Bruce Smeaton (born 5 March 1938) is an Australian composer who is well known for a variety of Australian film and television scores in all genres, including features, shorts, television, documentaries and advertisements.[1] His scores include Picnic at Hanging Rock, Seven Little Australians, Roxanne, Iceman, and Circle of Iron. He has won the Australian Film Institute (AFI) Best Original Music Score award for The Cars That Ate Paris (1974), The Great Macarthy (1975), The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978) and Street Hero (1984, shared with Garth Porter and others).[2]

Bruce Smeaton
Born (1938-03-05) 5 March 1938 (age 86)
NationalityAustralian
OccupationComposer
Years active1973-present
Spouse(s)Helen Telford (former)
Mary Smeaton (current)
Children3

Biography

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Smeaton was born in Brighton, Victoria. His music has been championed by the Southern Cross Records and 1M1 Records labels.

In 1964, he spent time as a public school music teacher, at Fawkner Technical School (then an all-boys school) in the Moomba Park area of North Fawkner, a suburb of Melbourne. At the time he had a passionate interest in vintage cars which he would often bring to school.

His ground-breaking synthesized score for Wendy Cracked a Walnut was nominated for an ARIA Award in 1991 for Best Soundtrack / Cast / Show Album.[3]

He currently lives in Binalong, New South Wales. He has been married twice & has three adult children.

Filmography

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Documentaries

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  • Bush, Books and Breedens (1973)
  • My Brother Wartovo (1973)
  • Kangaroo Island (1974)
  • Pozieres (2000)

Feature films

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Short films

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  • The Clown and the Mindreader (n.d.)

Television shows

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Awards and nominations

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ARIA Music Awards

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The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony held by the Australian Recording Industry Association. They commenced in 1987.

Year Nominee / work Award Result Ref.
1991 Wendy Cracked a Walnut Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album Nominated [4]

References

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  1. ^ "Search Results for author:"Smeaton, Bruce, 1938-"". catalogue. National Library of Australia. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
  2. ^ "Australian Film Institute Feature Awards 1958–2002". Australian Film Institute. Archived from the original on 7 March 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
  3. ^ Isnare.com (www.isnare.com/encyclopedia/ARIA_Award_for_Best_Original_Soundtrack,_Cast_or_Show_Album)
  4. ^ ARIA Award previous winners. "History Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 12 July 2022.
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