Stephan Elliott

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Olivia Newton-John and Stephan Elliott (2012)

Stephan Elliott (born August 27, 1964 in Sydney , Australia ) is an Australian film director and screenwriter .

life and work

Elliott began working for Australian film and television productions in the mid-1980s as a set runner and worked his way up to 3rd and 2nd assistant director . He began making his own short films and wrote his first screenplay for the television film Resting Place in 1992 with the film producer , director and actress Rebel Penfold-Russell , which Penfold-Russell also directed. Since then she has remained connected to Elliott as an actress and film producer on his own projects. In 1993 Elliott presented his first directorial work with Frauds and also wrote the screenplay. The crime comedy about a gigantic insurance fraud with Phil Collins and Hugo Weaving made Elliott internationally known, was shown at several festivals and was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival . In 1994 he achieved his artistic breakthrough with Priscilla - Queen of the Desert , a weird road movie about three transsexual travesty artists in the Australian outback with Terence Stamp , Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce in the leading roles. The low-budget film was an international success, received numerous nominations and awards, including an Oscar for best costume design and the audience award in Cannes. According to his own statements, this was the only film in which Elliott had the right to the final cut .

The director moved to London and began working with larger production companies with higher budgets . In 1997 he took over the direction of the British-Australian co-production Welcome to Woop Woop , in which, unlike in previous projects, he was only able to contribute little to the script. The film with Johnathon Schaech and Rod Taylor in the leading roles is about a smart impostor who ends up in a village with eccentric locals in the Australian outback. The film, which was shot under chaotic conditions and sent unfinished out of competition to the Cannes film festival, was booed and turned into a financial failure. In 1999 the film Das Auge was released as an Australian-British-Canadian co-production. The psychological thriller about a serial killer ( Ashley Judd ) and a private detective ( Ewan McGregor ) received critical acclaim and was awarded the Silver Raven at the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival , but it was a box office flop. After Hollywood film investors dropped out while filming was still in progress, Elliott had put all of his savings into the project. Afterwards he was ruined and penniless and withdrew from the film business.

A passionate skier from youth, he earned his living as a ski instructor in various ski regions, most recently in the French Alps . In 2004 he fell down a rocky slope while skiing and broke his back, pelvis and legs in an almost fatal accident. During the nearly four-year hospital and rehabilitation time his body were a total of 11 implants made of titanium used. During this time, old friends from the film industry were able to persuade him to work on a new film project again. On the sick bed he wrote the screenplay for the social satire Easy Virtue - An Immoral Wife, based on a play by Noël Coward, together with the Australian journalist and screenwriter Sheridan Jobbins . After being released from rehab, Elliott directed the British independent film with Jessica Biel , Ben Barnes , Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas in the lead roles. It has been shown at international film festivals around the world, has received extensive reviews and has been an international box office success. Since then, Stephan Elliott has been working on several film projects. He rewrote the script for his film Priscilla into a play, which premiered in Sydney in 2007 and has since performed successfully in Melbourne , Auckland and London.

Remarks

Like Alfred Hitchcock , Elliott loves getting into the picture in cameo appearances in his films . He can be seen in Priscilla as a doorman, in Woop Woop as a truck driver and in Easy Virtue as a party guest.

Filmography (selection)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Elliott, Stephan
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Australian film director
DATE OF BIRTH August 27, 1964
PLACE OF BIRTH Sydney , Australia