Michael Winterbottom (born 29 March 1961) is an English film director. He began his career working in British television before moving into features. Three of his films—''
Welcome to Sarajevo'', ''
Wonderland'' and ''
24 Hour Party People''—have competed for the
Palme d'Or
The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...
at the
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world.
Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
. He and co-director
Mat Whitecross won the
Silver Bear for Best Director
The Silver Bear for Best Director () is an award presented annually at the Berlin International Film Festival since 1956. It is given for the best achievement in directing and is chosen by the International Jury from the films in the Competition ...
at the
56th Berlin International Film Festival
The 56th Berlin International Film Festival was held from 9 to 19 February 2006. The festival opened with '' Snow Cake'' by Marc Evans. Digitally restored version of Sam Peckinpah's 1972 film '' Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid'' served as the clos ...
for their work on ''
The Road to Guantanamo.''
His production company,
Revolution Films, has a first look deal with Fremantle.
Early life
Winterbottom was born in
Blackburn
Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
. He went to
Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn, and then studied English at
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world.
With a governing body of a master and aro ...
, before going to
film school
A film school is an educational institution dedicated to teaching aspects of filmmaking, including such subjects as film production, film theory, digital media production, and screenwriting. Film history courses and hands-on technical training are ...
at
Bristol University
The University of Bristol is a public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Bristol, which had ...
, where his contemporaries included
Marc Evans
Marc Evans (born 1960) is a Welsh director of film and television, whose credits include the films ''House of America'', ''Resurrection Man (film), Resurrection Man'' and ''My Little Eye''.
Biography
Evans was born in 1960 in Cardiff, Wales. H ...
.
Early television career
Winterbottom's television directing career began in 1989, with a documentary about
Ingmar Bergman
Ernst Ingmar Bergman (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007) was a Swedish film and theatre director and screenwriter. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential film directors of all time, his films have been described as "profoun ...
and an episode of the children's series ''
Dramarama''. He followed this with the 1990 television film ''Forget About Me'', starring
Ewen Bremner, which followed two British soldiers who become involved in a love triangle with a young Hungarian hitch-hiker on their way to Budapest for a
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977, becoming best known internationally for their song "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100 ...
concert. It was his first collaboration with writer
Frank Cottrell-Boyce; they would go on to make six more films together. Shot on 16 mm film, it was shown at a few European film festivals.
In 1991, he directed episodes of various TV shows, including the four-part children's series ''
Time Riders'' and an episode of ''
Boon''. In 1992, he directed the television film ''Under the Sun'' about a young British woman travelling in Greece, starring
Kate Hardie. It was shot on Super 16 film, and gained him further attention.
In 1993, he directed an episode of the
Inspector Alleyn Mysteries; ''Love Lies Bleeding'', a television film written by
Ronan Bennett about a convicted IRA member on a 24-hour home leave from prison in Belfast; and ''
The Mad Woman in the Attic'', the pilot of
Jimmy McGovern
James Stanley McGovern (born September 1949) is an English screenwriter and producer. He is best known for creating the drama series '' Cracker'' (1993–1995), for which he received two Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America. He als ...
's mystery series ''
Cracker''.
He next directed the 1994 mini-series ''
Family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
'', written by
Roddy Doyle
Roderick Doyle (born 8 May 1958) is an Irish novelist, dramatist and screenwriter. He is the author of eleven novels for adults, eight books for children, seven plays and screenplays, and dozens of short stories. Several of his books have been ...
, the author of ''
The Commitments''. It was a success in Ireland and led to a debate there about the depiction of both the working classes and spousal abuse in the media. His final early television project was a 1995 episode of the documentary series ''
Cinema Europe: The Other Hollywood'', focusing on Scandinavian silent cinema.
Film career
1990s
''
Butterfly Kiss
''Butterfly Kiss'' (alternative title ''Killer on the Road'') is a 1995 British film, directed by Michael Winterbottom and written by Frank Cottrell Boyce. It stars Amanda Plummer and Saskia Reeves. The film was entered into the 45th Berlin In ...
'', Winterbottom's 1995 debut feature, followed a mentally unbalanced lesbian
serial killer
A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone:
*
*
*
*
* (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
and her submissive lover/accomplice as they fall in love while slaughtering their way across the
motorway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s of Northern England. It found only a limited release.
That same year, he reunited with
Jimmy McGovern
James Stanley McGovern (born September 1949) is an English screenwriter and producer. He is best known for creating the drama series '' Cracker'' (1993–1995), for which he received two Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America. He als ...
for the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
television film ''
Go Now'', the story of a young man who falls ill with
multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...
just as he meets the love of his life. Focusing on the turmoil this causes the couple, the film was given a theatrical release in many countries. It was also the first film from Winterbottom's company Revolution Films.
