Terry GeorgeBirth Place: Northern Ireland, UK Heritage: Irish Famous for: Director of 'Hotel Rwanda' (2004) Contact Terry George | 
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Hotel Rwanda Background: “The penetration that Hollywood achieves in Africa and Asia is huge - it's almost like surrogate immigration. Clearly, the values of America and the West are spread in particular by movies and television. I'm not sure that that's such a good thing.” Terry George Two time Academy Award nominated Irish screenwriter, director and producer Terry George is most famous for his work in the film “Hotel Rwanda” (2004), starring Don Cheadle. He received an Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Original Screenplay, in addition to a Humanitas Prize Award, two IFTA Awards, a Toronto International Film Festival Award, a BAFTA Film nomination and a Writers Guild of America nomination, among other honors. George picked up his first Oscar nomination for penning the biopic “In the Name of the Father” (1993), with director Jim Sheridan. Other film works include his directorial debut, “Some Mother's Son” (1996), “The Boxer” (1997), “Hart's War” (2002) and “Reservation Road” (2007). On television, George created the CBS police series “The District” (2000-2004) and directed and wrote the Emmy nominating telepic “A Bright Shining Lie” (1998). George has two children (a son and a daughter) with wife Margaret Higgins.
Childhood and Family: Terry George was born on December 20, 1952, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK. As a teenager, he was arrested for suspicion of involvement with the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in 1971. He was released in 1978 for good behavior. Three years later, he left Ireland for the United States, and lived in New York City. Terry is the brother of costume designer Catherine George. Terry is married to Margaret Higgins, a writer, whom he met while he was incarcerated. The couple have a daughter, Oorlagh, and a son, Seamus.
Career: Four years after his arrival in NYC, Terry George made his stage debut as playwright of “The Tunnel” (1985), a drama based on a prison escape from Long Kesh prison camp in Northern Ireland. It marked his first collaboration with Jim Sheridan, who directed and starred. The following year, George researched and wrote with Shana Alexander the non fiction book “The Pizza Connection.” In 1993, George made his debut as screenwriter with the biographical film “In the Name of the Father,” starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Emma Thompson and Pete Postlethwaite. He adapted the screenplay with Jim Sheridan, who also directed, from the autobiography “Proved Innocent: The Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four” by Gerry Conlon. For his writing efforts, George shared an Academy Award nomination for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium, a BAFTA Film nomination for Best Screenplay – Adapted, a Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published and a Humanitas Prize nomination for Feature Film Category. George also served as second unit director and co-executive producer. George made his feature directorial debut three years later with “Some Mother's Son” (1996), which he also wrote with Sheridan. Starring Based on the true story of the 1981 hunger strike in the Maze Prison, in Northern Ireland, the drama was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival and won George a 1996 European Film for Best Young Film, the Audience Award and Youth Jury Award at the 1996 San Sebastián International Film Festival and the Audience Award for Feature Film at the 1997 Angers European First Film Festival. The film starred Helen Mirren, Fionnula Flanagan, Aidan Gillen, David O'Hara and John Lynch. George reunited with Sheridan to pen the screenplay for Sheridan's drama/sport film, “The Boxer” (1997), starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Emily Watson. Focusing on the life of a boxer and former Provisional IRA Volunteer, Danny Flynn (played by Day-Lewis), who is attempting to go straight after his release from prison, the film gained mostly positive reviews from critics and grossed nearly $6 million in the United States. In the next year, George made his television debut as the director and writer of the telefilm “A Bright Shining Lie,” which is based on Neil Sheehan's book of the same name and true story of John Paul Vann's experience in the Vietnam War. Starring Bill Paxton, Amy Madigan, Vivian Wu, Donal Logue, Eric Bogosian and Kurtwood Smith, the drama aired on HBO on May 30 1998 and was nominated for a 1998 Emmy Award for Outstanding Made for Television Movie, while Paxton receiving a Golden Globe nomination for his performance as John Paul Vann. Entering the new millennium, George created with Jack Maple the television police drama “The District,” on which he also served as executive producer and consultant as well as directed episodes. Starring Craig T. Nelson, Lynne Thigpen, Jayne Brook, Roger A. Brown, Sean Patrick Thomas, Justin Theroux, David O'Hara, Elizabeth Marvel, Jonathan LaPaglia and Jaclyn Smith, the show ran on CBS for four seasons from October 7, 2000 to May 1, 2004. In 2002, George co-wrote (with Billy Ray) the screenplay of “Hart's War,” about a World War II prisoner of war (POW). An adaptation of John Katzenbach's novel, the film was directed by Gregory Hoblit and starred Bruce Willis, Colin Farrell, Terrence Howard, Cole Hauser and Marcel Iureş. It was a box office disappointment. One memorable moment came in 2004 when George directed, produced, and co-wrote (with Keir Pearson) “Hotel Rwanda,” which is based on real life events in 1994 Rwanda. Starring Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo, Joaquin Phoenix, Nick Nolte and Jean Reno, the drama film earned almost entirely positive reviews from mainstream critics in the US and won several awards and nominations during 2004-2005. George won a Humanitas Prize for Feature Film Category, IFTA Awards for Best Director and Best Script for Film and Toronto International Film Festival's People's Choice Award. He also received an Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Original Screenplay, a BAFTA Film nomination for Best Screenplay – Original, an American Screenwriters Association nomination for Discover Screenwriting Award, a Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Original Screenplay, a David di Donatello nomination for Best Foreign Film (Miglior Film Straniero), London Critics Circle Film's ALFS Award nomination for British Director of the Year, a Robert nomination for Best Non-American Film, and a Golden Satellite nomination for Best Screenplay, Original. “Hotel Rwanda” grossed $23,530,892 domestically and $10,351,351 internationally for a total of $33,882,243 worldwide, which was considered a moderate financial success. After producing the short film “Where's Daddy” (2006), George returned to the director's chair for the crime/drama movie “Reservation Road” (2007), which is adapted from the book of the same name by John Burnham Schwartz, who also adapted the novel for the screenplay with George. Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Connelly and Mira Sorvino, the film garnered mostly mixed reviews from critics and grossed $1,783,190 worldwide. In 2009, George directed three episodes of the Gabriel Byrne television series “In Treatment” (HBO, 2008-?). In 2010, he helmed the pilot episode of “Outlaw.” George's new film, “Whole Lotta Sole,” which he directed, produced and wrote, is set to be released later in 2011 in the UK. It will star Brendan Fraser, Yaya DaCosta and David O'Hara. He also directed a second episode of the television series “Luck”(2011).
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