Philippe Mora (b. 1949), filmmaker, artist and writer, is the eldest son of artist Mirka Mora and restauranteur and gallery owner Georges Mora. Born in Paris, Philippe grew up in Melbourne and made his first film when he was fifteen. After making several short films he moved to London in 1967 and contributed cartoons to OZ magazine, assisting Martin Sharp with the 'Magic Theatre' edition. He was also a successful painter, regularly exhibiting work in London, and his illustrations were included in The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics. Mora's first feature-length film, Trouble in Molopolis (1970), financed by artist Arthur Boyd and musician Eric Clapton, included Sharp, Germaine Greer and Jenny Kee, with music by the Easybeats. He moved back to Australia in the mid-1970s and co-founded Cinema Papers, a leading film magazine. In 1976, Mora's film Mad Dog Morgan, starring Dennis Hopper, Jack Thompson, David Gulpilil and Bill Hunter, was the first Australian film to get a wide cinema release in the US. After moving to Los Angeles, he made the monster movie, The Beast Within (1982), and the werewolf movies Howling II (1985) and Howling III (1986). In 1996, Mora made the world's first Internet movie, Richard III, predicting the rise of online content. He shared stories from his Melbourne childhood in his 2013 film Absolutely Modern, while his 2016 documentary Three Days in Auschwitz recounted his family's experience of the Holocaust. Mora has also written for publications including Art Monthly Australia and the Sydney Morning Herald. His paintings are represented in many private and public collections.
