RaymondThompson
- Writer
- Producer
Raymond Thompson, MNZM, created and supervised a run of television shows after setting up base in New Zealand in the mid 1990s. The longtime head of production company Cloud 9 first began selling scripts in his native England. Thompson's series The Tribe, set in a world without adults, became a cult international hit, running for five seasons plus a sequel. His shows have sold to more than 130 countries.
Screenography
Biography
Born in the northwest English town of Redditch and raised in varied locales, Raymond Thompson grew up fascinated by a great many things. School was not among them. Often he was at the local music shop or library instead of class.
By the time he left school at 15, Thompson was playing in a number of bands, sometimes clad in his Beatles-style jacket. Classic Who song 'My Generation' inspired one of his very first stories, set in a world with no adults. Words and lyrics proved "seductive and inspiring" to him, but they also felt frightening and hard to analyse. Thompson suspected that having undiagnosed Asperger's Syndrome may have played a part. When it came to music, he was a natural. After his family relocated to Canada, he was even invited to join a new, Monkees style Television pop group. A strike by the local writers guild meant that the show never screened.
Awards
2003 Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit
For Services to Television and Entertainment
“I think Cloud 9's success is testament to the great diversity of talent which exists in New Zealand. I've always viewed it as a sort of Hollywood of tomorrow. It's a great joy for me to see so many people who got their start at Cloud 9 doing so well, and to know that in our own humble way we provided much needed bread and butter work for the creative community.”