Al Clark (born in Huelva, Spain) is an

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 ...

film producer. He is best known for his producer role on ''The'' ''Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' and his executive producer role on the film, '' Chopper''. Clark is also the author of four books. ''Time Flies'' and ''Time Flies Too'' are Clark's memoirs, which merge the early days of punk and new wave popular music with the truncated British film renaissance of the 1980s and the world of international film finance, and later chronicle his move to Australia and his work there. Clark's first book ''Raymond Chandler in Hollywood'' provides an insight into the work of the writer of detective fiction and includes interviews with many of the Hollywood figures who were associated with Raymond Chandler and his films. His second book ''Making Priscilla'', also titled ''The Lavender Bus: How a Hit Movie Was Made and Sold'', is a behind-the-scenes tale outlining the follies of film-making and how ''

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert ''The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' is a 1994 Australian road comedy film written and directed by Stephan Elliott. The plot follows two drag queens, played by Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce, and a transgender woman, played by Tere ...

'' became an international success.

Early life

Clark was born in Huelva,

Andalucia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

, in Southern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and grew up there during the time of Franco's dictatorship, a childhood Clark described as extreme and intense. He and his sister Lesley were home schooled by their mother, a former Glasgow school teacher. Fluent in Spanish, his parents were the only people he spoke English to until the age of 9 when he was sent to a boarding school in Scotland.

Career

UK

Clark first worked as a journalist at Time Out in London before becoming Publicity Director at

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), Tom Newman. It ...

. It was here that he represented the Sex Pistols, Phil Collins,

Mike Oldfield Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...

and

Tangerine Dream Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music band founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The group has seen many personnel changes over the years, with Froese having been the only constant member until his death in January 2015. The best-known lineup ...

. His working life in London from 1971 – 1987 was dominated by Tony Elliott, founder, publisher and editor of Time Out magazine UK and Richard Branson, Founder at

Virgin Group Virgin Group Ltd. is a British multinational venture capital conglomerate founded by Richard Branson and Nik Powell in February 1970. Virgin Group's date of incorporation is listed as 1989 by the Companies House, who class it as a holding co ...

. Over his time with Virgin and during the early years when the company expanded into different fields, Clark worked as a Publicity Director, a Book Editor for Virgin Books, Virgin's first Head of Creative Affairs and Head of Production for Virgin Films. Oscar winner, ''

A Shocking Accident ''A Shocking Accident'' is a 1982 British short comedy film directed by James Scott and produced by Christine Oestreicher, based on Graham Greene's short story by the same name. In 1983, Oestreicher won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short ...

'', starring

Rupert Everett Rupert James Hector Everett (; born 29 May 1959) is an English actor, director and producer. Everett first came to public attention in 1981 when he was cast in Julian Mitchell's play and subsequent film '' Another Country'' (1984) as a gay pupi ...

and

Jenny Seagrove Jennifer Ann Seagrove (born 4 July 1957) is an English actress. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and first came to attention playing the lead in a television dramatisation of Barbara Taylor Bradford's '' A Woman of Substance'' ...

was made in association with Virgin Films. Clark's first six films produced under the Virgin umbrella include: ''

Nineteen Eighty-Four ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' (also stylised as ''1984'') is a dystopian social science fiction novel and cautionary tale written by the English writer George Orwell. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and fina ...

'' directed by

Michael Radford Michael James Radford (born 24 February 1946) is an English film director and screenwriter. He began his career as a documentary director and television comedy writer before transitioning into features in the early 1980s. His best-known credits ...

and starring

John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in t ...

and

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable pe ...

, '' Absolute Beginners'' directed by '' Julien Temple'' and starring

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

and

James Fox William Fox (born 19 May 1939), known professionally as James Fox, is an English actor. He appeared in several notable films of the 1960s and early 1970s, including '' King Rat'', '' The Servant'', ''Thoroughly Modern Millie'' and ''Performan ...

and ''

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

'' directed by Ken Russell and starring

Gabriel Byrne Gabriel James Byrne (born 12 May 1950) is an Irish actor, film director, film producer, screenwriter, audiobook narrator, and author. His acting career began in the Focus Theatre before he joined London's Royal Court Theatre in 1979. Byrne's s ...

