As a director, Michael wears a variety of directing hats and his work uniquely spans from TV to Broadway to film – and now, with Tinsel’s Town, to digital media as well.

THE “FATHER OF THE MUSIC VIDEO”:

For the pivotal role he played in establishing the visual language the genre, Michael has become known as “The Father of the Music Video”, for helming the first videos for The Beatles (including REVOLUTION), The Rolling Stones, Elton John, and The Who.

He also directed the Beatles documentary LET IT BE (recently remade by Peter Jackson as “Get Back), Whitney Houston’s first music video “You Give Good Love”, and was the award-winning director of GRACELAND with Paul Simon. With this intense interest in music, it’s not surprising that Michael has also signed on to direct Tinsel’s Town’s very musical sequel, THE LULLABY LEAGUE.

To watch Peter Jackson talk with Anderson Cooper about video for “Get Back” shot by Michael, click here:

A UNIQUE DIRECTOR:

Michael’s work is not confined to music or to video. He’s one of just a handful of directors who’ve successfully managed to move skillfully amongst various media, often nominated and awarded for his groundbreaking efforts in television, stage and feature films. And now, with “Tinsel’s Town”, digital media as well.

STAGE:

At a time when HIV and AIDS were stigmatized everywhere, including on the New York stage, Michael stepped forward to direct the original groundbreaking production of Larry Kramer's THE NORMAL HEART at Joe Papp's Public Theatre. The play was later remade by Ryan Murphy.

On Broadway Michael earned a Tony nomination as Best Director for WHOSE LIFE IS IT ANYWAY the same year his mother, Geraldine Fitzgerald (one of only a few women directors in theater) was nominated for the same award for her play, MASS APPEAL. Michael’s Broadway production of AGNES OF GOD with Geraldine Page won a Tony Award for Amanda Plummer and won critical praise for Michael as well as incredible reviews.

FILM:

The New York Film Festival premiered his film THE ROLLING STONES ROCK AND ROLL CIRCUS as a (sold out) Special Event. The film, long thought lost, has recently been rediscovered and will soon be getting a theatrical release, according to an LA Times article.

Michael’s other credits include SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE screenwriter Tom Stoppard's only original television play, PROFESSIONAL FOUL and Graham Greene's DR FISHER OF GENEVA. He also directed RUNNING MATES with Diane Keaton and ED Harris for HBO, and wrote/directed THE OBJECT OF BEAUTY, starring John Malkovich and Andie Mc Dowell, which won Best Director and Best Film at the Cairo International Film Festival. His film FRANKIE STARLIGHT with Anne Parillaud, Gabriel Byrne and Matt Dillon was voted by Jeffrey Lyons and Siskel and Ebert as one of their Top 10 pictures of the year while his film GUY with Vincent D'Onofrio was named one of the year’s Ten Best by LA WEEKLY.

TV:

Michael got his start and forged a name for himself directing the groundbreaking musical TV series “Ready, Steady, Go!”. Named by the British Film Institute as one of the best British television programs of all time, it also wound up being a showcase for Michael’s groundbreaking experimentation with new camera angles and techniques.Most notably (and perhaps most famously), Michael directed BRIDESHEAD REVISITED (3 of his 5 BAFTA nominations or wins), a worldwide phenomenon that is widely considered the cultural precursor to DOWNTON ABBEY.

His film of WAITING FOR GODOT was part of the Beckett series, which won the award for Best TV Drama on the prestigious British arts program THE SOUTH BANK SHOW.

VISUAL ARTIST:

Michael is also an accomplished visual artist. His oil paintings and drawings have had solo shows in New York, London, Austin and Los Angeles. His artwork, can be viewed on his website here. He has written a best-selling memoire: “Luck and Circumstance”, described by its New York Times Review as “a practically Shakespearean drama … Epic love, mistaken identities, letters revealing secrets — they’re all here.“. He is also a contributing editor at “Vanity Fair”.

To see Michael’s work from “Cassanova’s Dream”, a recent art show in Paris, click here.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Michael has also signed up and signed on to direct the “Tinsel’s Town” sequel, “The Lullaby League”, as comedy/drama about a group of veteran Hollywood actresses whose already sidelined lives are further upended when a petulant reality star is sentenced to perform community service in their retirement home. That reality TV star is, of course, Tinsel.

For more on “The Lullaby League”, click here.