David Puttnam

Production

David Puttnam

Born 1941-02-25 · London, England, UK

David Terence Puttnam, Baron Puttnam, CBE, HonFRSA, HonFRPS, MRIA (born 25 February 1941) is a British-Irish film producer, educator, environmentalist and former member of the House of Lords. His productions include Chariots of Fire, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, The Mission, The Killing Fields, Local Hero, Midnight Express and Memphis Belle. In 1982, he received the BAFTA for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema, and in 2006 he was awarded the BAFTA Fellowship for lifetime achievement from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Puttnam sat on the Labour benches in the House of Lords, although he was not principally a politician. In 2019 he was appointed chair to the select committee on democracy and digital technologies. The committee published its findings in its Digital Technology & the Resurrection of Trust report in June 2020. Description above from the Wikipedia article David Puttnam, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Acting credits

Ennio poster
8.3

A portrait of Ennio Morricone, the most popular and prolific film composer of the 20th century, the one most loved by the international public, a two-time Oscar winner and the author of over five hundred unforgettable scores.

Ennio

2022

The Genius of George Boole poster
7.5

Narrated by Oscar-winning actor Jeremy Irons, The Genius of George Boole assembles academics and industry leaders from across the globe to explore the life and importance of one of the world’s greatest unsung heroes.

The Genius of George Boole

2015

My Generation poster
7.0

The vivid and inspiring story of British film icon Michael Caine's personal journey through 1960s swinging London.

My Generation

2017

Duelling Directors: Ridley Scott & Kevin Reynolds poster
7.0

Directors Ridley Scott and Kevin Reynolds talk about the film The Duellists. Reynolds interviews Scott while watching the movie, and they examine some of the key visual shots that Scott created and that eventually got him recognized as one of the best visual directors of our time.

Duelling Directors: Ridley Scott & Kevin Reynolds

2002

Twiggy poster
7.7

Twiggy takes a comprehensive look at the life story of UK model and cultural icon Twiggy, real name Lesley Lawson, whose career kickstarted in the 1960s. It features interviews with Twiggy and her husband Leigh Lawson, as well as commentary from Erin O’Connor, Paul McCartney, Lulu, Poppy Delavigne, Brooke Shields, Pattie Boyd and Zandra Rhodes.

Twiggy

2025

A Turnip Head's Guide To The British Cinema poster
NR

Documentary presenting Alan Parker’s view of British cinema with comments from Richard Lester and others and location report from King’s Lynn on the making of Hugh Hudson’s Revolution, starring Al Pacino, Donald Sutherland, and Nastassja Kinski.

A Turnip Head's Guide To The British Cinema

1986

Pictures of Europe poster
NR

What makes European cinema so special? Find out in Paul Joyce’s feature-length documentary, Pictures of Europe, which examines the differences between American independent and Hollywood movies and films from European directors. Featuring luminary iconoclasts from European cinema such as Agnes Varda, Bernardo Bertolucci and Pedro Almodovar, as well as American counterpoints from Paul Schrader, and those who have crossed back and forth, such as Paul Verhoeven

Pictures of Europe

1990

Fame, Fashion and Photography: The Real Blow Up poster
8.5

Tells the story of the photographers who cemented the image of swinging London and who, through their pictures, irreversibly altered the face of fashion and pop.

Fame, Fashion and Photography: The Real Blow Up

2002

Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film poster
4.8

The life story of the film director, movie star and industry figure who furthered the cause of cinema: Lord Richard Attenborough.

Richard Attenborough: A Life in Film

2014

Michael Caton-Jones: This Broxburn Boy's Life poster
NR

Explores Caton-Jones' rise from his humble roots in the working class mining village of Broxburn, West Lothian to the dizzy heights of Hollywood, where he became one of Scotland's most successful Directors while making hit movies including Memphis Belle, Doc Hollywood, This Boy's Life, Rob Roy and The Jackal.

Michael Caton-Jones: This Broxburn Boy's Life

Ennio Morricone poster
6.8

From his quirky compositions for the spaghetti Westerns of Sergio Leone to his sublime musical contributions to director Roland Joffé's acclaimed 1986 drama The Mission, film composer Ennio Morricone has crafted more than 500 scores over the course of his enduring career in film. Now fans can take a look back at the life and career of one of cinema's most prolific composers through interviews with both the composer himself and many of his longtime collaborators. From his Italian efforts to his work in America, this documentary covers every aspect of Morricone's career as few have, offering insight into his childhood, his longtime association with Leone, and his ultimate disenchantment with the American studio system.

Ennio Morricone

1995

No artwork available
NR

Part 1 of a documentary about when Alexander Korda was asked about who might replace him when he has resigned as a chief of the production of the British Lion.

Korda: I Don't Grow on Trees: Part One

1993

David Puttnam: The Long Way Home poster
NR

An intimate portrait of Oscar winning producer David Puttnam as he reflects on events which shaped his journey to becoming an Irish citizen and making Skibbereen his home.

