David Lean David Lean Sir David Lean (25 March 190816 April 1991) was an English film director, producer, screenwriter and editor, responsible for large-scale epics such as "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957), "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962), "Doctor Zhivago" (1965) and "A Passage to India" (1984). He also directed adaptations of Charles Dickens novels "Great Expectations" (1946) and "Oliver Twist" (1948), and the romantic drama "Brief Encounter" (1945). Originally a film editor in the early 1930s, Lean made his directorial debut with 1942's "In Which We Serve", which was the first of four collaborations with Noël Coward. Beginning with "Summertime" in
A Passage to India (play) 1 as a part of the "Play of the Month" series. In 1981, David Lean was able to gain the rights to make a feature-film production of the play. Filmed in 1983, and released in 1984, from a script almost entirely re-written by Lean, the film received positive reception from critics. The film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture. The film won two awards. Peggy Ashcroft won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Mrs. Moore, and Judy Davis was nominated for Lead Actress. The film also won for Best Original Score. A