Strictly Ballroom

Strictly Ballroom
Australian theatrical release poster
Directed byBaz Luhrmann
Screenplay by
Based onStrictly Ballroom
by Baz Luhrmann
Produced by
Starring
CinematographySteve Mason
Edited byJill Bilcock
Music byDavid Hirschfelder
Production
companies
  • M&A Productions
  • Ronin Films
Distributed byRonin Films
Release dates
  • 20 August 1992 (1992-08-20) (Australia)
  • 12 February 1993 (1993-02-12) (United States)
Running time
94 minutes
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish
BudgetAUD 3 million
Box officeAUD 80 million[1]

Strictly Ballroom is a 1992 Australian romantic comedy film directed and co-written by Baz Luhrmann in his feature directorial debut. The film is the first in his Red Curtain Trilogy of theatre-motif-related films; it was followed by 1996's Romeo + Juliet and 2001's Moulin Rouge![2]

Strictly Ballroom is based on a critically acclaimed stage play, originally set up in 1984 by Luhrmann and fellow students during his studies at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Sydney. An expanded version of the play became a success at the Czechoslovakian Youth Drama Festival in Bratislava in 1986. In 1988, it had a successful season at Sydney's Wharf Theatre, where it was seen by Australian music executive Ted Albert and his wife Antoinette. They both loved it, and, when Albert, soon after, set up the film production company M&A Productions with ex-Film Australia producer Tristram Miall, they offered Luhrmann their plan to transform his play into a film.[3] He agreed on the condition that he would also get to direct it.[4]

  1. ^ "Subscribe". Theaustralian.com.au. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
  2. ^ http://www.screensoundjournal.org/issues/n4/06.%20SSJ%20n4%20Coyle.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  3. ^ Albert, Jane (2010). House Of Hits: The Great Untold Story Of Australia's First Family Of Music. Richmond, Australia: Hardie Grant Books. pp. 316–331. ISBN 978-1740668811.
  4. ^ Strictly Ballroom The Musical: Timeline Archived 10 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine Linked 2014-07-10