Charles Chauvel (filmmaker)
Charles Edward Chauvel ( born October 7, 1897 in Warwick / Queensland, † November 11, 1959 in Sydney / New South Wales) was an Australian screenwriter, film director and producer.
Chauvel grew up as the son of a farmer in South Australia. When his father, the brother of General Sir Henry Chauvel, was used during the First World War as a member of the Australian Light Horse in Sinai and Palestine, he supplied his father's farm. After his return, he studied commercial art in Sydney and attended classes for drama. From 1920 he worked as a production assistant, primarily responsible for the care of the horses, for Rex ' Snowy ' Baker and played in several films small supporting roles. He followed Baker in 1922 in the United States, where he earned his living by articles about Australia and little jobs in Hollywood.
In 1923 he returned to Australia and realized there in 1926 his first film, The Moth of Moonbi. In his second film Greenhide the actress Elsie Sylvaney worked with, whom he married in 1927 and who was involved in many of his other films from co-author under the name Elsa Chauvel. In both films, he was a manager, director and screenwriter and organized distribution. His attempt in 1928 to establish the films in America, failed because there is already the upheaval took place to talkies.
In Chauvels first sound film In the Wake of the Bounty, 1933, Errol Flynn had his first major role before he went (the film, a mix of feature and documentary was, although not shown in the U.S. to Hollywood, because MGM to this time already own production mutiny on the Bounty (1935 ) prepared ). 1935 Chauvel won the Commonwealth Government 's Film Competition with Heritage, a film about Australian history. In Forty Thousand Horsemen, which appeared in late 1940, he themed the use of the Australian Light Horse in the Great War.
Sons of Matthew (1949 ) was a saga of the pioneer days in southern Queensland and is considered Chauvels most important film. With Jedda he turned in 1955 the first Australian color film. The last was made for the British Broadcasting Corporation a series of thirteen half-hour films, entitled Walkabout. While working on the film Wards of the Outer March on the book by Kay Glasson Taylor Chauvel died of a heart attack.