Claudia Karvan
Encyclopedia
Claudia Karvan is an Australian actress popular for her roles in the television series The Secret Life of Us
and Love My Way
. She is also a producer and writer on Love My Way. She currently stars in the drama series Spirited. Karvan was inducted into the Australian Film Walk of Fame
in 2007 in acknowledgment of her contributions to the Australian film and television industry.
's Echoes of Paradise and appeared alongside Judy Davis
in Gillian Armstrong
's High Tide
that same year.
In 1993, Karvan won an Australian Film Critic's Circle award for Best Actress for her role in The Heartbreak Kid
. Karvan has starred alongside many of Australia's leading men, including Guy Pearce
in Flynn (1992) and Dating the Enemy
(1996), Ben Mendelsohn
in The Big Steal
(1990) and Hugh Jackman
in Paperback Hero
(1999). In 2006, she had a role in Footy Legends
, a film about rugby league. She also played the role of Hailey's (Joanna Levesque) mother in the American film Aquamarine
.
Karvan appeared in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
as Sola Naberrie, the older sister of Padmé Amidala
. She also filmed scenes for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
, but her scenes were cut and appear only on the DVD release.
She also co-starred with Jim Caviezel in Nature's Grave, directed by Jamie Blanks
in 2008. In 2009, she voiced in the film $9.99
. She appeared in the 2010 film Daybreakers
, a vampire thriller co-starring Ethan Hawke
and Sam Neill
and filmed on the Gold Goast. She will star in 33 Postcards
.
award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama for the GP episode titled "Sing Me a Lullaby". She also won the award again in 2001 for her role as Dr Alex Christensen in The Secret Life of Us
. Karvan was awarded the same honour again in 2005: this time for her role as Frankie Paige in the television series Love My Way
. As a producer of Love My Way
, Karvan received two further AFI awards in 2005 and 2006 for Best Television Drama Series.
Karvan has won Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actress three times. First in 2003 for The Secret Life Of Us, then in 2006 for Love My Way, and again in 2010 for Saved.
In August 2010, a new Australian series starring Karvan was launched, Spirited
. Karvan is a co-creator and producer of the series. She plays the dentist, Suzy Darling, who has left her husband and moved into a flat in a building which she discovers is haunted by the ghost of a 1980s British rock musician, Henry (Matt King
).
for a year with her mother and brothers. After returning from Bali, Karvan's family moved to King's Cross
where her father owned the nightspot Arthur's. Karvan's partner is Jeremy Sparks. Together they have two children, a daughter Audrey (born in 2001), and a son Albie (born on 18 May 2006). She is also stepmother to Holiday Sidewinder (lead singer from the indie band Bridezilla
), Sparks' nineteen-year-old daughter from a previous relationship with Australian actress Loene Carmen
.
The Secret Life of Us
The Secret Life of Us was a television drama series set in the beachside suburb of St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia. The series was produced by Southern Star Entertainment and screened in Australia from 2001 to 2005 on Network Ten and on Channel 4 in the UK...
and Love My Way
Love My Way
Love My Way was a Logie Award winning and critically acclaimed Australian television drama series. It won the AFI award for Best Television Drama Series for each of its three seasons ....
. She is also a producer and writer on Love My Way. She currently stars in the drama series Spirited. Karvan was inducted into the Australian Film Walk of Fame
Australian Film Walk of Fame
The Australian Film Walk of Fame is a section of plaques on the footpath outside the Randwick Ritz Cinema in the Australian city of Sydney. Formed in 2008 at the Randwick Ritz Cinema, the initiative was established to honour Australian actors and actresses for their contributions to Australian cinema...
in 2007 in acknowledgment of her contributions to the Australian film and television industry.
Film
Karvan began screen acting in 1983 when she appeared in the film Molly. In 1987, she went on to appear in Phillip NoycePhillip Noyce
Phillip Noyce is an Australian film director.-Life and career:Noyce was born in Griffith, New South Wales, attended Barker College, Sydney, and began making short films at the age of 18, starting with Better to Reign in Hell, using his friends as the cast...
's Echoes of Paradise and appeared alongside Judy Davis
Judy Davis
Judy Davis is an Australian actress best known for her roles in Husbands and Wives, Barton Fink, A Passage to India and in the TV miniseries Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows....
in Gillian Armstrong
Gillian Armstrong
Gillian May Armstrong is an award-winning Australian director of feature films and documentaries.- Career :Born in Melbourne, Victoria, Gillian Armstrong grew up in the eastern suburb of Mitcham. She graduated from Swinburne Technical College in 1968 where she studied theatrical costume design and...
