Simon Wincer
Simon Wincer | |
|---|---|
Wincer interviewed on AccessReel.com in 2011 | |
| Born | 1943 (age 82–83) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Education | Cranbrook School, Sydney |
| Occupations | Film director, television director |
| Years active | 1965–2011 |
| Awards | See below |
Simon Wincer (born 1943) is an Australian film and television director, who has worked extensively in both Australia and the United States since the early 1970's. He is a two-time AACTA/AFI Award nominee for Best Direction, for the films Harlequin (1980) and Phar Lap (1983), and won a Primetime Emmy Award for directing the miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989).
Early life
Wincer was born in Sydney in 1943. He attended Cranbrook School from 1950 to 1961. On leaving school he worked as a stagehand at HSV Channel 7, which his cousin Eric Pearce was a presenter.[1] He gradually worked his way up to floor manager, then fill-in director.[1] He also spent several years in London, England, where he studied drama and directed theatre.[1]
Career
Wincer began his television directing career on dramas like Matlock Police, Ryan, and Homicide. By the 1980s he had directed over 200 hours of television.
He made his feature directorial debut with 1979's thriller Snapshot. He followed this with 1980's Harlequin, a modern-day retelling of the Rasputin story set in the world of Washington D.C. politics. The film earned him his first AACTA/AFI Award nomination for Best Direction, and he was nominated again for his next film, Phar Lap.
Wincer subsequently directed the American sci-fi film D.A.R.Y.L. (1985) and the Australian World War I drama The Lighthorsemen (1987). His work on the latter helped him secure the job directing Lonesome Dove, an 4-part-miniseries for CBS, based on the novel of the same name by Larry McMurtry.[2] The series was a considerable commercial and critical success, and Wincer won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Limited Series. In 2008, he directed the prequel miniseries Comanche Moon.
His subsequent film directing credits have included the Tom Selleck-starring Western Quigley Down Under (1990), the buddy action-comedy Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991), the family film Free Willy (1993),[3] the superhero film The Phantom (1996), the IMAX film The Young Black Stallion (2003), and the Damien Oliver biopic The Cup (2011).
Personal life
Wincer is a supporter of the KIDS Foundation of Australia.[4]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Snapshot | |
| 1980 | Harlequin | |
| 1983 | Phar Lap | |
| 1985 | D.A.R.Y.L. | |
| 1987 | The Lighthorsemen | Also producer |
| 1990 | Quigley Down Under | |
| 1991 | Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man | |
| 1993 | Free Willy | |
| 1994 | Lightning Jack | Also producer |
| 1995 | Operation Dumbo Drop | |
| 1996 | The Phantom | |
| 2001 | Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles | |
| 2003 | The Young Black Stallion | |
| 2011 | The Cup | Also writer and producer |
Television
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1971–75 | Matlock Police | 17 episodes; Also writer and assistant director |
| 1972 | Division 4 | 15 episodes |
| 1973 | Ryan | 4 episodes |
| 1974–76 | Homicide | 5 episodes; Also assistant director |
| 1975 | Cash and Company | 4 episodes |
| 1976 | The Sullivans | 4 episodes |
| The Lost Islands | 1 episode | |
| Tandarra | 7 episodes | |
| The Box | 1 episode | |
| 1977–78 | Chopper Squad | 5 episodes; Also writer |
| 1977–80 | Young Ramsay | 5 episodes |
| 1979 | Skyways | 2 episodes |
| Bailey's Bird | ||
| 1979–80 | Prisoner: Cell Block H | 4 episodes |
| 1986 | Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color | 1 episode |
| 1992–93 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | 6 episodes |
| 2001 | Ponderosa | 1 episode |
TV films, miniseries, and specials
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 1976 | The Haunting of Hewie Dowker |
| 1978 | Against the Wind |
| 1986 | The Last Frontier |
| 1988 | Bluegrass |
| 1989 | Lonesome Dove |
| 1997 | Flash |
| 1998 | Escape: Human Cargo |
| The Echo of Thunder | |
| Murder She Purred: A Mrs. Murphy Mystery | |
| 1999 | P.T. Barnum |
| 2001 | Crossfire Trail |
| 2003 | Monte Walsh |
| 2005 | Into the West |
| 2008 | Comanche Moon |
Awards and nominations
| Award | Year | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Film Institute Award | 1980 | Best Direction | Harlequin | Nominated |
| 1983 | Phar Lap | Nominated | ||
| Directors Guild of America Award | 1990 | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Limited Series | Lonesome Dove | Nominated |
| Online Film & Television Association Award | 2005 | Best Direction of a Motion Picture or Miniseries | Into the West | Won |
| Primetime Emmy Award | 1989 | Outstanding Directing in a Miniseries or a Special | Lonesome Dove | Won |
| Sitges Award | 1980 | Prize of the International Critics' Jury | Harlequin | Won |
| Western Heritage Award | 2002 | Best Television Feature Film | Crossfire Trail | Won |
References
- ^ a b c "Simon Wincer". www.dga.org. 1 June 2013. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
- ^ Sweeney, Daniel (1 February 2014). "Lonesome Dove". Cowboys and Indians Magazine. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
- ^ Sandra Brennan (2014). "Simon Wincer". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 14 May 2014.
- ^ "Simon Wincer". KIDS Foundation. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
External links
- Robe, Mike. "Visual History with Simon Wincer". Directors Guild of America.
- Minow, Nell (May 2012). "Interview: Simon Wincer of the Horse Racing Film "The Cup"". Beliefnet. Archived from the original on 22 September 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
- Leydon, Joe (February 2014). "A Conversation with Lonesome Dove Director Simon Wincer". Cowboys & Indians. Dallas, Texas: Gregory L. Brown.
- Lewis, Maria (26 November 2014). "Legendary Australian director Simon Wincer enjoying the fruits of his labour". Nine.com.au. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
- Simon Wincer at IMDb