Miller, George 1945–

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MILLER, George 1945–

(Dr. George Miller)

PERSONAL

Born March 3, 1945, in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia (some sources say Cinchilla, Queensland, Australia); son of James and Angela (maiden name, Balson) Miller; brother of Bill Miller (a producer); married Sandy Gore, 1985; children: one daughter. Education: University of New South Wales, M.B., B.S., medicine, c. 1970; studied film at Melbourne University, 1971; studied acting at the University of California at Los Angeles.

Addresses: Office—Kennedy/Miller Productions, 30 Orwell St., Kings Cross, New South Wales, Sydney, 2011 Australia.

Career: Director, producer, and writer. St. Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, resident medical officer, 1971–72; Kennedy Miller Film Company (later Kennedy/Miller Productions), founder (with Byron Kennedy), 1977, chairperson, beginning 1977. Avoriaz Festival du film fantastique, jury president, 1983–84; Cannes International Film Festival, jury member, 1988 and 1999. Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, member of board of directors, 1987–. Also known as Dr. George Miller.

Awards, Honors: Australian Film Institute Award nominations, best director and (with James McCausland), best screenplay, original, both 1979, for Mad Max; Australian Film Institute awards, best direction and (with others) best achievement in editing, both 1982, Grand Prize Avoriaz, Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival, c. 1983, Los Angeles Film Critics Award, best foreign film, and Saturn Award nominations, best director and (with others) best writing, Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, all 1983, all for Mad Max 2; Penguin Award, best director of a television drama, 1983; International Fantasy Film Award nomination (with others), best film, Fantasporto, 1984, for Twilight Zone—The Movie; Saturn Award nominations, best director and (with Terry Hayes) best writing, both 1986, for Mad Max beyond Thunderdome; Australian Film Institute Award (with others), best film, 1987, for The Year My Voice Broke; Australian Film Institute Award nomination (with others), best film, 1989, for Dead Calm; Australian Film Institute Award (with others), best film, c. 1991, for Flirting; Academy Award nomination, best original screenplay, and Writers Guild of America Award nomination, best screenplay written directly for the screen, both with Nick Enright, 1993, for Lorenzo's Oil; Raymond Longford Award, Australian Film Institute, 1995; Chauvel Award, Brisbane International Film Festival, 1996; Academy Award nominations, best picture (with Doug Mitchell and Bill Miller) and best writing, screenplay based on material from another medium (with Chris Noonan), Writers Guild of America Award nomination (with Noonan), best screenplay based on material previously produced or published, Film Award nominations, best screenplay—adapted (with Noonan) and best film (with others), British Academy of Film and Television Arts, and Saturn Award nomination (with Noonan), best writing, all 1996, for Babe; with Bill Miller, won a student film competition.

CREDITS

Film Director:

Violence in the Cinema, Part I (short film), 1971.

The Devil in Evening Dress (documentary), 1973.

First assistant director, In Search of Anna, 1978.

Mad Max, American International Pictures, 1979.

Mad Max 2 (also known as Mad Max II, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, and The Road Warrior), Warner Bros., 1982.

"Nightmare at 20,000 Feet," Twilight Zone—The Movie, Warner Bros., 1983.

(With George Ogilvie) Mad Max beyond Thunderdome (also known as Mad Max 3), Warner Bros., 1985.

The Witches of Eastwick, Warner Bros., 1987.

Second unit director, Dead Calm (also known as Dead Calm: A Voyage into Fear), Warner Bros., 1989.

40,000 Years of Dreaming: A Century of Australian Cinema (documentary; also known as 40,000 Years of Dreaming), 1997.

Babe: Pig in the City, MCA/Universal, 1998.

Happy Feet, Warner Bros., 2006.

Untitled Mad Max 4 Film (also known as Mad Max 4 and Mad Max: Fury Road), Twentieth Century-Fox/Universal, 2006.

Film Producer:

Associate producer, Chain Reaction (also known as Nuclear Run), Hoyt Distribution, 1980.

(With Doug Mitchell and Terry Hayes) Mad Max beyond Thunderdome (also known as Mad Max 3), Warner Bros., 1985.

The Riddle of Stinson, 1987.

The Year My Voice Broke, Avenue Entertainment, c. 1987.

(With Mitchell and Hayes) Dead Calm (also known as Dead Calm: A Voyage into Fear), Warner Bros., 1989.

(With Mitchell and Hayes) Flirting, Samuel Goldwyn, c. 1991.

(With Mitchell) Lorenzo's Oil, Universal, 1992.

