Robert Bruning (27 May 1928 – 4 March 2008) was an Australian actor and film producer, who was the founder of film production firm Gemini Productions
Biography
Bruning was born as Robert Bell in
Dongara, Western Australia
Dongara is a town north-northwest of Perth, Western Australia on the Brand Highway. The town is located at the mouth of the Irwin River.
Dongara is the seat of the Shire of Irwin. At the the shire had a population of 3,569, with 2,782 residi ...
in 1928. He worked as an amateur actor at the New Theatre in the Sydney suburb of
Newtown in the 1940s and 1950s.
Bruning also was a regular guest performer in ''
Homicide
Homicide occurs when a person kills another person. A homicide requires only a volitional act or omission that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from accidental, reckless, or negligent acts even if there is no inten ...
'', ''
Division 4
''Division 4'' is an Australian television police drama series made by Crawford Productions for the Nine Network between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes.
Synopsis
The series was one of the first dramas to follow up on the enormous success o ...
'', ''
The Sullivans
''The Sullivans'' is an Australian period drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran on the Nine Network from 15 November 1976 until 10 March 1983. The series tells the story of a fictional average middle-clas ...
'' and ''
A Country Practice
''A Country Practice'' is an Australian television soap opera which broadcast on the Seven Network from 18 November 1981 until 5 November 1993, airing at 7:30 pm on Monday and Tuesday evenings. Altogether, 14 seasons and 1,058 episodes were p ...
''.
[ He also had substantial roles on Australian films such as 1970's '']Ned Kelly
Edward Kelly (December 1854 – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout wi ...
'' and his production credits, on sitcoms, variety, and drama add up to more than 200 hours of television.[
Of his production career, he is notable for his creation of Australia's first ]telemovie
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
, '' Is There Anybody There?'', of which 21 more were made.[
]
Gemini Productions
Bruning set up Gemini Productions in 1971; others in the company were Bill Huges (director), David Hannay (production manager), Michael Lawrence (director) and Alister Smart
Alister Smart (born 1934),GILES, NIGEL "Number 96: Australia's Most Notorious Address" also credited as Alastair Smart, is a retired TV television presenter, presenter, actor, television director and screenwriter from Australia. A staple of the ...
(director). Its first production was the TV series ''The Godfathers'' at $5,600 an episode. They then made the variety show ''True Blue Show''. When both shows ended, Bruning had to return to acting.
Bruning felt there would be a market for Australian TV movies like the ones Aaron Spelling
Aaron Spelling (April 22, 1923 June 23, 2006) was an American film and television producer and occasional actor. His productions included the TV series ''Family'' (1976–1980), '' Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), ''The Love Boat'' (1977–1986 ...
made in the US. He succeeded in selling ''Paradise'' (1975) to Channel 9. Although he was unhappy with the end result, it enabled Bruning to make ''Is There Anybody There?'' which he sold to Channel Seven, and was well received. The network agreed to buy three more TV movies from Bruning, '' Mama's Gone A-Hunting'' (1977), '' The Alternative'' (1977) and '' Gone to Ground'' (1977) all made for around $90,000 each. The film was shot in Sydney.
Although the films rated well, they were deficit financed which meant Gemini was losing money. (Around this time the networks would pay $70–$84,000 for a TV movie which usually cost $105–125,000. The Australian Film Commission covered the deficit.) Bruning realised he needed the protection of a bigger company and sold Gemini to Reg Grundy
Reginald Roy Grundy (4 August 1923 – 6 May 2016) was an Australian entrepreneur and media mogul, best known for his numerous television productions. He was the producer of various Australian game shows, such as '' Blankety Blanks'' (based on ...
, agreeing to run Gemini for Grundy for two years.
Gemini made seven TV movies in 1977 which he later felt was too many. Six were made for a cost of $750,000 and followed Gemini's initial four films. "It's the largest order of locally made product ever," said Greg Brown of Seven "and we are sure viewers will be impressed."
The films were usually shot over three six-day weeks with a week lay off in between using many of the same crew. Costs were kept down by using urban settings and locking down scripts.[Beilby p 518]
Bruning died suddenly on 4 March 2008, in Wellington, New Zealand, aged 79.[ He was survived by his third wife, Anne, a line producer, their son Nic and three daughters from previous marriages: Ariane, Lucie and Sophie.][
]
Filmography
Film
Television
As crew
References
Notes
*
External links
*
Obituary at Urban Cinefile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bruning, Robert
1928 births
2008 deaths
Male actors from Western Australia
Australian male television actors
Australian male film actors
Australian film producers
People from Dongara, Western Australia