Donald Crombie Donald Crombie i(A53929 works by)
Born: Established: 1942
c
Australia,
c
;
Gender: Male
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1 3 form y separately published work icon McLeod's Daughters Jane Allen , Robert Armin , Blake Ayshford , Shane Brennan , Hamilton Budd , Sam Carroll , Elizabeth Coleman , Chris Corbett , Louise Crane , Max Dann , Ysabelle Dean , Peter Dick , Liz Doran , Robert Dudley , Sarah Duffy , Fin Edquist , Anthony Ellis , Justine Gillmer , Jutta Goetze , Kym Goldsworthy , Marieke Hardy , Chris Hawkshaw , Claire Haywood , Rick Held , John Honey , Sue Hore , Andrew Kelly , Margaret Kelly , Vicki Madden , Meg Mappin , Mardi McConnochie , Christine McCourt , Jackie McKimmie , Christina Milligan , Greg Millin , Denise Morgan , Michaeley O'Brien , Murray Oliver , Elizabeth Packett , Deborah Parsons , Chris Pearce , Chris Phillips , David Phillips , John Ridley , Giula Sandler , Hadass Segal , Sarah Smith , Nick Stevens , Charlie Strachan , Cathy Strickland , Lily Taylor , Katherine Thomson , Tracey Trinder-Doig , Jeff Truman , Alana Valentine , James Walker , Dave Warner , Sally Webb , Carol Williams , Margaret Wilson , Samantha Winston , Alexa Wyatt , Posie Graeme-Evans , Caroline Stanton , ( dir. Ali Ali et. al. )agent Australia : Nine Network Southern Star Entertainment , 2001-2009 Z1858228 2001-2009 series - publisher film/TV
1 form y separately published work icon Selkie Rob George , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : Showtime Australian Film Commission Bluestone Pictures , 2000 Z1865645 2000 single work film/TV fantasy children's

When a young boy's mother moves to a remote island of the coast of Australia for work, he struggles with the notion of leaving behind his friends and girlfriend. But, surrounded by the ocean, he learns that he is connected with a long line of selkies--ancient Scottish creatures with power to turn themselves into seals.

1 form y separately published work icon Flipper The New Adventures of Flipper Shane Brennan , Sam Carroll , Elizabeth Coleman , Max Dann , Everett de Roche , Annie Fox , Graham Hartley , Peter A. Kinloch , Jason Herbison , Christopher Lee , Susan MacGillicuddy , Greg Millin , Deborah Parsons , Anne Brooksbank , Sue Hore , Yuki Asano , Philip Dalkin , ( dir. Donald Crombie et. al. )agent Australia United States of America (USA) : Tribune Entertainment Village Roadshow Samuel Goldwyn Company , 1995-2000 Z1881834 1995-2000 series - publisher film/TV children's

An American/Australian co-production, this series was a revival of the original 1964 - 1967 series Flipper.

The show's production is sharply divided between seasons one and two on one side and seasons three and four on the other.

Seasons one and two aired in first-run syndication in the US, as American television networks turned away from funding comparatively expensive one-hour dramas in the late 1980s and 1990s. These two seasons were made in Australia and took advantage of local directors and other crew, but, notably, the script-writers were exclusively American (as far as they have been traced).

For seasons three and four, Flipper left first-run syndication and aired in the US on the new network PAX TV (now Ion Television). These two seasons were also made in Australia and directed by Australians, but for the first time, they also used Australian script-writers: of the writers who have been traced for seasons three and four, all of the season three writers and the majority of the season four writers are Australian.

For full information on the script-writers, see the list of episodes on the film details page of this record.

1 form y separately published work icon Rough Diamonds Christopher Lee , Donald Crombie , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : Forest Home Films , 1994 7367090 1994 single work film/TV humour romance

'ROUGH DIAMONDS centres on the relationship between city girl ex-pop star Chrissie Bright and her 13-year-old daughter Lisa. When Chrissie decides to 'get out' of Brisbane and heads towards Queensland's outback, she meets Mike Tyrell, a cattleman who drives trucks to keep the bank at bay. He is single and lives with his 13-year-old sister Sam. Mike's dream is to be a successful cattle breeder, Chrissie is seeking to find her 'true self'. When Mike's road train sideswipes Chrissie's car, Mike's moment of inattention changes both their lives.'

Source: Screen Australia.

1 form y separately published work icon The Feds : Obsession Stalking; Every Move She Makes Jan Sardi , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Melbourne : Crawford Productions Nine Network , 1993 6057590 1993 single work film/TV crime detective

'When a Family Court Judge's wife becomes the victim of a crazed bomber, The Feds swing into action. But the culprit is much closer than The Feds realise and one of their own is the madman's final target.'

