Simon Wincer

SIMON WINCER

Date of Birth: 1943

Born in Sydney, Australia, Wincer began his career in television. While working part-time at a Sydney theater, he found he loved working on stage so much that he moved to London, England to pursue a career in live theater. For the next few years he worked as a stage manager and understudy in London's West End. The work ultimately led him to work in British television as a production assistant and assistant director.

Using this experience, he returned to Melbourne to work in Australian television. Among his many projects which made up about 200 hours of air time, Wincer worked on series like Against the Wind, The Sullivans, Cast & Company and Tandarra.

Starting into feature films in the late '70s, Wincer went on to make hit films like Snapshot, the award-winning Harlequin, Quigley Down Under and Harley Davidson & the Malboro Man. Creating his own production company, Wincer would use it to work on Australian films Phar Lap and The Man From Snowy River, the former earning him a Best Director nomination from the Australian Film Institute.

In 1989 he made his way across the waves to the United States to work on the popular western series Lonesome Dove. Wincer would go on to film multiple hit features like Free Willy, Lightening Jack, and Operation Dumbo Drop. He was also chosen by producer George Lucas to direct six episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, which led to four The Adventure of Young Indiana Jones videos.

Taking a break from feature work, he continued to work in American television through the late '90s, with telefilms like The Echo of Thunder, Flash, Crossfire Trail and the mini-series P.T. Barnum.

Still calling Australia his home, he started off the new millennium off with the third feature in the Dundee franchise, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles. In Australia, he directed the American produced series Ponderosa, based on the early days of the characters from the 1950s/60s hit western series Bonanza for PAX TV. He traveled to Africa to direct The Young Black Stallion (2003), filmed exclusively for IMAX theaters before returning to the States for the documentary NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience (2004).

Filmography:

NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience (2004)
The Young Black Stallion (2003)
Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles (2001)
The Phantom (1996)
Operation Dumbo Drop (1995)
Lightning Jack (1994)
Free Willy (1993)
Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991)
Quigley Down Under (1990)
The Lighthorsemen (1987)
D.A.R.Y.L. (1985)
Phar Lap (1983)
Harlequin (1980)
Snapshot (1979)