's High Tide
High Tide (1987 film)
High Tide is a 1987 Australian film, from a script by Laura Jones, about the mother-daughter bond, directed by Gillian Armstrong. Lili , is a back-up singer for an Elvis Presley imitator and living on the edge of show business...
that same year.
In 1993, Karvan won an Australian Film Critic's Circle award for Best Actress for her role in The Heartbreak Kid
The Heartbreak Kid (1993 film)
The Heartbreak Kid is a 1993 Australian film starring Claudia Karvan and Alex Dimitriades, which was based on a play of the same name by Richard Barrett and first performed by Griffin Theatre Company...
. Karvan has starred alongside many of Australia's leading men, including Guy Pearce
Guy Pearce
Guy Edward Pearce is an English-born Australian actor and musician, known for his roles as Leonard Shelby in Christopher Nolan's Memento, Lieutenant Ed Exley in L.A...
in Flynn (1992) and Dating the Enemy
Dating the Enemy
Dating The Enemy is an Australian comedy about a boyfriend and girlfriend who swap bodies and have to live as each other.-Plot:One Valentine's evening a group of single, dateless friends get together to play Trivial Pursuit. Brett , a friend of the host from Melbourne, has just landed a job as...
(1996), Ben Mendelsohn
Ben Mendelsohn
Paul Benjamin "Ben" Mendelsohn is an Australian actor.-Early life:Mendelsohn was born in Melbourne, Australia, the son of Carole Ann and Frederick Mendelsohn. He attended Heidelberg Primary School and Banyule High School. His father is a prominent medical researcher who heads the Howard Florey...
in The Big Steal
The Big Steal (1990 film)
The Big Steal is a 1990 Australian caper film directed by Nadia Tass starring Ben Mendelsohn, Claudia Karvan and Steve Bisley. David Parker was the scriptwriter and cinematographer. The film won three Australian Film Institute awards.-Plot:...
(1990) and Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman is an Australian actor and producer who is involved in film, musical theatre, and television.Jackman has won international recognition for his roles in major films, notably as action/superhero, period and romance characters...
in Paperback Hero
Paperback Hero (1999 film)
Paperback Hero is a 1999 Australian comedy film starring Claudia Karvan and Hugh Jackman. It was directed by Antony Bowman who also wrote the screenplay. The film was predominantly shot in Queensland including Nindigully.-Synopsis:...
(1999). In 2006, she had a role in Footy Legends
Footy Legends
Footy Legends is a 2006 Australian film, directed, written and produced by Khoa Do, starring his older brother Anh Do, Angus Sampson, Emma Lung and Claudia Karvan. It was filmed in and around Sydney, Australia, mostly in the western suburbs...
, a film about rugby league. She also played the role of Hailey's (Joanna Levesque) mother in the American film Aquamarine
Aquamarine (film)
Aquamarine is a 2006 Australian-American teen fantasy comedy film starring Sara Paxton, Emma Roberts, and Joanna "JoJo" Levesque . The film, which was made in both the United States and Australia, was released in North America on March 3, 2006...
.
Karvan appeared in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is a 2005 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. It is the sixth and final film released in the Star Wars saga and the third in terms of the series' internal chronology....
as Sola Naberrie, the older sister of Padmé Amidala
Padmé Amidala
Padmé Amidala is a fictional character in the Star Wars science fiction franchise. She first appeared on film in the 1999 feature film, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, as the young queen of the planet Naboo. In subsequent prequel trilogy films, Padmé represents Naboo in the Galactic Senate...
. She also filmed scenes for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is a 2002 American epic space opera film directed by George Lucas and written by Lucas and Jonathan Hales. It is the fifth film to be released in the Star Wars saga and the second in terms of the series' internal chronology...
, but her scenes were cut and appear only on the DVD release.
She also co-starred with Jim Caviezel in Nature's Grave, directed by Jamie Blanks
Jamie Blanks
Jamie Blanks is a film director and composer, he is probably most famous for directing the 1998 cult slasher film Urban Legend.- Biography :...
in 2008. In 2009, she voiced in the film $9.99
$9.99
$9.99 is a 2008 Australian/Israeli stop motion film written and directed by Tatia Rosenthal, with the screenplay by Etgar Keret. This film marks the third collaboration between Rosenthal and Keret...
