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Phil Grabsky

Phil Grabsky is a British film-maker based in Brighton, East Sussex. With his company Seventh Art Productions, Phil produces award-winning documentaries for television and cinema.

Phil’s work such as I Caesar, Spain - In the Shadow on the Sun, The Great Commanders and the Tim Marlow on strand has been broadcast on various U.K channels such as BBC, Channel 4, Five and Sky Arts and internationally around the world.

Phil’s film The Boy who Plays on the Buddhas of Bamiyan was released in cinemas in 2003 and tells the story of 8-year-old Mir and his family living in post-Taliban Afghanistan. The film has been shown across the globe and won 13 awards including the Gold Hugo in Chicago for Best Film and first prize at the Valladolid International Film Festival. Phil is continuing to film Mir and his family in Afghanistan.

2006 saw the completion of In Search of Mozart. The film illustrates the life and work of the composer through interviews and live performance. The film premiered at London’s Barbican concert hall. Subsequently it has gone on to become one of the top 100 grossing documentaries in Australia.

Heavy Water: A Film for Chernobyl (2006) explores the Chernobyl nuclear disaster through Mario Petrucci’s poetry. Phil worked in conjunction with director David Bickerstaff for this project which went on to win Best Short Documentary at the Cinequest International Film Festival.

Escape from Luanda (2007) is Phil’s latest offering and tells the tale of three students at Angola’s only music school working towards their end of year concert. In January, It appeared on Film 2008 with Jonathan Ross and was watched by MPs at the Houses of Parliament. In Search of Beethoven will be Phil’s next feature, focusing on the life and work of the German composer. It is set to be released in late 2008.

In addition to making films, Phil has released four books and often serves as a judge for various awards including BAFTA, Emmys, RTS and the One World awards.

Feature Documentaries

In Search of Beethoven (2009)
Escape from Luanda (2007)
Heavy Water: A Film for Chernobyl (2006)
In Search of Mozart (2006)
The Boy who Plays on the Buddhas of Bamiyan (2003)
Muhammad Ali – Through the Eyes of the World (2001)

Selected TV Programmes

Series

Judgement Day: Images of Heaven and Hell (2004)
Great Artists with Tim Marlow (2003)
The Impressionists (1998)
I, Caesar – The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire (1997)
The Great Commanders (1993)
Spain – In the Shadow of the Sun (1990)

One-offs

Tim Marlow On..Highlights of the New Tate Modern (2006)
The Hidden History of Rome – with Terry Jones (2001)
The Hidden History of Egypt – with Terry Jones (2001)
Brazil – An Inconvenient History (2000)
The Lost Temple of Java (1999)

Publications

The Great Artists: From Giotto to Turner by Phil Grabsky & Tim Marlow (2002)
The Lost Temple of Java by Phil Grabsky (1999)
I, Caesar: Ruling the Roman Empire by Phil Grabsky (1997)
The Great Commanders: Alexander, Caesar, Nelson, Napoleon, Grant and Zhukov by Phil Grabsky (1995)