Richard Kwietniowski Biography

Date of Birth: March 17, 1957

Born and raised in England, Richard Kwietniowski studied literature and film at the University of Kent and later at the University of California. His first film was a short called Alfalfa, which offered an alternative alphabet for gays. Several more gay-themed shorts followed. After reading Gilbert Adair's novel Love and Death on Long Island, Kwietniowski wrote a screenplay based on the book about a stuffy British author who becomes obsessed with a young American teen idol after seeing him in a film. After 18 months of negotiating with companies in Italy, Canada and the UK, Kwietniowski got the money to produce the film and landed John Hurt and Jason Priestley for the leading roles. The film was a success with critics and won the Prix Pierrot for Best European First Feature at the Cannes Film Festival, the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best First Film, and a BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer in British Film.

His next project, Owning Mahoney (2003), was also based on a book, this time the true story of a bank manager whose gambling addiction led him to commit the largest single-handed bank fraud in Canadian history.

Filmography:

Owning Mahoney (2003)
Love and Death on Long Island (1997)