Gareth Evans | |
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Evans in 2012
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Born | 1980 (age 36–37) Hirwaun, Cynon Valley, Wales |
Alma mater | University of Glamorgan |
Occupation | Film director, screenwriter, film editor, action choreographer |
Years active | 2003–present |
Spouse(s) | Maya Barrack-Evans |
Children | 1 |
Gareth Huw Evans (born 1980) is a Welsh film director, screenwriter, film editor and action choreographer.
He is best known for bringing the Indonesian martial art pencak silat into world cinema through his films Merantau, The Raid, and The Raid 2.
Evans was born and raised in Hirwaun, Cynon Valley. He graduated from the University of Glamorgan (now the University of South Wales) with an MA in screenwriting, and made his living by helping people learn Welsh over the internet.
After directing a small-budget film called Footsteps, Evans was hired as a freelance director for a documentary about the Indonesian martial art pencak silat. He became fascinated with it, and discovered Indonesian martial artist Iko Uwais, who was working as a deliveryman for a phone company. Evans cast Uwais in his 2009 film Merantau, which became a cult hit. He planned to produce a larger action film, but scaled the production budget down and created an action film called The Raid (2011). After the success of The Raid, the larger action film eventually became the basis for its sequel, The Raid 2: Berandal (2014).
In late 2016 Evans started working on his next film, Apostle, which will star Dan Stevens. The director confirmed on his Instagram that filming will begin on April 3, 2017.
Evans is 6'7" (2.01m) tall. He lived in Jakarta with his wife, Maya, and their daughter, Sophie, until the family moved back to Wales in 2015.
He is also good friends with documentary director Joshua Oppenheimer, as Josh has given thanks to him for his award nominated documentaries of Indonesian life.