Fred Schepisi: The Life Story Behind the Roxanne Director
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Fred Schepisi is a director who has made films about Australia, about America, and about the strange and wonderful places in between. He made The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, a powerful film about an Aboriginal man in nineteenth century Australia, and Roxanne, a funny and romantic film about a man with a very large nose in a small French village in America. He made A Cry in the Dark, about a mother accused of a terrible crime, and Six Degrees of Separation, about a young man who tricks rich New Yorkers. No two of his films are the same, and that is part of his gift.
He grew up in Melbourne, in an Italian-Australian family, and he learned to make films by working in television, by making commercials, and by watching the world around him. He was not a man who shouted about his work. He was a quiet and thoughtful director, a man who loved actors, who loved stories, and who believed that a film should be made with care, even if it took a long time to get it right.
This is the story of how a boy from Richmond, Melbourne, became one of Australia’s most respected directors, and how he built a career that took him from the Australian bush to Hollywood, to France, and back again. It is a story of patience, of courage, and of a man who has never stopped believing in the power of a good story, told well.
A Melbourne Boy in an Italian Family
Fred Schepisi was born on 26 December 1939 in Richmond, Melbourne, Australia, to Italian immigrant parents who had come to Australia to build a new life. Richmond in those years was a working class suburb, full of factories, of small houses, of families from many countries, and of a strong sense of community. Schepisi grew up inside that world, hearing Italian at home, hearing English at school, and learning to live in two cultures at once. That double life, Italian and Australian, would later shape his films, which often deal with people who are caught between two worlds.
As a boy, Schepisi was quiet and thoughtful, and he loved to watch people. He watched his parents, he watched his neighbours, and he watched the way people from different countries tried to live together in a new land. He was not a loud child, and he was not a rebel. He was a watcher, and he noticed the small details that other people missed: a gesture, a look, a way of speaking that told a whole story. That gift for watching would later become the heart of his work as a director.
He went to school in Melbourne, and he was a good student, but he was more interested in film than in books. He watched films from Italy, from America, and from Australia, and he was drawn to films that told the truth about people’s lives. He loved the Italian films of his parents’ homeland, with their warmth, their humour, and their love of family, and he also loved the Australian films that were beginning to appear, with their wide landscapes and their tough characters. He did not know then that he would become a director, but he knew that film was the place where he felt most alive.
After school, Schepisi began to work in television, where he learned how to make films, how to work with a camera, and how to tell a story in a short time. He worked on commercials, on documentaries, and on short films, and he learned the craft of filmmaking by doing it, day after day. He was not trained in a film school in the usual way. He learned by working, and that practical training gave him a strong sense of how a film is really made, from the first idea to the final cut.
Schepisi’s years making commercials and short films taught him a lesson that stayed with him for his whole career: that a film must be made with care, even when the budget is small, and that a single image, a single look, or a single line of dialogue can tell a whole story, if it is chosen well. He learned to work quickly, to make decisions on set, and to trust his instincts, because a commercial must be shot in a day, and a short film must be made with little money, and those pressures taught him discipline. That discipline, learned in television studios in Melbourne, became the foundation of his style, a style that is calm, precise, and deeply respectful of actors, of crew, and of the audience who will watch the finished film.
Television, Commercials, and the First Feature
In the 1960s and early 1970s, Schepisi worked in Australian television, making commercials and short films that were praised for their quality and for their eye for detail. He learned how to work with actors, how to light a scene, and how to edit a film so that it flowed well. He also learned how to work with a small budget, and how to make a film look expensive even when it was not. Those skills would serve him well for the rest of his career, because he never had the largest budgets, and he always had to be clever with the money he had.
He made a short film called The Devil’s Playground in 1976, which was based on his own experiences at a Catholic boarding school. The film was about a boy who is growing up in a strict religious school, and who begins to question the rules around him. The film was praised for its honesty, for its performances, and for its portrait of a boy who is trying to find his own way in the world. It showed that Schepisi could take a personal story and make it into a film that spoke to many people.
