Noam Murro ( he, נועם מורו; born ) is an Israeli film director and film producer. He is best known for directing the films ''

Smart People ''Smart People'' is a 2008 American comedy-drama film starring Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker, Elliot Page, and Thomas Haden Church. The film was directed by Noam Murro, written by Mark Poirier and produced by Michael London, with Omar Ama ...

'', '' 300: Rise of an Empire'', and the BBC miniseries ''

Watership Down ''Watership Down'' is an adventure novel by English author Richard Adams, published by Rex Collings Ltd of London in 1972. Set in Berkshire in southern England, the story features a small group of rabbits. Although they live in their natural ...

''.

Early and personal life

Murro was born and raised in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, to a family of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

background. In the early 1990s, after completing his studies in design and architecture at the

Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design ( he, בצלאל, אקדמיה לאמנות ועיצוב) is a public college of design and art located in Jerusalem. Established in 1906 by Jewish painter and sculptor Boris Schatz, Bezalel is Israel's oldes ...

in Jerusalem, Murro left Israel for

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Although he never received a formal education in film, Murro decided his dream was to become a filmmaker. "As a boy I worked for

Lia van Leer Lia van Leer (née Greenberg; he, ליה ון ליר; August 8, 1924 – March 13, 2015) was a pioneer in the field of art film programming and film archiving in Israel. She was the founder of the Haifa Cinematheque, the Jerusalem Cinematheque, ...

at the

Jerusalem Cinematheque The Jerusalem Cinematheque is a cinematheque and film archive in Jerusalem. History The Jerusalem Cinematheque was founded in 1973 by Lia van Leer. It was originally located in Beit Agron in the center of Jerusalem. A new building overlooking the ...

. I got my film education there, watching films. I worked as an usher, I replaced reels, I cleaned the theater, whatever needed doing, and I got to see two movies a day. I did this for two years, without pay, just so I could see movies." He resides in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

with his wife and children.

Career

After studying architecture and establishing himself over the years as an advertising director, he was nominated six times for the DGA Awards, winning the award in 2005. Along with Shawn Lacy Tessaro, he founded the production company Biscuit Films, which has produced many successful advertising campaigns. In 2004, he was originally set to direct ''

The Ring Two ''The Ring Two'' is a 2005 American supernatural psychological horror film and a sequel to the 2002 film '' The Ring'', which was a remake of the 1998 Japanese film '' Ring''. Hideo Nakata, director of the original Japanese film ''Ring'', on wh ...

'' but left the film due to "creative differences". In 2012, he directed advertising campaigns for well-known brands such as Adidas, Nike, eBay, Volkswagen, Land Rover, Toshiba, Stella Artois and many others. In 2008, Murro made his directorial debut with ''

'', a comedy presented at the 2008

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,6 ...

. In 2011, he was chosen to direct ''

A Good Day to Die Hard ''A Good Day to Die Hard'' is a 2013 American action thriller film and the fifth and final installment in the ''Die Hard'' film series. The film was directed by John Moore and written by Skip Woods, and stars Bruce Willis as John McClane in h ...

'' but left production in August 2011, to direct the ''

300 __NOTOC__ Year 300 ( CCC) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 1053 ''Ab ...

'' sequel, '' 300: Rise of an Empire''. John Moore was subsequently drafted in to replace him.

Films

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murro, Noam 1961 births Living people Advertising directors American film directors American film producers Israeli film directors Israeli film producers Israeli Jews People from Jerusalem