Gerald Fox

Gerald Fox is a director, producer and artist. He has directed numerous arts documentary films and programs which were broadcast in the UK, South Africa and the US. Fox accolades include a BAFTA Award, Grierson Award, Prix Italia, RTS, Golden Prague and Gold Hugo. His moving image artworks have been showcased in solo and group exhibitions across a variety of galleries and museums, including Zabludowicz 176 Gallery, The Edinburgh International Festival and Hix Art.

Fox is known for his documentaries exploring the lives and works of contemporary artists, musicians, film directors, writers, and dancers. He has worked on various platforms, from ITV's The South Bank Show. Sky Arts, BBC and Channel 4 and even theatrically for Curzon, Picturehouse, and UK & US independent cinemas His work has also been featured in art museums, including The Tate, Royal AcademyThe Met, MOMA, National Gallery of Art (Washington), Uffizi and Centre Pompidou Gerald's notable documentaries have covered an array of subjects, including Gilbert and George (BAFTA), Claes Oldenburg Christian Boltanski, Gerhard Richter and Janine Jansen (Golden Prague). In recognition of his contributions to the art of documentary filmmaking, he was awarded a Lifetime Tribute by FIFA Montreal in 2014 and was given a retrospective season of his films at the National Portrait Gallery in 2012 Gerald is a philanthropist and has served as BFI Member Governor from 2018 to 2022. He won the Inyathelo Award for International Philanthropy in South Africa in 2012 along with his sister Jacqueline Fox.

Fox was born on 14 July 1963 in South Africa. He was educated in Oxford where he directed a short film based on Samuel Johnson's story, 'The Fountains.' After completing his studies, Gerry set out to travel the world, creating a captivating film titled 'Man in 6 Movements'.

In 1989, Gerald Fox began his career with the arts program, The South Bank Show.

1989–2009

He had produced his first piece on the concert pianist, John Ogdon In 1992, he created and edited his own program for younger viewers called Opening Shot, it won awards such as the Chicago International Film Festival and New York Festival World Medal awards.

One of the documentaries Fox co-directed for the series, Opening shot: Out of the Dump was about destitute child photographers living on a rubbish dump in Guatemala City. This film was a success, winning both the Adult Jury Award and Children's Jury Award for Best Documentary at The Chicago International Children's Film Festival in 1994. In 1993, he made a film about the influential French contemporary artist Christian Boltanski, showcasing his work and exploring the relationship between individual experience and milestones in history. In the same year he directed and produced a documentary film called Sitkovetsky Gerald wrote, produced, and directed Johnny and the Dead, a drama series for LWT productions in 1995. In the same year, Fox produced a documentary on the Swedish-American pop sculptor Claes Oldenburg. The film offered a glimpse into Oldenburg's artistic world, showcasing his unique installations featuring oversized replicas of everyday objects.

Fox's two-part documentary, The Fundamental Gilbert and George was released in 1996/7. The film chronicles the life and works of the artist duo, Gilbert Prousch and George Passmore, with their formal appearance and manner, performance art, and photo-based works. The Fundamental Gilbert and George went on to win multiple awards, including BAFTA, The Royal Television Society for Best Arts Film (1997).

In 1999, Fox directed a TV Program documentary called the Thomas Ades: Music for the 21st Century based on composer Thomas Ades In the same year, he directed documentary where Melvyn Bragg interviews Warren Beatty. He directed a documentary film based on the impact on AIDS in the Sub - Saharan Africa in 2001 known as Together we can: South Africa's Youth against AIDS

In 2004, Fox directed a documentary called "Leaving Home, Coming Home: A Portrait of Robert Frank" based on the life of Robert Frank the film captures Frank reflecting on a lifetime of image making that produced The Americans. The film premiered at Rotterdam and TriBeCa Film Festivals. It won the Grierson Award for Best Arts Documentary, the RTS Best Arts Film, and The Grand Prize at FIFA, Montréal It was released theatrically across the United States in 2019 just before Frank died.

In 2006, Fox made a film titled George Michael: I'm Your Man, which captured the singer's journey back to touring on the "25 Live" tour. The following year, Gerald directed documentary for the South Bank Show series titled Marianne Faithful: A Life in Song

Flim and television programs after 2010

In 2011 Fox directed and produced Mother's Milk. it was based on the novel by Edward St Aubyn it starred Adrian Dunbar, Jack Davenport and Margaret Tyzack. It won eight awards at Monaco International Film Festival including Best Film.

In the year 2012, Fox, in collaboration with producer Jacqueline Fox, he created a film titled Mandela: The World That Made Him for SABC 2. it depicts the Mandela's childhood activities, such as sliding down a smooth rock on a hill and learning the art of stick fighting, a local form of martial arts

In the year 2014, he directed a documentary "Marc Quinn Life support" based on the artist Marc Quinn

In 2017, Fox made a documentary "Bill Viola: The Road to St. Paul's." This film showcases the life and work of Bill Viola, a video artist of influence, and his wife and collaborator Kira Perov, as they navigate a twelve-year journey to create two permanent video installations, Mary and Martyrs, in London's iconic St. Paul's Cathedral Meanwhile, in 2018, Fox worked on a new project, "Force of Nature Natalia," a year-long portrait of the dancer Natalia Osipova. Co-presented by Asterisk Films, Bird and Carrot, It offers access to Osipova's personal archive, In the year 2019, he took on the task of directing the documentary "Burning Man: Art on Fire" which was released in 2020. This film tells the tale of the art pieces that take center stage in the annual celebration of Burning Man. It showcases the journey of the artists who brave the Nevada desert to bring their massive installations and sculptures to life. The documentary captures the struggles and challenges that the community of artists faced during the event, especially in the wake of the sudden demise of the founder of Burning Man, Larry Harvey In the year 2020, Gerald directed another documentary titled "Janine Jansen: Falling for Stradivari" which was released in 2021 The documentary won the Czech Television Award at the Golden Prague Awards 2021 and was nominated for the Official Selection for the 40th FIFA

Gerald Fox is a filmmaker and show runner who has produced documentaries. His films and TV Programs have been shown in the UK on ITV's South Bank Show, Channel 4, BBC 1, and Sky Arts.

Flim

Television

Fox is also a film artist who has done work on moving image and multi-screen film installations. In 2008, Fox exhibited his first collection at the 176 The Zabludowicz Collection Gallery in Camden, London. titled Living London. In that same year, Fox also created Favela Descending, a six-screen installation presented at the Concrete and Glass Festival in Shoreditch, London. This installation takes viewers on a journey through Favela Minera, one of the most violent slums in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil accompanied by music by Ned Bigham, the visions created by Favela Descending provide a unique experience of life in a Rio slum In 2009, Fox show the city of Venice through his cinematic multi-screen installation titled "Venice in Venice", which was showcased at Palazzo Dona during the Venice Biennale. The artwork portrayed the daily life, rituals, and traditions of the city, capturing its essence in a colorful and edgy display of colliding and contrasting images. In 2010, Fox showcased his first solo exhibition at Eleven Fine Art in London, titled Venetian Impressions. The exhibition featured a series of video works inspired by 19th-century paintings of Venice, including works by artists such as Manet, Monet, and Renoir, all featuring gondolas in the city's canals In 2017, Fox exhibited "Legacies: JMW Turner and Contemporary Art Practices" at New Art Gallery in Walsall, Birmingham. The exhibition was a group showcase that explored the influence of British artist, J.M.W Turner on contemporary art.he also exhibited "The Eternal Idol," a four-screen piece of Rodin's sculpture was employed by two live models.