Julia Leigh (born 1970) is an Australian novelist,

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

. In 2011 her debut feature film ''

Sleeping Beauty ''Sleeping Beauty'' (french: La belle au bois dormant, or ''The Beauty in the Sleeping Forest''; german: Dornröschen, or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess cu ...

'' was selected to screen in official competition at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

. She is an author of two award-winning novels, '' The Hunter'' and '' Disquiet'', for which she has been described as a "sorceress who casts a spell of serene control while the earth quakes underfoot".

Early life

Born in 1970 in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

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, Leigh is the eldest of three daughters. Her father was a physician and her mother a maths teacher. Leigh majored in philosophy and law at the University of Sydney and was admitted to the NSW Supreme Court as a Legal Practitioner. For a time she worked as a legal advisor at the

Australian Society of Authors The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) was formed in 1963 as the organisation to promote and protect the rights of Australia's authors and illustrators. The Fellowship of Australian Writers played a key role it its establishment. The organisati ...

where she shifted interest into writing. Her mentors have included authors

Frank Moorhouse Frank Thomas Moorhouse (21 December 1938 – 26 June 2022) was an Australian writer. He won major Australian national prizes for the short story, the novel, the essay, and for script writing. His work has been published in the United Kingdom, ...

and, as part of the 2002–2003 edition of the

Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative Rolex SA () is a British-founded Swiss watch designer and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1905 as ''Wilsdorf and Davis'' by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in London, the company registered ''Rolex'' as the brand name of ...

Toni Morrison Chloe Anthony Wofford Morrison (born Chloe Ardelia Wofford; February 18, 1931 – August 5, 2019), known as Toni Morrison, was an American novelist. Her first novel, ''The Bluest Eye'', was published in 1970. The critically acclaimed '' So ...

. In 2009, Leigh was awarded a PhD in English from the University of Adelaide.

Career

Leigh is the author of the novels '' The Hunter'' (1999) and '' Disquiet'' (2008), which received critical acclaim. ''Disquiet'' won the

Encore Award The £10,000 Encore Award for the best second novel was first awarded in 1990. It is sponsored by Lucy Astor. The award fills a niche in the catalogue of literary prizes by celebrating the achievement of outstanding second novels, often neglecte ...

for outstanding second novels in 2009. '' The Hunter'' was adapted into a 2011 feature film starring

Willem Dafoe Willem James Dafoe (; born July 22, 1955) is an American actor. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Willem Dafoe, various accolades, including the Volpi Cup for Best Actor, in addition to receiving nominations for ...

Sam Neill Sir Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand actor. Neill's near-50 year career has included leading roles in both dramas and blockbusters. Considered an "international leading man", he has been regarded as one o ...

and Frances O'Connor. Leigh also wrote and made her directorial debut with ''

'', a 2011 film starring

Emily Browning Emily Jane Browning
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about a university student drawn into a mysterious world of desire. Her film was selected for the main competition at the

2011 Cannes Film Festival The 64th Cannes Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 May 2011. American actor Robert De Niro served as the president of the jury for the main competition and French filmmaker Michel Gondry headed the jury for the short film competition. South Ko ...

. In 2016, she published an autobiographical work ''Avalanche'' about her own experiences with in-vitro fertilisation. In a review in the Sydney Morning Herald, Gretchen Shirm concluded that "at the heart of this book lies an overwhelming generosity, a willingness to impart personal experience for the insight it offers others". In 2015 Leigh was awarded the

Peter Blazey Fellowship The Peter Blazey Fellowship in an Australian literary award, in honour of the life and work of Peter Bradford Blazey (1939-1997). Establishment of Fellowship The Fellowship was established by Clive Blazey and Tim Herbert, respectively, brother an ...

from the University of Melbourne for development work on ''Avalanche'', and in 2016 was awarded the Australia Council Fellowship in Literature for work on a new novel. Leigh has spent extensive periods in Paris and New York (where she was Adjunct Associate Professor of English at

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

).Sleeping Beauty. A Film by Julia Leigh. eOne Entertainment, Cannes 2011

Filmography

* ''

'' (2011)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leigh, Julia 1970 births Living people 20th-century Australian novelists 21st-century Australian novelists Australian film directors Australian screenwriters Australian women film directors Australian women novelists Writers from Sydney Sydney Law School alumni University of Adelaide alumni Barnard College faculty 20th-century Australian women writers 21st-century Australian women writers