Natasha Richardson Natasha Jane Richardson (11 May 1963 – 18 March 2009) was an English actress of stage and screen. A member of the Redgrave family, Richardson was the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson and the granddaug ...

and

Timothy Spall Timothy Leonard Spall (born 27 February 1957) is an English actor and presenter. He became a household name in the UK after appearing as Barry Spencer Taylor in the 1983 ITV comedy-drama series '' Auf Wiedersehen, Pet''. Spall performed in '' ...

Australia

Clark was the executive producer for '' The Crossing'' directed by

George Ogilvie George Buchan Ogilvie (5 March 1931 – 5 April 2020) was a prolific Australian theatre director and actor, who also worked as a director and actor within film and television. Life and career George Ogilvie began as an actor at the Canberra ...

and starring Russell Crowe and Danielle Spencer. He worked as a Commissioner on the AFC Board for a 3-year term 1989 - 1992. Clark served on the

Screen Australia Screen Australia is the Australian Federal Government's key funding body for the Australian screen production industry, created under the ''Screen Australia Act 2008''. From 1 July 2008 Screen Australia took over the functions of its predecess ...

board from December 2014 - December 2017. In 1994 Clark produced the award-winning feature film, ''

'' - Director,

Stephan Elliott Stephan Elliott (born 27 August 1964) is an Australian film director and screenwriter. His best-known film internationally is ''The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' (1994). Career Elliott began his career as an assistant director ...

and starring

Terence Stamp Terence Henry Stamp (born 22 July 1938) is an English actor. Stamp is known for his sophisticated villain roles. He was named by ''Empire Magazine'' as one of the 100 Sexiest Film Stars of All Time in 1995. He has received various accolades inc ...

Hugo Weaving Hugo Wallace Weaving (born 4 April 1960) is an English actor. Born in Colonial Nigeria to English parents, he has resided in Australia for the entirety of his career. He is the recipient of six Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts ...

and

Guy Pearce Guy Edward Pearce (born 5 October 1967) is an Australian actor. Born in Ely, Cambridgeshire in England, and raised in Geelong, Victoria in Australia, he started his career portraying Mike Young in the Australian television series ''Neighbours ...

. Together with his wife, Andrena Finlay, Clark owns and operates Wildheart Films. Their credits include: Executive Producer, ''Thunderstruck'', Producer, '' Red Hill,'' and Producer, '' Swinging Safari.'' Clark has served as Jury Member at several film festivals including: Jury President,

Adelaide Film Festival The Adelaide Film Festival (AFF, formerly ADLFF) is film festival usually held for two weeks in mid-October in cinemas in Adelaide, South Australia. Originally presented biennially in March from 2003, since 2013 AFF has been held in October ...

, 2013, Jury Member, San Sebastian International Film Festival 2003 and Jury Member

Valladolid International Film Festival The Valladolid International Film Festival, popularly known as Seminci (short for ; ), is a film festival held annually in Valladolid, Spain. First held in 1956 as ('Valladolid Religious Film Week'), the Seminci is one of the longest-standing fi ...

, 1999.

Personal life

Clark has married twice. His first marriage was to Yoli with whom he had two children - Jason and Louise. They divorced in the early 1980s. Al met his second wife, Australian producer Andrena Finlay, 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 ...

in 1983 and again in 1986. Following that second meeting, Clark moved to Australia and married Finlay in December 1987. Clark and Finlay have two children – Rachel and Jamie.

Filmography

* 1984 - '' Secret Places'' (executive producer) – director Zelda Barron – with Marie-Therese Relin,

Jenny Agutter Jennifer Ann Agutter (born 20 December 1952) is a British actress. She began her career as a child actress in 1964, appearing in '' East of Sudan'', ''Star!'', and two adaptations of '' The Railway Children''—the BBC's 1968 television seria ...

* 1984 - ''

'' (co-producer) – director

– with

* 1986 - '' Absolute Beginners'' (executive producer) – director Julien Temple – with

* 1986 - ''

Captive Captive or Captives may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Captive'' (1980 film), a sci-fi film, starring Cameron Mitchell and David Ladd * ''Captive'' (1986 film), a British-French film starring Oliver Reed * ''Captive'' (1991 ...

