Martyn Sanderson
Encyclopedia
Martyn Sanderson was a New Zealand actor, filmmaker and poet.
Sanderson was one of the founders of Downstage Theatre
in 1964 in Wellington, with a vision of a small professional company performing challenging works in an intimate venue. In the 1970s, Sanderson toured with multi-media group Blerta
, and worked on films with Blerta members Bruno Lawrence
and director Geoff Murphy
. That decade he won a New Zealand Feltex Award for playing aviator Richard Pearse
in a television film of the same title, and was nominated again for playing a British general in the historical miniseries The Governor
, the most expensive TV drama made in New Zealand in that decade.
Sanderson's work as a screen director included a number of shorts featuring New Zealand poets, plus the 1989 feature Flying Fox in a Freedom Tree. Based on a work by Albert Wendt
, Flying Fox is about a young Samoan caught between the values of his homeland and European colonisers.
Sanderson's other screen credits include Geoff Murphy
's Utu
, Jane Campion
's An Angel at my Table
, The Scarecrow
, Old Scores
, The Harp in the South, The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
, a recurring guest role in the first two years of Shortland Street
, Poor Man's Orange
, Hercules
episode The King of Thieves
and The Rainbow Warrior
.
Sanderson was one of the founders of Downstage Theatre
Downstage Theatre
The Downstage Theatre is a theatre in Wellington, New Zealand, and the country's longest running professional theatre, established in 1964.The founders at the inaugural meeting in the Wellington Public Library on 15 May 1964 were actors Peter Bland, Tim Elliott and Martyn Sanderson, with...
in 1964 in Wellington, with a vision of a small professional company performing challenging works in an intimate venue. In the 1970s, Sanderson toured with multi-media group Blerta
Blerta
Blerta , was a New Zealand musical and theatrical co-operative active in the 1970s....
, and worked on films with Blerta members Bruno Lawrence
Bruno Lawrence
Bruno Lawrence was a New Zealand musician and actor.Initially notable as founder of 1970s musical and theatrical "Blerta", he had well-regarded roles in several major films, and starred on the 1990s Australian satirical TV series Frontline.-Biography:Born David Charles Lawrence in Worthing, West...
and director Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy is a successful New Zealand filmmaker best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the last half of the 1970s....
. That decade he won a New Zealand Feltex Award for playing aviator Richard Pearse
Richard Pearse
Richard William Pearse , son of Cornish immigrants from St Columb near Newquay, a New Zealand farmer and inventor who performed pioneering experiments in aviation....
in a television film of the same title, and was nominated again for playing a British general in the historical miniseries The Governor
The Governor (TV series)
The Governor was a 1977 New Zealand television miniseries or docudrama on Sir George Grey, co-produced by TV One and the National Film Unit, with Grey played by English actor Corin Redgrave...
, the most expensive TV drama made in New Zealand in that decade.
Sanderson's work as a screen director included a number of shorts featuring New Zealand poets, plus the 1989 feature Flying Fox in a Freedom Tree. Based on a work by Albert Wendt
Albert Wendt
Albert Wendt, CNZM is a Samoan poet and writer who also lives in New Zealand. Among his works is Leaves of the Banyan Tree .-Biography:...
, Flying Fox is about a young Samoan caught between the values of his homeland and European colonisers.
Sanderson's other screen credits include Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy is a successful New Zealand filmmaker best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the last half of the 1970s....
's Utu
Utu (film)
Utu is a 1983 New Zealand movie directed by Geoff Murphy. It starred Anzac Wallace. Utu was reputed to have one of the largest budgets for a New Zealand film at the time...
, Jane Campion
Jane Campion
Jane Campion is a filmmaker and screenwriter. She is one of the most internationally successful New Zealand directors, although most of her work has been made in or financed by other countries, principally Australia – where she now lives – and the United States...
's An Angel at my Table
An Angel at My Table
An Angel at My Table is a 1990 New Zealand-Australian-British film directed by Jane Campion. The film is based on Janet Frame's three autobiographies, To the Is-Land , An Angel at My Table , and The Envoy from Mirror City ....
, The Scarecrow
The Scarecrow (1982 film)
The Scarecrow is a 1982 New Zealand film, also known as Klynham Summer in America. It was directed by Sam Pillsbury based on the 1963 horror novel by New Zealand author Ronald Hugh Morrieson.-Plot:...
, Old Scores
Old Scores
Old Scores is a 1991 film jointly produced by New Zealand and Wales, based around the two countries' mutual national sport of rugby union. It is notable for the appearance of a large number of legendary Welsh and New Zealand international rugby players in supporting roles...
, The Harp in the South, The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...
, a recurring guest role in the first two years of Shortland Street
Shortland Street
Shortland Street is a New Zealand prime-time soap opera, first broadcast on Television New Zealand's TV2 on 25 May 1992. It is the country's longest-running drama and soap opera, being broadcast continuously for over 4500 episodes and 19 years, and is one of the most watched television programs in...
, Poor Man's Orange
Poor Man's Orange
Poor Man's Orange is a novel by New Zealand born Australian author Ruth Park. Published in 1949, the book is the sequel to The Harp in the South and continues the story of the Darcy family, living in the Surry Hills area of Sydney....
, Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
episode The King of Thieves
The King of Thieves
"The King of Thieves" is the first episode of the second season of the television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and the 14th overall episode of the series...
and The Rainbow Warrior
The Rainbow Warrior (film)
The Rainbow Warrior, sometimes called The Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior, is a 1992 television film starring Sam Neill and Jon Voight.-Plot summary:...
.