Chris Noonan
Encyclopedia
Chris Noonan is a Sydney
-based Australia
n filmmaker
and actor
best known for the pioneering live-action / CG film Babe
, for which he received Academy Award nominations as both director and writer.
and was later screened on Australian television.
On leaving school in 1970 Noonan went to work for the Commonwealth Film Unit ( now Film Australia
), as a production assistant, assistant editor, production manager and assistant director making short films and documentaries.
In 1973 Noonan was in the inaugural intake on the directors' course (along with Gillian Armstrong
and Phillip Noyce
) at the Australian Film Television and Radio School
. In 1974 he returned to Film Australia where he worked on a number of films and documentaries, including working as assistant director on the cult movie The Cars That Ate Paris
.
In 1979 he set up his own production company, and in 1980 documented the lives of a troupe of handicapped actors, in the acclaimed Stepping Out, which won the UNESCO
prize in 1980 and an Australian Film Institute Award
for 'Best Documentary' in 1981. He co-wrote and co-directed the Australian mini-series The Cowra Breakout, wrote and directed five episodes of the mini-series, Vietnam
, and made his television movie debut with The Riddle of The Stinson.
Noonan served for two years (1987–88) as President of the Australian Screen Directors' Association, and in 1990 was appointed for a three year term as Chairman of the Australian Film Commission
.
In 1995 he wrote the screenplay, with George Miller, and directed the film, Babe
, his first theatrical feature. The film earnt $US280m in its 18-language world theatrical release, a further $US217m in international video sales and was nominated for seven Academy Awards (including nominations for Noonan for 'Best Director' and 'Best Adapted Screenplay'). Noonan's contributions also resulted in two British Academy Film Award
nominations for 'Best Screenplay' and 'Best Film', a Saturn Award nomination at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films for 'Best Writing', a Humanitas Prize
nomination in the 'Best Feature Film' category, a Writers Guild of America
award nomination for 'Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published', and winning a Film Critics Circle of Australia Award for 'Best Director', a London Critics Circle Award for 'Newcomer of the Year' and the New York Film Critics Circle Award for 'Best New Director'.
He co-produced the popular Davida Allen
telemovie, Feeling Sexy, in 1999.
In 2006 he directed the biographical film, Miss Potter, based on the life of children's author Beatrix Potter
. Noonan has two further projects including Zebras, a drama set in the final days of apartheid South Africa
and The Third Witch, a retelling of William Shakespere's Macbeth
from the perspective of one of the witches
, in development.
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
-based Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n filmmaker
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 actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
best known for the pioneering live-action / CG film Babe
Babe (film)
Babe is a 1995 Australian-American film directed by Chris Noonan. It is an adaptation of the 1983 novel The Sheep-Pig, also known as Babe: The Gallant Pig in the United States, by Dick King-Smith and tells the story of a pig who wants to be a sheepdog...
, for which he received Academy Award nominations as both director and writer.
Biography
Encouraged by his father, Noonan made his first short film, Could It Happen Here? when he was sixteen. It won a prize at the Sydney Film FestivalSydney Film Festival
The Sydney Film Festival is an annual film festival held in the Australian city of Sydney and is held over 12 days in June. The competitive film festival draws international and local attention, with films being showcased in several venues across the city centre and includes features,...
and was later screened on Australian television.
On leaving school in 1970 Noonan went to work for the Commonwealth Film Unit ( now Film Australia
Film Australia
Film Australia was a company established by the Government of Australia to produce films about Australia. Its mission was to create an audio-visual record of Australian culture, through the commissioning, distribution and management of programs that deal with matters of national interest or...
), as a production assistant, assistant editor, production manager and assistant director making short films and documentaries.
In 1973 Noonan was in the inaugural intake on the directors' course (along with 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...
and Phillip Noyce
Phillip 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...
) at 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...
. In 1974 he returned to Film Australia where he worked on a number of films and documentaries, including working as assistant director on the cult movie The Cars That Ate Paris
The Cars that Ate Paris
The Cars That Ate Paris is a 1974 Australian horror comedy film. Directed by Peter Weir, it was his first feature film. Shot mostly in the rural town of Sofala, New South Wales, the film is set in the fictional town of Paris in which most of the inhabitants appear to be directly, or indirectly,...
.
In 1979 he set up his own production company, and in 1980 documented the lives of a troupe of handicapped actors, in the acclaimed Stepping Out, which won the UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
prize in 1980 and an Australian Film Institute Award
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,...
for 'Best Documentary' in 1981. He co-wrote and co-directed the Australian mini-series The Cowra Breakout, wrote and directed five episodes of the mini-series, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, and made his television movie debut with The Riddle of The Stinson.
