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Michele Bennett | |
---|---|
Born | Australia |
Occupation | Producer |
Years active | 1980s–present |
Partner | Michael Hutchence (1982–1987) |
Michele Bennett is an Australian film and television producer.[1][2][3] She has produced films such as Chopper (2000), The Magician (2005), Drift (2013), and Judy and Punch (2019). Bennett has also produced music videos for artists such as INXS, U2, Prince, Silverchair and Foo Fighters.
Career
editIn the early 1980s, Bennett had four jobs while she was studying at University in Melbourne, including a brief career as a model,[4] and then started working as a photographer's agent.[5]
In 1982, Bennett appeared on the music video for "The One Thing" by INXS, as one of the women at the banquet table.[6][7]
In the late 1980s, she started working with Australian filmmaker Richard Lowenstein on several music videos.[5] In 1989, Bennett produced the U2 documentary LoveTown, directed by Lowenstein.[1] Bennett produced several music videos for INXS such as "Suicide Blonde".[8]
Bennett also produced music videos for artists such as U2,[1] Prince,[1] Silverchair,[9] and Foo Fighters.[1]
In 1991, Bennett founded her own production company, Cherub Pictures.[9] The company has produced music videos, documentaries and television commercials.[9]
Bennett has produced films such as Andrew Dominik's Chopper (2000), Scott Ryan's The Magician (2005), Morgan O'Neill and Ben Nott's Drift (2013), and Mirrah Foulkes's Judy and Punch (2019).[1] In 2005, she produced the documentary Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man.[1][10]
From 2018 to 2021, Bennett produced the television series Mr Inbetween.[1]
In February 2019, Bennett was a member of the jury of the Tropfest in Sydney.[11]
In 2023, Bennett produced the television series NCIS: Sydney and Queen of Oz.[12][13]
Personal life
editBennett speaks Mandarin.[14]
From 1982 to 1987, Bennett was in a relationship with INXS lead singer Michael Hutchence.[15] They shared a flat in Paddington with New Zealand-Australian singer Jenny Morris, who was INXS's backing vocalist.[16] Bennett introduced Hutchence to Australian filmmaker Richard Lowenstein, who directed several music videos for INXS.[8] Bennett inspired the INXS hit song "Never Tear Us Apart".[17] According to Hutchence's sister, Tina, Bennett was the only woman he said he had considered marrying.[18] Lowenstein, who was close friends with Hutchence, also said that he believed that Bennett was the only woman that Hutchence would marry; "I always felt that, after everything, he'd go back and marry Michele and have a baby with her".[19]
Bennett and Hutchence remained close friends after the end of their relationship and she was described as his "closest friend and confidante".[19] Bennett was the last person that Hutchence called on the morning of his death, on 22 November 1997.[20] According to Bennett, Hutchence called her two times that morning; first he left a message in her answering machine, then he called her again at 9:54 am; he was crying, sounded upset, and told her he needed to see her. Bennett arrived at his hotel room door at about 10:40 am, but there was no response, so she wrote him a note and left it at reception. Hutchence's body was discovered by a hotel maid at 11:50 am.[21][22] His death was ruled as suicide while depressed and under the influence of alcohol and other drugs.[22]
Bennett refused to talk about her relationship with Hutchence publicly until the 2019 documentary Mystify: Michael Hutchence,[19][8] directed by Richard Lowenstein, a close friend of both Bennett and Hutchence's.[23]
In popular culture
editBennett was portrayed by actress Jane Harber in the 2014 Australian biographical miniseries INXS: Never Tear Us Apart.[24] Bennett claimed that the miniseries was not accurate and that she was not contacted by the filmmakers.[8]
Filmography
editProducer
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1989 | LoveTown | Richard Lowenstein | Documentary[1] |
1990 | INXS: Suicide Blonde | Music video[1] | |
1991 | INXS: By My Side | ||
INXS: Bitter Tears | |||
1992 | INXS: Welcome to Wherever You Are | Documentary | |
2000 | Chopper | Andrew Dominik | Feature film[25] |
2005 | The Magician | Scott Ryan | |
Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man | Lian Lunson | Documentary[1] | |
2006 | Magic Happens: The Story of 'The Magician' | Luke Doolan | |
2007 | September | Peter Carstairs | Consulting producer |
2009 | Apricot | Ben Briand | Short film[26] |
2013 | Drift | Ben Nott | Feature film[1] |
2019 | Judy and Punch | Mirrah Foulkes | |
2021 | Shark | Nash Edgerton | Short film[27] |
2023 | Queen of Oz | Christiaan Van Vuuren | Television series[13] |
Executive producer
Year | Title | Director | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2004 | It Takes Two to Tango | Luke Shanahan | Short film[28] |
2014 | The Mule | Tony Mahony and Angus Sampson | Feature film[29] |
2018–2021 | Mr Inbetween | Nash Edgerton | Television series[30] |
2023 | NCIS: Sydney | Shawn Seet, David Caesar, Kriv Stenders and Catherine Millar | Television series[12] |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Michele Bennett". FX Networks. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
- ^ "Michele Bennett". National Film and Sound Archive of Australia. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
- ^ George, Sandy (6 December 2013). "A producer's work is never done". SBS Australia.
