Acting Career
Thornton quickly gained numerous roles in Melbourne and Sydney, where the majority of stage and television work took place at this time. In 1977, she made her film debut in a minor role as Wendy in the modern Australian film, The FJ Holden directed by Michael Thornhill, and in the same year as Maria in the film adaptation of Henry Handel Richardson's colonial Australian novel, The Getting of Wisdom (1977) directed by Bruce Beresford. In 1978, Thornton displayed her versatility as a performer appearing in the Australian television sequel of the British comedy series Father, Dear Father in Australia alongside original cast member Patrick Cargill, as Sue Glover. The same year she played Angela in the film Snapshot directed by Simon Wincer in which she appeared topless and for which role she was nominated for Australian Film Awards Best Actress in a Feature Film in 1979.
A year later she appeared as Roslyn Coulson, a young woman imprisoned for shooting her mother's killer, in the long running Australian television drama Prisoner (known overseas as Prisoner: Cell Block H). Thornton starred in 1981 in Duet for Four. 1982 saw her take on the roles of Jessica Harrison in the films The Man from Snowy River and its sequel The Man from Snowy River II. 1983 marked an appearance in Street Hero. She starred in 1983's miniseries All the Rivers Run. 1986 saw her in The Lighthorsemen (film), the TV adaptation of Nevil Shute's novel The Far Country, Great Expectations, the Untold Story and Slate, Wyn & Me.
From 1988 to 1991 she appeared as bank manager Amelia Lawson in the American television drama series Paradise. Syndication of All the Rivers Run and The Man from Snowy River brought her to a wider international audience.
In 1991 she starred in Over the Hill directed by George T. Miller and in 1996, Love in Ambush directed by Carl Shultz. Her leading role as Laura Joy Gibson in the more modern Australian television series SeaChange from 1998 to 2000 brought her greater Australian audience appeal, and for which she won the Most Outstanding Actress award in 1999 and 2000.
Read more about this topic: Sigrid Thornton
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