Frederic Alan Schepisi was born in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond on 26 December 1939, the son of Loretto Ellen (née Hare) and Frederic Thomas Schepisi, who was a fruit dealer and car salesman of Italian descent.[2][3]
After completing his school-leaving certificate at 14, for a short time he worked in one of his father's car yards as a motor mechanic but had no aptitude for the job, and was glad to discover the world of advertising.[4]
Career
Schepisi started work as a messenger at Carden Advertising (later Clemenger), where a number of journalists were also employed, including Phillip Adams. He joined local film clubs and experimented with filmmaking.[4] He worked his way up in the advertising industry, becoming a copywriter, and eventually started directing commercials.[3] He was appointed as Victorian manager for Cinesound Productions in 1964, at the age of 24, after lying about his age. There he met cinematographer Russell Boyd. At the time, Cinesound was only making newsreels and corporate films, but Schepisi changed its direction. He used the best film students from the newly established Swinburne film courses to work on the films, and produced avant-garde commercials for clients such as Volkswagen and Alcoa, which brought profits to the company. He was less interested in creating newsreels.
The Film House
In 1966, along with graphic designers Bruce Weatherhead and Alex Stitt, Schepisi bought out Cinesound Victoria in 1966, renaming it The Film House.[4] The Film House founded became an important player in the "new wave" of Australian filmmaking, along with Gillian Armstrong, Bruce Beresford, and Peter Weir. Since Cinesound had stopped making films during World War II, there hadn't been many Australian films made.[4] Schepisi invited editor Jill Bilcock to work for him soon after her graduation from Swinburne Film and Television School.[7]
Films
His first fiction film was a 30-minute short film, part of the anthology feature film Libido in 1973. In collaboration with Australian author Thomas Keneally, he made the short film The Priest.[3]
Schepisi has also directed a number of music videos, including for the 2008 song "Breathe" by Kaz James featuring Stu Stone.[12]
Other activities
In the mid-1960s, he campaigned strongly, along with MP Barry Jones, broadcaster and writer Phillip Adams, for the establishment of a film school in Melbourne. This led to the first course in filmmaking at Swinburne Technical College in 1966, leading to the establishment of the Swinburne Film and Television School a few years later.[13] Schepisi became an examiner of its first film course, an unpaid role.[4]
2004: Officer of the Order of Australia in the Australia Day Honours, "For services to the Australian film industry as a director, producer and screenwriter, the development of creative talent as a mentor and to support for the preservation of Australia's film heritage"[9][8][a]
Schepisi has been married three times and has seven children. He had four children with his first wife Joan. His second wife Rhonda died of cancer, after they had had two children. His third wife, Mary, whom he married in 1984 and with whom he had a seventh child, is American.[21]
In 2011, asked about the "gypsy-like existence" of a filmmaker, Schepisi said: "It's the hardest thing. I think we're today's circus people. It's very hard on your family. [His wife] Mary travels with me and when everyone was younger and it was possible, I liked them to travel with me and be with me. Fortunately, Mary's an artist; she paints, and often finds inspiration from our locations."[22]
^Per personal contact with the Honours Secretariat, Schepisi ticked a box on his form that said he did not want his name to appear electronically, so he does not appear in a search on the official honours list. See the discussion on his Wikipedia talk page.