His 1996 film ''
Jude'' starred
Christopher Eccleston
Christopher Eccleston (; born 16 February 1964) is an English actor whose work has encompassed Hollywood blockbusters and arthouse films, television dramas, Shakespearean stage performances and science fiction, most notably the Ninth Doctor, ni ...
and
Kate Winslet
Kate Elizabeth Winslet (; born 5 October 1975) is an English actress. Primarily known for her roles as headstrong and complicated women in independent films, particularly period dramas, she has received numerous accolades, including an Ac ...
. It was an adaptation of Winterbottom's his favourite novel,
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
's bleak classic ''
Jude the Obscure'', a tale of forbidden love between two cousins. The film brought Winterbottom wider recognition, his first screening at
Cannes
Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...
and numerous Hollywood offers.
1997's ''
Welcome to Sarajevo'' was filmed on location in the titular
city
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
, mere months after the
Siege of Sarajevo had ended. It was based on the true story of British reporter,
Michael Nicholson, who spirited a young orphan girl out of the war zone to safety in Britain.
His 1998 film ''
I Want You'' is a neo-noir sex thriller set in a decaying British seaside resort town. Starring
Rachel Weisz
Rachel Hannah Weisz (; born 7 March 1970) is an English actress. Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Rachel Weisz, several awards, including an Academy Award, ...
and
Alessandro Nivola, it was inspired by the
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, author and television host. According to ''Rolling Stone'', Costello "reinvigorated the literate, lyrical ...
song of the same name and shot by Polish cinematographer
Sławomir Idziak,
who won an Honourable Mention award at the
48th Berlin International Film Festival for his work.
He followed that with 1999's ''
With or Without You'', a
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
-set comedy starring
Christopher Eccleston
Christopher Eccleston (; born 16 February 1964) is an English actor whose work has encompassed Hollywood blockbusters and arthouse films, television dramas, Shakespearean stage performances and science fiction, most notably the Ninth Doctor, ni ...
, about a couple trying desperately to conceive, who each have past loves re-enter their lives.
That same year, he also released ''
Wonderland'', which marked a shift in style for Winterbottom. Its handheld photography and naturalistic dialogue drew comparisons to
Robert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer, producer. He is considered an enduring figure from the New Hollywood era, known for directing subversive and sat ...
. Starring
Gina McKee,
Shirley Henderson,
Molly Parker,
John Simm,
Ian Hart and
Stuart Townsend
Stuart Townsend (born 15 December 1972) is an Irish actor. He portrayed Lestat de Lioncourt in the film adaptation of Anne Rice's '' Queen of the Damned'' (2002), and Dorian Gray in Alan Moore's '' The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'' (20 ...
, it is the story of three sisters and their extended family over
Guy Fawkes Day weekend in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. It featured an orchestral score by minimalist composer
Michael Nyman
Michael Laurence Nyman, Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 23 March 1944) is an English composer, pianist, libretto, librettist, musicologist, and filmmaker. He is known for numerous film soundtrack, scores (many written during his lengthy ...
,
[Jeffries, Stuart]
"The walking wounded of Wonderland"
''The Guardian'', 18 January 2000 who would become a frequent collaborator with Winterbottom.
2000s
Winterbottom's biggest-budgeted film up to that point, at $20 million, his 2000 film ''
The Claim'' was an adaptation of
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
's ''
The Mayor of Casterbridge
''The Mayor of Casterbridge: The Life and Death of a Man of Character'' is an 1886 novel by the English author Thomas Hardy. One of Thomas Hardy's Wessex, Hardy's Wessex novels, it is set in a fictional rural England with Casterbridge standing ...
'' set in 1860s California. Shot in the wilds of Canada, it was not a financial success and proved an ordeal to make, with Winterbottom himself getting
frostbite
Frostbite is a skin injury that occurs when someone is exposed to extremely low temperatures, causing the freezing of the skin or other tissues, commonly affecting the fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks and chin areas. Most often, frostbite occ ...
. Many of the production difficulties, including unsuccessful attempts to cast
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...
, were explained to the public on the film's unusually frank official website.
''
24 Hour Party People'', released in 2001, documents the anarchic, drug and sex-fueled rise and fall of
Factory Records
Factory Records was a Manchester-based British independent record label founded in 1978 by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus.
The label featured several important acts on its roster, including Joy Division, New Order (band), New Order, A Certain Ra ...
and the music scene in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s. It would be the first of many collaborations between Winterbottom and actor
Steve Coogan
Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English-Irish actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. His accolades include four BAFTA Awards and three British Comedy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...
, who starred as broadcaster/music-mogul
Tony Wilson
Anthony Howard Wilson (20 February 1950 – 10 August 2007) was a British record label owner, radio and television presenter, nightclub manager and impresario, and a journalist for Granada Television, the BBC and Channel 4.
As a co-founder ...
.
