19 Facts About Robert Connolly

Robert Connolly was born on 1967 and is an Australian film director, producer, and screenwriter based in Melbourne, Victoria.

Robert Connolly is best known as the director and writer of the feature films Balibo, Three Dollars, The Bank and The Dry and its sequel, as well as the producer of Romulus, My Father and The Boys.

Robert Connolly is head of the film distribution company, Footprint Films, owned by Arenafilms.

Robert Connolly made his first feature film as producer, The Boys in 1998, which had its world premiere in competition at the Berlin International Film Festival.

Robert Connolly directed and produced Paper Planes, The Dry, Blueback and Force of Nature: The Dry 2 and has been nominated for or won numerous Australian and international awards.

In 2009, Robert Connolly directed Balibo, which he co-wrote with David Williamson.

Robert Connolly refuses to apologise for his film's hardline stance, stating that an Australian coroner found in 2007 that the journalists were executed as they tried to surrender to Indonesian forces.

In 2008, Robert Connolly published a white paper outlining his views on all that could be improved about the Australian film industry, which includes a ten-step plan for reducing production costs.

Robert Connolly went on to produce The Boys and several other of Connolly's films, including Balibo.

Robert Connolly relocated to set up the Arenafilm Melbourne office in late 2006 and subsidiary companies.

Robert Connolly believes that it is healthy for filmmakers to become involved in distribution.

In 1998, Robert Connolly was named by Variety as one of the 10 best emerging producers in the world.

Robert Connolly has screened his films at over 30 international film festivals, including the Toronto International Film Festival and San Sebastian Film Festival.

Robert Connolly received a Centenary Medal for services to the Australian Film Industry in 2001.

Romulus, My Father won four Australian Film Institute Awards including Best Film, and Robert Connolly has garnered AFI Awards for writing The Bank and Three Dollars.

Matthew Campora, head of screen studies at AFTRS, wrote in 2013 that Robert Connolly was "a director who could be considered amongst the most successful contemporary filmmakers working in Australia today", and "Robert Connolly's films combine characteristics of the Hollywood thriller with archetypal Australian character types and narrative arcs to create a body of films that continue a particular style of filmmaking identified by [Graeme] Turner in the 1990s".

In 2008 Robert Connolly was appointed to the inaugural board of Screen Australia.

Robert Connolly served on the boards of the New South Wales Film and Television Office and the Australian Directors Guild, as well as the University of New South Wales Dean's Council.

In 2011 Robert Connolly worked on and influenced the development of the unreleased video game Warco, that could be used to train journalists to work and report in war-torn regions.