The Devil’s Playground was a success, and it gave Schepisi the confidence to make a feature film. He chose a story that was difficult, painful, and important: The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, based on the novel by Thomas Keneally, about an Aboriginal man in nineteenth century Australia who is caught between two worlds, and who turns to violence when he is betrayed. It was a bold choice, because the story dealt with race, with injustice, and with the dark side of Australian history, and many people thought it was too difficult for a first feature film.
Schepisi believed in the story, and he was willing to take the risk. He worked hard to raise the money, to cast the film, and to shoot it in the Australian bush, in harsh and beautiful locations. The film was released in 1978, and it became one of the most talked about Australian films of its time. It was shown at the Cannes Film Festival, it won awards, and it made Schepisi famous as a director who was not afraid to tell a hard truth.
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith and a Hard Truth
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith tells the story of Jimmie, a young Aboriginal man who is raised by a white family, who learns to read and write, and who marries a white woman, hoping to build a new life. When he is cheated and humiliated by white settlers, he turns to murder, and he becomes a fugitive, hunted across the bush. The film is based on a true story, and it is a powerful and painful portrait of a man who is caught between two cultures, who belongs to neither, and who is destroyed by the racism around him.
The film starred Tom E. Lewis as Jimmie, in a performance that was praised for its power and its sadness, and it also starred Freddy Reynolds, Ray Barrett, and other Australian actors. The film was shot in the bush, with wide landscapes, with harsh light, and with a sense of the land as a place that is both beautiful and dangerous. Schepisi did not make the film easy to watch. He showed the violence, the racism, and the pain, and he asked the audience to think about what Australia had done to its first people.
The film was a success at festivals, and it was praised by critics, but it was also controversial, because it dealt with a subject that many Australians did not want to face. Some people said it was too violent, others said it was too sad, and others said it was necessary, because it told a truth that had been hidden for too long. Schepisi did not apologise for the film. He believed that a director should tell the truth, even when the truth is painful, and he was proud of the work he had done.
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith made Schepisi one of the most important directors in Australia, and it opened the door to work in America. He had shown that he could make a large and ambitious film, with a difficult subject, and that he could do it with care and with honesty. That reputation would follow him to Hollywood, where he would make films that were very different, but that shared the same care and the same honesty.
Hollywood: Barbarosa, Iceman, and Plenty
After Jimmie Blacksmith, Schepisi was invited to work in Hollywood, and he made Barbarosa in 1982, a western starring Willie Nelson and Gary Busey, about an outlaw in Texas who is hunted by a young man. The film was a western, but it was also a film about friendship, about loyalty, and about the end of an era. It was not a large success, but it showed that Schepisi could work in America, with American stars, and with a story that was far from Australia.
He followed it with Iceman in 1984, a science fiction film about a prehistoric man who is found frozen in ice and brought back to life. The film starred Timothy Hutton and John Lone, and it told a story about a man who is out of time, who does not understand the modern world, and who is studied by scientists who do not understand him. The film was thoughtful and moving, and it showed Schepisi’s interest in people who are outsiders, who do not fit in, and who are trying to find their place.
In 1985, Schepisi made Plenty, a film based on a play by David Hare, about a woman named Susan Traherne, played by Meryl Streep, who works for the resistance in France during the Second World War, and who finds post-war life in Britain empty and disappointing. The film was a drama about a woman who has lived a life of danger and excitement, and who cannot settle for an ordinary life. Streep gave a powerful performance, and the film was praised for its honesty about a woman who is angry, sad, and unwilling to accept the world as it is.
These films showed Schepisi’s range, and they showed that he was not a director who could be put in a box. He could make a western, a science fiction film, and a drama about a woman in post-war Britain, and he could make them all with the same care and the same attention to detail. He was a director who followed the story, not the fashion, and that is why his films feel honest, even when they are very different from each other.