- ^ Creswell, Toby (2017). Shine Like It Does: The Life of Michael Hutchence. Echo, Bonnier Publishing. pp. 47–48. ISBN 978-1760407360.
- ^ a b "The Magician (2005)". Australasian Cinema. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ "INXS - The One Thing (Official Music Video)". YouTube. 28 November 2012.
- ^ "The Lowdown – INXS". 107.1 Hank FM. 25 January 2023.
- ^ a b c d Adams, Cameron (7 August 2021). "What you didn't know about that notorious INXS concert". Herald Sun.
- ^ a b c "Director Julius Avery Joins Cherub Pictures". IF Magazine. 23 March 2010.
- ^ "Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man" (PDF). Berlinale.de. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
- ^ "Tropfest is back in Parramatta Park in 2019". Time Out. 23 October 2018.
- ^ a b Hailu, Selome (19 March 2024). "'NCIS Sydney' Renewed for Season 2 at CBS and Paramount+ Australia". Variety.
- ^ a b "Queen of Oz (2023)". Screen Australia. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
- ^ Creswell, Toby (2017). Shine Like It Does: The Life of Michael Hutchence. Echo, Bonnier Publishing. p. 47. ISBN 978-1760407360.
- ^ Hay, Carla (26 April 2019). "2019 Tribeca Film Festival movie review: 'Mystify - Michael Hutchence"". Culture Mix Online.
- ^ Bard, Ariela (8 June 2024). "Losing her voice, finding a cause: how Jenny Morris turned tragedy into triumph". The Australian.
- ^ Potton, Ed (18 October 2019). "'It's telling that on his last night Michael Hutchence was alone' — Mystify's director on his friend's death". The Times. Archived from the original on 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ Hutchence, Tina; Glassop, Patricia (2000). Just a Man: The Real Michael Hutchence. Macmillan Publishers. ISBN 9780330390194.
The only woman I have ever heard him say he would wed, is Michele Bennett.
- ^ a b c Milliken, Robert (5 April 1998). "The Death of a Rock Star". The Independent.
- ^ "Who knew what on night Michael Hutchence died". The Daily Telegraph. 28 March 2019.
- ^ "Michael Hutchence death explained: the Coroner's account in his own words". Herald Sun. 29 January 2014.
- ^ a b Hand, Derrick; Fife-Yeomans, Janet (2008) [2004]. The Coroner: Investigating Sudden Death. Sydney, NSW: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-0-7333-2221-1.
- ^ "A Conversation With Richard Lowenstein ("Mystify: Michael Hutchence")". Magnet Magazine. 30 January 2020.
- ^ Knox, David (6 February 2014). "A touchstone for Michael Hutchence". TV Tonight.
- ^ "Australian Film Productions, 1990–2019" (PDF). The Production Book. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
- ^ Darke, Brayden (10 November 2011). "Homebake 2011 – Film (& Performance) Line-up". Music Feeds.
- ^ "Shark (2021)". Screen Australia. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
- ^ "It Takes Two to Tango (2004)". Screen Australia. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
- ^ "The Mule (2014)". Screen Australia. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
- ^ "Mr Inbetween (2018)". Screen Australia. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
External links
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