(With Mitchell and Bill Miller) Babe (also known as Babe, the Gallant Pig), Universal, 1995.

Video Fool for Love, 1995.

40,000 Years of Dreaming: A Century of Australian Cinema (documentary; also known as 40,000 Years of Dreaming), 1997.

Babe: Pig in the City, MCA/Universal, 1998.

Happy Feet, Warner Bros., 2006.

Untitled Mad Max 4 Film (also known as Mad Max 4 and Mad Max: Fury Road), Twentieth Century-Fox/Universal, 2006.

Film Supervising Producer:

Violence in the Cinema, Part I (short film), 1971.

The Devil in Evening Dress (documentary), 1973.

Mad Max, American International Pictures, 1979.

Mad Max 2 (also known as Mad Max II, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, and The Road Warrior), Warner Bros., 1982.

"Nightmare at 20,000 Feet," Twilight Zone—The Movie, Warner Bros., 1983.

Film Editor:

Frieze, an Underground Film (short documentary film), 1973.

Additional editor, Mad Max 2 (also known as Mad Max II, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, and The Road Warrior), Warner Bros., 1982.

Film Appearances:

Host and narrator, 40,000 Years of Dreaming: A Century of Australian Cinema (documentary; also known as 40,000 Years of Dreaming), 1997.

Television Director; with Others; Miniseries:

The Dismissal, Ten Network (Australia), 1982.

Bodyline (also known as Bodyline: It's Not Just Cricket), Ten Network, 1983.

The Cowra Breakout, Ten Network, 1984.

The Last Bastion, Ten Network, 1984.

Vietnam, BBC, 1986.

Television Executive Producer; Miniseries:

The Dismissal, Ten Network (Australia), 1982.

Bodyline (also known as Bodyline: It's Not Just Cricket), Ten Network, 1983.

Vietnam, BBC, 1986.

Bangkok Hilton, Ten Network and TBS, 1990.

Television Producer; Miniseries:

The Cowra Breakout, Ten Network (Australia), 1984.

The Dirtwater Dynasty, Ten Network, 1988.

Television Producer; Movies:

Producer, The Clean Machine, Ten Network (Australia), 1988.

Producer, Fragments of War: The Story of Damien Parer, Ten Network, 1988.

Television Director; Episodic:

"The Carver Gang," Bellamy, Ten Network (Australia), c. 1981.

Directed episodes of other series, including the Australian series Ryan.

Television Director and Producer; Pilots:

Mad Max: The Road Warrior, syndicated, 1996.

Television Work; Other:

Worked as an executive producer, Sports Crazy.

Television Appearances; Miniseries:

Himself, How Art Made the World, BBC and PBS, 2005.

Television Appearances; Specials:

Himself, Joseph Campbell, le heros aux mille visages (documentary), Cine Cinemas (France), 2005.

Television Appearances; Awards Presentations:

Himself, Nicole Kidman: An American Cinematheque Tribute, American Movie Classics, 2003.

Presenter, The 2003 Australian Film Institute Awards, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2003.

Television Appearances; Episodic:

Himself, Late Night with David Letterman, NBC, 1993.

WRITINGS

Screenplays:

(With Byron Kennedy) Violence in the Cinema, Part I (short film), 1971.

(With James McCausland) Mad Max, American International Pictures, 1979.

(With Terry Hayes and Brian Hannat) Mad Max 2 (also known as Mad Max II, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, and The Road Warrior), Warner Bros., 1982.

(With Hayes) Mad Max beyond Thunderdome (also known as Mad Max 3), Warner Bros., 1985.

(With Nick Enright) Lorenzo's Oil, Universal, 1992.

(With Chris Noonan) Babe (also known as Babe, the Gallant Pig; based on the books of Dick King-Smith), Universal, 1995.

40,000 Years of Dreaming: A Century of Australian Cinema (documentary; also known as 40,000 Years of Dreaming), 1997.

Babe: Pig in the City (based on the books of Dick King-Smith), MCA/Universal, 1998.

Happy Feet, Warner Bros., 2006.

Untitled Mad Max 4 Film (also known as Mad Max 4 and Mad Max: Fury Road), Twentieth Century-Fox/Universal, 2006.

Teleplays; Miniseries:

The Dismissal, Ten Network (Australia), 1982.

OTHER SOURCES

Books:

International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, Volume 2: Directors, fourth edition, St. James Press, 2000.

Periodicals:

Entertainment Weekly, September 8, 1995, p. 12.

Variety, May 7, 2001, p. 38.

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