Who is Jane Campion?
Jane Campion is a New Zealand-born filmmaker based in Australia, known for The Piano and The Power of the Dog. She was the first woman to win the Palme d'Or at Cannes and won the Oscar for Best Director in 2022.
Born in Wellington in 1954, Campion studied anthropology in New Zealand and art in Sydney before attending the Australian Film, Television and Radio School. Her short film Peel won the Short Film Palme d'Or at Cannes in 1986.
Her feature films include Sweetie, An Angel at My Table and The Portrait of a Lady.
The Piano
The Piano, released in 1993, won the Palme d'Or, shared that year, and three Academy Awards, including Best Original Screenplay for Campion.
The Power of the Dog, a western starring Benedict Cumberbatch and set in Montana but filmed in New Zealand, earned her the Best Director Oscar in 2022. Holly Hunter and Anna Paquin had earlier won acting Oscars for The Piano.
She also co-created and directed the television series Top of the Lake, starring Elisabeth Moss, set in New Zealand and Sydney. Campion has lived in Sydney for many years and is often included among both New Zealand and Australian filmmakers.
Did You Know?
Campion was only the third woman ever to win the Academy Award for Best Director.