Fred Schepisi

Frederic Alan Schepisi ( ; born 26 December 1939) is an Australian film director, producer and screenwriter. His credits include The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, Plenty, Roxanne, A Cry in the Dark, Mr. Baseball, Six Degrees of Separation, and Last Orders. Life and career Frederic Alan Schepisi was born in Melbourne, the son of Loretto Ellen (née Hare) and Frederic Thomas Schepisi, who was a fruit dealer and car salesman of Italian descent. He began his career in advertising and directed both commercials and documentaries before making his first feature film, The Devil's Playground, in 1976. Schepisi won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Direction and the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Screenplay for both The Devil's Playground and Evil Angels (released as A Cry in the Dark outside of Australia and New Zealand). In 1991, Schepisi's film The Russia House was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 41st Berlin International Film Festival.