Source: Australian Television Information Archive. (Sighted: 17/6/2013)

1 form y separately published work icon The Feds : Terror Graeme Farmer , Ian McFadyen , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Melbourne : Crawford Productions Nine Network , 1993 6057459 1993 single work film/TV crime detective

'The death and subsequent State funeral of a former Prime Minister puts the Feds in charge of security for all visiting Heads of State. What nobody anticipates, except for a visiting German policeman is the white extremist bomber who comes on a special mission, targeting the visiting South African president.'

Source: Australian Television Information Archive. (Sighted: 17/6/2013)

1 form y separately published work icon Heroes II : The Return Peter Yeldham , Network Ten (publisher), ( dir. Donald Crombie ) 1992 England Australia : TVS Films Network Ten , 1992 Z1489879 1992 single work film/TV war literature

The sequel to Heroes (1988), Heroes II: The Return is set in 1945, near the end of the Second World War. This time, the platoon is sent on Operation Rimau, an attempt to destroy Japanese ships in Singapore's harbour.

1 form y separately published work icon The River Kings Rob George , ABC Television (publisher), ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : ABC Television Prospect Productions , 1991 Z924020 1991 single work film/TV children's

In the 1920s, Shawn Hofner is growing to manhood, while battling to survive and save his family from poverty. In order to help bring in money, he leaves the family farm to take a job working on the steamboat The Lazy Jane.

1 form y separately published work icon The Heroes Peter Yeldham , Network Ten (publisher), ( dir. Donald Crombie ) England Australia : TVS Films Network Ten , 1988 Z1489781 1988 series - publisher film/TV war literature

During World War II, fourteen young soldiers take part in Operation Jaywick, an attempt to damage Japanese ships in Singapore.

1 form y separately published work icon The Alien Years Peter Yeldham , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : ABC Television , 1988 Z1489562 1988 series - publisher film/TV

Elizabeth Patterson is the headstrong daughter of a powerful member of the Australian Government. When she falls in love with Stefan Mueller, a German national, eyebrows are raised and whispers begin circulating within certain circles. The pair eventually marry and move to the Barossa Valley in South Australia, to grow grapes and live an unpressured existence. The outbreak of WWI seals their fate, however, giving rise to bitter hatred and threatening Stefan with the prospect of incarceration.

1 form y separately published work icon Cyclone Tracy Michael Fisher , Ted Roberts , Leon Saunders , ( dir. Donald Crombie et. al. )agent Australia : PBL Productions , 1986 Z1823589 1986 series - publisher film/TV

Mini series tracing the devastation wreaked on Darwin by Cyclone Tracy during Christmas Eve and Christmas Day 1974.

According to Moran, in his Guide to Australian TV Series, the mini-series fall roughly into three sections: the period immediately before the cyclone (in which the main characters are introduced), the night on which the cyclone hit, and the aftermath. As with so many disaster films and mini-series, Moran notes, Cyclone Tracy 'focuses on ordinary people caught up in an extraordinary event. The action is mostly documentary in tone and feeling, though one strand concerned with an American adventurer and a cargo of drugs is melodramatically quite out of keeping with the other stories.'

Moran notes that, American drug-runners aside, the mini-series works because of 'the low-key realism of the stories and the performances, the excellent special effects and sets, and the skilful integration of actual footage'. The program cost $4.5 million to produce.

1 form y separately published work icon Playing Beatie Bow Peter Gawler , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Adelaide : South Australian Film Corporation , 1986 Z950187 1986 single work film/TV young adult fantasy

Set in Sydney over two distinct eras, Playing Beatie Bow begins in 1985, with teenager Abigail discovering that she can communicate beyond the grave with a person who lived in Sydney in 1873. As their communications continue, Abigail suddenly finds herself transported back in time, where she discovers a great deal more about herself than she would have done had she remained a discontented teen in modern times. Through her adventures, she also contributes to the lives of those around her.

1 2 form y separately published work icon Robbery Under Arms Tony Morphett , Graeme Koetsveld , Michael Jenkins , ( dir. Donald Crombie et. al. )agent Adelaide : South Australian Film Corporation , 1985 Z820546 1985 single work film/TV

Set in the late 1800s, Robbery Under Arms is the story of bushranger Captain Starlight, told from the perspective of young Dick Marsden. Dick and his brother Jim follow their father's footsteps, on the wrong side of the law. After they succumb to the impetuosity of a tossed coin and participate in the theft and subsequent sale of fifteen hundred head of cattle, the pair team up with the mysterious Starlight (the renegade son of a British noble family), and evolve from petty criminals to outlawed bushrangers, terrorising the countryside, often in partnership with their father Ben and Starlight's Aboriginal offsider Warrigal. Throughout this story, the brothers find themselves at odds with both their mother and sister and with the lives they could have otherwise led.

1 form y separately published work icon Robbery Under Arms Michael Jenkins , Graeme Koetsveld , Tony Morphett , ( dir. Donald Crombie et. al. )agent Adelaide : South Australian Film Corporation , 1985 8091989 1985 series - publisher film/TV

An adaptation of Robbery Under Arms, released as both a feature film and a mini-series: this is the latter version.

