing, experiences that became part of his formative years. He later returned to New York after completing his university education.

Schnabel attended the University of Houston and received his BFA in 1973. He subsequently applied to the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program and was accepted, beginning his professional development within New York's art world. In the late 1970s he gained increasing attention for his large-scale paintings, particularly his "plate paintings," which incorporated broken ceramic plates and unconventional materials into expansive works. His first solo exhibition at Mary Boone Gallery in 1979 helped establish him as a major emerging artist.

By the 1980s, Schnabel had become one of the most prominent figures associated with Neo-Expressionism. His paintings were exhibited internationally, and his work entered major museum collections including the Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Museum and the Centre Pompidou. Although painting remained central to his identity, he gradually expanded his creative interests into film and other artistic disciplines.

Schnabel made his feature-directing debut with Basquiat in 1996, a biographical drama about the New York artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. The film featured Jeffrey Wright as Basquiat alongside David Bowie, Dennis Hopper, Gary Oldman, Christopher Walken and Willem Dafoe. Schnabel's transition from painting to filmmaking was unusual, but his visual-art background became an important part of the film's distinctive style.

His second feature, Before Night Falls, explored the life of Cuban writer Reinaldo Arenas and starred Javier Bardem. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2000, where it won the Grand Jury Prize and Bardem received the Volpi Cup for Best Actor. Schnabel subsequently directed The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, based on Jean-Dominique Bauby's memoir, and the film became his most internationally decorated directorial achievement.

For The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Schnabel won Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival and the Golden Globe for Best Director. The film received four Academy Award nominations, including Best Director, and became widely recognized for its innovative visual storytelling. He later directed Miral in 2010 and At Eternity's Gate in 2018, the latter portraying Vincent van Gogh with Willem Dafoe in the leading role.

Schnabel's work has continued to connect cinema with the worlds of artists, writers and creative expression. At Eternity's Gate premiered in competition at Venice in 2018, where Willem Dafoe won the Volpi Cup for Best Actor and subsequently received an Academy Award nomination. Schnabel has also continued painting and exhibiting his artwork, maintaining a creative practice that extends well beyond filmmaking.

In his personal life, Schnabel has been married several times and has seven children. His family includes artist and filmmaker Lola Schnabel, actress and poet Stella Schnabel, art dealer Vito Schnabel, and twin sons Cy and Olmo Schnabel. He is currently married to Swedish interior designer and filmmaker collaborator Louise Kugelberg, who has also worked with him on projects including At Eternity’s Gate and In the Hand of Dante.

Julian Schnabel has built a rare career that successfully connects painting and filmmaking. From his rise as a leading Neo-Expressionist painter to acclaimed films such as Basquiat, Before Night Falls, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly and At Eternity’s Gate, he has consistently brought an artist's visual sensibility and unconventional approach to cinema. His Cannes and Golden Globe directing victories established him as an important figure in international filmmaking.

At 74 in 2026, Schnabel remains an active multidisciplinary artist and filmmaker. The success and recognition of In the Hand of Dante, together with his 2025 Cartier Glory to the Filmmaker Award, demonstrate the continuing influence of his distinctive creative vision. His ability to move between painting, cinema and other artistic forms has made Julian Schnabel a unique and enduring figure in contemporary American art and film.