[Morley, Paul]
"Shooting the past"
''The Guardian'', 23 February 2001
His 2002 film ''
In This World'' depicts the journey of two
Afghan refugees
Afghan refugees are citizens of Afghanistan who were forced to flee from their country as a result the continuous wars that the country has suffered since the Afghan-Soviet war, the Afghan civil war, the Afghanistan war (2001–2021) or either p ...
from
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
, across the
Middle East
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
and Europe to Britain, which they try to enter with the help of
people smugglers. Shot on
digital video
Digital video is an electronic representation of moving visual images (video) in the form of encoded digital data. This is in contrast to analog video, which represents moving visual images in the form of analog signals. Digital video comprises ...
at a cost of $2 million, it featured non-professional actors and brought Winterbottom numerous awards, including a
Golden Bear
The Golden Bear () is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival and is, along with the Palme d'Or and the Golden Lion, the most important international film festival award. The bear is the heraldic an ...
and a
BAFTA
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...
for best film not in the English language.
[Bedell, Geraldine]
"A Winterbottom's tale"
''The Guardian'', 1 February 2004
''
Code 46'', released in 2003, is a sci-fi retelling of the
Oedipus
Oedipus (, ; "swollen foot") was a mythical Greek king of Thebes. A tragic hero in Greek mythology, Oedipus fulfilled a prophecy that he would end up killing his father and marrying his mother, thereby bringing disaster to his city and family. ...
myth, in a world where
cloning
Cloning is the process of producing individual organisms with identical genomes, either by natural or artificial means. In nature, some organisms produce clones through asexual reproduction; this reproduction of an organism by itself without ...
has created people so interrelated that strict laws (the Code 46 of the title) govern human reproduction. The romantic mystery film starred
Tim Robbins
Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film '' The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and Jacob Singer in '' Jacob's Ladder'' (1990), as well as winning an Academy ...
and
Samantha Morton
Samantha Jane Morton (born 13 May 1977) is an English actress. She is known for her work in independent film with dark and tragic themes, particularly in period dramas. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including the BAFTA Fellowship ...
. It was shot in
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
,
Dubai
Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
and
Rajasthan
Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...
, which were mixed to create a futuristic multi-ethnic culture.
2004's ''
9 Songs'' gained attention as the most sexually explicit film ever to receive a
certificate for general release in the UK. It charts a year-long relationship between two lovers, almost exclusively through their sexual interaction and various rock concerts the couple attend. The film became notorious in the UK for its candid scenes of unsimulated sex between the leads,
Kieran O'Brien and
Margo Stilley.
His 2005 film ''
A Cock and Bull Story'', released in the United States and Australia as ''Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story'', is an adaptation of the famously "unfilmable" ''
The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman
''The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman'', also known as ''Tristram Shandy'', is a humorous novel by Laurence Sterne. It was published in nine volumes, the first two appearing in 1759, and seven others following over the next sev ...
'', an early novel.
[Mullan, John]
"A taste of Shandy"
''The Guardian'', 18 October 2005 The film is a faux documentary about the making of a film of ''Tristram Shandy''. Steve Coogan stars as himself and as Shandy. The film marked the end of Winterbottom's lengthy collaboration with
Frank Cottrell Boyce, who chose to be credited under the pseudonym Martin Hardy.
''
The Road to Guantanamo'' is a 2006 docu-drama about the "
Tipton Three", three British
Muslims
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
captured by US forces in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
who spent two years as prisoners at the
Guantanamo Bay detention camp
The Guantanamo Bay detention camp, also known as GTMO ( ), GITMO ( ), or simply Guantanamo Bay, is a United States military prison within Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB), on the coast of Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. It was established in 2002 by p ...
as alleged
enemy combatants
Enemy combatant is a term for a person who, either lawfully or unlawfully, engages in hostilities for the other side in an armed conflict, used by the U.S. government and media during the War on Terror. Usually enemy combatants are members of t ...
.
[Stafford Smith, Clive]
"Out of sight"
''The Guardian'', 14 February 2006 It was shot in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran (which doubled for Cuba) in the autumn of 2005. It premiered at the Berlinale on 14 February 2006. It debuted in the UK on television, on 9 March, as it was co-financed by
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
.
2007's ''
A Mighty Heart'' is based on the book by
Mariane Pearl, wife of murdered journalist
Daniel Pearl
Daniel Pearl (October 10, 1963 – February 1, 2002) was an American journalist who worked for ''The Wall Street Journal.'' On January 23, 2002, he was kidnapped by Jihadism, jihadist militants while he was on his way to what he had expected wou ...
.
[Pulver, Andrew]
"Rapid response unit"
''The Guardian'', 14 September 2007 The film stars
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie ( ; born Angelina Jolie Voight, , June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Angelina Jolie, numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards ...
and focuses on the pregnant Mariane's search for her missing husband in Pakistan in 2002. Produced by Jolie's then-partner
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. In a Brad Pitt filmography, film career spanning more than thirty years, Pitt has received list of awards and nominations received by Brad Pitt, numerous a ...
, it was shot in the autumn of 2006 in India, Pakistan and France and premiered out of competition at the
2007 Cannes Film Festival
The 60th Cannes Film Festival was held from 16 to 27 May 2007. British filmmaker Stephen Frears served as jury president for the main competition. Romanian filmmaker Cristian Mungiu won the Palme d'Or for the drama film ''4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 ...
on 21 May 2007.
