Baz Luhrmann
Mark Anthony "Baz" Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962) is an Australian film director, producer, writer, and actor. With projects spanning film, television, opera, theatre, music, and recording industries, he is regarded by some as a contemporary example of an auteur[2] for his style and deep involvement in the writing, directing, design, and musical components of all his work. He is the most commercially successful Australian director, with four of his films in the top ten highest worldwide grossing Australian films of all time.[3][4]
Baz Luhrmann
- Film director
- film producer
- screenwriter
- actor
1982–present
2
On the screen he is best known for his "Red Curtain Trilogy", consisting of his romantic comedy film Strictly Ballroom (1992) and the romantic tragedies William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996) and Moulin Rouge! (2001). Following the trilogy, projects included Australia (2008), The Great Gatsby (2013), Elvis (2022), and his television period drama The Get Down (2016) for Netflix. Additional projects include stage productions of Giacomo Puccini's La bohème for both Opera Australia and Broadway, and Strictly Ballroom the Musical (2014).
Luhrmann is known for his Grammy-nominated soundtracks for Moulin Rouge! and The Great Gatsby, as well as his record label House of Iona, a co-venture with RCA Records.[5] Serving as producer on all of his musical soundtracks, he also holds writing credits on many of the individual tracks. His album Something for Everybody features music from many of his films and also includes his hit "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)".
Early and personal life[edit]
Luhrmann was born in Sydney. His mother, Barbara Carmel (née Brennan), was a ballroom dance teacher and dress shop owner, and his father, Leonard Luhrmann, ran a petrol station and a movie theatre.[6][7][8] He was raised in Herons Creek, a tiny rural settlement in mid-northern New South Wales. He attended St Joseph's Hastings Regional School, Port Macquarie (1975–1978); St Paul's Catholic College, performing in the school's version of Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, and Narrabeen Sports High School, where he met future collaborator Craig Pearce.[9]
Luhrmann received the nickname "Baz" at school, given to him because of his hair style, the name coming from the puppet character Basil Brush. While still in high school, Luhrmann changed his name by deed poll to Bazmark, joining his nickname and birth name together.[10] In 1980, Luhrmann graduated high school, and in the same year was cast opposite Judy Davis in the Australian film Winter of Our Dreams.[11] In 1982, using the money he had earned from film and television experience he funded his own theatre company, The Bond Theatre Company.. The company performed at the Pavilion at Sydney's Bondi Beach. At the same time, he conceived and appeared in a controversial television documentary, Kids of the Cross, where Luhrmann, embedded as a character, lived with a group of street kids.[12] In 1983, he began an acting course at the National Institute of Dramatic Art. He graduated in 1985 alongside Sonia Todd, Catherine McClements and Justin Monjo.[13] On 26 January 1997, he married Catherine Martin, a production designer; the couple have two children.
Luhrmann supports the Melbourne Demons in the Australian Football League.[14]
Influence and legacy[edit]
Luhrmann has cited Italian grand opera as a major influence on his work and has also given a nod to other theatrical styles, such as Bollywood films, as having influenced his style. Luhrmann was a ballroom dancer as a child and his mother taught ballroom dancing which was an inspiration for Strictly Ballroom. Luhrmann's favourite films are Star 80, 8½, War and Peace, Medium Cool and Fitzcarraldo.[54]
Luhrmann's influence has extended outside the traditional realm of media and entertainment. Deeply involved in the fashion and art worlds, Luhrmann's No. 5 the Film for Chanel not only holds a Guinness World Record for the highest budget for an advertising commercial ever produced,[55] but pioneered the now commonplace genre of fashion film and branded content. Luhrmann works closely with the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Anna Wintour Costume Center, having chaired the annual Met Gala as well as producing a short film for the museum, celebrating Miuccia Prada and Elsa Schiaparelli.[56] More recently, he and his wife Catherine Martin have adapted their style for projects in events, retail, architecture and design with Barneys New York[57] and developer and hotelier Alan Faena.[58][59]
In November 2022, Lurhmann featured in Desert Island Discs on BBC Radio 4; his chosen favourite track, book and luxury item were "Che gelida manina" from Puccini's La bohème (sung by Pavarotti), Tolstoy's War and Peace, and a silk eye mask respectively.[60]
In culture[edit]
In 2022, the Israeli writers of The Jews Are Coming made a tribute in Hebrew to "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" with Moses standing before the Israelites and quoting the Ten Commandments with the background music from "Sunscreen" and several parts closely translated from Luhrmann's text, such as getting to know your parents before they disappear.[64]