hurrengoa
peter weir, the invisible filmmaker uxueta labrit   Although you could say that Peter Weir’s first films had a certain amateurish element to them, they still remain his least shackled work. They are not his best films but these alternative movies clearly indicate they were made low on budget and high on imagination. Having attended horror and fantasy film festivals all over the world, he got the call and headed off to cinema ‘Mecca.’ Once there, he began to pick up scripts that other directors wouldn’t touch and he soon showed that he could make some pretty dignified and interesting films from them. He’s worked with the biggest stars in Hollywood and the promotion of those films always carries stuff like ‘this actor’s latest film’ or ‘that actress’s latest role.’ You never hear Peter Weir’s name being mentioned. Many director’s who couldn’t get within an ass’s roar of his worst movie are more well-known than he is. For instance, you, dear reader, have never ever ever heard of him. Not once. And if you have, you’ve quickly forgotten his name. Me, the one writing this, had the same thing happen to her. Until I saw all of the films he has made listed one after the other. That’s what made me write this.

When you come across an artist of this calibre, you can clearly see the difference between being famous and being important. As an important person, anonymity, not being known, is only of advantage. No-one bothers Peter Weir with shitty nonsense every time he goes out to buy bread. Or when he goes out for a stroll with his family. Or when he gets into those little vices and sins that pop up every now and then in life. Noone.

The Australian filmmaker’s choice to remain anonymous can be read into his movies as well. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a comedy or a drama, his characters are always believable because when they are in extreme situations, they react like ‘normal’ people. Weir is an invisible moviemaker. From a different time. He’s one of the few directors to have taken up the torch of those classic professional filmmakers from the golden era of Hollywood. And as invisible filmmakers go, he has managed to achieve what very few others have: commercial success and a style that reflects a personal outlook on the world. Weir has spent almost the last forty years behind a camera. He pays attention to the smallest detail and takes two to three years to make a film. He has two projects in the pipeline: "Pattern Recognition", to be premiered next year, and "Shadow Drivers", of which filming will shortly begin. We impatiently await.


filmography:
homesdale (1971) the cars that ate paris (1974) picnic at hanging rock (1975) the last wave (1977) gallipoli (1981) the year of living dangerously (1982) witness (1985) the mosquito coast (1986) dead poets society (1989) green card (1990) fearless (1993) the truman show (1998) master and commander (2003)