In 2008, his film ''
Genova'' was released. It was a family drama about an Englishman, played by
Colin Firth
Colin Andrew Firth (born 10 September 1960) is an English actor and producer. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Colin Firth, several accolades, including an Academy Award, two British Academy Film Awards, BAFTA Aw ...
, who moves his two American daughters to Italy following the death of his wife. Once there, the oldest girl starts exploring her sexuality, while the younger girl begins to see the ghost of her mother.
[Johnston, Sheila;]
"Michael Winterbottom interview: on his film 'Genova'"
''The Daily Telegraph'', 31 March 2009 It co-stars
Catherine Keener and
Hope Davis and was filmed in the titular city of
Genoa
Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
, Italy, during the summer of 2007.
In 2009, Winterbottom was reunited with his ''
The Road to Guantanamo'' co-director Mat Whitecross on a documentary based on
Naomi Klein
Naomi Klein (born May 8, 1970) is a Canadian author, social activist, and filmmaker known for her political analyses; support of ecofeminism, organized labour, and criticism of corporate globalization, fascism and Criticism of capitalism, ca ...
's bestselling book ''
The Shock Doctrine''. The film follows the use of upheavals and disasters by various governments as a cover for the implementation of free market economic policies that benefit only an elite few. Klein at first disowned the film after learning that it would be composed almost entirely of period footage and narration, with virtually no interview material with sources. The film premiered at the 2009
Berlin Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
and aired in the UK on Channel 4's More4 documentary channel on 1 September 2009. It made its American premiere at the 2010
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023.
The festival has acted ...
, alongside Winterbottom's following film. At the festival, Klein, who had reconciled herself with the filmmakers' approach, participated in a Q&A with Winterbottom and Whitecross.
2010s
Winterbottom's 2010 film ''
The Killer Inside Me'' is an adaptation of
Jim Thompson's 1952 noir
novel
A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...
. Starring
Casey Affleck
Casey Affleck (born Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt; August 12, 1975) is an American actor. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Casey Affleck, various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film ...
,
Kate Hudson
Kate Garry Hudson (born April 19, 1979) is an American actress and singer. Born to singer Bill Hudson (singer), Bill Hudson and actress Goldie Hawn, Hudson made her film debut in the 1998 drama ''Desert Blue'', which was followed by supporting ...
and
Jessica Alba
Jessica Marie Alba ( ; born April 28, 1981) is an American actress and businesswoman. She began her acting career at age 13 in ''Camp Nowhere'', followed up by ''The Secret World of Alex Mack'' (both 1994), and rose to prominence at age 19 as ...
, it follows a 1950s small town
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
sheriff (Affleck), who is also a psychotic killer, through his descent into complete madness. It premiered at the 2010
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023.
The festival has acted ...
and caused controversy for the realistic brutality of its violence toward women.
In his defence, Winterbottom said, "It's not the real world. It's kind of a parallel version of the real world... I was taken in by that world."
This improvised six-episode 2010 comedy series ''
The Trip'', filmed in the English
Lake District
The Lake District, also known as ''the Lakes'' or ''Lakeland'', is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Cumbria, North West England. It is famous for its landscape, including its lakes, coast, and mou ...
and written and directed by Winterbottom, starred
Steve Coogan
Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English-Irish actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. His accolades include four BAFTA Awards and three British Comedy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...
and
Rob Brydon
Robert Brydon Jones (; born 3 May 1965) is a Welsh actor, comedian, impressionist, presenter, singer and writer. He gained prominence for his roles in film, television and radio. He was appointed Order of the British Empire, Member of the Order ...
as the same semi-fictionalized versions of themselves they played in ''
A Cock and Bull Story''. Coogan, an actor unhappy with his career, agrees to write a series of restaurant reviews for
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.
In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
in order to impress his girlfriend Misha (
Margo Stilley). As the series opens, she has dumped him and he invites Brydon to take her place on the holiday. Each episode of the series takes place largely over a different gourmet meal. The episodes were edited down into a feature film for the US market, which premiered at the
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
in September 2010, while the full series aired on
BBC Two
BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...
starting in November 2010.
Winterbottom's 2011 ''
Trishna'' is a modern retelling of ''
Tess of the d'Urbervilles
''Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman'' is the twelfth published novel by English author Thomas Hardy. It initially appeared in a Book censorship, censored and Serialized novel, serialised version, published by the British illustrated newsp ...
'' is his third
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
film. It stars
Riz Ahmed and
Freida Pinto
Freida Selena Pinto (born 18 October 1984) is an Indian actress who has appeared mainly in American and British films. Born and raised in Mumbai, Maharashtra, she resolved at a young age to become an actress. As a student at St. Xavier's Colle ...
and was shot in
Jaipur
Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...
and
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
in early 2011. It premiered at the
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on 9 September 2011. It was released in the UK on 9 March 2012 and in the US on 13 July.
