Roland Joffé

Roland Joffé was born on 17 November 1945 in London, England, to a family of French and Jewish origin, and his early upbringing was shaped by the artistic influences of his extended family, including portraits by Jacob Epstein and the Garman family. He attended the Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle and the historic Carmel College, a European Jewish boarding school, before completing his studies at the University of Manchester where he cultivated a passion for storytelling and political drama. After university he entered Granada Television as a trainee director in 1973, quickly earning assignments on iconic series such as Coronation Street and The Stars Look Down, and establishing a reputation for hard‑hitting, socially conscious narratives. In the late 1970s he broke into the BBC’s Play for Today series, directing award‑winning pieces like The Spongers—which won the Prix Italia—despite initially being flagged as a “security risk” for his brief involvement with Workers’ Revolutionary Party meetings. His transition to cinema was marked by two critically acclaimed epics: The Killing Fields (1984) and The Mission (1986), both earning him Academy Award nominations for Best Director, with The Mission also receiving the Palme d’Or at Cannes and multiple Oscar nods, including a win for Best Cinematography. These films demonstrated his ability to blend historical depth with humanist themes, using lush visuals and powerful scores to convey universal moral questions.

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s Joffé explored a range of genres, from the controversial Super Mario Bros. (1993) to the ill‑fated adaptation of The Scarlet Letter (1995) and the horror‑driven Captivity (2007), the latter sparking debate over its marketing tactics. In 2011 he released There Be Dragons, a film reflecting his personal interest in faith and forgiveness, which he described as a project of deep emotional investment. Recent work includes the historically infused romance The Lovers (2013) and executive producing Blood on the Crown (2021). Beyond filmmaking, Joffé has served on the board of Operation USA, acted as patron of the 2011 Cambodia Volleyball World Cup, and resides in Malta where he contributes to the Valletta Film Festival. He describes himself as a “wobbly agnostic,” balancing a reflective spiritual outlook with a lifelong commitment to socially resonant storytelling.