| Jon Sen | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jon Sen 9 October 1974 Bradford, England |
| Occupation | Writer/Director TV and Film |
| Years active | 2000–present |
Jon Sen is a British television and film director and writer born in Bradford in 1974.
Sen attended Bradford Grammar School between the 1984 and 1992. He read Political Philosophy at Trinity College, Cambridge and graduated in 1995. After training at ARTTS International in Bubwith, East Riding of Yorkshire, he became an accomplished documentary editor between 1996 and 2000, editing landmark British documentary series including Secret History, Witness and The Real...
In 2000, Sen was awarded his first BBC drama commission to write and direct The Love Doctor. His second low budget television film, a short called Reignited was made for Channel 4's Coming Up strand and met with critical success. In 2003, BAFTA award-winning producer Catherine Wearing employed Sen to direct Channel 4's £2 million flagship drama Second Generation starring Parminder Nagra. Despite being a ratings flop, the drama was critically acclaimed. Nagra won an EMMA for her lead performance and the programme was named in the Observer's top ten television of 2003.
Sen continued to direct other big-budget dramas including Frances Tuesday starring Tamzin Outhwaite and the popular Newcastle police drama, 55 Degrees North (BBC1) starring Don Gilet and Dervla Kirwan. Frances Tuesday was a huge and much needed success for ITV. It was the highest rated single drama of 2004 and went on to sell in over 43 countries worldwide, cementing Outhwaite’s place as one of the most popular faces on British TV.
In May 2006, Sen completed Stan for BBC 4 about the final meeting between Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, starring Father Ted star Jim Norton.
As a writer, his work includes 4.4.68, a radio play about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. (part of the Sony Award winning 1968 season), an adaptation of the Thomas Hardy novel Two on A Tower and Vanunu: A Time To Be Heard a drama about the controversial interview between Mordechai Vanunu and journalist Peter Hounam.
Sen has also written for both TV and film and is an occasional contributor to newspapers and magazines, including The Independent and The Times of India.
He lives in South London.