Stephen Sewell (writer)
Encyclopedia
Stephen John Sewell is a highly acclaimed playwright, novelist and screenwriter
who has produced some of Australia's most awarded plays and whose work has been widely performed both nationally and internationally.
Born in Liverpool, New South Wales
Sewell's first theatre experience was in the 1970s in the fringe theatre while he was studying Science at the University of Sydney
, where his first play was staged in 1975.
In an interview in 2006 Sewell describes himself as an "angry writer" and a workaholic. Fascinated by the social world, his work ranges across many fields of study, from economics and politics to philosophy and psychology, and while he is considered a writer obsessed with dark themes, he is not himself a pessimist, saying, "No artist, no creator, ever sets forth without hope, even if the thing they create appears to be carved out of pitch black despair."
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
who has produced some of Australia's most awarded plays and whose work has been widely performed both nationally and internationally.
Born in Liverpool, New South Wales
Liverpool, New South Wales
Liverpool is a suburb in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Liverpool is located 32 km south-west of the Sydney central business district, and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Liverpool...
Sewell's first theatre experience was in the 1970s in the fringe theatre while he was studying Science at the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
, where his first play was staged in 1975.
In an interview in 2006 Sewell describes himself as an "angry writer" and a workaholic. Fascinated by the social world, his work ranges across many fields of study, from economics and politics to philosophy and psychology, and while he is considered a writer obsessed with dark themes, he is not himself a pessimist, saying, "No artist, no creator, ever sets forth without hope, even if the thing they create appears to be carved out of pitch black despair."
Awards
- 1985 Play Award in the New South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsThe New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards were established in 1979 by the New South Wales Premier Neville Wran. Commenting on its purpose, Wran said: "We want the arts to take, and be seen to take, their proper place in our social priorities...
for The Blind Giant is Dancing - 1989 Play Award in the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards for Hate
- 1998 Australian Film Institute Award for Best ScreenplayAustralian Film Institute Award for Best ScreenplayThe Australian Film Institute Award for Best Screenplay is an award in the annual Australian Film Institute Awards. It has been awarded annually since 1976 as a joint category until 1993 when the award was separated into Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay...
Best Screenplay (Adapted) for The Boys - 2004 Australian National Playwrights' Centre (ANPC) Award for 2004
- 2004 Play Award in the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards for Myth, Propaganda and Disaster in Nazi Germany and Contemporary America
- 2004 AWGIE Awards
- 2004 Louis Esson Prize for Drama in the Victorian Premier's Literary AwardVictorian Premier's Literary AwardThe Victorian Premier's Literary Awards were created by the Victorian Governmentwith the aim of raising the profile of contemporary creative writing and Australia's publishing industry....
Plays
- The Father We Loved on a Beach by the Sea (Currency Press ; Melbourne : Playbox Theatre Company, 1983, c1980)- first performed at BrisbaneBrisbaneBrisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
's La Boite Theatre companyLa Boite Theatre CompanyLa Boite Theatre Company is a major Australian theatre company based in Brisbane, Queensland. La Boite is the second largest theatre company in Queensland. Established in 1925, it occupies an important place in Queensland’s cultural history. It is known for its bold, contemporary approach towards...
in 1978 - Traitors (Alternative Publishing Co-operative : Nimrod Theatre Press, 1983) - first performed by the Australian Performing Group at the Pram Factory in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne 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...
