Gillian Armstrong
Encyclopedia
Gillian May Armstrong is an award-winning Australian director of feature films
and documentaries.
, 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 film-making. In 1972 she entered, and later graduated from, the Australian Film Television and Radio School
. Three years later she directed two shorts films: The Singer And The Dancer and Smokes and Lollies (1975).
Her feature length film My Brilliant Career
(1979), an adaptation of Miles Franklin
's novel of the same name, was the first Australian feature length film to be directed by a woman for 46 years. Armstrong received six awards at the 1979 Australian Film Awards
, including Best Director.
Following the success of My Brilliant Career, which was nominated for an Academy Award in Best Costume Design, Armstrong directed the Australian musical Starstruck (1982).
Since then, Armstrong has specialised in period drama. She achieved her greatest Hollywood success with the 1994 adaptation of Little Women
, starring Winona Ryder
and Susan Sarandon
, and followed with the films Oscar and Lucinda
(1997) and Charlotte Gray
(2001).
Armstrong discusses the making of High Tide in the 2003 Canadian documentary Complete Unknown
.
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
and documentaries.
Career
Born in MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Gillian Armstrong grew up in the eastern suburb of Mitcham
Mitcham, Victoria
Mitcham is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 20 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Whitehorse. At the 2006 Census, Mitcham had a population of 14,211.-History:...
. She graduated from Swinburne Technical College in 1968 where she studied theatrical costume design and film-making. In 1972 she entered, and later graduated from, the Australian Film Television and Radio School
Australian Film Television and Radio School
The Australian Film, Television and Radio School is the Australian national centre for professional education and advanced training in film, television, radio and digital media. The School is an Australian Commonwealth government statutory authority...
. Three years later she directed two shorts films: The Singer And The Dancer and Smokes and Lollies (1975).
Her feature length film My Brilliant Career
My Brilliant Career (film)
My Brilliant Career is a 1979 Australian drama film directed by Gillian Armstrong and based on the book of the same name by Miles Franklin....
(1979), an adaptation of Miles Franklin
Miles Franklin
Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin, known as Miles Franklin was an Australian writer and feminist who is best known for her novel My Brilliant Career, published in 1901...
's novel of the same name, was the first Australian feature length film to be directed by a woman for 46 years. Armstrong received six awards at the 1979 Australian Film Awards
Australian 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,...
, including Best Director.
Following the success of My Brilliant Career, which was nominated for an Academy Award in Best Costume Design, Armstrong directed the Australian musical Starstruck (1982).
Since then, Armstrong has specialised in period drama. She achieved her greatest Hollywood success with the 1994 adaptation of Little Women
Little Women
Little Women is a novel by American author Louisa May Alcott . The book was written and set in the Alcott family home, Orchard House, in Concord, Massachusetts. It was published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869...
, starring Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder
Winona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
and Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
, and followed with the films Oscar and Lucinda
Oscar and Lucinda (film)
Oscar and Lucinda is a 1997 romantic drama film directed by Gillian Armstrong and starring Cate Blanchett, Ralph Fiennes, Ciarán Hinds and Tom Wilkinson. It is based on the 1988 Booker Prize-winning novel Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey.-Plot:...
(1997) and Charlotte Gray
Charlotte Gray (film)
Charlotte Gray is a 2001 British-Australian-German feature film directed by Gillian Armstrong, based on the novel of the same name by Sebastian Faulks...
(2001).
Armstrong discusses the making of High Tide in the 2003 Canadian documentary Complete Unknown
Complete Unknown
Complete Unknown is an unreleased Bob Dylan-themed documentary film that screened at film festivals in Canada and the U.K. in 2003 and 2004. It was co-directed by Canadian filmmakers Griffin Ondaatje and Craig Proctor and features their comically circuitous pilgrimages with cameraman Simon...
