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Susanna White

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For the Mayflower passenger, see Susanna White (Mayflower passenger).

Susanna White
Susanna White at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival
Born1955 or 1956 (age 68–69)
England
Occupation(s)TV and film director
Years active1985–present
Children2

Susanna White (born 1955 or 1956) is a British television and film director.

She spent twelve years making documentaries for BBC2, but is best known for directing the BBC miniseries Jane Eyre, HBO miniseries Generation Kill, and Disney+ Star Wars series Andor. She has won multiple awards, including one BAFTA Television Award, and received numerous nominations, including nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards and two BAFTA Awards.

Early life and education

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Susanna White was born in England in 1960 or 1961. She first became interested in films at eight years old and asked her parents to buy her a Super 8 film camera. One source reports that she said that the inspiration came from when she visited the set of the BBC children's TV show Crackerjack,[1] but she wrote in 2010 that it was after her father took her to see Doctor Dolittle with Rex Harrison that she asked for the camera.[2]

She read English at Oxford University, and then won a Fulbright scholarship to study film at UCLA.[1]

Career

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After graduation, White spent 12 years making documentaries for BBC2. In 1999, she failed to win a place on a BBC training scheme and was turned down for a BBC drama director trainee course. In 2001, she was supported by BBC2 controller Jane Root, who eased her into drama with a £200,000 budget drama for BBC2, Love Again, about Philip Larkin.[3] She said in 2010 that it was seeing Jane Campion's 1993 film The Piano at a cinema on King's Road that inspired her to become a maker of feature films rather than documentaries.[2]

White won a BAFTA award for best drama serial for her work on the 2005 version of Bleak House. She directed the BBC mini-series Jane Eyre, for which she was nominated for an Emmy award. She also directed four episodes of the HBO miniseries Generation Kill, and all five episodes of the 2012 series Parade's End.[1]

In film, White directed Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang and most recently Our Kind of Traitor.[4]

White directed three episodes of the Disney+ Star Wars series Andor, which were released in 2022.[5]

She is directing the film version of Australian playwright Suzie Miller's award-winning play Prima Facie, in pre-production as of September 2024.[6][7] The film stars Cynthia Erivo as Tessa, the only role in the stage version.[8]

Personal life

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White and her husband, an Oxford academic and part-time dairy farmer, live on a dairy farm in Sussex with their twin daughters.[1][9]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Title Result Notes
2013 British Academy Television Awards Best Mini Series Parade's End Nominated [10]
2010 British Academy Film Awards Best Children's Feature Film Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang Nominated [10]
2009 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Generation Kill Nominated [11]
2007 Primetime Emmy Awards Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie Jane Eyre Nominated [11]
2006 British Academy Television Awards Best Drama Serial Bleak House Won [12]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Notes
2017 Woman Walks Ahead [13][14][15]
2016 Our Kind of Traitor [16][17]
2010 Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang [18]
1997 Bicycle Thieves Short

Television

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Year Title Notes
2023 The Buccaneers
2022 Andor 3 episodes
2018 Trust 2 episodes
2016 Billions Episode: "Where the F*** is Donnie?"
2015 Masters of Sex Episode: "Party of Four"
2012 Parade's End 5 episodes [19][20]
2011 Boardwalk Empire Episode: "A Dangerous Maid"
2008 Generation Kill 4 episodes [21]
2007 The Diary of a Nobody TV film [22]
2006 Jane Eyre 4 episodes [23][24]
2005 Bleak House 7 episodes
2005 Mr. Harvey Lights a Candle TV film
2004 Lie with Me TV series
2003 Love Again TV film
2002 Teachers 5 episodes
2002 Attachments 4 episodes
2001 Holby City 3 episodes
1995 Modern Times 2 episodes
1988 40 Minutes Episode: "The Gypsies Are Coming"
1985 Bleak House Episode 7

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Susanna White: From Jane Eyre to Generation Kill". Independent. 3 February 2009. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Susanna White, film director". The Guardian. 21 March 2010. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  3. ^ Brown, Maggie (8 September 2012). "Parade's End director says sexism is still rife in drama world". The Guardian.
  4. ^ "Damian Lewis and Jeremy Northam Join Cast of Spy Thriller Our Kind of Traitor". Variety. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
  5. ^ "'Andor': 'Chernobyl' & 'His Dark Materials' Actor Robert Emms Joins 'Rogue One' Spin-Off Series Filming In UK". Deadline Hollywood. 4 June 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  6. ^ Miller, Suzie (23 April 2024). "In conversation with Australia's success story Suzie Miller". Honi Soit (Interview). Interviewed by Chidiac, Valerie. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  7. ^ Donnelly, Matt (15 May 2023). "Cynthia Erivo to Star in 'Prima Facie,' Movie Adaptation of Smash Jodie Comer Play (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  8. ^ Lee, Benjamin (15 May 2023). "Cynthia Erivo to star in movie adaptation of hit play Prima Facie". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  9. ^ "How I make it work: Susanna White". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 8 May 2016.
  10. ^ a b "BAFTA Awards Search | BAFTA Awards". BAFTA. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Nominations Search | Awards Search". Television Academy. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  12. ^ "2006 Television Drama Serial | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  13. ^ Ford, Rebecca (3 November 2016). "AFM First Look: Jessica Chastain Remains by Sitting Bull's Side in 'Woman Walks Ahead' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  14. ^ Bradshaw, Peter (11 September 2017). "Woman Walks Ahead review – Jessica Chastain historical drama is a sturdily liberal portrait". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  15. ^ Catsoulis, Jeannette (28 June 2018). "Review: A 'Woman Walks Ahead,' and Sitting Bull Stands Up". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  16. ^ Felperin, Leslie (4 May 2016). "'Our Kind of Traitor': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  17. ^ Dargis, Manohla (30 June 2016). "Review: A Professor Drawn to the Mob in 'Our Kind of Traitor'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  18. ^ Cox, David (29 March 2010). "Nanny McPhee speaks softly but carries a big stick". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  19. ^ Brown, Maggie (8 September 2012). "Parade's End director says sexism is still rife in drama world". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  20. ^ "Parade's End". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  21. ^ Robinson, John (1 October 2009). "Calling the shots on Generation Kill". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  22. ^ "BBC Four - Diary of a Nobody, Episode 4". BBC. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  23. ^ Miller, Lucasta (23 September 2006). "Prim and improper". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  24. ^ "BBC - Drama - Jane Eyre - About The Show". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
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