'' (executive producer) – director

Paul Mayersberg Paul Mayersberg (born 18 June 1941) is an English writer and director and was the film critic for ''Movie magazine'' in the early 1960s and author of 1968 film book ''Hollywood, The Haunted House''. Awards He received a nomination for Best Motio ...

– with

Oliver Reed Robert Oliver Reed (13 February 1938 – 2 May 1999) was an English actor known for his well-to-do, macho image and "hellraiser" lifestyle. After making his first significant screen appearances in Hammer Horror films in the early 1960s, his ...

Irina Brook Irina Brook (born 5 April 1962) is a Franco-British stage director, producer, and actress. She was named Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres in 2002 by the French Ministry of Culture. In May 2017 Brook was upgraded to Officier de l'ordre des Arts ...

* 1986 - ''

'' (executive producer) – director Ken Russell – with

* 1987 - ''

Aria In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

'' (co-producer) – directors Robert Altman, Jean-Luc Godard,

Nicolas Roeg Nicolas Jack Roeg (; 15 August 1928 – 23 November 2018) was an English film director and cinematographer, best known for directing ''Performance'' (1970), '' Walkabout'' (1971), ''Don't Look Now'' (1973), '' The Man Who Fell to Earth'' (1976 ...

Bruce Beresford Bruce Beresford (; born 16 August 1940) is an Australian film director who has made more than 30 feature films over a 50-year career, both locally and internationally in the United States. Beresford's notable films he has directed include '' B ...

etc. – with

Theresa Russell Theresa Lynn Russell ( Paup; born March 20, 1957) is an American actress whose career spans over four decades. Her filmography includes over fifty feature films, ranging from mainstream to independent and experimental films. Born in San Diego, ...

, Bridget Fonda,

Tilda Swinton Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition t ...

* 1990 - '' The Crossing'' (executive producer) – director

– with Russell Crowe, Danielle Spencer * 1994 - ''

'' (producer) – director

– with

* 1997 - '' Heaven's Burning'' (producer) – director

Craig Lahiff Craig Lahiff (23 April 1947 – 2 February 2014) was an Australian film director. He grew up in the Adelaide suburb of Somerton Park and studied science at Adelaide University, then trained as a systems consultant before studying arts in fil ...

– with Russell Crowe, Youki Kudoh * 1999 - ''

Siam Sunset ''Siam Sunset'' is a 1999 Australian comedy film directed by John Polson and starring Linus Roache and Danielle Cormack. Plot Perry (Linus Roache) is an English chemist working for a paint company and is depressed after losing his wife in a freak ...

'' (producer) – director

John Polson John Polson (born 6 September 1965) is an Australian actor, director and founder of Tropfest. As an actor, Polson's best known role is probably starring opposite Russell Crowe and Jack Thompson in '' The Sum of Us'' (1994). In February 2001, ...

– with

Linus Roache Linus William Roache (born 1 February 1964) is a British actor. He is known for playing Executive ADA Michael Cutter in the NBC dramas ''Law & Order'' (2008–2010) and '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' (2011–2012). More recently, Roach ...

Danielle Cormack Danielle Cormack (born 26 December 1970) is a New Zealand stage and screen actress. She was one of the original cast members of the long-running soap opera '' Shortland Street'', though she is also known for her role as the Amazon Ephiny in th ...

* 1999 - '' Eye of the Beholder'' (co-producer) – director

– with

Ewan McGregor Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British ...

Ashley Judd Ashley Judd (born Ashley Tyler Ciminella; April 19, 1968) is an American actress. She grew up in a family of performing artists: she is the daughter of the late country music singer Naomi Judd and the half-sister of country music singer Wynonna ...

* 2000 - '' Chopper'' (executive producer) – director

Andrew Dominik Andrew Dominik (born 7 October 1967) is an Australian film director and screenwriter. He has directed the crime film '' Chopper'' (2000), the Western drama film ''The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' (2007), the neo-noir ...