2012's ''
Everyday'', known during its lengthy production first as ''Seven Days'' and then as ''Here and There'', stars
John Simm as a man imprisoned for drug-smuggling and charts his relationship with his wife, played by
Shirley Henderson. Written by Winterbottom and Laurence Coriat, the film was shot a few weeks at a time over a five-year period from 2007 to 2012 to reflect the protagonist's time in prison and achieve an authentic aging process.
''Everyday'' premiered at the
Telluride Film Festival
The Telluride Film Festival (TFF) is a film festival held annually in Telluride, Colorado, during Labor Day, Labor Day weekend (the first Monday in September). The 51st Telluride Film Festival, 51st edition took place on August 30–September ...
on 3 September 2012, and then screened at the
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on 8 September 2012. The film was produced by Britain's Channel 4 and premiered in the UK on television on 15 November 2012, before being theatrically on 18 January 2013. At the
Stockholm International Film Festival
The Stockholm International Film Festival () is an annual film festival held in Stockholm, Sweden. It was launched in 1990 and has been held every year since then during the second half of November, and focuses on emerging and early career fil ...
in November, the film won the FIPRESCI Prize.
His 2013 film ''
The Look of Love'' was originally announced as ''The King of Soho'', until that title had to be dropped due to a legal dispute, A biography of famed British pornographer/strip club owner/real estate entrepreneur
Paul Raymond, it reteamed Winterbottom with
Steve Coogan
Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English-Irish actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. His accolades include four BAFTA Awards and three British Comedy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...
, who played Raymond. The film costarred
Imogen Poots
Imogen Gay Poots (born 3 June 1989) is an English actress. She played Tammy in the post-apocalyptic horror film ''28 Weeks Later'' (2007), Linda Keith in the Jimi Hendrix biopic ''Jimi: All Is by My Side'' (2013), Debbie Raymond in the Paul Ray ...
,
Anna Friel and
Tamsin Egerton and was written by
Matt Greenhalgh. It was released in the UK on 26 April 2013.
Winterbottom filmed a second series of the hit BBC show ''
The Trip To Italy'' in the summer of 2013 in Italy. It followed the route of the
Romantics
Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...
–
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley ( ; 4 August 1792 – 8 July 1822) was an English writer who is considered one of the major English Romantic poets. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame durin ...
,
Lord Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...
and
John Keats
John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tub ...
. Like the first series, IFC Films distributed it in the US as a shorter
feature-length film, which premiered at the
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023.
The festival has acted ...
in January 2014. The full series aired on
BBC Two
BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...
in April 2014.
Hosted by comedian
Russell Brand
Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian, actor, podcaster and media personality. He established himself as a stand-up comedian and radio host before becoming a film actor. After beginning his career as a comedian and la ...
, the 2015 documentary ''
The Emperor's New Clothes'' focuses on the
2008 financial crisis
The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...
and global economic inequality. It premiered in London on 21 April 2015, followed by its international premiere on 24 April 2015 at the
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...
.
The 2016 film ''On the Road'' follows the British band
Wolf Alice, focusing on two fictional members of the band's crew, played by Leah Harvey and
James McArdle, while the band is on tour. It premiered on 9 October 2016 at the
BFI London Film Festival
The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October.
In 2016, the BFI estimated that around 240 fe ...
.
Winterbottom reunited with Coogan and Brydon for ''
The Trip to Spain'' in 2017, a third six-episode series in which the duo travel through Spain. As with the previous instalments, it premiered on 6 April 2017 as a 6-part weekly TV series on
Sky Atlantic
Sky Atlantic is a British pay television channel owned by Sky Group, Sky Group Limited that launched in 2011 and broadcasts in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel airs original British-produced dramas like ''Fortitude (TV series), F ...
, and as a shorter
feature film
A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...
on 22 April 2017
at the
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Enterprises. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. The festival ...
. The film was released in the US on 11 August 2017.
The 2018 thriller ''
The Wedding Guest'' starred
Dev Patel
Dev Patel (; born 23 April 1990) is an English actor and filmmaker. List of awards and nominations received by Dev Patel, His accolades include a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award and two Golden Globe A ...
as a mysterious young British Muslim man who travels to Pakistan to kidnap a young woman (
Radhika Apte
Radhika Apte () (born 7 September 1985) is an Indian film and television
actress. She began acting in theatre and made her film debut with a brief role in the fantasy drama ''Vaah! Life Ho Toh Aisi!'' (2005). Her first lead role was in the 2009 ...
) on the eve of her arranged marriage. It was filmed in
Jaipur
Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...
, India and other locations in
Rajasthan
Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...
beginning in February 2018 and premiered at the
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on 8 September 2018.
2019's ''
Greed
Greed (or avarice, ) is an insatiable desire for material gain (be it food, money, land, or animate/inanimate possessions) or social value, such as status or power.
Nature of greed
The initial motivation for (or purpose of) greed and a ...
