Baz Luhrmann

Mark Anthony Luhrmann (born 17 September 1962), known professionally as Baz Luhrmann, 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
Luhrmann at the premiere of Elvis in 2022
Born
Mark Anthony Luhrmann

(1962-09-17) 17 September 1962
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia[1]
Alma materNarrabeen Sports High School
Occupation
  • Film director
  • film producer
  • screenwriter
  • actor
Years active1982–present
Spouse
Catherine Martin
​
(m. 1997)​
Children2
AwardsFull list

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 the Australian Opera and Broadway and Strictly Ballroom the Musical (2014).

Luhrmann is equally 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

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, with future friends and collaborators Nellee Hooper and Gabrielle Mason. 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]

Career

Film
Luhrmann in 2018

After theatrical successes, including the short play Strictly Ballroom which premiered at the Wharf Theatre, Luhrmann moved into film. He made his directorial debut with the 1992 film version of Strictly Ballroom.

Luhrmann's modern film interpretation Romeo + Juliet (1996), based on the William Shakespeare play and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, defeated Titanic at the BAFTAs for best direction, music and screenplay. The film was celebrated at the Berlin Film Festival, where it was recognised with the Golden Bear award for direction and Silver Bear for DiCaprio's performance. Luhrmann also produced both volumes of the soundtrack album, which went triple-platinum.[15]

Luhrmann's Oscar-winning musical Moulin Rouge! (2001), set in the Montmartre Quarter of Paris at the dawn of the 20th century, told the story of a young English poet/writer, Christian (Ewan McGregor) who falls in love with the star of the Moulin Rouge, cabaret actress and courtesan Satine (Nicole Kidman). The film was praised by its adherents, including musical directors Robert Wise and Stanley Donen, as having re-invented the modern musical, blending decades of popular music in remixes and mash-ups.[16] The movie was named one of the AFI's top ten films of 2001[17] and in 2010 was chosen as the top film of the 2000s decade in a poll of 150,000 respondents in the United Kingdom.[18] At the 59th Annual Golden Globes, Moulin Rouge! took home the awards for Best Motion Picture, Best Actress, and Best Original Score.[19] The film also gave birth to a successful soundtrack album, produced by Luhrmann, which sold more than seven million copies and went double-platinum, led by the Grammy-winning number one hit single "Lady Marmalade".[20][15]

Luhrmann's 2008 historical epic Australia featured some of the country's most celebrated actors, including Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, and David Gulpilil. Situated between the two World Wars, the film blended a nostalgic romance with major events from Australian history, including the Bombing of Darwin, and the true story of the Stolen Generations, wherein thousands of mixed-race Aboriginal children were stolen from their families by the state and forcibly integrated into white society. The movie's racial politics were controversial for their time, and notably, its production coincided with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's 2008 Apology to Australia's Indigenous peoples. Marcia Langton, professor of Australian indigenous studies at Melbourne University publicly supported the film, saying "Luhrmann depicts with satirical sharpness the racial caste system of that time... In his imagined cinema of the 1940s, the spatial and social shape of racism is reconstructed with such exact detail, I felt I had been transported back to my own childhood."[21] While achieving modest box office success in the United States, the film was very successful in Europe, maintaining the #1 slot at the box office for many weeks in France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the Scandinavian countries.[22] It is the second-highest grossing Australian film of all time, next to Crocodile Dundee and ahead of Happy Feet.[23]

In 2013, Luhrmann adapted F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, shot in 3D,[24] starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway, Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, Joel Edgerton as Tom Buchanan, Australian newcomer Elizabeth Debicki as Jordan Baker, and legendary Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan as Meyer Wolfsheim. For the film, Luhrmann and costume/production designer Catherine Martin collaborated with Prada, Brooks Brothers, and Tiffany & Co. to create period-inspired dresses, suits, and jewellery based on their own archives and true to the book's own references to luxury brands.[25] The film grossed over $353 million worldwide, making it the director's highest-grossing movie to date.[26][27] Critic Richard Roeper described the adaptation as "the best attempt yet to capture the essence of the novel" while Fitzgerald's granddaughter praised the movie, saying "Scott would have been proud."[28][29] The following year, at the 86th Academy Awards, the film won in both of its nominated categories: Best Production Design and Best Costume Design.[30] The soundtrack, produced by Luhrmann, Anton Monsted, and Jay-Z, sought to blend the music of the Jazz Age with contemporary hip hop as two historical analogues.[31] Featured artists included Beyoncé, Jack White, Lana Del Rey, Sia, will.i.am, The xx, and Florence and the Machine; the soundtrack also included score from the film's composer and Luhrmann's repeat collaborator Craig Armstrong.[32] The album's sales exceeded expectations, marking the biggest digital sales week for a soundtrack in Billboard history, and peaking at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart.[33][34]

Luhrmann's next project was a film about Elvis Presley's relationship with Colonel Tom Parker, simply called Elvis, which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2022.[35] Tom Hanks played Parker and Austin Butler portrayed Presley, having been cast after a series of screen tests, as well as music and performance workshops.[36][37][38] The film opened in June 2022, becoming a box office hit.

