Information about Michael Winterbottom

Michael Winterbottom (b. March 29 1961 in Blackburn, Lancashire) is a prolific British filmmaker who has directed fifteen films in the past twelve years. He began his career working in British television before moving into features. Three of his movies, Welcome to Sarajevo, Wonderland and 24 Hour Party People, have been nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. He has two daughters with his ex-wife, author Sabrina Broadbent.

Life

Winterbottom went to Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn, taking his O Levels in an accelerated 4 years, and then attended Oxford University before going to film school at Bristol University.

Career

Winterbottom's television career included such diverse projects as the mystery series Cracker, the Inspector Alleyn Mysteries, two documentaries about Ingmar Bergman, numerous television movies and an episode of the series Cinema Europe: The Other Hollywood, focusing on Scandinavian silent cinema. He also directed the mini-series Family, written by Roddy Doyle, with each of four episodes focusing on one member of a working-class Dublin family. It was this series that first brought Winterbottom to the attention of moviegoers, when it was edited down into a feature.

His first theatrical film, 1995's Butterfly Kiss, firmly established his intense visual sense, naturalistic style and compelling use of pop songs to reinforce narrative. The story of a mentally unbalanced lesbian serial killer and her submissive lover/accomplice falling in love as they slaughter their way across the motorways of northern England, it found only a limited release.

That same year, he rejoined Jimmy McGovern, writer of Cracker, for the powerful BBC television film Go Now, the story of a young man who falls ill with multiple sclerosis just as he has met the love of his life. Focusing on the turmoil this causes the couple, the film was given a theatrical release in many countries, including the United States.

In 1996 he adapted his favorite novel, Thomas Hardy's bleak classic Jude the Obscure, the tale of forbidden love between two cousins which had so scandalized British society on its release in 1895 that Hardy gave up novel-writing. It was not Winterbottom's first time approaching the work, he had already filmed the pig slaughter sequence once at film school. Starring Christopher Eccleston and a luminous, pre-stardom Kate Winslet, Jude brought Winterbottom wider recognition, his first screening at Cannes and numerous Hollywood offers, all of which he eventually turned down.

Welcome to Sarajevo was filmed on location in the titular city, mere months after the Siege of Sarajevo had ended, adding greatly to its sense of authenticity and allowing frequent intercutting of actual news footage from the combat. The film is based on the true story of a British reporter, Michael Nicholson, who spirited a young orphan girl out of the war zone to safety in Britain.

Winterbottom's next two films both had distribution difficulties and were not widely seen. I Want You is a neo-noir sex thriller, shot in bold primary colors by the Polish cinematographer Slawomir Idziak and set in a decaying seaside resort. Starring Rachel Weisz and Alessandro Nivola, it focuses more on mood than plot and was inspired by the Elvis Costello song of the same name. With or Without You, starring Christopher Eccleston, is a light Belfast-set sex comedy, about a couple who are trying desperately to conceive, only for each to have past loves re-enter their lives.

1999's Wonderland marked a decided shift in style for Winterbottom, with its loose, handheld photography and naturalistic, often improvised dialogue which drew comparisons to Robert Altman. Featuring Gina McKee, Shirley Henderson, Ian Hart and Stuart Townsend, it is the story of three sisters and their extended family over the Guy Fawkes Day weekend in London. The disparate elements are tied together by an orchestral score by minimalist composer Michael Nyman, who would become a frequent collaborator with Winterbottom.

Winterbottom followed that project up with his biggest budgeted film, The Claim, an adaptation of Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge set in 1860s' California. Shot with a budget of $20 million in the wilds of Canada, it was not a financial success and proved an ordeal to make, with Winterbottom himself getting frostbite. The production had previously been ready to shoot in Spain, with sets already built, when financing fell through. Attempts were made to cast Madonna, in a role eventually played by Milla Jovovich and many of the production details and difficulties were explained to the public on an unusually frank official website.

24 Hour Party People documents the anarchic, drug and sex-fuelled rise and fall of the influential label Factory Records and the music scene in Manchester from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s. As much an ode to the city of Manchester as the story of the contemporary musical world, the film stars Steve Coogan as broadcaster/music-mogul Tony Wilson.

His 2002 film In This World depicts the harrowing journey of two Afghan refugees from Pakistan, across the Middle East and Europe to Britain which they try to enter with the help of people smugglers. Shot on digital video with non-professional actors who virtually lived out the events of the film, its compelling sense of reality brought Winterbottom numerous awards including a Golden Bear and a BAFTA for best film not in the English language.

