John Duigan (born 19 June 1949) is an Australian film director and screenwriter. He is mostly known for his two autobiographical films The Year My Voice Broke and Flirting, and the 1994 film Sirens, which stars Hugh Grant.

Biography

Duigan was born in Hartley Wintney, Hampshire, England to an Australian father, and emigrated to Australia in 1961. He is related to many Australian performers, being the brother of novelist Virginia Duigan (wife of director Bruce Beresford) and uncle of Trilby Beresford. Duigan studied at the University of Melbourne, where he resided at Ormond College and graduated in 1973 with a master's degree in Philosophy. While at university, he worked extensively as an actor and director in theatre, and acted in a number of films (including Brake Fluid, Bonjour Balwyn and Dalmas). He began directing films in 1974, with early successes including Mouth to Mouth, winner of the Jury Prize at the Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards and Winter of our Dreams, for which he won an Australian Writers' Guild award for Best Screenplay. His 1981 film Winter of Our Dreams was entered into the 13th Moscow International Film Festival. The multi-award-winning mini-series Vietnam followed in 1987; it was one of Nicole Kidman's first major roles. Subsequently, Duigan worked in the United States and Europe, returning to Australia to make Sirens, winner of Best Film at the St. Petersburg Film Festival. In the United States, he directed Romero, starring Raul Julia, which won the Humanitas Award, and Lawn Dogs, winner of numerous prizes in European festivals. In England he directed The Leading Man, from a screenplay by his sister Virginia, The Parole Officer with Steve Coogan, and in Canada/France/UK Head in the Clouds with Charlize Theron and Penélope Cruz, winner in Canada of four Genie Awards and Best Film at the Milan Film Festival. Between 2005 and 2010, he took time off from the film industry to work on a book on secular ethics, returning to Australia to direct Careless Love in 2011/12. Since 2011, Thandie Newton has claimed that she was groomed and sexually abused by Duigan on the set of Flirting. He has not responded to these claims and the matter has never been legally proven.

Filmography

Actor Director