Nick Willing (born 1961) is a British director, producer and writer of films and television series.

Early life

Willing is the son of Portuguese painter Dame

Paula Rego Paula or PAULA may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Paula, in video game '' EarthBound'' * Paula, in ''The Larry Sanders Show'' * Paula Campbell (''EastEnders''), in 2003 Film and television * ''Paula'' (1915 film), a s ...

and English artist

Victor Willing Victor Arthur James Willing (15 January 1928 – 1 June 1988) was a British painter, noted for his original nude studies. He was a friend and colleague of many notable artists, including Elisabeth Frink, Michael Andrews and Francis Bacon. He ...

and was largely brought up in Portugal, but settled in England at the age of 12, after the family suffered a business collapse. In 2017 he directed a television film, '' Paula Rego, Secrets & Stories'', about his mother, featuring his two sisters and his brother-in-law,

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

Ron Mueck Hans Ronald Mueck ( or /ˈmuːɪk/; born 1958) is an Australian sculptor working in the United Kingdom. Biography Born in 1958 to German parents in Melbourne, Australia, Ron Mueck grew up in the family business of puppetry and doll-making. He ...

. He graduated from The National Film and Television School in 1982 and started directing music videos for bands such as Eurythmics, Bob Geldof, Swing Out Sister,

Debbie Gibson Deborah Ann Gibson (born August 31, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Gibson released her debut album '' Out of the Blue'' in 1987, which spawned several international hits, later being certified triple plati ...

Kirsty MacColl Kirsty Anna MacColl (10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including " There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears ...

Kim Appleby Kim Loraine Appleby (born 28 August 1961) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. She participated in the duo Mel and Kim, with her sister Melanie Appleby, until her sister's death from pneumonia following treatment for cancer. Solo m ...

, Tony Banks, and

Nik Kershaw Nicholas David Kershaw (born 1 March 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. Kershaw came to prominence in 1984 as a solo artist. He released eight singles that entered the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart during the ...

. Throughout this period he was also writing screenplays, and in 1996 his adaptation of the Steve Szilagyi novel ''

Photographing Fairies ''Photographing Fairies'' is a 1997 British fantasy film based on Steve Szilagyi's 1992 novel ''Photographing Fairies''. The film explores some of the themes of folklore, such as possession, paganism, animism, hallucinogens, parapsychology and ...

'' was financed by

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (formerly known as PolyGram Films and PolyGram Pictures or simply PFE) was a British film studio founded in 1979 which became a European competitor to Hollywood, but was eventually sold to Seagram Company Ltd. in ...

and made into a feature film. ''Photographing Fairies'' was a critical success and won several awards including the Méliès d’Or in 1998. '' Alice in Wonderland'' followed with a cast which included

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Robbie Coltrane Anthony Robert McMillan (30 March 195014 October 2022), known professionally as Robbie Coltrane, was a Scottish actor and comedian. He gained worldwide recognition in the 2000s for playing Rubeus Hagrid in the ''Harry Potter'' film series. H ...

, Martin Short, Peter Ustinov,

Gene Wilder Jerome Silberman (June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016), known professionally as Gene Wilder, was an American actor, comedian, writer and filmmaker. He is known mainly for his comedic roles, but also for his portrayal of Willy Wonka in ''Willy Won ...

Ken Dodd Sir Kenneth Arthur Dodd (8 November 1927 – 11 March 2018) was an English comedian, singer and occasional actor. He was described as "the last great music hall entertainer", and was primarily known for his live stand-up performances. A lifel ...

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

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and Miranda Richardson. Alice was made for NBC television in 1999 and won 4 Primetime Emmys.

Director filmography

*1997 – ''

'' *1999 – '' Alice in Wonderland'' *2000 – '' Jason and the Argonauts'' *2002 – '' Close Your Eyes'' a.k.a. ''Doctor Sleep'' and ''Hypnotic'' *2004 – ''

Sea of Souls ''Sea of Souls'' is a BBC paranormal drama series, recounting the fictional activities of a group of investigators into psychic and other paranormal events. Produced in-house by BBC Scotland and for the final season by Carnival Films, init ...

'' *2005 – '' The River King'' *2006 – '' Jackanory'', '' The Magician of Samarkand'' and '' Muddle Earth'' *2007 – '' Tin Man'' *2009 – '' Alice'' *2011 – ''

Neverland Neverland is a fictional island featured in the works of J. M. Barrie and those based on them. It is an imaginary faraway place where Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, Captain Hook, the Lost Boys, and some other imaginary beings and creatures live. Altho ...

'' *2013 – ''

Baby Sellers ''Baby Sellers'' is a television film starring Jennifer Finnigan, Kirstie Alley and Arjun Gupta exposing the dark world of international baby trafficking. Synopsis ICE agent Nic Morrison (Finnigan) investigates a corrupt US child adoption agenc ...

'' *2014 – ''

Altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

'' *2015 – '' Olympus'' *2017 – '' Paula Rego, Secrets & Stories'' *2019 – '' Unstoppable. Sean Scully & The Art of Everything''

As writer

Nick Willing wrote his first two movies ''

'' and '' Doctor Sleep'' and went on to develop the short stories of

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

The Infinite Worlds of H. G. Wells ''The Infinite Worlds of H. G. Wells'' is a four-hour television miniseries conceived by Nick Willing and released in 2001 by the Hallmark Channel. It is based on a number of short stories by H. G. Wells, and in some territories was titled ''Th ...

'', which premiered in 2001. More recently he wrote the series '' Alice'' which received two Primetime Emmy Award nominations, and ''

'' for the Syfy network and Sky Movies. In 2014, he wrote the thriller ''

'' and created the 13-part series '' Olympus''.

House of Stories

In 2013, Nick stepped in to help negotiate an alternative contract for Casa Das Historias

, the Cascais, Portugal museum dedicated to his mother’s work. As a consequence of the 2011–14 international bailout to Portugal by the European Union and the IMF, the Portuguese government closed several foundations, including Paula Rego's, leaving the museum in limbo. He now remains in an administrative role, representing his mother’s interests at the museum.Casadashistoriaspaularego.com
/ref>

Interviews

* * * * * *

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Willing, Nick Living people English film directors British people of Portuguese descent Place of birth missing (living people) English people of Portuguese descent English television directors Alumni of the National Film and Television School People educated at Bryanston School 1961 births