Niels Schneider

With leading man good looks coupled with a natural ease in front of the camera, Niels Schneider's memorable turn in the critically acclaimed drama "Heartbeats" (2010) was his ticket to instant stardom. He was born on June 18, 1987 in Paris, France into a family of actors comprised of his father, Jean-Paul Schneider, and his brothers, the late Vadim Schneider and Volodia Schneider. As a child, Schneider often accompanied his father when he performed in theater; in 1996, he moved to Quebec, Canada where he learned how to dub films. He made his film acting debut in the drama "The Taste of Nothingness" (2007), as the friend of a seemingly normal teenager (Julien Hurteau) who decides to self-destruct and records the process on camera. Schneider followed it up with featured roles in "Everything is Fine" (2008), director Xavier Dolan's semi-biographical drama "I Killed My Mother" (2009), and "Taking the Plunge 2" (2009). In 2010, Schneider collaborated with Dolan again in "Heartbeats," where he portrayed an elusive, golden-curled dreamboat who is simultaneously pursued by two best friends (Monia Chokri and Dolan). For his performance in the film, he won the Chopard Trophy for Emerging Talent at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. Schneider stayed busy with several film projects, including a co-starring role in "L'âge atomique" (2012), opposite Elliot Paquet and Dominik Wojcik.