Roxanne and A Cry in the Dark
In 1987, Schepisi made Roxanne, a romantic comedy starring Steve Martin as C.D. Bales, a fire chief in a small American town who has a very large nose, and who falls in love with a beautiful astronomer named Roxanne, played by Daryl Hannah. The film is based on the play Cyrano de Bergerac, about a man who is witty and brave, but who believes he is too ugly to be loved. Steve Martin wrote the screenplay, and he gave one of his best performances, funny, sad, and romantic at the same time.
Roxanne was a huge success, and it became one of the most loved romantic comedies of the 1980s. Audiences loved the film for its humour, for its warmth, and for its message that love is about who you are inside, not about how you look. Schepisi directed the film with a light touch, letting the comedy flow naturally, and letting the romance grow slowly. The film showed that he could make a popular film, a film that made people laugh and cry, without losing his own style.
In 1988, Schepisi returned to Australia to make A Cry in the Dark, known in America as Evil Angels, based on the true story of Lindy Chamberlain, a mother whose baby daughter disappeared at Uluru in 1980, and who was accused of murdering her child. The film starred Meryl Streep as Lindy and Sam Neill as her husband Michael, and it told the story of a family that was destroyed by a terrible loss and by a trial that became a media circus. The film was a powerful and painful portrait of a woman who was judged by the public, by the press, and by the courts, and who was later found to be innocent.
A Cry in the Dark was a success, and Streep was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance. The film showed Schepisi’s gift for telling a true story with care, and for showing the human cost of a public trial. It also showed his willingness to return to Australia, to tell an Australian story, even after he had become successful in Hollywood. That loyalty to his home country is one of the most important parts of his career.
Six Degrees, Last Orders, and Later Work
In 1993, Schepisi made Six Degrees of Separation, based on a play by John Guare, about a young Black man named Paul, played by Will Smith, who tricks a group of rich white New Yorkers into believing he is the son of the actor Sidney Poitier. The film also starred Stockard Channing, Donald Sutherland, and Ian McKellen, and it was a witty and thoughtful portrait of New York society, of race, of class, and of the lies people tell to feel important. The film was a success, and it showed that Schepisi could make a film about modern life with the same care he had shown in his earlier work.
In 2001, Schepisi made Last Orders, based on the novel by Graham Swift, about four old friends who travel to the sea to scatter the ashes of a fifth friend. The film starred Michael Caine, Tom Courtenay, David Hemmings, and Bob Hoskins, and it was a gentle and moving portrait of friendship, of ageing, and of the memories that bind people together. The film was praised for its performances and for its warmth, and it showed that Schepisi, now in his sixties, was still interested in stories about ordinary people and their lives.
He also made The Eye of the Storm in 2011, based on the novel by Patrick White, about a dying woman in Sydney and her children who return to her house. The film starred Charlotte Rampling, Geoffrey Rush, and Judy Davis, and it was a powerful portrait of a family, of wealth, and of the pain of growing old. The film was a success in Australia, and it showed that Schepisi was still willing to take on difficult Australian stories, even late in his career.
Schepisi has also worked in television, directing episodes of the series Empire Falls, and he has made films in many countries, including France, Britain, and America. He lives in Melbourne, he is married, and he has children, and he has kept his private life out of the press. He is a quiet man, a craftsman, and a storyteller, and he prefers to let his films speak for him.
Television, Empire Falls, and a Return to Australia
Beyond his feature films, Fred Schepisi has worked in television, and that work shows another side of his talent, a director who can tell a long story, over many hours, with the same care he brings to a two-hour film. He directed episodes of the series Empire Falls, based on the novel by Richard Russo, about a small town in Maine, about a man who runs a diner, and about the people who live in that town, with all their hopes, their failures, and their small triumphs. The series starred Ed Harris, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Helen Hunt, and it won awards, including an Emmy Award, showing that Schepisi could work in television with the same skill he showed in film.