1 form y separately published work icon Kitty and the Bagman John Burney , Philip Cornford , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) 1983 Australia : Adams Packer Film Productions Forest Home Films , 1983 Z1686472 1983 single work film/TV

A rip-roaringly hilarious look at Sydney in the 1920s through the eyes of two colourful crime queens and a tough, ruthless police officer. The rival girls are Kitty O'Rourke and Big Lil Delaney, and the officer trying to keep control is the Bagman.

1 1 form y separately published work icon The Killing of Angel Street Michael Craig , Cecil William Holmes , Evan Jones , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : Forest Home Films , 1981 6973223 1981 single work film/TV crime thriller

'Jessica Simmons returns from London to find her father fighting to save his street. After his death Jessica reluctantly carries on the fight with her commitment growing in the face of emotional and physical threats.'

Source: Screen Australia. (Sighted: 30/1/2014)

1 form y separately published work icon Slippery Slide Donald Crombie , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : Tasmanian Film Corporation Nine Network , 1980 7391268 1980 single work film/TV

'The story opens in a courtroom, with an acidic, morally upright social worker arguing that Steve, his younger sister Alana and elder brother Ron should be taken from their kind but no-hoper mother and placed in State care.

'Twelve years later, Steve, now a happy-go-lucky 16-year-old has carved what he believes is a secure niche with two well-meaning foster parents with misguided social consciences.

'But they quickly show their colors [sic] when grandpa, first foot on the road to senility, moves in.

'"You're not our responsibility," Steve's 'mother' bridles, as she tells him there is no longer room in the house.

'Threatened and hurt, Steve runs away but wins a reprieve (this time) from the children's home by the intervention of David Wilding, an unconventional rather shambling social worker played by John Waters.

'The damage has been done though and over the next months we see Steve, sometimes helped by Wilding, attempt futile reconciliations with his father, a drunken itinerant, his mother, now under the thumb of a morose and drunken de facto, and his foster mother, who has deftly wiped the boy from her life.

'Along the way Steve gets into trouble, minor at first then as he begins to rage against rejection, more serious until he is sent to a youth training centre and finally jail.

'Wilding proffers one last scheme against the wishes of his do-it-by-the-book supervisor. He arranges for Steve to live with the one remaining light of his life, his nubile, rather dizzy sister, at 15, an unmarried mum.

'He's a devoted brother and an adoring uncle, but still the victim of others' calllousness, as we see in the final scenes. Steve's life is now well and truly mapped out–and it should never have happened that way.'

Source:

Barbara Hooks, 'A Slippery Slide to Despair', The Age, 18 September 1980, p.33.

1 5 form y separately published work icon The Irishman Donald Crombie , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Adelaide : Forest Home Films , 1978 Z1312357 1978 single work film/TV Adapted from the novel of the same name by Elizabeth O'Connor, The Irishman is set in North Queensland in the 1920s and tells the story of a family experiencing events that they cannot control. Paddy Doolan is a proud Irish-Australian teamster who refuses to give into the threat of motorised transport. At opposite ends are his two sons: Will, who opposes his father, and Michael, who vows to support his father to the end.
1 4 form y separately published work icon Caddie Joan Long , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Sydney : Anthony Buckley Productions , 1976 Z1148145 1976 single work film/TV (taught in 1 units)

Based on the autobiography of a woman (otherwise unidentified in the text) who worked as a housekeeper for the writers Dymphna Cusack and Florence James, Caddie is set in Sydney between the mid-1920s and the early 1930s. The narrative concerns a respectable woman from the suburbs who walks out on her unfaithful husband. With no money and two children to feed, she takes a job as a barmaid. Having never been in a pub in her life, Caddie is confronted with the horrors of the 'six o'clock swill', as desperate men cling to the bar, vomiting and urinating where they stand, rather than lose their place. She eventually learns the trade with help from fellow barmaid Josie (Jacki Weaver), while learning also about the people and lifestyles of those who inhabit the inner-city districts. Following a brief and disastrous affair with Ted, an SP bookmaker, she falls in love with Peter, a charming and sophisticated Greek immigrant, who is also still married. When Peter is called back to Greece as the effects of the Depression increase, he promises to return as soon as he can. Caddie, in the meantime, finds herself alone, without a job or the money to feed her children.

1 form y separately published work icon Do I Have to Kill My Child? Anne Deveson , Donald Crombie , ( dir. Donald Crombie ) Australia : C. I. D. Productions Nine Network , 1976 7388987 1976 single work film/TV

'A disturbing drama about a young mother who bashes her baby. The woman is lonely, cannot cope with her domestic responsibilities, and does not want her third baby. She desperately needs help, but her mother, husband, doctor, neighbour and clinic sister do not understand - until the baby ends up in hospital with a fractured skull.'

Source: Screen Australia. (Sighted: 22/5/2014)

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