.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Old Man and Dog | short | |
| 1971 | Roof Needs Mowing | short | |
| 1973 | Satdee Night | short | also writer |
| 1973 | One Hundred a Day | short | also writer |
| 1973 | Gretel | short | also writer |
| 1975 | The Singer and the Dancer | short | also co-writer, producer |
| 1976 | Smokes and Lollies | documentary | |
| 1979 | My Brilliant Career My Brilliant Career (film) My Brilliant Career is a 1979 Australian drama film directed by Gillian Armstrong and based on the book of the same name by Miles Franklin.... |
||
| 1980 | Touch Wood | documentary | |
| 1980 | Fourteen's Good, Eighteen's Better | documentary | also producer |
| 1982 | Starstruck Starstruck (1982 film) Starstruck is a 1982 Australian comedy-drama musical film starring Jo Kennedy, Ross O'Donovan and Margo Lee about two teenagers trying to make their break into the music industry. The film was shot on location in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia... |
||
| 1983 | Having a Go | documentary | |
| 1984 | Mrs. Soffel Mrs. Soffel Mrs. Soffel is a 1984 American film drama based on the true Buck McGovern and the Biddle Boys case of 1901 Pittsburgh, starring Diane Keaton and Mel Gibson. It was filmed on location in and around the Serez family Farm in Mulmer Ontario, as well as Wisconsin and establishing shots in Pittsburgh... |
Entered into the 35th Berlin International Film Festival 35th Berlin International Film Festival The 35th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 15 to February 26, 1985.-Jury:* Jean Marais * Max von Sydow* Alberto Sordi* Regimantas Adomaitis* Sheila Benson* Wolfgang Kohlhaase* Onat Kutlar* Luis Megino... . |
|
| 1986 | Hard to Handle | documentary | |
| 1987 | High Tide | ||
| 1988 | Bingo, Bridesmaids & Braces | documentary | |
| 1991 | Fires Within Fires Within Fires Within is a 1991 film directed by Gillian Armstrong. It stars Jimmy Smits and Greta Scacchi.-Cast:*Jimmy Smits as Nestor*Greta Scacchi as Isabel*Vincent D'Onofrio as Sam*Luis Avalos as Victor Hernandez*Bertila Damas as Estella Sanchez... |
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| 1992 | The Last Days of Chez Nous The Last Days of Chez Nous The Last Days of Chez Nous is an Australian drama, directed by Gillian Armstrong and written by Helen Garner. Made in a style which emphasizes naturalism over melodrama, the film centres around what happens after Vicki arrives at the house of her older sister Beth, whose French husband falls for her... |
Entered into the 42nd Berlin International Film Festival 42nd Berlin International Film Festival The 42nd annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 13 to 24, 1992.-Jury:* Annie Girardot * Charles Champlin* Sylvia Chang* Ildikó Enyedi* Irving N... . |
|
| 1994 | Little Women Little Women (1994 film) Little Women is a 1994 American drama film directed by Gillian Armstrong. The screenplay by Robin Swicord is based on the Louisa May Alcott novel of the same name. It is the fifth feature film adaptation of the Alcott classic, following silent versions released in 1917 and 1918, a 1933 George... |
||
| 1996 | Not Fourteen Again | documentary | also writer, producer |
| 1997 | Oscar and Lucinda Oscar and Lucinda (film) Oscar and Lucinda is a 1997 romantic drama film directed by Gillian Armstrong and starring Cate Blanchett, Ralph Fiennes, Ciarán Hinds and Tom Wilkinson. It is based on the 1988 Booker Prize-winning novel Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey.-Plot:... |
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| 2001 | Charlotte Gray Charlotte Gray (film) Charlotte Gray is a 2001 British-Australian-German feature film directed by Gillian Armstrong, based on the novel of the same name by Sebastian Faulks... |
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| 2005 | Unfolding Florence: The Many Lives of Florence Broadhurst Unfolding Florence: The Many Lives of Florence Broadhurst Unfolding Florence: The Many Lives of Florence Broadhurst, also known as A Colourful Life, is a 2006 documentary/drama based on the life of Florence Broadhurst. Starring Felicity Price, the film was written by Katherine Thomson and directed by Gillian Armstrong... |
documentary | |
| 2008 | Death Defying Acts Death Defying Acts Death Defying Acts is a 2007 supernatural romantic thriller. The film is a UK-Australian co-production directed by Gillian Armstrong and starring Guy Pearce and Catherine Zeta-Jones. It concerns an episode in the life of Hungarian-American escapologist Harry Houdini at the height of his career in... |
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| 2009 | Love, Lust & Lies | ||