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Oscar nominations a career high for Miller

Oscar nominations a career high for Miller

Oscar nominations a career high for Miller

George Miller paused for a few seconds and then laughed a little.
"Yes, I'd say that," the 70-year-old told AAP after news broke of a record 10 Oscar nominations for his film Mad Max: Fury Road.
Miller - receiving a deluge of congratulatory phone calls, texts and emails just before 1am on Friday as he sat in bed in his Sydney home - decided that moment was the highlight of his long, brilliant career.
It wasn't that he had just been told he had been honoured with directing and best picture Oscar nominations for Mad Max: Fury Road, his fourth instalment in the franchise.
Miller was more chuffed about the success of his crew.
Mad Max: Fury Road was nominated in 10 categories and Miller was particularly pleased with the Australian crew members who received the first Oscar nods of their careers.
A record 13 Australians who worked on Mad Max Fury: Road picked up nominations.
"To be honest, we were careful to temper our expectations because Mad Max: Fury Road is an atypical movie for the Oscars," Miller said.
Miller's wife, Margaret Sixel, was nominated for her editing and so was his old pal, 73-year-old cinematographer John Seale.
His longtime producing partner Doug Mitchell, who joined the Kennedy Miller production house more than 30 years ago, shared the best picture nomination.
The red carpet and pomp and ceremony of the 88th Academy Awards on February 28 will be a world away from the brutally hot, and subzero conditions they faced shooting the film in the desert in Namibia.
The Australian nominees include production designers Colin Gibson and Lisa Thompson; sound mixer Ben Osmo; sound editor David White; makeup and hairstyling Lesley Vanderwalt, Elka Wardega and Damian Martin; and visual effects Andrew Jackson and Dan Oliver.
"It's always great to get a prize, especially something so shiny, but it's terrific we've turned it into a team sport," Gibson told AAP.
For Miller to anoint this year's Oscar nominations as the highlight of his career is extraordinary considering his achievements over the past four decades.
He set out to become a doctor, studying medicine and in 1972 completed his residency at Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital.
During that period he made short films on the side and then shot to international stardom in 1979 with his feature directorial debut Mad Max, starring a fresh-faced Mel Gibson.
Miller then shook up Australian television in the 1980s with co-producer Byron Kennedy, making acclaimed mini-series including The Dismissal, Cowra Breakout, Bangkok Hilton and Vietnam and then carved a path through Hollywood with films including the double Oscar-nominated Lorenzo's Oil.
There was also the beloved Babe in 1995, it's 1998 sequel and his 2006 Oscar-winning animated feature Happy Feet.
Miller, sitting in bed when most of Australia was asleep, was a happy man.
"I thought, 'Gee, someone thought we did a good job'," Miller said in his understated style.
"It's a pat on the back."