David Puttnam: The Long Way Home

2024

Who Killed British Cinema? poster
5.0

A feature length documentary about the real state of the British film industry in relation to UK structures past, present and currently for the future. This film exposes the shocking truths about the UK Governments' will to grow an indigenous British film industry, the legacy and testament of the now closed UK Film Council (UKFC), the current British Film Institute and the new Creative England.

Who Killed British Cinema?

2018

The Peculiar Memories of Bruce Robinson poster
NR

A journey through the career of the British writer/director best known for his film "Withnail & I" (1987). Robinson reveals how he writes, reads from his screenplays, and revisits the town of his birth where his first novel "The Peculiar Memories of Thomas Penman" is set. Interviews include Andy Garcia, Richard E. Grant, Ken Russell and David Puttnam.

The Peculiar Memories of Bruce Robinson

1999

Billy Fury: The Sound of Fury poster
NR

Billy Fury became an overnight sensation in the 1950`s and The Sound of Fury album, a landmark in British Rock & Roll history. This the story of Billy Fury and how his Sound of Fury album is now seen by many as the high water-mark of British Rock and Roll. Shot entirely in HD with unique and unseen archive and photos, this music documentary highlights Fury`s contribution to popular music and the reason why Britain`s original teen idol had more Top 40 hits than the Beatles during the 1960`s. Featuring exclusive home movie footage and interviews with Lord Puttnam, Amanda Barrie, Imelda May, Vince Eager, Len Goodman, Clem Cattini, Boz Boorer, Spencer Leigh, Billy`s mum, Jean Wycherley and many more; this is a must-see for Billy Fury and music lovers alike.

Billy Fury: The Sound of Fury

2015

"I Thought Maybe I'd Get to Meet Alan Whicker": A Conversation with Bill Forsyth poster
6.0

An interview for Scottish television of film director Bill Forsyth

"I Thought Maybe I'd Get to Meet Alan Whicker": A Conversation with Bill Forsyth

1986

Pontecorvo: The Dictatorship of Truth poster
6.0

Presented by the late literary critic Edward Said, this thirty-seven minute 1992 documentary reflects on director Gillo Pontecorvo's youth and politics in an attempt to understand his approach to filmmaking.

Pontecorvo: The Dictatorship of Truth

1992

No artwork available
NR

The perfect oxymoron: Enya is as famous as she is withdrawn. There is no other musician in the world who has reached the heights that the Irish singer has reached without ever selling a concert – never. As Ireland’s biggest ever solo artist with over 75 million albums sold, Enya is definitely a mystery.

Enya: A Life in Music

2001

Behind the camera

Chariots of Fire poster
6.8

In the class-obsessed and religiously divided UK of the early 1920s, two determined young runners train for the 1924 Paris Olympics. Eric Liddell, a devout Christian born to Scottish missionaries in China, sees running as part of his worship of God's glory and refuses to train or compete on the Sabbath. Harold Abrahams overcomes anti-Semitism and class bias, but neglects his beloved sweetheart in his single-minded quest.

Chariots of Fire

1981

Midnight Express poster
7.4

Billy Hayes is caught attempting to smuggle drugs out of a country. The courts decide to make an example of him, sentencing him to more than 30 years in prison. Hayes has two opportunities for release: the appeals made by his lawyer, his family, and the American government, or the "Midnight Express".

Midnight Express

1978

The Mission poster
7.4

When a Spanish Jesuit goes into the South American wilderness to build a mission in the hope of converting the Indians of the region, a slave hunter is converted and joins his mission. When Spain sells the colony to Portugal, they are forced to defend all they have built against the Portuguese aggressors.

The Mission

1986

The Killing Fields poster
7.5

New York Times reporter Sydney Schanberg is on assignment covering the Cambodian Civil War, with the help of local interpreter Dith Pran and American photojournalist Al Rockoff. When the U.S. Army pulls out amid escalating violence, Schanberg makes exit arrangements for Pran and his family. Pran, however, tells Schanberg he intends to stay in Cambodia to help cover the unfolding story — a decision he may regret as the Khmer Rouge rebels move in.

The Killing Fields

1984

Local Hero poster
6.8

An American oil company sends a man to Scotland to buy up an entire village where they want to build a refinery. But things don't go as expected.

Local Hero

1983

The Duellists poster
7.2

In 1800, as Napoleon Bonaparte rises to power in France, a rivalry erupts between Armand and Gabriel, two lieutenants in the French Army, over a perceived insult. For over a decade, they engage in a series of duels amidst larger conflicts, including the failed French invasion of Russia in 1812, and shifts in the political and social systems of Europe.

The Duellists

1977

Memphis Belle poster
6.7

The "Memphis Belle" is a World War II bomber, piloted by a young crew on dangerous bombing raids into Europe. The crew only have to make one more bombing raid before they have finished their duty and can go home. In the briefing before their last flight, the crew discover that the target for the day is Bremen.