Television
Luhrmann at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival

In 2016, Luhrmann collaborated with award-winning playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis on the Netflix series The Get Down about the birth of hip hop in the 1970s.[39] For the series, Luhrmann brought on Nas, Grandmaster Flash, Kurtis Blow and DJ Kool Herc as producers, to help tell the story of the rise of hip hop, punk, and disco during shifting cultural and political transformation through his unique brand of magical realism.[40] The series featured two parts, praised for its vibrant music, fresh cast and authenticity, due to the involvement of many of the era's key historical figures in central roles to the show's development.[41] Part One was certified fresh by Rotten Tomatoes, with a score of 77%, while Part Two of the series holds a critic score of 86%.[42][43]

Filmography

Director credits
Features
Year Title Director Writer Producer Distributor
1992 Strictly Ballroom Yes Yes No Ronin Films
1996 Romeo + Juliet Yes Yes Yes 20th Century Fox
2001 Moulin Rouge! Yes Yes Yes
2008 Australia Yes Yes Yes
2013 The Great Gatsby Yes Yes Yes Warner Bros. Pictures
2022 Elvis Yes Yes Yes
Television
Year Title Director Writer Executive
Producer		 Notes
2016–2017 The Get Down Yes Yes Yes Directed and co-wrote episode "Where There Is Ruin, There Is Hope for a Treasure"

Screen actor

Television

Year Title Character Notes
1981–82A Country PracticeJerry Percival6 episodes
1983Kids of the CrossHimselfDocumentary film

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1981Winter of Our DreamsPete
1982The Dark RoomFirst student
The Highest HonorAble Seaman A. W. Huston

Stage actor
Year Title Role Notes
1982Are You Lonesome Tonight?UnknownPerformed at Nimrod Downstairs, Sydney
1983FanshenPeasantPerformed at NIDA, Sydney
1984Holiday MakersUnknownPerformed at NIDA
All's Well That Ends WellDumain BrotherPerformed at NIDA
1984;
1986		Strictly BallroomRoss PierceAlso director;
Performed at NIDA in 1984, and in Bratislava in 1986
1985DreamplayUnknownPerformed at NIDA. Directed by Jim Sharman
Funeral GamesPart of the Hallucinogenics? 3 plays from the 60s event. Performed at NIDA
Chamber MusicPart of the Hallucinogenics? 3 plays from the 60s event. Performed at NIDA
The GreeksTrilogy: The War, The Murders, The Gods. Performed at NIDA, and St Martin's Youth Arts Centre, Melbourne.
Once in a LifetimePerformed at NIDA
1986Crocodile Creek–Directed for the New Moon Theatre Company in Rockhampton.
Amateur musical production set in the Queensland goldfields
1989The Conquest of the South PoleUnknownPerformed at Belvoir St Theatre, Sydney

