Jeremy Thomas | |
|---|---|
 Thomas at the2009 Toronto International Film Festival | |
| Born | (1949-07-26)26 July 1949 (age 76) London, England |
| Occupation | Film producer |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Spouses | |
Jeremy Jack Thomas (born 26 July 1949) is a British film producer. He is the founder and chairman ofRecorded Picture Company. He producedBernardo Bertolucci'sThe Last Emperor, which won him the 1988Academy Award for Best Picture. In 2006 he received aEuropean Film Award for Outstanding European Achievement in World Cinema. His father was directorRalph Thomas (director of many of theDoctor films), while his uncleGerald Thomas directed all of the films in theCarry On franchise.
Thomas was born in London, England, into a filmmaking family, with his father,Ralph Thomas, and uncle,Gerald Thomas, both directors.[1] His childhood ambition was to work in cinema.
As soon as Thomas left school, he went to work in various positions, ending up in the cutting rooms working on films such asThe Harder They Come,Family Life andThe Golden Voyage of Sinbad, and worked through the ranks to become a film editor forKen Loach onA Misfortune.
After editingPhilippe Mora'sBrother, Can You Spare a Dime?, he produced his first filmMad Dog Morgan in 1974 in Australia. He then returned to England to produceJerzy Skolimowski'sThe Shout, which won the Grand Prix de Jury at theCannes Film Festival. It was partly financed by the Rank Organisation, for whom his father had worked for many years.[2]
Thomas' films are all highly individual and his independence of spirit has paid off both artistically and commercially. His extensive output of over forty films includes three films directed byNicolas Roeg:Bad Timing,Eureka andInsignificance,Julien Temple'sThe Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle,Nagisa Oshima'sMerry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, andThe Hit directed byStephen Frears.
In 1986, Thomas producedBernardo Bertolucci's epicThe Last Emperor, an independently financed project that was three years in the making. A commercial and critical triumph, the film swept the board at the 1987Academy Awards, garnering nine Oscars, includingBest Picture.
Thomas has since completed many films, includingKarel Reisz's film ofArthur Miller's screenplayEverybody Wins,Bertolucci's film ofPaul Bowles'The Sheltering Sky,Little Buddha andStealing Beauty,David Cronenberg's films ofWilliam S. Burroughs'Naked Lunch,J. G. Ballard'sCrash andChristopher Hampton'sA Dangerous Method (based on Hampton'sThe Talking Cure). In 1997, Thomas directedAll the Little Animals, starringJohn Hurt andChristian Bale, which was in Official Selection at Cannes. Notable recent credits includeJonathan Glazer's debut filmSexy Beast,Takeshi Kitano'sBrother,Khyentse Norbu'sThe Cup,Phillip Noyce'sRabbit-Proof Fence,David Mackenzie's film ofAlexander Trocchi'sYoung Adam,Bernardo Bertolucci'sThe Dreamers,Terry Gilliam'sTideland,Wim Wenders'Don't Come Knocking,Richard Linklater'sFast Food Nation andGerald McMorrow'sFranklyn, starringEva Green,Sam Riley andRyan Phillippe. His film,Jon Amiel'sCreation, about the life ofCharles Darwin, withPaul Bettany andJennifer Connelly in the leads, was the Opening Gala of the 2009Toronto International Film Festival.
In 2010, Thomas premieredJerzy Skolimowski'sEssential Killing andTakashi Miike's13 Assassins at the Venice Film Festival, both of which he executive-produced.Essential Killing went on to win the Jury Prize and two others, a triple win unprecedented in the Festival's history. Thomas also executive-producedWim Wenders' 3D dance filmPina, which premiered at the 2011 Berlinale. At Cannes 2011, Thomas premiered Takashi Miike's new film,Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai, the first3D film to show in Competition.
Thomas' other releases includeDavid Cronenberg'sA Dangerous Method (2011), written byChristopher Hampton and starringKeira Knightley,Viggo Mortensen,Michael Fassbender andVincent Cassel, which premiered at Venice and Toronto Film Festivals 2011. In 2012, Thomas launched the epicKon-Tiki, the true story ofThor Heyerdahl's legendary raft adventure directed byJoachim Roenning andEspen Sandberg, which was nominated for aGolden Globe andAcademy Award for Best Foreign Film. In 2014, Thomas releasedJim Jarmusch's vampire opusOnly Lovers Left Alive starringTilda Swinton,Tom Hiddleston,Mia Wasikowska andJohn Hurt, andRichard Shepard'sblack comedyDom Hemingway starringJude Law,Richard E. Grant,Demián Bichir andEmilia Clarke.
In 2015, Thomas producedan adaptation ofJ. G. Ballard's 1970s dystopian novelHigh-Rise, written by Amy Jump and directed byBen Wheatley, starringTom Hiddleston,Jeremy Irons,Sienna Miller,Luke Evans andElisabeth Moss, andTale of Tales directed byMatteo Garrone starringSalma Hayek,Vincent Cassel,John C. Reilly andToby Jones.
Thomas has said of hisethos:
An entrepreneurial spirit is an important element of being a producer, some sort of inner workings that is pushing you forward. Because there are a lot of knockbacks and you have to wear a sort of armour so you can continue believing in your films when everybody around you is telling you: "Don't do that."[3]
In 1998, Thomas founded his international sales arm,HanWay Films, to service his own productions. HanWay has since expanded to sell third party projects, as well as handling the libraries of many of the world's best-known filmmakers.
Thomas was Chairman of theBritish Film Institute from August 1992 until December 1997, and has been the recipient of many awards throughout the world, including theMichael Balcon Award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema fromBAFTA, and theEuropean Film Award for Outstanding European Achievement in World Cinema. He has been president of the jury atTokyo Film Festival,San Sebastian Film Festival,Berlin Film Festival[4] andCannes Film Festival (Un Certain Regard) and has also served on the main jury at Cannes. He was made a Life Fellow of theBritish Film Institute in 2000.
Thomas was appointedCommander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours.[5] He was also made Honorary Associate ofLondon Film School.
