Justin Kurzel

From the get-go of his film career, it seemed that writer and director Justin Kurzel was bent on delivering the dark and poignant sensibilities of Australian cinema to audiences around the world. The director's big screen titles, from the biographical crime drama picture "The Snowtown Murders" (2011) to the anthology project "The Turning" (2013) to his star-laden reinvention of "Macbeth" (2015), all represented an energized drive to publicize the sort of cinematic vision to which many countries were not often privy. Justin Kurzel was born August 3, 1974, in Gawler, South Australia. His first foray into big screen filmmaking was "The Snowtown Murders" (2011), alternatively titled "Snowtown," a crime drama picture based on the true story of the eponymous South Australia homicide case. The film proved a promising introduction to Kurzel's talents, winning him a number of awards at the 64th Annual Cannes Film Festival. Next, Kurzel contributed to the anthology project "The Turning" (2013), short film adaptations of the works of Australian writer Tim Winton. Kurzel's piece was "Boner McPharlin's Moll," a story about a man whose reputation far outshines his authentic character. Kurzel next essayed an ambitious reimagination of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" (2015), with Michael Fassbender playing the title role and Marion Cotillard as the infamous Lady Macbeth.