The futuristic romantic mystery Code 46 is a retelling of the Oedipus myth, in a world where cloning has created people so interrelated that strict laws (the Code 46 of the title) govern human reproduction. Essentially a film noir, it follows a fraud investigator played by Tim Robbins as he investigates a femme fatale played by Samantha Morton. The film's highly stylized settings were created on a limited budget by taking the tiny crew around the world, shooting in places which already looked like one hundred years in the future. Much of the film was shot in Shanghai, while Dubai and Rajasthan in India were also variously mixed to create a multi-ethnic melting-pot culture.

9 Songs, released in 2004, gained attention as the most sexually explicit film ever to receive a certificate for general release in the UK. It charts a year-long relationship between two lovers, almost exclusively through their sexual interaction and various rock concerts the couple attend. During these concerts, the nine songs of the film's title often comment on the couple's relationship. The film became notorious in the UK for its candid scenes of unsimulated sex between the leads, Kieran O'Brien and Margo Stilley.

He followed that with 2006's A Cock and Bull Story, an adaptation of the famously "unfilmable" The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, one of the earliest novels. Shandy is a narrator so easily distracted in relating his life story that by the end of the book he has not yet come to his own birth. The movie, similarly, is about the making of a film of Tristram Shandy, and the impossibility of that task. Moreover, it deals with the impossibility of capturing the complexity of life in a work of art, but the value of the attempt. Steve Coogan stars as himself and as Shandy. The film also marks the end of Winterbottom's lengthy collaboration with writer Frank Cottrell Boyce, who chose to be credited under the pseudonym Martin Hardy.[1]

Winterbottom's, The Road to Guantanamo, is a docu-drama about the "Tipton Three", three British Muslims captured by US forces in Afghanistan who spent two years as prisoners at Guantánamo Bay as alleged enemy combatants. It was shot in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran (which doubled as Cuba) in the fall of 2005. It premiered at the Berlinale on February 14, 2006. It debuted in the UK on television, on March 9, as it was co-financed by Channel 4.

Much of the film hinged on claims by the three that they were travelers caught up in the war and had no connection to militant groups. The story appeared to be undermined in 2007 when two of the three appeared on Channel 4's "Lie Lab" to take a lie detector test. One confessed to attending an Islamist training camp and the other refused to take the test [2].[3].

A Mighty Heart, Winterbottom's most recent film, is based on the book by Mariane Pearl, wife of murdered journalist Daniel Pearl. The film stars Angelina Jolie and focuses on the pregnant Mariane's search for her missing husband in Pakistan in 2002. Produced by Jolie's partner Brad Pitt, it was shot in the fall of 2006 in India, Pakistan and France and premiered out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2007.

His next project, Genova, is a ghost story about a Englishman, played by Colin Firth, who moves his two American daughters to Italy following the death of his wife. It costars Catherine Keener and Hope Davis and was filmed in the titular city of Genoa, Italy during the summer of 2007. It was written by Wonderland screenwriter Laurence Coriat.

Following this, he plans to shoot Murder in Samarkand, the memoirs of the former British ambassador to Uzbekistan, Craig Murray, who was fired after drawing attention to the violent rule of American and British sponsored ruler Islom Karimov. The film will rejoin Winterbottom with Steve Coogan, who will play Murray. The script is by playwright David Hare.

In addition, he has already begun work on a project that will not be released until 2012. Seven Days stars John Simm as a man imprisoned for drug-smuggling and charts his relationship with his wife, played by Shirley Henderson. The film is being shot a few weeks at a time, over the next five years, to reflect the character's time in prison. It is being written by Winterbottom and Coriat.

Trivia

Six of his films were written by screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce, including Welcome to Sarajevo and 24 Hour Party People.

In 2004, his ex-wife, Sabrina Broadbent, published her first novel, Descent, a thinly veiled account of their life together, which received positive reviews. Ms. Broadbent had already won the 2002 WH Smith Raw Talent Award based on her synopsis and first chapter of the novel. She lives in the Crouch End area of North London with their two daughters.

