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 Curl
Cameraman Composer Director DOP Editor Executive Producer Lighting Producer Production Manager Researcher Sound Recordist Photographer Support Industry Underwater Cameraman Writer

Curl

 Curl
  • Film and TV Credits
  • Major FIlm and TV Awards

Trained as a scientist at Oxford and Monash Universities, Dr David Curl is an internationally renowned Australian film-maker who has been based in the Northern Territory for the past 20 years. His credits as producer, director, writer and cinematographer include two of Australia’s most successful films1, The Call of Kakadu and Silhouettes of the Desert, which have reached audiences of over 100 million in over 60 countries.

His work has won numerous international awards2, including the coveted “Golden Tripod” from the Australian Cinematographers’ Society3, a Banff Television Festival Award and other awards from major international festivals such as Wildscreen and the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival that are considered by the industry to be the equivalent of Oscars for wildlife films.

His cinematography from around Australia and overseas has been shown by many of the world’s major broadcasters4 and his filming and sound-recording have contributed to such films as the BBC’s Meerkats United (voted the most popular ever wildlife film in the UK) and David Attenborough’s Trials of Life5. In 2007, he was chosen for the prestigious role as one of the Directors of Photography (2nd Unit) on director Baz Luhrmann’s epic Australia, the largest-ever Australian feature production.

In addition to his work as a film-maker, he has been a scientific advisor for a number of films including David Attenborough’s series Life of Birds, he writes for Australian and overseas magazines, and has produced and conducted interviews for ABC Radio National and for the BBC. As a stills photographer, his work has been published in a wide range of books and magazines, including Australian Geographic and National Geographic, and he has been a winner in international competitions such as the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year.

David Curl is an active member of the Australian film and television industry, having been a long-time member of the Board of the Australian Cinematographers Society and Australian Directors Guild, as well as being a full member of a range of peak industry bodies. He is the founder of the Northern Territory Film Festival Cinema in the River, the NT Film and Television Awards, and the NT Branch of the Australian Cinematographers Society.

1Based on size of international audience, international critical success & awards, and number of countries reached.
2See list below.
3The highest award given by the Australian Cinematographers Society once a year in each of a range of categories, on a
competitive basis.
4The Call of Kakadu, Silhouettes of the Desert and other work carried out by David Curl, has been seen in 50-100 countries on premier channels/broadcasters.
5See list of credits/films below.

 

 Film and TV Industry Credits

The Call of Kakadu (1995) Producer
Director
Cinematographer

Writer
Sound-recordist
Researcher

Silhouettes of the Desert (2000) Producer
Director
Cinematographer

Writer
Sound-recordist
Researcher

From Ayers Rock to Uluru
(in production)
Producer
Director
Cinematographer

Writer
Sound-recordist
Researcher

Shadows of Uluru
(in production)
Producer
Director
Cinematographer

Writer
Sound-recordist
Researcher

The Kingfisher, the Kangaroo & the Cuckoo (in production) Producer
Director
Cinematographer

Writer
Sound-recordist
Researcher

Rare tortoise flies home (1986) Producer
Director
Cinematographer
Writer
Sound-recordist
Researcher
Meerkats United (BBC) Sound-recordist
Scientific advisor
Camera assistant
 
Spirits of the Forest (BBC) Cameraman
Sound-recordist
 
Trials of Life 
(David Attenborough/BBC)
Cameraman  

Life of Birds
(David Attenborough/BBC)

Scientific advisor  
Global Sunrise (BBC)

Unit director

 
Great Natural Wonders (BBC)

Unit director

 
Australia 
(Baz Luhrmann/Fox Studios)

Cinematographer
(2nd unit)

 
The First Australians

Cinematographer

 
The Hobbits Cinematographer  


 Major Film & TV Industry Awards

The Call of Kakadu 1995 Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival, USA
  1995 Lipu Prize, Progetto Natura, Italy
  1995 Best Scientific Film, Progetto Natura, Italy
  1996 Wildscreen Award, UK
  1996 Gold Award, Australian Cinematographers Society
  1996 Finalist Award, International Wildlife Film Festival, USA
  1996 Award for Presentation of Biological Information, International Wildlife Film Festival, USA
  1996 Award for Use of Natural Sound, International Wildlife Film Festival, USA
  1997 Okomedia, Germany
  1997 Best of Festival, Festival d’Albert, France
  1997 Distinction, Australian Cinematographers Society
Silhouettes of the Desert 2001 Best Popular Science & Natural History Program, 
Banff Television Festival, Canada
  2001 Gold Award, Australian Cinematographers Society
  2001 Best Soundtrack Nominee, Australian Guild of Screen Composers
  2001 Best Independent Film, International Wildlife Film Festival, USA
  2001 Finalist Award, International Wildlife Film Festival, USA
  2002 Golden Tripod, Australian Cinematographers Society
  2002 Best of Festival, Animal Behavior Society Film Festival, USA
 Uluru (music clip)  2007 Gold Award, Australian Cinematographers Society
 The River (music clip)  2007 Silver Award, Australian Cinemtographers Society
From Ayers Rock to Uluru 2007 Silver Award, Australian Cinematographers Society

 

 


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