– with

Eric Bana Eric Banadinović, (born 9 August 1968), known professionally as Eric Bana (), is an Australian actor and comedian. He began his career in the sketch comedy series '' Full Frontal'' before gaining notice in the comedy drama '' The Castle'' (19 ...

Vince Colosimo Vincenzo Colosimo (born 11 November 1966) is an Australian AFI Award winning stage, television and screen actor. He has worked in both Australia and the United States. He is of Italian descent and lives in Melbourne, Australia. He was previousl ...

Kate Beahan Kate Beahan (born 12 October 1974) is an Australian film actress. Beahan was born in Perth. She appeared mostly in movies and TV series in Australia. Her best-known American film role was playing Sister Willow Woodward in the 2006 horror remak ...

* 2002 - ''

The Hard Word ''The Hard Word'' (released in some regions as ''The Australian Job'') is a 2002 Australian crime film about three bank-robbing brothers who are offered a role in a bold heist while serving time in prison. The film was written and directed by Sc ...

'' (producer) – director Scott Roberts – with

Rachel Griffiths Rachel Anne Griffiths (born in 1968) is an Australian actress. Raised primarily in Melbourne, she began her acting career appearing on the Australian series ''Secrets'' before being cast in a supporting role in the comedy ''Muriel's Wedding'' ...

Joel Edgerton Joel Edgerton (born 23 June 1974) is an Australian actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his appearance in the ''Star Wars'' films ''Attack of the Clones'' (2002) and ''Revenge of the Sith'' (2005) as a young Owen Lars, a role he reprised i ...

* 2004 - '' Thunderstruck'' (executive producer) – director Darren Ashton – with

Sam Worthington Samuel Henry John Worthington (born 2 August 1976) is an Australian actor. He is best known for playing Jake Sully in ''Avatar'' and its sequel, ''Avatar: The Way of Water''; Marcus Wright in ''Terminator Salvation'', and Perseus in '' Clash o ...

, Callan Mulvey, Stephen Curry * 2006 - ''The Book of Revelation'' (producer) – director

Ana Kokkinos Ana Kokkinos is an Australian film and television director and screenwriter of Greek descent. She is known for her breakthrough feature film, '' Head On'' (1998), and has also directed television shows such as ''The Secret Life of Us'' and '' ...

– with Tom Long,

Greta Scacchi Greta Scacchi, OMRI (; born 18 February 1960) is an Italian-Australian actress. She holds dual Italian and Australian citizenship. She is best known for her roles in the films '' White Mischief'' (1987), '' Presumed Innocent'' (1990), '' The Pl ...

Colin Friels Colin Friels (born 25 September 1952) is a Scottish-born Australian actor of theatre, TV and film and presenter Early life Friels was born in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland.Interview with Colin Friels, ''George Negus Tonight'' (ABC Television) ...

* 2007 - ''Razzle Dazzle'' (executive producer) – director Darren Ashton – with Ben Miller,

Kerry Armstrong Kerry Michelle Armstrong (born 12 September 1958) is an Australian actress and author. She is one of only two actresses to win two Australian Film Institute Awards in the same year, winning Best Actress in a Leading Role for ''Lantana'' and Be ...

Tara Morice Tara Morice (born 23 June 1964) is an Australian actress. Background Born in Hobart, Tasmania, Morice also lived in Sydney, Alice Springs and Adelaide as a child. She is a fifth-generation Australian and is of English, Irish, Scottish, Latvia ...

* 2009 - ''Blessed'' (producer) – director

– with Frances O’Connor,

Miranda Otto Miranda Otto (born 16 December 1967) is an Australian actress. She is the daughter of actors Barry and Lindsay Otto and the paternal half-sister of actress Gracie Otto. Otto began her acting career in 1986 at age 18 and appeared in a variety of ...

Deborra-lee Furness Deborra-Lee Furness (born 30 November 1955) is an Australian actress and producer. She is married to actor Hugh Jackman. Early life Furness was born in Annandale, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, and raised in Melbourne, Victoria. At ...

