Biography
Since the mid-1980s, Josef Rusnak has proved himself an adept director on both the big and small screens. The German filmmaker has enjoyed most critical success in his home country, but has also established himself in America, mostly as a helmer of genre movies. Arguably Rusnak's best known-film is the 1999 sci-fi thriller "The Thirteenth Floor," which he wrote and directed, starring Craig Bierko and Gretchen Mol, however, the highest profile movie on his CV is the 1998 blockbuster remake of "Godzilla," on which he did second unit work. In 1984, Rusnak made his film debut at the tender age of 25 with "Kaltes Fieber" ("Cold Fever") and was immediately thrust into the limelight by winning Outstanding Achievement in Directing for the movie at the German Film Awards. From there, he went on to direct episodes of the French TV series "L'heure Simenon," based on Georges Simenon detective stories, and "Le Gorille." In 1995, he made his first English-language film, "Quiet Days in Hollywood," a multi-strand Los Angeles-set drama starring Hilary Swank. He solidified himself as a U.S.-based filmmaker by directing the German-American thriller "No Strings Attached" in 1997, starring Vincent Spano. In the late 2000s, he collaborated with Wesley Snipes on the action-thrillers "The Contractor" and "The Art of War II: Betrayal," just two of a number of straight-to-DVD productions he directed during this period.