'' is a comedy satirizing the lives of the ultra-rich, starring
Steve Coogan
Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English-Irish actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. His accolades include four BAFTA Awards and three British Comedy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...
as a fictional retail fashion magnate,
Isla Fisher
Isla Lang Fisher (; born 3 February 1976) is an Australian actress. Born in Oman to Scottish parents with whom she moved to Australia during her childhood, she began appearing in television commercials and came to prominence for her portrayal o ...
as his wife, and
David Mitchell as a journalist hired to write the billionaire's life story. The film is set at the billionaire's disastrous 60th birthday party on
Mykonos
Mykonos (, ; ) is a Greek island, part of the Cyclades, lying between Tinos, Syros, Paros and Naxos. The island has an area of and rises to an elevation of at its highest point. At the 2021 census, there were 10,704 inhabitants, most of ...
,
and explores the divide between the character's wealth and the abject poverty of the workers who produce his products.
The project was previously set to star
Sacha Baron Cohen
Sacha Noam Baron Cohen ( ; born 13 October 1971) is an English comedian, actor and performance artist. Known for his creation and portrayal of the fictional satirical characters Ali G, Borat Sagdiyev, Brüno Gehard, and Admiral General Haf ...
. Winterbottom completed photography in December 2018. The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 7 September 2019.
2020s
Coogan and Brydon reunited with Winterbottom for ''
The Trip to Greece'', a fourth series of their popular programme, set in Greece and broadcast in 2020. It premiered on 3 March 2020 as a 6-part weekly TV series on
SkyOne
Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Sky Television (1984–1990), Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite television, satell ...
. It was again edited down into a feature film in the US, whose planned theatrical release by IFC Films in summer 2020 was cancelled due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. It premiered with a digital and on demand release on 22 May 2020.
2021's documentary feature, ''Isolation'', originally announced under the title ''Europe C-19'', contains five 15-minute segments from directors across Europe, with Winterbottom handling the UK portion. Winterbottom began filming his portion of this film on 5 September 2020. The other portions were directed by
Julia von Heinz (Germany),
Fernando León de Aranoa (Spain),
Jaco Van Dormael
Jaco Van Dormael (born 9 February 1957) is a Belgium, Belgian film director, screenwriter and playwright. His films especially focus on a respectful and sympathetic portrayal of people with mental and physical disability, disabilities.
Van Dorm ...
(Belgium), and
Michele Placido
Michele Placido (; born 19 May 1946) is an Italian actor, director and screenwriter. He began his career on stage, and first gained mainstream attention through a series of roles in films directed by the likes of Mario Monicelli and Marco Belloc ...
(Italy). The film premiered in September 2021 at the
78th Venice International Film Festival.
Winterbottom co-directed the 2022 documentary ''Eleven Days in May'', which focused on the deaths of over 60 Palestinian children killed during the Israeli
bombing of Gaza over an eleven day period in May 2021. Gaza-based film-maker Mohammed Sawwaf was the other director and
Kate Winslet
Kate Elizabeth Winslet (; born 5 October 1975) is an English actress. Primarily known for her roles as headstrong and complicated women in independent films, particularly period dramas, she has received numerous accolades, including an Ac ...
provided the narration. It was released in the UK on 6 May 2022.
2022's 6-part TV miniseries ''
This England'' focuses on
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...
's leadership of Britain, starting with his appointment as prime minister and continuing through the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, when Johnson caught the virus and became critically ill, while his partner gave birth to their son, and Britain suffered among the worst death tolls in the world.
Kenneth Branagh
Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh ( ; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at RADA in London and served as its president from 2015 to 2024. List of award ...
stars as Johnson, with
Ophelia Lovibond
Ophelia Lucy Lovibond (born 19 February 1986) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Carina in the films '' Thor: The Dark World'' and '' Guardians of the Galaxy,'' Izzy Gould in the BBC's '' W1A'', Patty Failure in Disney's '' Tim ...
as
Carrie Symonds and
Simon Paisley Day as
Dominic Cummings. Originally titled ''This Sceptred Isle'', Winterbottom was set to direct every episode of the miniseries, which he co-wrote with
Kieron Quirke. However, after filming began in February 2021, Winterbottom stepped down from directing in March, reportedly due to health issues. The miniseries was broadcast on
Sky
The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the planetary surface, surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from ...
on 28 September 2022.
Winterbottom's 2023 political thriller ''
Shoshana Shoshana (''Shoshánna(h)'', ) is a Hebrew feminine first name. It is the name of at least two women in the Bible and, via (), it developed into such European and Christian names as Susanna, Susan, Susanne, Susana, Susannah, Suzanne, Susie, ...
'', previously titled ''Promised Land'', had its world premiere at the
2023 Toronto International Film Festival.
It is set in 1930s/1940s
British Mandatory Palestine and stars
Douglas Booth as Tom Wilkin and
Harry Melling as
Geoffrey J. Morton, two British police officers hunting
Zionist
Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...
militant
Avraham Stern. It co-stars
Irina Starshenbaum as
Shoshana Borochov. The screenplay was written by Winterbottom, Laurence Coriat and Paul Viragh.
