Christine Edzard (born 15 February 1945)Christine Edzard
IMDb. Retrieved 29 March 2017. is a

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, pr ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, ...

, and

costume designer A costume designer is a person who designs costumes for a film, stage production or television show. The role of the costume designer is to create the characters' outfits or costumes and balance the scenes with texture and colour, etc. The costume ...

, nominated for BAFTA and

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology) ...

awards for her screenwriting. She has been based in London for most of her career.

Early life

Edzard was born and raised in Paris by her German-born father, Dietz Edzard, and Polish mother,

Suzanne Eisendieck Suzanne Eisendieck (14 November 1906 — 15 June 1998) was a German Post-Impressionist painter native of Danzig. Biography Suzanne Eisendieck was born at Holzraum Platz 2B in Danzig (now Gdańsk in Poland) to German parents Karl Eise ...

, both painters. After a degree in economics she trained as a set and costume designer with Lila De Nobili and Rotislav Duboujinsky. She assisted Di Nobili on

Franco Zeffirelli Gian Franco Corsi Zeffirelli (12 February 1923 – 15 June 2019), was an Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer and politician. He was one of the most significant opera and theatre directors of the post-World War II era, ...

's productions of ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 Decemb ...

'' and ''

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

'' at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

in 1963 and 1968.

Career

Edzard co-wrote and designed the film ''

Tales of Beatrix Potter ''The Tales of Beatrix Potter'' (US title: ''Peter Rabbit and Tales of Beatrix Potter'') is a 1971 ballet film based on the children's stories of English author and illustrator Beatrix Potter. The film was directed by Reginald Mills, choreograph ...

'' (1971), for which she was nominated for two BAFTA awards for Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction. With her husband, the film producer Richard B. Goodwin, she founded the

Sands Films Sands Films is a small British film production company, founded by producer Richard Goodwin and director Christine Edzard in the early 1970s, and based in Rotherhithe, London. The company is known for its production of costumes for period dramas ...

studio and production company in

Rotherhithe Rotherhithe () is a district of south-east London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, as well as the Isle of D ...

, London in 1975. The studios include the Rotherhithe Picture Research Library, a free resource for the general public, and the building was awarded a Blue Plaque in 2009, unveiled in January that year by

Derek Jacobi Sir Derek George Jacobi (; born 22 October 1938) is an English actor. He has appeared in various stage productions of William Shakespeare such as '' Hamlet'', '' Much Ado About Nothing'', '' Macbeth'', '' Twelfth Night'', '' The Tempest'', ' ...

. Over the years Sands Films has made and supplied period costumes for international film and TV productions. Edzard is best known for her film adaptation of

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...

's novel, ''

Little Dorrit ''Little Dorrit'' is a novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in serial form between 1855 and 1857. The story features Amy Dorrit, youngest child of her family, born and raised in the Marshalsea prison for debtors in London. Arthur Cl ...

'' (1988), a British film for which she was nominated for an

, a

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cer ...

, and a

Los Angeles Film Critics The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) is an American film critic organization founded in 1975. Background Its membership comprises film critics from Los Angeles-based print and electronic media. In December of each year, the organiza ...

Award.

Partial director and writer filmography

* ''The Children's Midsummer Night's Dream'' (2001) (direction, design) * ''The IMAX Nutcracker Prince'' (1997) (screenplay, design, direction) *''Amahl and the Night Visitors'' - filmed opera by Gian Carlo Menotti (direction, set and costume design) * ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 h ...

'' (1992) (direction, design) * '' The Fool'' (1990) (screenplay adapted from Henry Mayhew, design, direction) * ''

Biddy Biddy or Biddie is a given name which may refer to: People * Biddy Anderson (1874–1926), South African cricketer * Biddy Baxter (born 1933), English television producer * Biddy Dolan (1881–1950), American Major League Baseball player * Bid ...

'' (1983) (Screenplay, direction) * ''

'' (1987) (screenplay, direction, design) * ''The Nightingale'' (1981) (screenplay, direction) *''Stories from a Flying Trunk'' (1979) (three short films, ''Little Ida'' (1975), ''The Kitchen'' (1975) and ''The Little Match Girl'' (1975)) * ''

'' (1972)

Making and supplying of period costumes

*''

Wolf Hall ''Wolf Hall'' is a 2009 historical novel by English author Hilary Mantel, published by Fourth Estate, named after the Seymour family's seat of Wolfhall, or Wulfhall, in Wiltshire. Set in the period from 1500 to 1535, ''Wolf Hall'' is a symp ...

'' *''

The Young Victoria ''The Young Victoria'' is a 2009 British period drama film directed by Jean-Marc Vallée and written by Julian Fellowes, based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Produce ...

'' *''

Mr Turner ''Mr. Turner'' is a 2014 biographical drama film based on the last 25 years of the life of artist J. M. W. Turner (1775–1851). Written and directed by Mike Leigh, the film stars Timothy Spall in the title role, with Dorothy Atkinson, Paul Je ...

'' *'' Amistad'' *'' Oscar and Lucinda'' *'' Les Miserables'' *'' A Little Chaos'' *'' The Woman in White'' *'' Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell'' *''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

'' (BAFTA award for Best Costumes) *''

Gormenghast Gormenghast may refer to: * ''Gormenghast'' (series), a trilogy of novels by Mervyn Peake ** ''Gormenghast'' (novel), second in the series * ''Gormenghast'' (opera), an opera based on the books * ''Gormenghast'' (TV serial), a BBC adaptatio ...

'' *''

Topsy-Turvy ''Topsy-Turvy'' is a 1999 British musical period drama film written and directed by Mike Leigh, starring Allan Corduner as Sir Arthur Sullivan and Jim Broadbent as W.S. Gilbert, along with Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville and Ron Cook. The ...

'' (Academy Award for Best Costumes)

References

External links

*
Sands Films official websiteGuardian articleFinancial Times articleGreenwich Society history of Sands FilmsThe Costume Society
* ttps://bbashakespeare.warwick.ac.uk/productions/you-it-1992-grices-wharf-sands-films Warwick University Shakespeare Projectbr>Rotislav Doboujinsky in the V&A CollectionsLila De Nobili in the V&A Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edzard, Christine 1945 births Living people British women film directors British women screenwriters Film people from Paris British costume designers British film producers British film directors