in 1979 - Anger's Love
- The Blind Giant is Dancing (Currency Press, 1985, c1983) - first performed Adelaide 1982
- Welcome the Bright world (Nimrod Theatre Press, 1983)
- Burn Victim - first performed Sydney 1983
- Dreams in an Empty City (Currency Press in association with the State Theatre Company of South Australia, 1986) - first produced Adelaide 1986
- Hate (Currency Press in association with Playbox Theatre Company and Belvior St. Theatre, 1988) - first performed Adelaide 1986
- Miranda - first performed Adelaide 1989
- Sisters (Currency Press in association with Playbox Theatre Company Melbourne, 1991) - - first performed Melbourne 1991
- King Golgrutha - first performed Adelaide 1991
- The Garden of Granddaughters (Currency Press ; Melbourne : Playbox Theatre Centre of Monash University, 1993) - first performed Melbourne 1993
- Dust (Currency Press, 1997) - first performed Adelaide 1993
- Identity By Helen Demidenko - first performed Adelaide 1996
- The Sick Room (Currency Press in association with Playbox Theatre Centre, Monash University, 1999)
- Myth, Propaganda and Disaster in Nazi Germany and Contemporary America (2003) - One of Australia's most awarded plays, dealing with the War on Terror
- It Just Stopped - premiered at Belvoir Street and subsequently produced Orange Tree TheatreOrange Tree TheatreThe Orange Tree Theatre is a 172-seat theatre at 1 Clarence Street, Richmond in south west London, built specifically as a theatre in the round....
, Richmond, UKLondon Borough of Richmond upon ThamesThe London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is a London borough in South West London, UK, which forms part of Outer London. It is unique because it is the only London borough situated both north and south of the River Thames.-Settlement:...
2004 - The Secret Death of Salvador Dalí - first performed Edinburgh FringeEdinburgh FringeThe Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the world’s largest arts festival. Established in 1947 as an alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place annually in Scotland's capital, in the month of August...
2002 - The Gates of Egypt - performed at the Belvoir St TheatreBelvoir St TheatreBelvoir St Theatre is an Australian theatre venue in Sydney. The venue in Belvoir Street, Surry Hills previously operated as the Nimrod Theatre, and was founded as "Belvoir St" in 1984 by Sue Hill and Chris Westwood...
in Sydney 2007 Review - Three Furies: Scenes From the Life of Francis Bacon (2004) - first performed Sydney Opera HouseSydney Opera HouseThe Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
as part of the Sydney FestivalSydney FestivalSydney Festival is Australia's largest and most attended annual cultural event running every January since it was first held in 1977. Its program features around 80 events including contemporary and classical music, dance, circus, drama, visual arts and artist talks...
in January 2005 - The United States of Nothing - first performed at the Stables Theatre, Sydney 2006
Film scripts
- The Long Way Home (1985)
- Wrong World (1985) (additional dialogue)
- Isabelle Eberhardt (1991)
- True Love and Chaos (1997) (script editor)
- Let's Wait (1998) (writer and director)
- The Boys (Currency Press, 1998)
- Sydney: A Story of a City (1999)
- Foolish (1999) (additional editor)
- ChopperChopper (film)Chopper is a 2000 Australian film, written and directed by New Zealand film-maker Andrew Dominik and based on the semi-autobiographical books by Mark Brandon "Chopper" Read. The film stars Eric Bana as the title character, and co-stars Vince Colosimo, Simon Lyndon, Bill Young and David Field...
(2000) (script editor) - Lost Things (2003)
- Sisters (2008) (writer and director)
- Cradlewood (2008)
Television
- "The Gillies Republic" (1986) - episodes include:
- "The Bjelke-Petersen Republic"
- "The Keating Republic"
- "The Howard Republic"
- "The Hawke Republic"
- "The Singleton Republic"
- "The Carleton Republic"
Books
- Animal Kingdom, a crime story (Victory Books, 2010) a novel based on the filmAnimal Kingdom (film)Animal Kingdom is a 2010 Australian crime drama written and directed by David Michôd, and starring Ben Mendelsohn, Joel Edgerton, Guy Pearce, Luke Ford, Sullivan Stapleton, Jacki Weaver and James Frecheville...
. - Babylon (Victory Books, 2011)
External links
- Artist Profile - Stephen Sewell
- AustLIT Agents Details
- Currency Press - author profile (Retrieved 24 February 2008)
- IMDb - Stephen Sewell
- Stephen Sewell - Award-Winning Australian Playwright The British Theatre Guide, interview by Philip Fisher (Retrieved 24 February 2008)
- The Playwrights Database - Stephen Sewell (Retrieved 24 February 2008)
- Theatre at the End of History. A Weekend with Stephen Sewell, 6- 8 October 2006 Australian Writers' Guild (Retrieved 24 February 2008)
- Victorian Premier's Literary Awards