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Bruce Beresford (; born 16 August 1940 (2025). 9781844035731, Cassell Illustrated. ISBN 9781844035731) is an Australian film director, opera director, screenwriter, and producer. He began his career during the Australian New Wave, and has made more than 30 feature films over a 50-year career, both locally and internationally in the United States. He is a two-time Academy Award nominee, and a four-time AACTA Awards winner out of 10 total nominations
Beresford's films include Breaker Morant (1980), Tender Mercies (1983), Crimes of the Heart (1986), Driving Miss Daisy (1989) – which won four Oscars including Best Picture, Black Robe (1991), Silent Fall (1994), Double Jeopardy (1999), Mao's Last Dancer (2009), and Ladies in Black (2018). He was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay for Breaker Morant, and Best Director for Tender Mercies. He won AACTA Awards – Best Direction (2) for Don's Party (1976) and Breaker Morant, and Best Screenplay (2) for Breaker Morant and The Fringe Dwellers (1986).
In addition, four of Beresford's films have been nominated for the Palme d'Or, and four have been nominated for the Golden Bear. He has also been nominated for two BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Directors Guild of America Award, and won a Genie Awards.
He completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in English at the University of Sydney, where he graduated in 1964. While at university he made the short film The Devil to Pay (1962) starring John Bell and Ron Blair, It Droppeth as the Gentle Rain (1963) co-directed by Albie Thoms and starring Germaine Greer, Clement Meadmore (1963) with Bell and King-size Woman (1965).
He then returned to England and worked for the British Film Institute as a producer of short films by first-time directors, including Magritte: The False Mirror (1970) and Paradigm (1970).
Beresford directed the documentary Lichtenstein in London (1968) about Roy Lichtenstein, and Extravaganza (1968), Barbara Hepworth at the Tate (1970), The Cinema of Raymond Fark (1970), and Arts of Village India (1972).
Beresford directed a documentary for TV, The Wreck of the Batavia (1973) and did some other TV films, Poor Fella Me (1973), and Monster or Miracle? Sydney Opera House (1973). These were financed by Reg Grundy who also financed Beresford's second feature as director, Barry McKenzie Holds His Own (1974), a sequel to Barry McKenzie.
Stranded in London without funds, Beresford agreed to direct and co-write a comedy, Side by Side (1975) starring Humphries and Terry-Thomas (this poorly received film was released on DVD in 2013). The money he received enabled him to return to Australia where, Beresford says, Phillip Adams "saved my life" by offering him the job of directing an acclaimed version of David Williamson's play Don's Party (1976).
Soon afterwards, Beresford directed an adaptation of Henry Handel Richardson's novel The Getting of Wisdom (1977), also produced by Adams.
Beresford directed The Club (1980), from another Williamson play, and Puberty Blues (1981).
He followed it with King David (1985) starring Richard Gere, which was a notable box office failure.
Beresford returned to Australia to direct The Fringe Dwellers (1986), co-written with his first wife, Rhoisin Beresford. In the US he directed Crimes of the Heart (1986) from the play by Beth Henley, did a segment of the film Aria (1987), and did the comedy thriller Her Alibi (1989) with Tom Selleck.
Asked if he minded not even being nominated for the Best Director Oscar for Driving Miss Daisy, Beresford said: "No, not at all. I didn't think it was that well directed. It was very well written. When the writing's that good, you've really just got to set the camera up and photograph it."
He directed Mister Johnson (1990) in Nigeria, with Edward Woodward; Black Robe (1991), an Australian-Canadian film based on the novel by Brian Moore; Rich in Love (1992), co-written by Uhry; A Good Man in Africa (1994) with Sean Connery from a novel by William Boyd, which in 2015 Beresford called his worst film; Silent Fall (1994), which was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 45th Berlin International Film Festival; and Last Dance (1996) with Sharon Stone.
He adapted but did not direct Curse of the Starving Class (1994).
Beresford returned to Australia to direct Paradise Road (1997), which was a commercial disappointment. He directed a documentary, Sydney: A Story of a City (1999), then had a hit with the thriller Double Jeopardy (1999).
He spent several years looking for financing for various projects before making The Contract (2006) with Freeman and Cusack. He followed it with a TV film Orpheus (2006) and returned to Australia to make Mao's Last Dancer (2009) which was also filmed in Houston, Texas.
Beresford's later credits include Peace, Love & Misunderstanding (2011) with Jane Fonda, the documentary H.H. Dalai Lama: Essence of Mahayana Buddhism (2011), the mini series Bonnie & Clyde (2013), Mr. Church (2016) with Eddie Murphy, an episode of the remake of Roots (2017), the TV movie Flint (2017) and the Australian film Ladies in Black (2018).
In 2016, he directed Benjamin Britten's opera Albert Herring for the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, in a production conducted by Nicholas Cleobury.
He often works with film editor Mark Warner. (See: List of film director and editor collaborations)
In 2012, he directed a production of Erich Wolfgang Korngold's opera Die tote Stadt for Opera Australia.
In 2018, he directed the Australian premiere of Rossini's Otello for Melbourne Opera.
| 1980 | Breaker Morant | Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted | |
| Best Direction | |||
| 1981 | The Club | Best Direction | |
| 1986 | The Fringe Dwellers | Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted | |
| Best Direction | |||
| 1992 | Black Robe | Best Direction | |
| 2009 | Mao's Last Dancer | Best Direction | |
| 2018 | Ladies in Black | Best Adapted Screenplay | |
| Best Direction | |||
| 1984 | Tender Mercies | Best Director | |
| Best Film | |||
| 1976 !scope="2" | Don's Party | 8 | 6 | ||||||
| 1977 !scope="2" | The Getting of Wisdom | 5 | 1 | ||||||
| 1978 !scope="2" | Money Movers | 3 | |||||||
| 1980 !scope="2" | Breaker Morant | 1 | 1 | 13 | 10 | ||||
| 1983 !scope="2" | Tender Mercies | 5 | 2 | 5 | 1 | ||||
| 1986 !scope="2" | The Fringe Dwellers | 7 | 1 | ||||||
| 1989 !scope="2" | Driving Miss Daisy | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 | ||
| 1991 !scope="2" | Black Robe | 10 | 1 | ||||||
| 2009 !scope="2" | Mao's Last Dancer | 8 | 1 | ||||||
| 2018 !scope="2" | Ladies in Black | 11 | 4 | ||||||
Directed Academy Award Performances
Under Beresford's direction, these actors have received Academy Award nominations and wins for their performances in these respective roles.
| 1984 | Robert Duvall | Tender Mercies | |
| 1990 | Morgan Freeman | Driving Miss Daisy | |
| 1987 | Sissy Spacek | Crimes of the Heart | |
| 1990 | Jessica Tandy | Driving Miss Daisy | |
| 1990 | Dan Aykroyd | Driving Miss Daisy | |
| 1987 | Tess Harper | Crimes of the Heart | |
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> Conversation Hollywood Interview - James Pratt Interview with Bruce Beresford Season 1
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