Geoff Murphy | |
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Born | Geoffrey Peter Murphy 12 October 1938 Wellington, New Zealand |
Died | 3 December 2018 Wellington, New Zealand | (aged 80)
Occupation(s) | Film director, film producer, screenwriter |
Years active | 1977–2018 |
Spouse | Merata Mita |
Geoffrey Peter Murphy ONZM (12 October 1938 – 3 December 2018)[1] was a New Zealand filmmaker, producer, director, and screenwriter best known for his work during the renaissance of New Zealand cinema that began in the second half of the 1970s. His second feature Goodbye Pork Pie (1981) was the first New Zealand film to win major commercial success on its soil.[citation needed] Murphy directed several Hollywood features during the 1990s, before returning to New Zealand as second-unit director on The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. Murphy was also a scriptwriter, special effects technician, schoolteacher and trumpet player at different times. He was married to Merata Mita, a film director, actor, writer.