Robert Anthony Wynne-Simmons (born 18 August 1947) is a British composer, film director and screenwriter.

Robert Wynne-Simmons
Born (1947-08-18) 18 August 1947 (age 77)
EraContemporary

Early life and education

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Wynne-Simmons began to make films and write plays, poetry and music while still at school. He attended Lancing College in Sussex, England.[1][2][3]

In 1966, he attended Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he received an M.A. in English Literature. The college funded the making of The Judgment of Albion, a film based on the prophetic writings of William Blake, voiced by Anthony Quayle and Donald Sinden. A copy is now with the British Film Institute.[4]

Career and written works

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In 1970, he wrote the screenplay for Blood on Satan's Claw.[5] (Directed by Piers Haggard)

He subsequently worked for the BBC as a film editor, and was a graduate of the NFTS in Beaconsfield (1975). In 1978, he worked for Radio Telefis Eireann in Dublin, where he directed Double Piquet, in 1979.[6][7]

In 1981–2, he wrote and directed The Outcasts.[8][9] The actor Cyril Cusack appeared in both.[10] Also in The Outcasts were Mick Lally and Mary Ryan,[11][12] who won the prize for Best Actress in the San Remo Festival in 1984,[13][14] where the film won Best First Feature. The film also won prizes in the Oporto film festival,[15] Brussels Fantasy film festival,[16] and in Geneva.

After a brief period directing for The Book Tower,[17] a children's TV series made by Yorkshire Television, he returned to Ireland to direct and write for the group of T.V. dramas known as When Reason Sleeps, made by Strongbow Productions, Radio Telefis Eireann and Channel 4.[18] In 1992, his short film Scherzo[19] was shown at the Venice Biennale, the Chicago Film Festival and the San Francisco Festival, where it was awarded four stars.[citation needed]

In 2006, he returned as a writer to the stage, with The Deluge, a play based on the short stories of Karen Blixen, which he directed at the Edinburgh festival that year with Susannah York in the leading role.[20][21] In 2007, his monologue "Kurtz" was performed with The Deluge at the New End Theatre, Hampstead.[22]

Personal life

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Wynne-Simmons lives and works in Oppenheim, Germany.[23]

References

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  1. ^ Murphy, Robert (2006). Directors in British and Irish Cinema: A Reference Companion. ISBN 1841503126.
  2. ^ Evening Argus Friday 12 July 1963
  3. ^ Daily Sketch 3 July 1963
  4. ^ Wynne-Simmons, Robert. "Judgment of Albion". www.bfi.org.uk. British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020.
  5. ^ Chibnall, Steve (2002). British Horror Cinema. Routledge. p. 215. ISBN 9780415230049.
  6. ^ London 1980 Film Market Programme "The Slice/Double Piquet"
  7. ^ The Guardian 6 October 1984, highlights of next week's TV (Wednesday)
  8. ^ Films and Filming - issues 364-366,368-375. p. 41.
  9. ^ "The Outcasts". Time Out London. 10 September 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  10. ^ Image Magazine "Cyril Cusack's Diary" February 1982
  11. ^ The Irish Times, 2 July 1982 "Filming a Folk Tale"
  12. ^ Barton, Ruth (2004). Irish National Cinema. Psychology Press. p. 101. ISBN 0415278945.
  13. ^ XXVII Mostra Internazionale dei Film D'Autore 29 Marzo al 4 Aprile 1984, Programma dei Film
  14. ^ La Rivista di Bergamo, Agosto-Settembre 1984
  15. ^ Fantasporto 3–12 February 1984, Premio Especial Fantasporto, Premio da Critica Internacional
  16. ^ Screen International 19 November 1983 "LFF Screening for award-winning 'Outcasts'"
  17. ^ TV Times 23 January 1985
  18. ^ London Daily News, Saturday 9 May 1987 "Exploring the Dark Side of the Mind" Julian Cole
  19. ^ Gifford, Denis (2016). British Film Catalogue: Two Volume Set. 14724 Scherzo. ISBN 978-1317740629.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  20. ^ The Times (First Night, Times2) 10 August 2006, Edinburgh Festival Reviews
  21. ^ The Independent, 14 August 2006, Edinburgh Festival Reviews
  22. ^ Camden New Journal 27 September 2007
  23. ^ Nietzel, Beate (15 April 2017). "In Oppenheim Lebender Britischer Komponist".