Gillian Armstrong first garnered attention for her debut feature, MY BRILLIANT CAREER (1979), adapted from the classic novel by Miles Franklin. At the film’s release, Gillian held the distinction of being the first woman to direct a feature-length movie in Australia in almost 50 years. Her feature films and documentaries include STAR STRUCK, MRS SOFFEL, HIGH TIDE, THE LAST DAYS OF CHEZ NOUS, LITTLE WOMEN, OSCAR AND LUCINDA, CHARLOTTE GRAY, UNFOLDING FLORENCE: THE MANY LIVES OF FLORENCE BROADHURST, DEATH DEFYING ACTS and LOVE LUST AND LIES. Gillian’s most recent feature documentary, WOMEN HE’S UNDRESSED, premiered at the 2015 Sydney Film Festival.
Gillian’s films and documentaries have screened at numerous international film festivals including Berlin, Singapore, Sundance and Cannes. Her films have been nominated for Academy and Golden Globe Awards and received awards from the Australian Film Institute, the Film Critics Circle of Australia, the Houston Film Festival, Festival International de Creteil the US National Society of Film Critics, the British Critics Association and the British Academy.
Gillian was the first President of the Australian Director’s Guild, has received an AM for services to the Australian Film Industry, a Doctor of Letters from the University of NSW and the University of Sydney, and an Honorary Doctorate in Film from Swinburne University. In 2007 Gillian was awarded an ADG Outstanding Achievement Award and in 2008 the Women In Hollywood Icon Award in recognition of her contribution to the film industry.
