Lee Robinson (director)
Encyclopedia
Lee Robinson was an Australian producer, director and screenwriter.
writer prior to the war, Robinson first entered film as a member of the Australian Army
History Unit where he filmed Australian troops in Rabaul
and East Timor
.
After the war he joined the Australian Information Service
film unit (later Film Australia
) where he directed a film on Albert Namatjira
called Namatjira the Painter. Robinson made several films in the Northern Territory
such as Outback Patrol, The Pearlers and The Crocodile Hunters as well as a short film with actors in a studio called Double Trouble (1951). The high quality and Australian subject matter of these films led them to be released theatrically as support for main features.
from writing radio serials for him. Together they formed a company called Platypus Productions with the goal of producing Australian films that Robinson would direct and Rafferty could appear in. They found out that the Australian Government put a £10,000 limit on any non-essential Australian company, forcing them to make their first film The Phantom Stockman
(1953) for that amount. Robinson found out that modestly made films with good advertising made their money back He also felt that a film with an unconventional setting should have a conventional story line.
The team then formed a new company, Southern International Productions, and made the popular King of the Coral Sea
(1954), which marked the feature film debut of Rod Taylor. This was followed by Walk Into Paradise
(1956), which American showman Joseph E. Levine
acquired for American release and shrewdly retitled Walk Into Hell. The film became the most successful Australian film up to that time.
to produce the television series Skippy the Bush Kangaroo
. Robinson had been advised that a children's show would sell well globally. Robinson was inspired by the Flipper (1964 TV series)
, changing the dolphin into a kangaroo
. The series was filmed in colour before Australia had colour television. Robinson directed a feature film of the series called The Intruders
(1969) or Skippy and the Intruders.
Throughout the 1970s he concentrated on television production. In the early 1980s he returned to feature films, producing two films based on the activities of Z Special Unit
during World War II
.
Biography
A short storyShort story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
writer prior to the war, Robinson first entered film as a member of the Australian Army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
History Unit where he filmed Australian troops in Rabaul
Rabaul
Rabaul is a township in East New Britain province, Papua New Guinea. The town was the provincial capital and most important settlement in the province until it was destroyed in 1994 by falling ash of a volcanic eruption. During the eruption, ash was sent thousands of metres into the air and the...
and East Timor
East Timor
The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, commonly known as East Timor , is a state in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island, within Indonesian West Timor...
.
After the war he joined the Australian Information Service
Australian Information Service
The Australian Information Service was one of a series of federal government organisations created to promote the image of Australia. The agency existed from 1973 to 1986....
film unit (later 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...
) where he directed a film on Albert Namatjira
Albert Namatjira
Albert Namatjira , born Elea Namatjira, was an Australian artist. He was a Western Arrernte man, an Indigenous Australian of the Western MacDonnell Ranges area...
called Namatjira the Painter. Robinson made several films in the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
such as Outback Patrol, The Pearlers and The Crocodile Hunters as well as a short film with actors in a studio called Double Trouble (1951). The high quality and Australian subject matter of these films led them to be released theatrically as support for main features.
Association with Chips Rafferty
Robinson had known actor Chips RaffertyChips Rafferty
Chips Rafferty MBE was an iconic Australian actor. Called "the living symbol of the typical Australian", Rafferty's career stretched from the 1940s until his death in 1971, and during this time he performed regularly in major Australian feature films as well as appearing in British and American...
from writing radio serials for him. Together they formed a company called Platypus Productions with the goal of producing Australian films that Robinson would direct and Rafferty could appear in. They found out that the Australian Government put a £10,000 limit on any non-essential Australian company, forcing them to make their first film The Phantom Stockman
The Phantom Stockman
The Phantom Stockman is a 1953 Australian western film written and directed by Lee Robinson and starring Chips Rafferty, Victoria Shaw, Max Osbiston and Guy Doleman.-Synopsis:...
(1953) for that amount. Robinson found out that modestly made films with good advertising made their money back He also felt that a film with an unconventional setting should have a conventional story line.
The team then formed a new company, Southern International Productions, and made the popular King of the Coral Sea
King of the Coral Sea
King of the Coral Sea is a 1954 film starring Chips Rafferty and Charles Tingwell, directed by Lee Robinson and shot on location in Thursday Island.-Synopsis:...
(1954), which marked the feature film debut of Rod Taylor. This was followed by Walk Into Paradise
Walk Into Paradise
Walk Into Paradise is a 1956 Australian adventure film directed by Lee Robinson and Marcello Pagliero shot on location in the highlands of Papua New Guinea....
(1956), which American showman Joseph E. Levine
Joseph E. Levine
Joseph E. Levine was an American film producer.He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His Embassy Pictures Corporation was an independent studio and distributor responsible for such films as Hercules , The Carpetbaggers, Harlow, The Graduate, A Bridge Too Far and The Lion in Winter.Levine is famous...
acquired for American release and shrewdly retitled Walk Into Hell. The film became the most successful Australian film up to that time.
Fauna Productions
With feature film production drying up, Robinson moved from directing and writing to producing. In 1966 he formed Fauna Productions with John McCallumJohn McCallum (actor)
John Neil McCallum, AO, CBE was an Australian theatre and film actor. He was also a television producer.McCallum was born in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1918, son of theatre owner and entrepreneur John Neil McCallum Sr., who built and for many years ran the 2,000 seat Cremorne Theatre on the banks of...
to produce the television series Skippy the Bush Kangaroo
Skippy the Bush Kangaroo
Skippy the Bush Kangaroo is an Australian television series for children created by John McCallum, produced from 1966–1968, telling the adventures of a young boy and his intelligent pet kangaroo, in the Waratah National Park in Duffys Forest, near Sydney, New South Wales.Ninety-one 30-minute...
