Background
Kirk Jones grew up in Long Ashton, Bristol and attended Backwell Secondary School in the 1970s then going on to Newport Film School (formerly University of Wales, Newport now the University of South Wales) from 1985-1987, specializing in directing drama and television commercials.
Education
He graduated in 1987 after winning a National Student Film Award and started to work for a London-based production company as a production runner and later as assistant film editors
Career
Whilst working in the cutting room, he continued to write and direct his own films and, after collecting a Silver award at the Creative Circle for his Mercedes commercial in 1990, he was invited to join Xenium Productions as a director Kirk"s producer, Glynis Murray set up Tomboy Films in 1991 and he joined her soon after. at NABS in ‘94 and a Silver at the Creative Circle followed and Kirk continued to direct commercials for clients including The National Lottery, National Westminster Bank, Reebok, & Household Bank. Kirk was nominated for a British Academy of Film and Television Arts as ‘Best Newcomer’ in 1999 for his first feature film WAKING NED, which he both wrote and directed. These included: New York Comedy Film Festival for Best Feature, Grand Jury and Critics Prize for Best Feature at Comedy d"Alp in France and Audience Award for Best Feature at Paris Film Festival.
In 2005, Kirk directed his second feature film Nanny McPhee for Working Title and Universal Pictures.
Starring Emma Thompson and Colin Firth, it was a top ten highest grossing film in the United Kingdom with $30m and took $135m worldwide. In 2008, Kirk wrote and directed his third film Everybody"s Fine.
Starring Robert De Niro, Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell, it is an adaptation of an Italian film and was released through Miramax 2009 and Disney worldwide in 2010.