Aussie filmmaker, screenwriter, and novelist, Shirley Barrett met her untimely demise on August 3 at the age of 61 following her five-year-long cancer battle.
The Australian entertainment industry mourns the unbearable loss of such a gem who contributed to writing influential novels and directed award-winning films throughout her career as a filmmaker and writer.
After her daughter, Emmeline Norris confirmed the death of her mother, Aussie celebrities who had a chance to work with her started paying tributes with appreciation posts all over social media.
Mischievous and utterly unique personality, Shirley died in peace on Wednesday morning at 8 am during her sleep. She left the world with her family surrounding her as she took her final breath.
Shirley Barret Died of Metastatic Breast Cancer
Yes, Shirley Barrett had metastatic breast cancer. In 2017, the filmmaker was diagnosed with cancer. Ever since, she’d been fighting the battle until August 3, 2022, when she dies in her sleep at her residence in Sydney.
Breast cancer is among the second most common death in Women in the United States among which metastatic breast cancer causes more death as it is difficult to cure. However, metastatic breast cancer is not terminal, at least in Shirley’s case. It is estimated that only 29% of total diagnosed women make it to five years. Shirley suffered from a horrendous illness and survived five years of continuous chemotherapy, while still writing her novel ‘The Bus on Thursday’. The great Aussie pride will forever be missed in the entertainment world.
Late Shirley Barret’s Early Life & Career
Love Serenade’s director celebrated her birthday on January 1st every year since her birth in 1961. Grew up in Melbourne with her siblings, sister Karen and two brothers, Graham and Andrew; Shirley was a sickly child and often home-schooled.
At the age of 20 in 1981, Shirley got enrolled at the University of Melbourne where she met the love of her life, Chris Norris. With whom she stayed together until her last breath. Chris and his late wife were blessed with two daughters, Emmeline Norris and Sabrina Norris.
At the age of 24, Shirley moved to Sydney from her hometown to attend the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in 1985. The novelist earned her certifications honing her expertise in filmmaking and screenwriting from AFTRS.
The Sydney native directed and wrote her short film ‘Cherith’ as a final year project for AFTRS which won her Australian Film Institute award for Best Short Fiction Film.
Her Debut Feature Film Won Camera d’Or At Cannes
Melbourne-native rose to fame and gained recognition as a filmmaker and screenwriter after her debut feature film ‘Love Serenade’ won the Camera d’Or at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. Along with that, she also won the Best New Director award at Valladolid International Film Festival the same year for Love Serenade.
Shirley’s debut success led her to Los Angeles, California where she wines and dine with Warren Beatty, a well-known American motion-picture actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer. Her phenomenal talent in the film industry Hollywood was courting her with offers but turned down the offers to pursue her career in her own country.
After her successful debut, Shirley went on to write and direct two more feature films, a comedy Walk the Talk in 2000 and a romantic drama South Solitary in 2010. Her South Solitary was a notable drama film that won several awards in 2010 for Best Script including Queensland Premier Prize, West Australian Premier’s Literary Prize, and West Australian Premiers Prize.
Shirley Barret & Her Television Direction
Before her third feature film South Solitary, Shirley directed numerous episodes for the television series ‘Love My Way’ which won the Australian Film Institute award for Best Television Direction. Barret’s debut television series direction was Boys from the Bush in 1991. After that, she continued to showcase her talent year after year directing numerous series.
A Country Practice (1992-93), Heartbreak High (1994), Police Rescue (1995), Packed to the Rafters (2011), Offspring (2010-13), Wild Boys (2011), House Husbands (2012), Mr. & Mrs. Murder (2013), Love Child (2014), Winter (2015), A Place to Call Home (2015-16), and finally FIve Bedrooms in 2021. Her contributions to Aussie film and entertainment are indisputable. Shirley is indeed an irreplaceable gem of Australian literature, film, and television.
Late Shirley Barret Was Also A Novelist
A well-respected Australian television director and screenwriter was also a novelist. Like all her film and television, accolades weren’t enough, Shirley went on to publish her first novel ‘Rush Oh!’ in 2015. Her novel was based on a true story that took place around 1908 during the harshest whaling season in New South Wales. Shirley was researching whaling season in that period to make a film project.
However, due to the lack of funding for the project, she decided to work it as a fiction novel. Her debut ‘Rush Oh!’ received numerous accolades as it was shortlisted for the 2016 Indie Awards for Best Debut Fiction, Nita May Dobbie Literary Award, and long-listed for the 2016 Baileys Women’s Price.
After she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in 2017, Shirley felt a strong desire and need to write her second and last novel. ‘The Bus on Thursdays’, is a wacky novel about a woman in her thirties who found out about her breast cancer as she leads her life onward.