Stewart Raffill
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Stewart Raffill | |
|---|---|
.png) Raffill in 2014. | |
| Born | 27 January 1942 Kettering, Northamptonshire, England, United Kingdom |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, director |
| Notable work | |
| Spouse | Diane Kirman (1993) |
| Children | Maria Walker (1978) |
| Relatives |
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Stewart Raffill is a British writer and director.[1]
Biography
[edit]Raffill was born in England and grew up near Stratford before immigrating to the US and working in the motion picture industry. His writing and directing work in film and TV spans several genres including science fiction, family, comedy and drama.[2]
Film
[edit]Raffill made his feature debut as director with The Tender Warrior, starring Dan Haggerty and sold to Warner Brothers. It was filmed on location in Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia.[3]
He sold his next script, Napoleon and Samantha, to Disney. Raffill also worked on the film as a producer. The film starred Jodie Foster and Michael Douglas.
He wrote and directed When the North Wind Blows.
Raffill wrote and directed The Adventures of the Wilderness Family with Robert Logan, leading to two sequels.[4]
He followed it with two films with Logan, Across the Great Divide and The Sea Gypsies.
Raffill wrote and directed High Risk, shot in Mexico, starring James Brolin which he later described as a personal favorite.[3] The film got him the job of writing and directing The Ice Pirates, made for John Forman and David Begelman at MGM.[5]
Raffill directed and did uncredited writing on The Philadelphia Experiment that won Best Science Fiction Film at the Rome Film Festival.[6]
Raffill directed and wrote Mac and Me, made to provide royalties to the McDonald's Foundation and starred Jade Calegory, who had spina bifida. The film is frequently cited as one of the worst ever made, but it later attained cult status and was re-released in 2019.[2][7]
Begelmen hired Raffill to direct Mannequin Two: On the Move. Raffill wrote the original screenplay for Passenger 57.[8]
Raffill wrote and directed Lost in Africa made for the Tusk charity. He also wrote and directed Tammy and the T-Rex, which was re-released in 2019 and was the official selection for the Fantastic Fest and premiered at Beyond Fest. It starred Paul Walker, Denise Richards and Terry Kiser.
Other credits include A Month of Sundays, starring Rod Steiger, Sal Sapienza and Dee Wallace Stone; Survival Island, starring Billy Zane and Juan Pablo DiPace; Mysterious; and the family musical Standing Ovation.
Television
[edit]He moved into directing for TV with The New Adventures of Robin Hood and the TV movie The New Swiss Family Robinson with Jane Seymour and David Carradine, which he also wrote. He directed Grizzly Falls that won the Heartland Award and starred Bryan Brown.
Raffill directed episodes of Pensacola: Wings of Gold and 18 Wheels of Justice, and the TV movie Croc (2007).
Filmography
[edit]| Year | Film | Director | Screenwriter | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | The Tender Warrior | Yes | Yes | Starring Dan Haggerty.[9] |
| 1972 | Napoleon and Samantha | No | Yes | Starring Michael Douglas and Jodie Foster. Produced by Disney Studios. National Association of Theatre Owners Movie of the Month |
| 1974 | Snow Tigers (aka When the North Wind Blows) | Yes | Yes | Distributed by NBC |
| 1975 | The Adventures of the Wilderness Family | Yes | Yes | |
| 1976 | Across the Great Divide | Yes | Yes | Winner - Outstanding Merit Award - So. California Motion Picture Council |
| 1978 | The Sea Gypsies | Yes | Yes | Winner - Film Advisory Board Award of Excellence |
| 1981 | High Risk | Yes | No | |
| 1984 | The Philadelphia Experiment | Yes | No | Winner - Best Science Fiction Rome International Film Festival Fantafestival Award for Best Film |
| The Ice Pirates | Yes | Yes | ||
| 1988 | Mac and Me | Yes | Yes | Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director (Tied with Blake Edwards of Sunset) Nominated—Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay (with Steve Feke) |
| 1991 | Mannequin Two: On the Move | Yes | No | |
| 1992 | Passenger 57 | No | Yes | #1 at the box office on opening weekend (boxofficemojo.com) |
| 1994 | Tammy and the T-Rex | Yes | Yes | |
| Lost in Africa | Yes | Yes | ||
| 1998 | The New Swiss Family Robinson | Yes | Yes | Premiered on ABC's The Wonderful World of Disney |
| 1999 | Grizzly Falls | Yes | No | Award of Excellence Winner - Heartland Film Festival Marco Island Film Festival - Audience Winner[10] Golden Reel Award Nominee |
| 2001 | A Month of Sundays | Yes | No | Winner - Feature Film Award for Best Actor - Rod Steiger - 2001 New York International Independent Film and Video Festival Winner - Best of the Festival - Feature Film - Stewart Raffil - 2002 Atlantic City Film Festival |
| 2002 | While You Were Waiting | Yes | No | Winner - Silver Award for Dramatic Short Atlantic City Film Festival |
| 2006 | Survival Island | Yes | Yes | |
| 2007 | Croc | Yes | No | Telemovie - Aired on Sci Fi Channel |
| Sirens of the Caribbean | Yes | Yes | Shot on location in the Bahamas | |
| 2010 | Standing Ovation | Yes | Yes | Official Selection - May Film Festival 2011 |
TV credits
[edit]| Year | Show | Episode |
|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | Pensacola: Wings of Gold | Episodes: True Stories, A Wing and a Prayer, Cuba Libre, Busted |
| 2000–2001 | 18 Wheels of Justice | Episodes: Two Eyes for an Eye, Through a Glass, Darkly, A Place Called Defiance, Hot Cars, Fast Women, Dance with the Devil |
References
[edit]- ^ "Stewart Raffill". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2008. Archived from the original on 21 January 2008.
- ^ a b "EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Stewart Raffill, director of TAMMY AND THE T-REX, MAC & ME and THE ICE PIRATES". Bristol Bad Film Club. 12 May 2018.
- ^ a b "Interview with Stewart Raffill Part 2". Slashfilm. 15 July 2016.
- ^ Roughing It for Togetherness Gross, Linda. Los Angeles Times 23 December 1976: f10.
- ^ Taylor, Tadhg (2015). Masters of the Shoot-'Em-Up: Conversations with Directors, Actors and Writers of Vintage Action Movies and Television Shows. McFarland. pp. 38–43. ISBN 9781476620985.
- ^ "Interview with Stewart Raffill Part 3". Slashfilm. 15 July 2016.
- ^ Patches, Matt (3 April 2017). "How the Hell McDonald's Bizarre 'E.T.' Knockoff Got Made". Thrillist.
- ^ DRESSED FOR SUCCESS: AMONG THE ESPRESSO MAKERS AND PATIO FURNITURE OF WANAMAKERS IN CENTER CITY, A MANNEQUIN HAS COME TO LIFE AGAIN. WHAT'S SHE DOING? WHY, MAKING A MOVIE, OF COURSE. Rea, Steven. Philadelphia Inquirer16 June 1990: D.1.
- ^ "The Tender Warrior (1971) - Stewart Raffill | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie".
- ^ "Cindy Bond | the Dove Foundation". Archived from the original on 11 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