He has also made films in France, in Britain, and in other countries, always looking for stories that matter to him, and always bringing his quiet and thoughtful style to each new place. He made The Eye of the Storm in Australia in 2011, based on the novel by Patrick White, about a dying woman and her children, and he made Words and Pictures in 2013, a romantic drama about a teacher and an artist, starring Clive Owen and Juliette Binoche. Those later films show that Schepisi, now in his seventies, was still willing to take on new stories, new actors, and new places, and that he had not lost his love of filmmaking.
Schepisi has also been a mentor to young Australian filmmakers, speaking at festivals, teaching at schools, and sharing what he has learned over more than forty years in film. He knows how hard it is to make a film, to raise money, to cast actors, and to shoot in difficult locations, and he wants to help young directors avoid the mistakes he made, and to find their own voice. That generosity, quiet and often unseen, is an important part of his legacy, and it will last even longer than his films, because the filmmakers he has helped will go on to make their own films, and to help others in turn.
He lives in Melbourne, he is married, and he has children, and he has kept his private life out of the press, preferring to let his films speak for him. He is a quiet man, a craftsman, and a storyteller, and he continues to think about new films, new stories, and new ways to tell the truth about people, even in his eighties. That persistence, that love of story, and that willingness to keep working, is an inspiring example for anyone who wants a long life in the arts, and it is a reminder that a director does not need to be loud to be great. He needs to be patient, to listen, and to care about the people in his films.
My Take:
When I think about Fred Schepisi, the first thing I admire is his courage to tell hard stories. The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith is not an easy film to watch. It is about racism, about violence, and about a man who is destroyed by a world that does not accept him. Many directors would have chosen a safer story for their first feature film. Schepisi chose a hard one, because he believed it needed to be told. That courage is rare, and it is important, because a film that tells a hard truth can change the way people think, even if it makes them uncomfortable.
I also admire the way he can make a comedy like Roxanne and a drama like A Cry in the Dark, and make them both feel true. Roxanne is funny, light, and romantic, and it makes people laugh. A Cry in the Dark is painful, serious, and sad, and it makes people think. To be able to do both, and to do them well, is a great gift. It tells me that Schepisi is not interested in a single style. He is interested in people, and in the stories they live, whether those stories are funny or sad, or both at the same time.
What I find most moving in his story is his loyalty to Australia. He became successful in Hollywood, and he could have stayed there, making American films for the rest of his life. Instead, he returned to Australia again and again, to make films about Australian people, Australian history, and Australian life. He made A Cry in the Dark, he made The Eye of the Storm, and he made other Australian films, because he believed that Australian stories mattered, and that they deserved to be told well. That loyalty is a form of love, and it is one that I admire deeply.
I think about his Italian background, too, and about how it shaped him. He grew up in a family that had come from another country, that spoke another language at home, and that tried to live in a new land. That experience of being between two worlds is at the heart of many of his films. Jimmie Blacksmith is between two worlds. The Iceman is between two times. Paul in Six Degrees of Separation is between two classes. Schepisi understands what it means to not quite belong, and he shows that feeling with great care. That understanding comes from his own life, and it makes his films feel true.
I feel sad that Schepisi is not as famous as some other directors, even though his films are so good. He is a quiet man, and he does not seek attention, and so the world sometimes forgets him. That is a shame, because his work deserves to be remembered. Roxanne is still loved, A Cry in the Dark is still powerful, and Jimmie Blacksmith is still important. I think that tells us something about fame: it does not always go to the people who do the best work. It goes to the people who shout the loudest. Schepisi does not shout, and so he is sometimes overlooked, but his films speak for him, and they will last.
I also think about the way he works with actors. Meryl Streep gave two great performances for him, in Plenty and in A Cry in the Dark, and Steve Martin gave one of his best performances in Roxanne. That is not an accident. Schepisi knows how to listen to actors, how to give them room, and how to help them find the truth in a character. He does not try to control them. He trusts them, and that trust makes their work better. That is a generous way to direct, and it is why his films feel so human.