Noonan served for two years (1987–88) as President of the Australian Screen Directors' Association, and in 1990 was appointed for a three year term as Chairman of the Australian Film Commission
Australian Film Commission
The Australian Film Commission was an Australian government agency with a mandate to promote the creation and distribution of films in Australia as well as to preserve the country's film history. It also had a production arm responsible for production and commissioning of films for government...
.
In 1995 he wrote the screenplay, with George Miller, and directed the film, Babe
Babe (film)
Babe is a 1995 Australian-American film directed by Chris Noonan. It is an adaptation of the 1983 novel The Sheep-Pig, also known as Babe: The Gallant Pig in the United States, by Dick King-Smith and tells the story of a pig who wants to be a sheepdog...
, his first theatrical feature. The film earnt $US280m in its 18-language world theatrical release, a further $US217m in international video sales and was nominated for seven Academy Awards (including nominations for Noonan for 'Best Director' and 'Best Adapted Screenplay'). Noonan's contributions also resulted in two British Academy Film Award
British Academy Film Awards
The British Academy Film Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts . It is the British counterpart of the Oscars. As of 2008, it has taken place in the Royal Opera House, having taken over from the flagship Odeon cinema on Leicester Square...
nominations for 'Best Screenplay' and 'Best Film', a Saturn Award nomination at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films for 'Best Writing', a Humanitas Prize
Humanitas Prize
The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing intended to promote human dignity, meaning, and freedom. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser — also the founder of Paulist Productions — but is generally not seen as specifically directed toward religious...
nomination in the 'Best Feature Film' category, a Writers Guild of America
Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is a generic term referring to the joint efforts of two different US labor unions:* The Writers Guild of America, East , representing TV and film writers East of the Mississippi....
award nomination for 'Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published', and winning a Film Critics Circle of Australia Award for 'Best Director', a London Critics Circle Award for 'Newcomer of the Year' and the New York Film Critics Circle Award for 'Best New Director'.
He co-produced the popular Davida Allen
Davida Allen
Davida Frances Allen , is an Australian painter, film maker and writer.-Career:Allen studied under Betty Churcher at the Stuartholme School, Brisbane and later under Roy Churcher at Brisbane Central Technical College...
telemovie, Feeling Sexy, in 1999.
In 2006 he directed the biographical film, Miss Potter, based on the life of children's author Beatrix Potter
Beatrix Potter
Helen Beatrix Potter was an English author, illustrator, natural scientist and conservationist best known for her imaginative children’s books featuring animals such as those in The Tale of Peter Rabbit which celebrated the British landscape and country life.Born into a privileged Unitarian...
. Noonan has two further projects including Zebras, a drama set in the final days of apartheid South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and The Third Witch, a retelling of William Shakespere's Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
from the perspective of one of the witches
Three Witches
The Three Witches or Weird Sisters are characters in William Shakespeare's play Macbeth . Their origin lies in Holinshed's Chronicles , a history of England, Scotland and Ireland...
, in development.
Filmography
- Bulls (1973) - Director/Writer
- 27A27A27A is a 1974 Australian film directed by Esben Storm. At the AFI Awards it won in the Best Actor and Best Fiction categories.-Cast:*Robert McDarra as Billy Donald*Bill Hunter as Cornish*Graham Corry as Peter Newman...
(1974) - Title Designer - The Cars That Ate ParisThe Cars that Ate ParisThe Cars That Ate Paris is a 1974 Australian horror comedy film. Directed by Peter Weir, it was his first feature film. Shot mostly in the rural town of Sofala, New South Wales, the film is set in the fictional town of Paris in which most of the inhabitants appear to be directly, or indirectly,...
(1974) - Assistant Director - Cass (TV) (1978) - Director
- Stepping Out (TV) (1980) - Director/Writer
- The Cowra Breakout (1984) - Director
- The Riddle of the Stinson (TV) (1987) - Director
- VietnamVietnamVietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
(TV) (1987) - Director/Story & Teleplay - Police State (TV) (1989) - Director/Writer
- BabeBabe (film)Babe is a 1995 Australian-American film directed by Chris Noonan. It is an adaptation of the 1983 novel The Sheep-Pig, also known as Babe: The Gallant Pig in the United States, by Dick King-Smith and tells the story of a pig who wants to be a sheepdog...
(1995) - Director/Screenplay - Idiot Box (1996) Actor
- Feeling Sexy (1999) - Executive Producer
- A Wreck, a Tangle (2000) - Thanks
- Preservation (2003) - Director Mentor
- SomersaultSomersault (film)Somersault is an Australian independent film, written and directed by Cate Shortland and released in September 2004. The film was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival...
(2003) - Script Advisor: Aurora - Miss Potter (2006) - Director
- Ticket Out (2010) - Executive Producer
- The Third Witch (TBA) - Director
- Zebras (TBA) - Director