* 2010 - '' Red Hill'' (producer) – director Patrick Hughes – with Ryan Kwanten,

Steve Bisley Steve Bisley (born 26 December 1951) is an Australian writer, film and television actor. He is best known for his roles in the films '' Mad Max'' and ''The Great Gatsby''. On TV, some of his better-known roles include Detective Sergeant Jack C ...

, Tom E. Lewis * 2013 - ''Goddess'' (executive producer) – director Mark Lamprell - with Laura Michelle Kelly,

Ronan Keating Ronan Patrick John Keating (born 3 March 1977) is an Irish singer. He debuted in 1993 alongside Keith Duffy, Michael Graham, Shane Lynch, and Stephen Gately, as the co-lead singer (with Gately) of Irish pop group Boyzone. His solo career start ...

Magda Szubanski Magdalene Mary Therese Szubanski ( ; born 12 April 1961) is an Australian comedy actress, author, singer and LGBT rights advocate. She performed in ''Fast Forward'', '' Kath & Kim'' as Sharon Strzelecki and in the films ''Babe'' (1995) and ' ...

*2017 - '' Swinging Safari'' aka Flammable Children (producer) - director

- with

, Kylie Minogue, Radha Mitchel

Awards

* In 2013 Clark received the AACTA Lifetime Achievement Award, the

Longford Lyell Award The Longford Lyell Award is a lifetime achievement award presented by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA), a non-profit organisation whose aim is "to identify, award, promote and celebrate Australia's greatest achievements ...

for his unwavering excellence and commitment to the film industry. *

Blessed Blessed may refer to: * The state of having received a blessing * Blessed, a title assigned by the Roman Catholic Church to someone who has been beatified Film and television * ''Blessed'' (2004 film), a 2004 motion picture about a supernatural ...

, 2009 (Producer Al Clark, Director

) nominated for AFI Best Film. * Chopper, 2000 (Executive Producer Al Clark, Director

). The film won:

Cognac Film Festival The Festival du Film policier de Cognac ( en, Cognac Crime Film Festival) was an annual film festival that took place in Cognac, France from 1982 to 2007 (with no festival being held in 1991).Film Critics Circle of Australia The Film Critics Circle of Australia (FCCA) is an association of cinema critics and reviewers. It includes journalists in "media, television, major national and state papers, radio, national and state, online and freelance writers, Australian ...

, it was also nominated by

AFI AFI may refer to: * ''Address-family identifier'', a 16 bit field of the Routing Information Protocol * Ashton Fletcher Irwin, an Australian drummer * AFI (band), an American rock band ** ''AFI'' (2004 album), a retrospective album by AFI rele ...

Best Film. *

, 1999 (Producer Al Clark, Director

) won: Festival de Cannes - Rail D'Or;

Busan Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF, previously Pusan International Film Festival, PIFF), held annually in Haeundae-gu, Busan (''also'' Pusan), South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festiv ...

- Best Film; Hawaii Film Festival - Golden Maile, Best Film; Oporto Film Festival - Best Film Fantasporto. The film was also nominated for

Best Film. * In 1994 ''

'' (Producer Al Clark, Director Stephan Elliott) won the following awards. Festival de Cannes - Grand Prix du Publique;

San Francisco International Film Festival The San Francisco International Film Festival (abbreviated as SFIFF), organized by the San Francisco Film Society, is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries. The festival highlights current trends in i ...

- Starbucks Award, Most Popular Film; Seattle Film Festival - Golden Space Needle Award, Most Popular Film. The film also won the EDI Award for Highest Grossing Limited Release Film in the US in 1994. Nominations include

Golden Globes The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

- Best Picture, Musical or Comedy, BAFTA - Best Film and

- Best Film. * The 1987 UK anthology film,

was nominated for the Festival de Cannes Palme d'Or. * In 1984 - 1985 the film ''

'' (Director

) won Best Film,

Evening Standard British Film Awards The Evening Standard British Film Awards were established in 1973 by London's ''Evening Standard'' newspaper. The Standard Awards is the only ceremony "dedicated to British and Irish talent," judged by a panel of "top UK critics." Each ceremony ...

and a Golden Tulip, Istanbul International Film Festival.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Al Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Australian film producers

Early life

Career

UK

Australia

Personal life

Filmography

Awards

See also

References

External links