Filmography

External links

March 29 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

Events


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1930s  1940s  1950s  - 1960s -  1970s  1980s  1990s
1958 1959 1960 - 1961 - 1962 1963 1964

Year 1961 (MCMLXI
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Blackburn

Blackburn ()
|240px|Blackburn (

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Lancashire

Geography
Status Ceremonial & (smaller) Non-metropolitan county
Origin Historic
Region North West England
Area
- Total
- Admin. council
- Admin.
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Motto
"Dieu et mon droit" [2]   (French)
"God and my right"
Anthem
"God Save the Queen" [3]
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film director is a person who directs the making of a film.[1] A film director visualizes the script, controlling a film's artistic and dramatic aspects, while guiding the technical crew and actors in the fulfillment of his or her vision.
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Television (often abbreviated to TV, T.V., or more recently, tv; sometimes called telly, the tube, boob tube, or idiot box in British English) is a widely used telecommunication system for broadcasting and receiving moving pictures
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IMDb profile

Welcome to Sarajevo is a British war movie from 1997. It is directed by Michael Winterbottom. The screenplay is by Frank Cottrell Boyce and is based on the book Natasha's Story by Michael Nicholson.
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The Palme d'Or ("Golden Palm") is the highest prize given to a competing film at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the organizing committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize had been called the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film.
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The Cannes Film Festival (French: le Festival de Cannes), founded in 1939, is one of the world's oldest, most influential and prestigious film festivals. The private festival is held annually (usually in the month of May) at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, in the
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Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School (QEGS) is a famous,selective co-educational independent school in Blackburn, England, founded in 1509 as a boys' school. The term "school" is usually used to collectively refer to the following:
  • Main School:

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The General Certificate of Education or GCE is a secondary-level academic qualification, which was used in Britain and continues to be used in some former British colonies.
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University of Oxford (usually abbreviated as Oxon. for post-nominals, from "Oxoniensis"), located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world.
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For the indie rock band, see Film School (band).
A film school is a generic term for any educational institution dedicated to teaching moviemaking, including, but not limited to, film production, theory, and writing for the screen.
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University of Bristol is a university in Bristol, England. It received its Royal Charter in 1909,[10] although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol,had been in existence since 1876.
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Cracker is the title of a television crime series in the United Kingdom, made by Granada Television for ITV and created and principally written by Jimmy McGovern. The series concerned a criminal psychologist (or "cracker"), Eddie "Fitz" Fitzgerald, played by Robbie Coltrane.
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Ingmar Bergman

Ingmar Bergman during production of Wild Strawberries (1957)
Birth name Ernst Ingmar Bergman
Born July 14 1918(1918--)
Uppsala, Sweden
Died
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Roddy Doyle

Born: May 8 1958 (1958--) (age 49)
Kilbarrack, Dublin, Ireland
Occupation: Novelist and Dramatist Roddy Doyle (Irish:
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Dublin (IPA: /ˈdʌblɨn, ˈdʊblɨn/, or /ˈdʊbəlɪn/) (Irish: Baile Átha Cliath,
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1960s  1970s  1980s  - 1990s -  2000s  2010s  2020s
1992 1993 1994 - 1995 - 1996 1997 1998

Year 1995 (MCMXCV
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A serial killer is someone who murders three or more people in three or more separate events over a period of time.[1] Many serial killers suffer from Antisocial Personality Disorder and usually not psychosis, and thus appear to be quite normal and often even charming, a
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Northern England, The North or North of England is a rather ill-defined term, with no universally accepted definition. Its extent may be subject to personal opinion and many companies or organisations have differing definitions as to what it constitutes.
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Jimmy McGovern (born 1949) is a BAFTA award-winning English television scriptwriter from Liverpool. He is particularly known for writing powerful and thought-provoking dramas often based around hard-hitting social issues or controversial real-life events.
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Cracker is the title of a television crime series in the United Kingdom, made by Granada Television for ITV and created and principally written by Jimmy McGovern. The series concerned a criminal psychologist (or "cracker"), Eddie "Fitz" Fitzgerald, played by Robbie Coltrane.
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The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Type Broadcast radio and television
Country  United Kingdom
Availability    National
International 
Founder John Reith
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Go Now is a 1995 feature film directed by Michael Winterbottom and starring Robert Carlyle.

Cast

  • Robert Carlyle (Nick Cameron)
  • Juliet Aubrey (Karen)
  • James Nesbitt (Tony)
  • Sophie Okonedo (Paula)
  • Berwick Kaler (Sammy)
  • Darren Tighe (Dell)

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Multiple sclerosis
Classification & external resources

MRI FLAIR sequence showing four bright spots (plaques) where multiple sclerosis has damaged myelin in the
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Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1960s  1970s  1980s  - 1990s -  2000s  2010s  2020s
1993 1994 1995 - 1996 - 1997 1998 1999

Year 1996 (MCMXCVI
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Thomas Hardy

Born: 2 June,1840
Stinsford, Dorchester, England
Died: 11 January,1928 (aged 87)

Occupation: Novelist, Poet
Literary movement: Naturalism

Thomas Hardy, OM
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