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Stewart Raffill

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Stewart Raffill
Raffill in 2014.
Born (1942-01-27) 27 January 1942 (age 82)
Kettering, Northamptonshire, England, United Kingdom
Occupation(s)Writer, director
Notable work
SpouseDiane Kirman (1993)
ChildrenMaria Walker (1978)
Relatives
  • Paul Walker V (1994) (grandchild)
  • Angela Walker (2008) (grandchild)

Stewart Raffill is a British writer and director.[1]

Biography

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Raffill was born in England and grew up near Stratford before immigrating to the US and working in the motion picture industry. His writing and directing work in film and TV spans several genres including science fiction, family, comedy and drama.[2]

Film

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Raffill made his feature debut as director with The Tender Warrior, starring Dan Haggerty and sold to Warner Brothers. It was filmed on location in Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia.[3]

He sold his next script, Napoleon and Samantha, to Disney. Raffill also worked on the film as a producer. The film starred Jodie Foster and Michael Douglas.

He wrote and directed When the North Wind Blows.

Raffill wrote and directed The Adventures of the Wilderness Family with Robert Logan, leading to two sequels.[4]

He followed it with two films with Logan, Across the Great Divide and The Sea Gypsies.

Raffill wrote and directed High Risk, shot in Mexico, starring James Brolin which he later described as a personal favorite.[3] The film got him the job of writing and directing The Ice Pirates, made for John Forman and David Begelman at MGM.[5]

Raffill directed and did uncredited writing on The Philadelphia Experiment that won Best Science Fiction Film at the Rome Film Festival.[6]

Raffill directed and wrote Mac and Me, made to provide royalties to the McDonald's Foundation and starred Jade Calegory, who had spina bifida. The film is frequently cited as one of the worst ever made, but it later attained cult status and was re-released in 2019.[2][7]

Begelmen hired Raffill to direct Mannequin Two: On the Move. Raffill wrote the original screenplay for Passenger 57.[8]

Raffill wrote and directed Lost in Africa made for the Tusk charity. He also wrote and directed Tammy and the T-Rex, which was re-released in 2019 and was the official selection for the Fantastic Fest and premiered at Beyond Fest. It starred Paul Walker, Denise Richards and Terry Kiser.

Other credits include A Month of Sundays, starring Rod Steiger, Sal Sapienza and Dee Wallace Stone; Survival Island, starring Billy Zane and Juan Pablo DiPace; Mysterious; and the family musical Standing Ovation.

Television

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He moved into directing for TV with The New Adventures of Robin Hood and the TV movie The New Swiss Family Robinson with Jane Seymour and David Carradine, which he also wrote. He directed Grizzly Falls that won the Heartland Award and starred Bryan Brown.

Raffill directed episodes of Pensacola: Wings of Gold and 18 Wheels of Justice, and the TV movie Croc (2007).

Filmography

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Year Film Director Screenwriter Notes
1971 The Tender Warrior Yes Yes Starring Dan Haggerty.[9]
1972 Napoleon and Samantha No Yes Starring Michael Douglas and Jodie Foster. Produced by Disney Studios.
National Association of Theatre Owners Movie of the Month
1974 Snow Tigers (aka When the North Wind Blows) Yes Yes Distributed by NBC
1975 The Adventures of the Wilderness Family Yes Yes
1976 Across the Great Divide Yes Yes Winner - Outstanding Merit Award - So. California Motion Picture Council
1978 The Sea Gypsies Yes Yes Winner - Film Advisory Board Award of Excellence
1981 High Risk Yes No
1984 The Philadelphia Experiment Yes No Winner - Best Science Fiction Rome International Film Festival
Fantafestival Award for Best Film
The Ice Pirates Yes Yes
1988 Mac and Me Yes Yes Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director (Tied with Blake Edwards of Sunset)
Nominated—Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay (with Steve Feke)
1991 Mannequin Two: On the Move Yes No
1992 Passenger 57 No Yes #1 at the box office on opening weekend (boxofficemojo.com)
1994 Tammy and the T-Rex Yes Yes
Lost in Africa Yes Yes
1998 The New Swiss Family Robinson Yes Yes Premiered on ABC's The Wonderful World of Disney
1999 Grizzly Falls Yes No Award of Excellence Winner - Heartland Film Festival
Marco Island Film Festival - Audience Winner[10]
Golden Reel Award Nominee
2001 A Month of Sundays Yes No Winner - Feature Film Award for Best Actor - Rod Steiger - 2001 New York International Independent Film and Video Festival
Winner - Best of the Festival - Feature Film - Stewart Raffil - 2002 Atlantic City Film Festival
2002 While You Were Waiting Yes No Winner - Silver Award for Dramatic Short Atlantic City Film Festival
2006 Survival Island Yes Yes
2007 Croc Yes No Telemovie - Aired on Sci Fi Channel
Sirens of the Caribbean Yes Yes Shot on location in the Bahamas
2010 Standing Ovation Yes Yes Official Selection - May Film Festival 2011

TV credits

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Year Show Episode
1999–2000 Pensacola: Wings of Gold Episodes: True Stories, A Wing and a Prayer, Cuba Libre, Busted
2000–2001 18 Wheels of Justice Episodes: Two Eyes for an Eye, Through a Glass, Darkly, A Place Called Defiance, Hot Cars, Fast Women, Dance with the Devil

References

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  1. ^ "Stewart Raffill". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2008. Archived from the original on 21 January 2008.
  2. ^ a b "EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Stewart Raffill, director of TAMMY AND THE T-REX, MAC & ME and THE ICE PIRATES". Bristol Bad Film Club. 12 May 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Interview with Stewart Raffill Part 2". Slashfilm. 15 July 2016.
  4. ^ Roughing It for Togetherness Gross, Linda. Los Angeles Times 23 December 1976: f10.
  5. ^ Taylor, Tadhg (2015). Masters of the Shoot-'Em-Up: Conversations with Directors, Actors and Writers of Vintage Action Movies and Television Shows. McFarland. pp. 38–43. ISBN 9781476620985.
  6. ^ "Interview with Stewart Raffill Part 3". Slashfilm. 15 July 2016.
  7. ^ Patches, Matt (3 April 2017). "How the Hell McDonald's Bizarre 'E.T.' Knockoff Got Made". Thrillist.
  8. ^ DRESSED FOR SUCCESS: AMONG THE ESPRESSO MAKERS AND PATIO FURNITURE OF WANAMAKERS IN CENTER CITY, A MANNEQUIN HAS COME TO LIFE AGAIN. WHAT'S SHE DOING? WHY, MAKING A MOVIE, OF COURSE. Rea, Steven. Philadelphia Inquirer16 June 1990: D.1.
  9. ^ "The Tender Warrior (1971) - Stewart Raffill | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie".
  10. ^ "Cindy Bond | the Dove Foundation". Archived from the original on 11 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
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