. Robinson had been advised that a children's show would sell well globally. Robinson was inspired by the Flipper (1964 TV series)
Flipper (1964 TV series)
Flipper, from Ivan Tors Films in association with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television, is an American television program first broadcast on NBC from September 19, 1964, until April 15, 1967. Flipper, a bottlenose dolphin, is the companion animal of Porter Ricks, Chief Warden at fictional Coral Key Park...
, changing the dolphin into a kangaroo
Kangaroo
A kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...
. The series was filmed in colour before Australia had colour television. Robinson directed a feature film of the series called The Intruders
The Intruders (1969 film)
The Intruders is a 1969 Australian film directed by Lee Robinson. It is a spin-off of the popular Skippy the Bush Kangaroo TV series.-Cast:*Ed Devereaux as Matt Hammond*Tony Bonner as Jerry King...
(1969) or Skippy and the Intruders.
Throughout the 1970s he concentrated on television production. In the early 1980s he returned to feature films, producing two films based on the activities of Z Special Unit
Z Special Unit
Z Special Unit was a joint Allied special forces unit formed during the Second World War to operate behind Japanese lines in South East Asia...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Quotes
"To put an Australian tag on it [an Australian feature film] was the worst thing you could do."Feature films
- The Phantom StockmanThe Phantom StockmanThe Phantom Stockman is a 1953 Australian western film written and directed by Lee Robinson and starring Chips Rafferty, Victoria Shaw, Max Osbiston and Guy Doleman.-Synopsis:...
(1953) (director, writer) - King of the Coral SeaKing of the Coral SeaKing of the Coral Sea is a 1954 film starring Chips Rafferty and Charles Tingwell, directed by Lee Robinson and shot on location in Thursday Island.-Synopsis:...
(1954) (director, writer) - Walk into ParadiseWalk Into ParadiseWalk Into Paradise is a 1956 Australian adventure film directed by Lee Robinson and Marcello Pagliero shot on location in the highlands of Papua New Guinea....
(1956) (director, writer) - Dust in the SunDust in the SunDust in the Sun is a 1958 Australian mystery film adapted from a novel by Jon Cleary and produced by the team of Lee Robinson and Chips Rafferty.-Synopsis:...
(1958) (director, writer) - The StowawayThe Stowaway (1958 film)The Stowaway is a 1958 French-Australian film co produced by Lee Robinson. It was shot on location in Tahiti. There are French and English versions.-Cast:* Martine Carol* Roger Livesey* Arletty* Serge Reggiani* Carl Boehm* Reg Lye...
(1958) (director, producer, writer) - The Restless and the DamnedThe Restless and the DamnedThe Restless and the Damned is a 1959 French-Australian film co produced by Lee Robinson. It was shot on location in Tahiti and the Tuamotu Islands. There are French and English-language versions.-Cast:...
(1959) (producer) - The IntrudersThe Intruders (1969 film)The Intruders is a 1969 Australian film directed by Lee Robinson. It is a spin-off of the popular Skippy the Bush Kangaroo TV series.-Cast:*Ed Devereaux as Matt Hammond*Tony Bonner as Jerry King...
(1969) (director, producer, writer) - Attack Force ZAttack Force ZAttack Force Z is a 1982 Australian World War II film, directed by Tim Burstall. It is based on an actual event that took place during World War II, and was shot in Taiwan in 1980...
(1981) (producer) - The Highest HonorThe Highest HonorThe Highest Honor is a 1983 Japanese-Australian film about Operation Jaywick and Operation Rimau by Z Special Unit during World War II. The same story inspired the mini-series Heroes and Heroes 2: The Return .-Cast:...
(1983) (producer)
Documentaries
- Darwin Gateway to Australia (1946)
- Namatjira the Painter (1947)
- The Pearler (1949)
- Crocodile Hunters (1949)
- Double Trouble (1951)
- Outback Patrol (1952)
- Bush Policeman (1953)
- The Power Makers (1957)
- Bring Out a Briton (1958)
- Rock'n'RollRock'n'Roll (1959 film)Rock'n'Roll is a 1959 Australian documentary from director Lee Robinson. It is a filmed version of a rock concert at Sydney Stadium presented by Lee Gordon. It is considered a "substantially lost" film.-Cast:* The Delltones* Fabian* Lee Gordon...
(1959) - The Dawn Fraser Story (1964)
Television
- High Adventure (1964)
- Skippy the Bush KangarooSkippy the Bush KangarooSkippy the Bush Kangaroo is an Australian television series for children created by John McCallum, produced from 1966–1968, telling the adventures of a young boy and his intelligent pet kangaroo, in the Waratah National Park in Duffys Forest, near Sydney, New South Wales.Ninety-one 30-minute...
(1968-71) - Barrier Reef (1971-72)
- BoneyBoneyBoney is a slang term for someone who is skinny, or lacks fat. It also has several other uses:*"Boney" was often what the British called Napoleon Bonaparte, it being both short and displaying a certain lack of respect...
(1972-73) - Shannon's Mob (1975-76)
External links
- Geoff Mayer, 'Lee Robinson Obituary', Screening the Past
- Robinson interview http://www.filmaust.com.au/outback/attachments/faoutback_leerobinson.pdf
- Lee Robinson at the National Film and Sound ArchiveNational Film and Sound ArchiveThe National Film and Sound Archive is Australia’s audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national collection of audiovisual materials and related items...