Other work
  • 1981: A young Luhrmann can be seen in an early acting role in the film Winter of Our Dreams, directed by John Duigan. Luhrmann has a small part playing opposite Judy Davis.
  • 1992: Luhrmann directed a video for John Paul Young's "Love Is in the Air", which was rereleased to coincide with the release of Strictly Ballroom in which the song was featured prominently.
  • 1993: Luhrmann staged his interpretation of Benjamin Britten's version of A Midsummer Night's Dream, set in colonial India, for the Australian Opera. After successful seasons in Sydney and Melbourne, the production went on to win the Critics' Prize at the Edinburgh Festival. Music extracts can be heard on his album Something for Everybody.
  • 1993: Luhrmann assisted in the election campaign of former Australian prime minister Paul Keating.
  • 1997: The CD of Something for Everybody was released, featuring music from Luhrmann's films and operas including his version of Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream.[44] Moreover, Luhrmann created his own company with his wife Catherine Martin: Bazmark.
  • 1997: As a music producer, Luhrmann is credited with "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)", a successful spoken word song in Europe, Australia and the Americas.
  • 2002: Luhrmann brought his production of Puccini's La bohème to the Broadway Theatre in New York City. Originally produced for Opera Australia in Sydney in 1990, once in New York it eventually received seven Tony Award nominations, including Best Revival of a Musical, Best Direction (Luhrmann), Best Orchestrations (Nicholas Kitsopoulos), Best Costume Design (Catherine Martin), and winning Best Set Design (Catherine Martin), Best Lighting Design (Nigel Levings), and the Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre for the Principal Ensemble Cast.
  • 2004: Luhrmann directed a lavish multimillion-dollar commercial for Chanel N° 5 titled N° 5 the Film, inspired by his Red Curtain Trilogy, starring Nicole Kidman and Rodrigo Santoro. On the Charlie Rose interview show he told Rose that he based the commercial on the 1953 film Roman Holiday.[45]
  • 2005: Luhrmann was appointed an Ambassador for the Australian Theatre for Young People.
  • 2008: Luhrmann was asked by the Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd to make new advertisements to promote Australia as a tourist destination.[46]
  • 2009: At the 81st Academy Awards in February, Luhrmann put together a number dedicated to musicals which consisted of Hugh Jackman, Beyoncé, Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Dominic Cooper and Amanda Seyfried.
  • 2009: In September, Luhrmann made an appearance as a guest judge on Dancing with the Stars.
  • 2010: Luhrmann and the painter Vincent Fantauzzo embarked on an art initiative which took them to India, where they created artworks on walls of hotels, in the streets of Rajasthan and on 17th century forts.[47]
  • 2017: Luhrmann shot the campaign film The Secret Life of Flowers for the collaboration between Erdem and H&M.[48]
  • 2019: Though mostly hands-off with the stage production of Moulin Rouge!, Luhrmann produced its Broadway cast recording.[49]

Influence and legacy

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.[50]

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,[51] 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.[52] More recently he and his wife Catherine Martin have adapted their style for projects in events, retail, architecture and design with Barneys New York[53] and developer and hotelier Alan Faena.[54][55]

Awards and honours
Year Title Academy Awards BAFTA Awards Golden Globe Awards
Nominations Wins Nominations Wins Nominations Wins
1992 Strictly Ballroom 8 3 1
1996 Romeo + Juliet 1 7 4
2001 Moulin Rouge! 8 2 12 3 6 3
2008 Australia 1
2013 The Great Gatsby 2 2 3 2
Total 12 4 30 12 7 3

Media appearances
  • In September 2009, Luhrmann made an appearance as a guest judge on Dancing with the Stars.[56] Luhrmann participated on the NPR radio quiz program Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! in 2013.[57]
  • Luhrmann's song "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" was discussed in March 2020 on the BBC Radio 5 Live Chiles on Friday programme with Charlotte McDonald. It featured an interview from the documentary with Australian voice over artist, Lee Perry.[58]

In culture

In 2021, 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.[59]