For a young reader who wants to make films, I think the lesson of Fred Schepisi is to tell the story that matters to you, even if it is hard, even if it is painful, and even if people tell you not to. Do not choose a safe story because you think it will make money. Choose a true story, and tell it as well as you can. Work hard, learn your craft, and be patient. Schepisi learned his craft in television and in commercials, and he built his career slowly, film by film. That patience is a lesson for anyone who wants a long life in the arts.
I also think his story teaches us about the value of being between two worlds. If you come from a family that has moved to a new country, if you speak two languages, if you feel that you do not quite belong anywhere, that feeling is not a weakness. It is a gift, because it lets you see the world from more than one side. Schepisi used that gift to make films about people who are outsiders, and those films are some of his best work. Your own life, with all its complications, can be the source of your best stories, if you are willing to look at it honestly.
When I look at the whole of his career, I see a man who has made films in many countries, about many kinds of people, with care and with patience. He has made films about Aboriginal men, about Italian families, about American firemen, about New York socialites, and about Australian mothers. Each film is different, and each one is true in its own way. That is a large and generous body of work, and it is one that deserves to be celebrated.
I will remember him as a quiet man from Melbourne, a boy from an Italian family who learned to watch people, who learned to make films by working hard, and who became a director the world respected. He did not shout, he did not boast, and he did not give up. He worked, he told stories, and he told the truth, even when the truth was hard. That is the best kind of career, and it is one that I admire deeply, because it shows that a good life in film is not about fame. It is about work, about care, and about the people you meet along the way.
I keep thinking about Roxanne, because it is such a kind film. C.D. Bales believes he is too ugly to be loved, and yet he is witty, brave, and kind, and the woman he loves sees that in him. That is a beautiful message, and it is one that many people need to hear. We are often told that love is about how we look, but Roxanne tells us that love is about who we are, about our humour, our courage, and our heart. Schepisi tells that story with great warmth, and it is a film that still makes people smile, many years after it was first shown.
In the end, I believe Fred Schepisi teaches us that a film can be both entertaining and true, both funny and serious, both Australian and international. It can make you laugh, make you cry, and make you think, all at the same time. That is not an easy thing to do, and it is why his films will be remembered. He is a director who believes in stories, and he has spent his life trying to tell them well, and I am grateful for that, because his stories have made the world a richer and a more thoughtful place.
I think about the range of Schepisi’s films, because it is so wide that it is hard to believe one man made them all. He made a powerful film about an Aboriginal man in the nineteenth century, a funny film about a man with a large nose in a small American town, a painful film about a mother accused of murder, and a witty film about a young man who tricks rich New Yorkers. Most directors find one kind of film and stay with it, because it is safe, and because audiences know what to expect. Schepisi did not stay safe. He tried many kinds, and he made them all well, and that takes courage, because each new kind of film is a risk, and each risk could fail. He took those risks, and he succeeded, again and again, and I think that is a great achievement.
I also think about his Italian background, and about how it shaped him, because he grew up in a family that had come from another country, that spoke another language at home, and that tried to live in a new land. That experience of being between two worlds, of belonging to both and to neither, is at the heart of many of his films, which are about outsiders, about people who do not fit in, and about the strength that comes from being different. Jimmie Blacksmith is between two cultures, the Iceman is between two times, and Paul in Six Degrees of Separation is between two classes. Schepisi understands what it means to not quite belong, and he shows that feeling with great care, because he has lived it himself.
I wonder about the films that are less well known, like Barbarosa, a western starring Willie Nelson, and Iceman, a science fiction film about a prehistoric man brought back to life, because those films show Schepisi’s willingness to try something strange, something that other directors might avoid, and to do it with the same care he brings to a more familiar story. Those films were not large successes, but they are interesting, because they show a director who follows the story, not the fashion, and who is willing to take a risk, even if the risk does not pay off in money or in awards. That is a brave way to work, and it is one that I admire.