. She appeared in the 2010 film Daybreakers
Daybreakers
Daybreakers is a 2009 science-fiction horror film written and directed by Australian filmmakers Michael and Peter Spierig. The film takes place in 2019, where a plague has turned most of the planet's human population into vampires. A vampiric corporation sets out to capture and farm the remaining...
, a vampire thriller co-starring Ethan Hawke
Ethan Hawke
Ethan Green Hawke is an American actor, writer and director. He made his feature film debut in 1985 with the science fiction movie Explorers, before making a supporting appearance in the 1989 drama Dead Poets Society which is considered his breakthrough role...
and Sam Neill
Sam Neill
Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill, DCNZM, OBE is a New Zealand actor. He is well known for his starring role as paleontologist Dr Alan Grant in Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III....
and filmed on the Gold Goast. She will star in 33 Postcards
33 Postcards
33 Postcards is a feature film written and directed by Pauline Chan and starring Guy Pearce. It is the first co-production between China and New South Wales.-Development:33 Postcards was developed under the title Mei Mei...
.
Television
1996 saw Karvan awarded her first Australian Film InstituteAustralian Film Institute Awards
The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Award, known as the AACTA Award , is an accolade presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts . The awards recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry and television industry, including directors,...
award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama for the GP episode titled "Sing Me a Lullaby". She also won the award again in 2001 for her role as Dr Alex Christensen in The Secret Life of Us
The Secret Life of Us
The Secret Life of Us was a television drama series set in the beachside suburb of St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia. The series was produced by Southern Star Entertainment and screened in Australia from 2001 to 2005 on Network Ten and on Channel 4 in the UK...
. Karvan was awarded the same honour again in 2005: this time for her role as Frankie Paige in the television series Love My Way
Love My Way
Love My Way was a Logie Award winning and critically acclaimed Australian television drama series. It won the AFI award for Best Television Drama Series for each of its three seasons ....
. As a producer of Love My Way
Love My Way
Love My Way was a Logie Award winning and critically acclaimed Australian television drama series. It won the AFI award for Best Television Drama Series for each of its three seasons ....
, Karvan received two further AFI awards in 2005 and 2006 for Best Television Drama Series.
Karvan has won Logie Award for Most Outstanding Actress three times. First in 2003 for The Secret Life Of Us, then in 2006 for Love My Way, and again in 2010 for Saved.
In August 2010, a new Australian series starring Karvan was launched, Spirited
Spirited (TV series)
Spirited is an Australian television drama series made for subscription television channel W which aired for two seasons, from 2010-2011....
. Karvan is a co-creator and producer of the series. She plays the dentist, Suzy Darling, who has left her husband and moved into a flat in a building which she discovers is haunted by the ghost of a 1980s British rock musician, Henry (Matt King
Matt King (comedian)
Matt King is an English actor, writer of BBC sitcom Whites and comedian. He is known for his role as self-absorbed musician Super Hans in the British sitcom Peep Show....
).
Personal life
She was born in Sydney, Australia and attended SCEGGS Darlinghurst. When she was 8 she lived in BaliBali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
for a year with her mother and brothers. After returning from Bali, Karvan's family moved to King's Cross
Kings Cross, New South Wales
Kings Cross is an inner-city locality of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately 2 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Sydney...
where her father owned the nightspot Arthur's. Karvan's partner is Jeremy Sparks. Together they have two children, a daughter Audrey (born in 2001), and a son Albie (born on 18 May 2006). She is also stepmother to Holiday Sidewinder (lead singer from the indie band Bridezilla
Bridezilla (band)
Bridezilla are a five-piece indie band from Sydney, Australia that began playing together in 2005.The band - Holiday Sidewinder, , who also plays rhythm guitar on most tracks, Pia May, the band's guitarist, Millie Hall, plays both the Saxophone and the keyboard, Daisy Tulley, plays the violin, and...
), Sparks' nineteen-year-old daughter from a previous relationship with Australian actress Loene Carmen
Loene Carmen
Loene Carmen is an Australian singer/songwriter and actress.-Background:Carmen's father is rock/jazz/blues pianist Peter Head...
.
External links
- http://www.claudiakarvan.net/