Winterbottom has been developing the film for many years. In 2010,
Jim Sturgess,
Colin Firth
Colin Andrew Firth (born 10 September 1960) is an English actor and producer. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Colin Firth, several accolades, including an Academy Award, two British Academy Film Awards, BAFTA Aw ...
and
Matthew Macfadyen
David Matthew Macfadyen (; born 17 October 1974) is an English actor. Known for his performances on stage and screen, he Breakthrough role, gained prominence for his role as Mr. Darcy in Joe Wright's ''Pride & Prejudice (2005 film), Pride & Prej ...
were announced as its stars. While the film never entered production in 2010, Winterbottom did shoot documentary footage in Israel at the time with surviving participants in the events. Filming began in October 2021 in the town of
Ostuni
Ostuni (; ) is a city and ''comune'', located about 8 km from the coast, in the province of Brindisi, region of Apulia, Italy. The town has a population of about 32,000 during the winter, but can swell to 200,000 inhabitants during summer, ...
in Italy, which doubled for Tel Aviv.
In February 2025, Winterbottom began production on ''Gaza Year Zero''. Reuniting him with his ''Eleven Days in May'' co-director Mohammed Sawwaf, the fictional film follows a 13-year-old boy and his family struggling to survive the destruction of war. Sawwaf is directing on location in Gaza, while Winterbottom is co-directing and editing in London.
In 2025, Winterbottom is scheduled to begin filming ''The Trip to the Northern Lights'', the fifth series of ''
The Trip'', with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, in Scandinavia.
Future projects
In December 2023, it was announced that Winterbottom will direct a new adaptation of
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway ( ; July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized fo ...
's classic novel ''
A Farewell to Arms
''A Farewell to Arms'' is a novel by American writer Ernest Hemingway, set during the Italian campaign of World War I. First published in 1929, it is a first-person account of an American, Frederic Henry, serving as a lieutenant () in the a ...
'', starring
Tom Blyth and
Olivia Cooke.
In March 2023, it was announced that Winterbottom will write and direct ''Fall of the God of Cars'', a 6-part miniseries in which
Tony Shalhoub
Anthony Marc Shalhoub ( ; ; born October 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is known for a variety of roles ranging from comedic to dramatic on stage and screen. He has received several accolades including five Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, s ...
is set to play Lebanese/Brazilian auto executive
Carlos Ghosn
Carlos Ghosn (; ; ; , born 9 March 1954) is a businessman and former automotive executive. He was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Michelin, Michelin North America, chairman and CEO of Renault, chairman of AvtoVAZ, chairman and CEO of Nissan ...
, who was arrested in Japan, eventually escaping house arrest and fleeing the country and prosecution.
Unmade projects
In 2017, it was announced that Winterbottom was developing a 10-part TV series with
Annapurna Pictures about the war in Syria, focusing on the involvement of foreign journalists and
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
s.
He first announced in May 2017 that he was researching the project.
In May 2014, it was announced that Winterbottom would direct a feature adaptation of Richard Hammer's 1982 book ''The Vatican Connection'', the true story of how NYPD detective Joe Coffey uncovered connections between the Vatican and the Mafia while investigating a local New York mobster, leading to a global investigation. It was to be written by Paul Viragh, based on an earlier script by Alessandro Camon.
In October 2011, it was announced that Winterbottom would direct an adaption of Richard DiLello's 1973 book, ''The Longest Cocktail Party''. It was to tell the story of
Apple Corps
Apple Corps Limited is a British multimedia company that was established in London by the members of the Beatles in the 1960s to form a Conglomerate (company), conglomerate. The company's name, pronounced "apple core", is a pun. Its chief div ...
, the record company formed by
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
in 1968. It was to follow the company and its staff, including DiLello and
Derek Taylor
Derek Wyn Taylor (7 May 1932 – 8 September 1997) was a British journalist, writer, publicist and record producer. He is best known for his role as press officer to the Beatles, with whom he worked in 1964 and then from 1968 to 1970, and was ...
, from 1968 to its closure in 1970, when The Beatles split. The book was set to be adapted by
Jesse Armstrong and co-produced by
Andrew Eaton and
Liam Gallagher
William John Paul Gallagher (born 21 September 1972) is an English singer and songwriter. He is the lead singer and co-founder of the rock band Oasis (band), Oasis and fronted the rock band Beady Eye from 2010 to 2014, before starting a succes ...
.
Winterbottom was attached in May 2011 to direct ''Bailout'', an adaptation of author
Jess Walter's novel ''
The Financial Lives of the Poets'', which Walter adapted for the screen. Set to star
Jack Black
Thomas Jacob "Jack" Black (born August 28, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is known for roles in family and comedy films, in addition to his voice work in animated films. His awards include a Children's and Family Emmy ...
, the film was to follow a man who loses his job and must keep his family afloat by working as a pot dealer.
