George Miller (filmmaker)

Lore & Background

He attended Ipswich Grammar School and Sydney Boys High School, then studied medicine at the University of New South Wales with his twin brother John. While in his final year at medical school (1971), he and his younger brother Chris made a one-minute short film that won first prize in a student competition. In 1971, Miller attended a film workshop at Melbourne University where he met fellow student Byron Kennedy, with whom he formed a lasting friendship and production partnership. Miller completed his residency at Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital in 1972, spending his time off crewing on short experimental films. That same year, Miller and Kennedy founded Kennedy Miller Productions.

Reader's Guide

His career demonstrates versatility across genres: from Ozploitation and action to family drama (Lorenzo's Oil), children's films (Babe: Pig in the City), and animated musicals (Happy Feet). Miller's medical training at the University of New South Wales and his early work as a physician informed his approach to filmmaking. His production company, originally Kennedy Miller Productions and later Kennedy Miller Mitchell, has been central to Australian cinema. Miller's accolades include an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, six total Oscar nominations across five categories, a British Academy Film Award, a Critics Choice Award, a Golden Globe Award, and six Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards. His legacy includes mentoring actors like Nicole Kidman and collaborating with figures such as Jack Nicholson, who advised Miller during the troubled production of The Witches of Eastwick.

Did You Know?

• Miller trained in medicine at the University of New South Wales and worked as a physician before entering the film industry.
• He and his twin brother John studied medicine together; his younger brother Chris helped make his first short film.
• Miller won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for Happy Feet (2006).