Memphis Belle

1990

Being Human poster
5.1

One man must learn the meaning of courage across four lifetimes centuries apart.

Being Human

1994

Foxes poster
6.0

A group of friends come of age in the asphalt desert of the San Fernando Valley, as set to a blazing soundtrack and endless drinking, drugs and sex.

Foxes

1980

Melody poster
7.1

Two youngsters declare to their parents that they want to get married. Not sometime in the future but as soon as possible.

Melody

1971

Cal poster
5.8

Cal, a young man on the fringes of the IRA, falls in love with Marcella, a Catholic woman whose husband, a Protestant policeman, was killed one year earlier by the IRA.

Cal

1984

Forever Young poster
9.0

A lonely young boy idolizes his local priest. An old acquaintance of the priest shows up one day, and the boy learns that his idol isn't exactly what he seems to be--it turns out that many years before, the priest had betrayed his friend, and now his friend has come back for revenge.

Forever Young

1983

My Life So Far poster
5.4

A memoir of the lives of a family growing up on a post World War I British estate headed up by a strong disciplinarian, her daughter, her inventor husband, their ten year old son and his older sister. Through the household comes a number of suitors hoping to impress the young woman, including an aviator. When the elder woman's son shows up at the estate with his French fiancé, everything gets thrown into turmoil. The young boy takes a sudden interest in her sexual allure and his father is disturbed by his own non-Victorian feelings.

My Life So Far

1999

The Pied Piper poster
5.9

Greed, corruption, ignorance, and disease. Midsummer, 1349: the Black Death reaches northern Germany. Minstrels go to Hamelin for the Mayor's daughter's wedding to the Baron's son. He wants her dowry to pay his army while his father taxes the people to build a cathedral he thinks will save his soul. A local apothecary who's a Jew seeks a treatment for the plague; the priests charge him with witchcraft. One of the minstrels, who has soothed the Mayor's daughter with his music, promises to rid the town of rats for the fee. The Mayor agrees, then renigs. In the morning, the plague, the Jew's trial, and the Piper's revenge come at once.

The Pied Piper

1972

War of the Buttons poster
7.0

War between two Irish youth gangs consists of removing and retrieving buttons from each other's clothing.

War of the Buttons

1994

Lisztomania poster
5.8

In the 19th century, Romantic composer/pianist Franz Liszt tries to end his hedonistic ways but keeps getting sucked back in by his seductive fellow composer Richard Wagner.

Lisztomania

1975

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? poster
6.3

Period music, film clips and newsreel footage combined into a visual exploration of the American entertainment industry during the Great Depression.

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

1975

P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang poster
6.8

Summer, 1948. 14-year-old Alan has just three wishes: that there will be lasting peace, that England will win the Ashes, and that he will finally kiss classmate Ann. So when he's cast opposite her in a play that requires a kiss and England seem to be doing well in cricket, life couldn't be better.

P'tang, Yang, Kipperbang

1982

Meeting Venus poster
5.8

Celebrated Swedish opera star Karin Anderson is slated to appear in an internationally-telecast production of Tannhauser. Ms. Anderson balks at the notion of working with obscure Hungarian conductor Zoltan Szanto. The much-anticipated production may never get off the ground, thanks to labor-management difficulties, intramural jealousies, and clashing egos. Amidst all this chaos, the mismatched Anderson and Szanto fall in love.

Meeting Venus

1991

That'll Be The Day poster
6.5

Britain, 1958. Restless at school and bored with his life, Jim leaves home to take a series of low-level jobs at a seaside amusement park, where he discovers a world of cheap sex and petty crime. But when that world comes to a shockingly brutal end, Jim returns home. As the local music scene explodes, Jim must decide between a life of adult responsibility or a new phenomenon called rock & roll.

That'll Be The Day

1973

A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia poster
6.3

In 1919, the great English military man T. E. Lawrence tries to help Emir Feisal, ruler of Arabia, retain his political power during the Conference of Peace in Paris.

A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia

1992

Stardust poster
5.5

Jim MacLaine is now enjoying the nomadic 'gigs and groupies' life on tour with his band. When he achieves all his wildest dreams of international stardom, the sweet taste of success begins to turn sour.

Stardust

1974

The Confessional poster
6.0

Pierre Lamontagne has returned to Quebec to attend his father's funeral. He meets up with his adopted brother, Marc, who has begun questioning his identity and has embarked on a quest for his roots that would lead them to the Quebec of the 1950s. Past and present converge in a complex web of intrigue where the answer to the mystery lies.

The Confessional

1995

James Dean: The First American Teenager poster
7.5

Stacy Keach narrates this documentary that chronicles the abbreviated life and career of iconic brooding bad boy James Dean, from his obscure early days working in television to his rise to stardom in films such as Rebel Without a Cause. Clips from Dean's movies are intermingled with candid interviews with the star's friends and Hollywood colleagues, including Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Sammy Davis Jr. and Dennis Hopper.

James Dean: The First American Teenager

1975