Books
In 2021, Winterbottom published ''Dark Matter: Independent Filmmaking in the 21st Century'', a book about the workings of the British independent film industry. It is based on his own experience over his career, and includes interviews with 15 other major British directors:
Paweł Pawlikowski
Paweł Aleksander Pawlikowski (; born 15 September 1957) is a Polish filmmaker. He garnered early praise for a string of documentaries in the 1990s and for his award-winning feature films of the 2000s, '' Last Resort'' (2000) and '' My Summer of ...
,
Danny Boyle
Daniel Francis Boyle (born 20 October 1956) is an English director and producer. He is known for his work on the films ''Shallow Grave (1994 film), Shallow Grave'' (1994), ''Trainspotting (film), Trainspotting'' (1996) and its sequel ''T2 Tra ...
,
Joanna Hogg,
Asif Kapadia,
James Marsh,
Andrew Haigh,
Carol Morley,
Edgar Wright
Edgar Howard Wright (born 18 April 1974) is an English filmmaker. He is known for his fast-paced and kinetic, satirical Film genre, genre films, which feature extensive utilisation of expressive popular music, Steadicam tracking shots, dolly zo ...
,
Steve McQueen
Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...
,
Lynne Ramsay,
Stephen Daldry
Stephen David Daldry Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 2 May 1960) is an English director and producer of film, theatre, and television. He has won three Tony Awards for his work on Broadway theatre, Broadway and an Olivie ...
,
Ben Wheatley
Ben Wheatley (born 1972) is an English filmmaker, film editor, and animator. Beginning his career in advertising, Wheatley first gained recognition and acclaim for his commercials and short films, before transitioning into feature films and tele ...
,
Peter Strickland,
Mike Leigh
Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English screenwriter, producer, director and former actor with a film, theatre, and television career spanning more than 60 years. His accolades include prizes at the Cannes Film Festival, the Berlin In ...
and
Ken Loach
Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a retiredhttps://variety.com/2024/film/global/ken-loach-retirement-the-old-oak-jonathan-glazer-oscars-speech-1235956589/ English filmmaker. His socially critical directing style and socialist views ar ...
.
Personal life
Winterbottom has two daughters and a son.
Winterbottom is an
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
.
Filmography
*''Rosie the Great'' (1989, TV)
*''Forget About Me'' (1990, TV)
*''Under the Sun'' (1992, TV)
*''Love Lies Bleeding'' (1993, TV)
*''
Family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
'' (1994, TV)
*''
Butterfly Kiss
''Butterfly Kiss'' (alternative title ''Killer on the Road'') is a 1995 British film, directed by Michael Winterbottom and written by Frank Cottrell Boyce. It stars Amanda Plummer and Saskia Reeves. The film was entered into the 45th Berlin In ...
'' (1995)
*''
Go Now'' (1995)
*''
Jude'' (1996)
*''
Welcome to Sarajevo'' (1997)
*''
I Want You'' (1998)
*''
Wonderland'' (1999)
*''
With or Without You'' (1999)
*''
The Claim'' (2000)
*''
24 Hour Party People'' (2002)
*''
In This World'' (2002)
*''
Code 46'' (2003)
*''
9 Songs'' (2004)
*''
A Cock and Bull Story'' (2005)
*''
The Road to Guantanamo'' (2006)
*''
A Mighty Heart'' (2007)
*''
Genova'' (2008)
*''The Shock Doctrine'' (2009)
*''
The Killer Inside Me'' (2010)
*''
The Trip'' (2010, TV)
*''
Trishna'' (2011)
*''
Everyday'' (2012)
*''
The Look of Love'' (2013)
*''
The Trip to Italy'' (2014, TV)
*''
The Face of an Angel'' (2014)
*''
The Emperor's New Clothes'' (2015)
*''On the Road'' (2016)
*''
The Trip to Spain'' (2017)
*''
The Wedding Guest'' (2018)
*''
Greed
Greed (or avarice, ) is an insatiable desire for material gain (be it food, money, land, or animate/inanimate possessions) or social value, such as status or power.
Nature of greed
The initial motivation for (or purpose of) greed and a ...
'' (2019)
*''
The Trip to Greece'' (2020)
*''Isolation'' (2021)
*''
Eleven Days in May'' (2022)
*''
This England'' (2022, TV)
*''
Shoshana Shoshana (''Shoshánna(h)'', ) is a Hebrew feminine first name. It is the name of at least two women in the Bible and, via (), it developed into such European and Christian names as Susanna, Susan, Susanne, Susana, Susannah, Suzanne, Susie, ...
'' (2023)
References
External links
*
Critical essay by Deborah Allison''SensesOfCinema.com''
Resonance FM radio interview – "Reality Check: Michael Winterbottom's Code 46"– ''PanelBorders.Wordpress.com''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winterbottom, Michael
1961 births
Living people
Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford
Alumni of the University of Bristol
Directors of Golden Bear winners
Filmmakers who won the Best Foreign Language Film BAFTA Award
Silver Bear for Best Director recipients
English film directors
People educated at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn
People from Blackburn
Postmodernist filmmakers
Mass media people from Lancashire