I think about Roxanne again, because it is such a kind film, and it is one that many people love, even today, more than thirty years after it was made. C.D. Bales believes he is too ugly to be loved, and yet he is witty, brave, and kind, and the woman he loves sees that in him. That is a beautiful message, and it is one that many people need to hear, especially young people who worry about how they look. Schepisi tells that story with great warmth, with humour, and with a light touch, and it is a film that still makes people smile, and that is a rare and wonderful thing for a film to do.
I also think about A Cry in the Dark, and about the courage it took to make a film about Lindy Chamberlain, a woman who was accused of murdering her own baby, and who was judged by the public, by the press, and by the courts, before she was finally found to be innocent. That is a painful story, and it is a story that many Australians still feel strongly about, because it shows how quickly a person can be judged, and how hard it is to clear your name once you have been accused. Schepisi told that story with great care, with Meryl Streep giving a powerful performance, and he showed the human cost of a public trial, which is a lesson that is still relevant today.
I think about his age, and about the fact that he is still working in his eighties, making films, thinking about new stories, and helping young filmmakers, when many people have retired long ago. That tells me something about his character: he loves his work, he loves stories, and he cannot imagine a life without them. He does not work because he needs money. He works because he has stories to tell, and because he believes that a good story is worth telling, even if you are eighty, even if you have already made many films. That is an inspiring example for anyone who wants a long and creative life.
In the end, I believe Fred Schepisi will be remembered as a quiet man who told hard truths, who made films in many countries, and who never stopped believing in the power of a good story. His films will be watched for a long time, because they are made with care, with patience, and with a deep respect for people, and they show that a director does not need to shout to be great. He needs to listen, to care, and to tell a story well, and Schepisi has done that, film after film, for more than forty-five years, and I am grateful for it, because his work has made the world a richer and a more thoughtful place.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith about?
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith from 1978 is based on a novel by Thomas Keneally and tells the story of an Aboriginal man in nineteenth century Australia who is caught between two cultures. The film, starring Tom E. Lewis, is a powerful and painful portrait of racism, injustice, and a man who turns to violence when he is betrayed.
Why is Roxanne still loved as a romantic comedy?
Roxanne from 1987 stars Steve Martin as C.D. Bales, a fire chief with a very large nose who falls in love with an astronomer named Roxanne, played by Daryl Hannah. The film is based on Cyrano de Bergerac, and it is loved for its humour, its warmth, and its message that love is about who you are inside, not how you look.
What is A Cry in the Dark about and who starred in it?
A Cry in the Dark from 1988, known in America as Evil Angels, is based on the true story of Lindy Chamberlain, whose baby daughter disappeared at Uluru in 1980. The film starred Meryl Streep as Lindy and Sam Neill as her husband, and Streep was nominated for an Academy Award for her performance.
Did Fred Schepisi work in Hollywood as well as Australia?
Yes, Schepisi worked in both Australia and Hollywood, making films like Barbarosa, Iceman, Plenty, Roxanne, and Six Degrees of Separation in America, while returning to Australia for films like A Cry in the Dark and The Eye of the Storm. He has made films in many countries, including France and Britain.
What is Six Degrees of Separation about?
Six Degrees of Separation from 1993 is about a young Black man named Paul, played by Will Smith, who tricks rich white New Yorkers into believing he is the son of Sidney Poitier. The film is a witty portrait of New York society, of race, of class, and of the lies people tell to feel important.
Where did Fred Schepisi grow up and how did he learn filmmaking?
Schepisi was born in Richmond, Melbourne, on 26 December 1939, to Italian immigrant parents, and he grew up hearing Italian at home and English at school. He learned filmmaking by working in Australian television, making commercials and short films, and his first feature was The Devil’s Playground in 1976.
What was Fred Schepisi’s most recent major Australian film?
One of his most recent major Australian films was The Eye of the Storm in 2011, based on the novel by Patrick White, about a dying woman in Sydney and her children. The film starred Charlotte Rampling, Geoffrey Rush, and Judy Davis, and it was praised for its performances and its portrait of a family.
