In this promotional short for the feature film Doctor Zhivago (1965), director David Lean explains why he chose the performers for the leading roles in the movie.
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Sir David Lean CBE (25 March 1908 – 16 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter and editor. Widely considered one of the most important figures in British cinema, he is best remembered for adapting the works of Charles Dickens and Noël Coward, and for his large scale period epics such as The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970), and A Passage to India (1984). Acclaimed and praised by directors such as Steven Spielberg and Stanley Kubrick, Lean was voted 9th greatest film director of all time in the British Film Institute Sight & Sound "Directors Top Directors" poll 2002. Nominated seven times for the Academy Award for Best Director, winning twice for The Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia, he has seven films in the British Film Institute's Top 100 British Films (with three of them being in the top five).
Omar Sharif (April 10, 1932 - July 10, 2015) was an Egyptian actor, generally regarded as one of his country's greatest male film stars. The son of a precious wood merchant, he grew up in a united Christian family of Syrian and Lebanese descent with his parents and his sister. Enrolled at Victoria College, a prestigious British school in Alexandria, the teenager studied science, and foreign languages, and would later discover theater classes. A brilliant student, he continued his studies at Cairo University where he obtained his diploma in mathematics and physics. He later converted to Islam. In 1962, he took on the role of Prince Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia under the direction of David Lean. This film, the first outside Egypt for the actor, marked the beginning of a long friendship with Peter O'Toole and a turning point in Omar Sharif's career. He won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and decided to leave his native country for Hollywood.
Geraldine Leigh Chaplin is an American actress. She is the daughter of Charlie Chaplin, the first of eight children with his fourth wife, Oona O'Neill. After beginnings in dance and modeling, she turned her attention to acting, and made her English-language acting debut (and came to prominence in what would be a Golden Globe-nominated role) in her portrayal of Tonya in David Lean's Doctor Zhivago (1965). She made her Broadway acting debut in Lillian Hellman's The Little Foxes in 1967, and played the role of ancient Egyptian Queen Nefertiti in Raúl Araiza's Nefertiti and Akhenaton (1973), alongside famous Egyptian actor Salah Zulfikar. Chaplin received her second Golden Globe nomination for Robert Altman's Nashville (1975). She received a BAFTA nomination for her role in Welcome to L. A. (1976). She played her grandmother Hannah Chaplin in the biopic Chaplin (1992), for which she received her third Golden Globe nomination. Chaplin has appeared in a wide variety of critically recognized Spanish and French films. She starred in Les Uns et les Autres (1981), Life Is a Bed of Roses (1983) and the Jacques Rivette experimental films Noroît (1976) and Love on the Ground (1984). She was the partner of director Carlos Saura for 12 years until 1979, starring in his films Ana and the Wolves (1973), Cría Cuervos (1976), Elisa, vida mía (1977), and Mamá cumple cien años (1979). She was awarded a Goya Award for her role in En la ciudad sin límites (2002), and was nominated again for The Orphanage (2007). Her contribution to Spanish cinema culminated in her being awarded the Gold Medal by the Spanish Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences in 2006.
Julie Frances Christie (born 14 April 1941) is a British actress. Born in British India to English parents, at the age of six Christie moved to England where she attended boarding school. In 1961, she began her acting career in a BBC television series, and the following year, she had her first major film role in a romantic comedy. In 1965, she became known to international audiences as the model "Diana Scott" in the film Darling. That same year she played the part of "Lara" in David Lean's Doctor Zhivago. A pop icon of the "swinging London" era of the 1960s, she has won the Academy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Screen Actors Guild Awards.
An English actor who came to prominence in the early 1960s with a succession of films including The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962), Billy Liar (1963), and Dr. Zhivago (1965). Since the mid-1960s he has been known primarily for his work in the theatre. Courtenay received a knighthood in February 2001 for forty years' service to cinema and theatre. Courtenay is the President of Hull City A.F.C.'s Official Supporters Club. In 1999, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Hull University. Description above from the Wikipedia article Tom Courtenay, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Siobhán McKenna (May 24, 1923 – November 16, 1986) was an Irish stage and screen actress. Description above from the Wikipedia article Siobhán McKenna, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Sir Ralph David Richardson (19 December 1902 – 10 October 1983) was an English actor, one of a group of theatrical knights of the mid-20th century who, though more closely associated with the stage, also appeared in several classic films. Richardson first became known for his work on stage in the 1930s. In the 1940s, together with Laurence Olivier, he ran the Old Vic company. He continued on stage and in films into the early 1980s and was especially praised for his comedic roles. In his later years he was celebrated for his theatre work with his old friend John Gielgud. Among his most famous roles were Peer Gynt, Falstaff, John Gabriel Borkman and Hirst in Pinter's No Man's Land. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ralph Richardson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Rita Tushingham (born 14 March 1942) is an English actress. She is known for her starring roles in films including A Taste of Honey (1961), The Leather Boys (1964), The Knack …and How to Get It (1965), Doctor Zhivago (1965), and Smashing Time (1967). For A Taste of Honey, she won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress, and Most Promising Newcomer at both the BAFTA Awards and Golden Globe Awards. Her other film appearances include An Awfully Big Adventure (1995), Under the Skin (1997), and Being Julia (2004). Description above from the Wikipedia article Rita Tushingham, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
