300
Angel
Creek
Hunger
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Michael Fassbender was born in Heidelberg, Germany on 2 April, 1977 but was raised in Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland. He attended St. Brendans College in Killarney where his parents, Josef and Adele, run the West End House Restaurant. He started acting when he was 16 after attending a drama and comedy class run by Donie Courtney, who eventually offered Michael parts with Courtney's theatre group, Bricriu. Following this, he attended the Central School of Speech and Drama which trained him in the art of the theatre and acting. His very first roles include the Oxford Stage Company's production of The Three Sisters and several small television parts until he was cast in the epic Steven Spielburg/Tom Hanks production, Band of Brothers playing Sgt. Burton 'Pat' Christenson. This garnered attention for Michael and gave way to varied roles in the coming years. Following Band of Brothers, Michael was cast in many UK television series and movies. The most notable being Gunpowder, Treason and Plot starring as the notorious Guy Fawkes; the teen supernatural drama Hex as fallen angel 'Azazeal' who bewitches the main character, Cassie (Christina Cole); A Bear Named Winnie, a true story about how Canadian Lt. Harry Colebourn, Michael's character, brings a bear to London en route to war and thus sparks the famous hildren's stories; Murphy's Law where he guest-starred in three epsides as Caz Miller; Poirot: After the Funeral as George Abernathie; and Trial and Retribution X: Sins of the Father as a defence barrister. Michael owns his own production company, Peanut Productions, which he used to produce, direct and perform in a stage version of Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs in his hometown of Killarney, Ireland. Continuing his stage experience, Michael starred alongside legendary Mel Smith in Allegiance, a play about Winston Churchill and Michael Collins, in the 2006 Edinburgh Festival. He expresses an interest of balancing theatre and film experience where each compliments the other in the real world. Michael has completed other various roles over the years. He has starred in a Guiness advertisement called 'The Quarrel' where his character swims the Atlantic in order to apologise to his best friend in New York over a pint of the famous drink--the role made him an instant star in Ireland. He has also been involved in the BBC radio broadcasting of Dracula and appeared in The Cooper Temple Clause's Blind Pilots video where he was transformed into a goat. He regularly provides voice work for a variety of advertisements. The year 2007 marked a milestone in Michael's career with the release of Frank Miller's epic adventure and box office hit 300 which catapulted him into the Hollywood spotlight. As 'Stelios', Michael was given praise for his rendition of the warrior Spartan; furthermore, it also gave Michael a chance to complete stunt work with a gruelling training schedule. Another important film which will be released this year is French director Francois Ozon's first English production of Angel where Michael will be in one of the lead roles as 'Esme' and starring alongside Romolo Garai, Sam Neill and Charlotte Rampling. Continuing on from 300's success, Michael was cast in Joel Schumacher's Town Creek in the vampyric yet academic role of 'Richard Wirth' which is currently in Post-Production after a shooting schedule in Romania. Michael's busy schedule also includes a role in the physically demanding Hunger where he will star as the Irish political activist Bobby Sands; The Sycamores, a King Lear-esque murder mystery; a cameo in Woody Allen's Cassandra's Dream; and is also rumoured for a film adaptation of The Burning of Bridget Cleary. Michael currently resides in London, England and travels home to his home of Killarney, Ireland three times a year.
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