Vale: George T. Miller

Director George T. Miller, who helmed The Man From Snowy River, has died aged 79.

The Age reports he died of a heart attack on Friday in Melbourne.

The Scottish-born director, not to be confused with Mad Max director George Miller, got his start in television in 1966 working for Crawford Productions.

“They trained you to do everything, they’d throw you in at the deep end to see if you sank or swam,” he said. “I was one of the ones who swam – you wouldn’t get that training anywhere now.”

Early TV credits included Ryan, Cash and Company, Division 4, The Box, Matlock Police, followed by The Sullivans, Bluey, Against the Wind, Young Ramsey, Bellamy, All the Rivers Run, The Last Outlaw and Anzacs.

But it was box office bonanza The Man From Snowy River which grossed $17.2 million domestically that opened the door to Hollywood.

International films would include The Aviator, The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter, Frozen Assets, Andre, Zeus and Roxanne, Robinson Crusoe and a string of telemovies.

Other Australian films included Gross Misconduct, Les Patterson Saves the World, Bushfire Moon, Cool Change,

Sigrid Thornton, who worked with Miller on five projects, said on social media, “A dynamic collaborator with a crazy sense of humour, you told Australian stories through film and television and they will continue to inspire for many years to come. Vale George T Miller.”

Miller’s final film was Natalie Bassingthwaighte thriller Prey in 2009. After a dispute with producers, he demanded his name be removed.