Joanne Samuel

Last updated

Joanne Samuel
Born
Education Independent Theatre
Occupation(s)Film and television actress
Years active1973–present
Known for Mad Max (1979)
SpouseNick A'Hern
Children3

Joanne Samuel is an Australian film and television actress, who is best known for her role as Jessie Rockatansky, the screen wife of Mel Gibson's title character in the 1979 film Mad Max . [1]

Contents

Early life and education

Joanne Samuel was born in Camperdown, Sydney, Australia. She studied dance with Honeybrooks and drama at the Independent Theatre.[ citation needed ]

Career

Samuel made her screen debut in 1973, aged 16, in the ABC series Certain Women . [2] Samuel made guest appearances in police procedurals Matlock Police and Homicide . She was then a regular cast member in television soap operas Class of '74 [2] (playing Sue Taylor), [3] The Sullivans and The Young Doctors , playing a nurse in the latter. [2] Her character was written out of the The Young Doctors, when she was offered the Mad Max role after a fellow actress who had been due to take the role fell ill. [4] [5]

Samuel later returned to television in the regular role of Kelly Morgan-Young in Skyways .[ citation needed ]

Samuel's film credits include supernatural horror Alison's Birthday (1981), Ozploitation thriller Early Frost (1982), TV road movie Queen of the Road (1984), The Long Way Home (1985), action film Nightmaster (1987, opposite Nicole Kidman), TV film Gallagher's Travels (1987), and Spook (1988).

In the late 1980s she was a regular on sitcom Hey Dad..! [2] as Jeanette Taylor. She also guest starred in long-running medical series All Saints , and played Mrs. Bingle in The Wiggles Movie (1997). [6]

Samuel's more recent credits include Rake (opposite Richard Roxburgh), and the biographical miniseries' Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door and Brock (2016). [2] She then appeared as Doris Mercher in the 2017 family film My Pet Dinosaur , directed by Matt Drummond. [2] and 2018 biographical drama film Acute Misfortune , playing the magistrate who dealt with the central character of Cullen. [2] She played Therese in 2019 film Smoke Between Trees [7] and also featured in Louis Mandylor's 2021 comedy Christmas Down Under, playing the wife of John Jarratt's character. [2]

Samuel directed the web series Stinson Creek. [2] She then made her feature film directing debut with the teen adventure The Legend of the Five. [8] [9] In 2023, she directed the teen coming-of-age dance drama The Red Shoes: Next Step. [10]

Samuel is the vice chairman of BOOMPAA, Blue Mountains Performing Arts Association. Since 2013, she has taught theatre to young people aged from nine to 17 in the Blue Mountains, with the Three Sisters Youth Theatre. [2] [8]

Personal life

Samuel is married to director of photography Nick A'Hern, and together they run a production company, Jah Media. [2] She took a hiatus from acting to raise three children. [2] Her son Jesse is a producer and director, with whom she worked with on The Legend of the Five [8] [9] and The Red Shoes: Next Step. [10]

She has fond memories of her time working on Mad Max , and has kept in touch with Mel Gibson. [2] When Samuel discovered she had bowel cancer, Gibson offered to get her treatment in the U.S., but she declined, wanting the support of family and friends in Australia. [11]

Samuel supports the #MeToo movement after having been subject to harassment herself, in the 1970s. [2]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1979 Mad Max Jessie RockatanskyFeature film
1981 Alison's Birthday Alison FindlayFeature film
1982 Early Frost ChrisFeature film
1983 The City's Edge Prostitute 1Feature film
1984 Queen of the Road Rosy CostelloTV film
1985 The Long Way Home JulieTV film
1986 Gallagher's Travels SallyTV film
1988 Nightmaster (aka Watch The Shadows Dance)Sonia SpaneTV film
Spook Carole BradlyFeature film
1993 You and Me and Uncle Bob RosieFeature film
1997 The Wiggles Movie Mrs. Rosemary BingleFeature film
2008 Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! HerselfFeature film documentary
2017 My Pet Dinosaur Doris MercherFeature film
2018 Acute Misfortune MagistrateFeature film
2019 Smoke Between Trees ThereseFeature film
The Greatest of TheseNanFilm short
2021Christmas Down UnderBarbara ParkerFeature film
2023What About SalAliceFeature film

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1973; 1974 Matlock Police Jenny / Cathy Phillips2 episodes
1974 Class of '74 Sue Taylor2 episodes
Homicide Lynn FisherEpisode: I Keep Going Back to Be Certain
The Box Mr. Baker's daughterEpisode #1.6
1975 Shannon's Mob Felicity MaitlandEpisode: Trip to Nowhere
1975–1976 Certain Women Caroline Stone29 episodes
1976 The Sullivans Cynthia Cavanaugh1 episode
1976–1978 The Young Doctors Jill Gordon255 episodes
1978 Case for the Defence AmyEpisode: Second Time Around
1979 Cop Shop Maureen Hamilton / Kenneth Willis2 episodes
1979–1980 Skyways Kelly Morgan Young136 episodes
1981 Ratbags Various characters12 episodes
1986 Five Times Dizzy Chris Brooking12 episodes
1988–1990 Hey Dad..! Jeanette Taylor7 episodes
1997 Fallen Angels Helen BaderWpisode: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes
2001 All Saints Ingrid ClementsEpisode: Skeletons in the Closet
2006 Where Are They Now? Guest1 episode
2008Not Quite Hollywood: Deleted and Extended ScenesHerselfVideo
2014 Rake NurseEpisode #3.7
2015 Peter Allen: Not the Boy Next Door Bev MoulsonMiniseries, 2 episodes
Mad Max: Cast and Crew InterviewsSelfVideo
The Madness of MaxSelfFilm documentary
2016 Brock Louise KraftMiniseries, 2 episodes
2018Stinson CreekLegal AidWeb series, episode: "The Witness"
2019Kapow!Self1 episode
2022Mad Max Fans: Beyond the WastelandSelfFilm documentary

References

  1. "Mad Max: Joanne Samuel as Jessie". NFSA .
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Joanne Samuel set to make her feature directing debut". IF Magazine . 30 January 2018.
  3. "Ambitious Oz fantasy adventure falls short of its high-concept vision (includes interview with director Joanne Samuel)". www.jimschembri.com. 24 September 2020.
  4. Rayner, Jonathan; Rayner, Jonathan R. (2000). Contemporary Australian Cinema: An Introduction. Manchester University Press. ISBN   978-0-7190-5327-6.
  5. freddyinspace (27 February 2015). "Full Details on Scream Factory's Ass-Kicking Mad Max Collector's Edition Blu-ray". Dread Central . Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  6. "The Red Shoes: Next Step review – corny ballet-themed drama can bust a move". The Guardian . 22 August 2023.
  7. "Damion Hunter epitomises the struggles of the journeyman actor". IF Magazine . 3 June 2019.
  8. 1 2 3 "Theatre credits". Screen-Space. 7 July 2020.
  9. 1 2 "The Magic Behind the Legend of the Five". FilmInk . 7 July 2020.
  10. 1 2 "New teen drama 'The Red Shoes: Next Step' begins production". www.dancemagazine.com.au.
  11. "Meet Jo Samuel: Mel Gibson's On-Screen Wife". www.hope1032.com.au. 7 December 2015.