References
  1. "Baz Luhrmann biodata". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 14 November 2009.
  2. Wallace, Amy (7 February 2014). "Deep Inside Baz Luhrmann's Creative Chaos". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  3. "Top 10 grossing Australian films of all time". ABC News (Australia). 1 August 2015. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  4. "Australia's top 10 highest grossing films of all time". The New Daily. 30 December 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  5. "Baz Luhrmann, RCA To Launch Bazmark Label". Billboard. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  6. "Baz Luhrmann profile at". FilmReference.com.
  7. "Baz Luhrmann a man of many talents", The Courier-Mail, 26 November 2008
  8. "Jennifer-Harrison-Chisholm – User Trees". genealogy.com.
  9. Ryan, Tom (5 November 2014). Baz Luhrmann: Interviews. Univ. Press of Mississippi. ISBN 9781626743007.
  10. "Baz Luhrmann: 'I've never waited for permission to do anything' " by Ryan Gilbey, The Guardian, 24 April 2018
  11. "Baz Luhrmann (12 works by)". AustLit. 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
  12. Kids of the Cross at IMDb
  13. "NIDA Alumni". Archived from the original on 14 October 2013.
  14. Beveridge, Riley (29 January 2016). "Your AFL club's most famous supporters, from Barack Obama to Cam Newton". Fox Sports. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  15. Chagollan, Steve (17 April 2013). "'Gatsby's' Great Music Collection". Variety. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  16. Berk, Philip. "2002 – Musical or Comedy: Moulin Rouge!". Golden Globe Awards. HFPA. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  17. "American Film Institute's Top Films of the Year". InfoPlease. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  18. "Moulin Rouge! voted best film of the decade". The Daily Telegraph. London. 7 January 2010. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  19. "Winners & Nominees 2002". Golden Globe Awards. HFPA. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  20. "Lady Marmalade Wins Grammy Award". BigNoiseNow. 28 February 2002. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  21. Langton, Marcia (23 November 2008). "Faraway Downs fantasy resonates close to home". The Age. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  22. "Australia". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  23. "Highest Grossing Aussie Films". World News Australia. Published by SBS. 27 February 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  24. Michael Jones (18 December 2008). "Baz Luhrmann eyes Great Gatsby". Variety. Retrieved 11 August 2009.
  25. Greene, Lucie (11 May 2013). "Luxury brands and 'The Great Gatsby' movie". Financial Times. The Financial Times LTD. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  26. "The Great Gatsby". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  27. "Baz Luhrmann". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  28. Roeper, Richard. "The Great Gatsby". RichardRoeper.com. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  29. Kendall, Mary Claire. "Loving 'Gatsby' All About 'Living Fitzgerald'". Forbes. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  30. "The 86th Academy Awards – 2014". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  31. Young, Alex (4 April 2013). "The Great Gatsby soundtrack features new Jay-Z, The xx, Florence & the Machine". Consequence of Sound. Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  32. Blistein, Jon (4 April 2013). "'Great Gatsby' Soundtrack Featured Jay-Z, Andre 3000, Beyonce". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  33. Corner, Lewis (16 May 2013). "'Great Gatsby', Lady Antebellum storm US album chart". Digital Spy. National Magazine Company, Ltd. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  34. "Soundtrack Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  35. Tartaglione, Nancy (23 May 2022). "Baz Luhrmann's 'Elvis' Rocks Cannes With 10-Minute Standing Ovation". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  36. Fleming, Mike Jr. (1 July 2019). "Top Young Talent Vying For Elvis in Baz Luhrmann Film; Ansel Elgort, Miles Teller, Austin Butler, Harry Styles".
  37. "Harry Styles, Ansel Elgort, Miles Teller in the Running to Play Elvis in Baz Luhrmann's Biopic". The Hollywood Reporter. July 2019.
  38. "Baz Luhrmann's Elvis biopic finds its star: Austin Butler". AV Club. 15 July 2019.
  39. Hetrick, Adam. "Baz Luhrmann and Stephen Adly Guirgis Collaborating on Hip-Hop Television Project". Playbill, 13 December 2013
  40. "Netflix's The Get Down Is the Rare (And Great) Music Drama That's Actually About Music". Pitchfork. 12 August 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  41. "The Get Down". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  42. "The Get Down: Season One". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  43. "The Get Down: Season Two". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  44. "Bazmark Inc. Presents Something For Everybody (CD, Comp)". discogs.
  45. Luhrmann, Baz (27 November 2008). "Charlie Rose – A conversation about the film "Australia"". The Charlie Rose Show. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015.
  46. Scott, Malcolm (29 July 2008). "Australia Taps Luhrmann for Campaign to Boost Tourism". Bloomberg L.P.
  47. Kanwardeep Singh Dhaliwal (24 March 2010). "Baz Luhrmann & Vincent Fantauzzo's mad Indian motorcycle diary". CNNgo.com. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2011.
  48. ERDEM x H&M – The Secret Life of Flowers campaign film by Baz Luhrmann on YouTube
  49. Schulman, Michael (26 August 2019). "Baz Luhrmann's "Moulin Rouge!" Mega Mashup". The New Yorker. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  50. "Five Favorite Films of Baz Luhrmann". Rotten Tomatoes. Rotten Tomatoes. 19 October 2010. Retrieved 29 March 2013.
  51. "Most expensive advertisement (commercial) on television". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  52. "Audio and Video | The Metropolitan Museum of Art". www.metmuseum.org. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  53. "Baz Dazzled: The Barneys New York Holiday Window Unveiling with Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin". Vogue. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  54. "What It Looks Like When Baz Luhrmann Helps Design a Miami Hotel". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  55. Abel, Ann. "The Maestro of Miami Beach: Alan Faena and His New Faena Hotel". Forbes. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  56. "Baz Luhrmann Guest Judges On Dancing". HuffPost. 28 September 2009. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
  57. Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! from NPR
  58. "The Sunscreen Song; The Class of '99", BBC World Service
  59. The Ten Commandments Moshe Rabenu - Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen, The Jews are Coming, Season 5, chapter 13 (Israeli TV Channel 11 Youtube channel)
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