Karl Francis (born 1 April 1942) is a Welsh film and television director, producer and screenwriter, associated with left-wing political causes. His work is inspired by the likes of Chris Marker and Ken Loach and has included output in both the English and Welsh languages.
Francis was born in Bedwas in South Wales. He won a scholarship which allowed him to study at Manchester University where he gained his BA in 1964. He then attended Hornsey College of Art to study for a post-graduate diploma on Film in Education. He began his media career in television in 1971, first as an independent invetigator, before taking a production post with ITV, working on Weekend World for London Weekend Television. In 1973 he switched to the BBC and produced programmes such as 2nd House.
In 1977 he wrote, produced and directed the docu-drama Above us the Earth. The film, shot in the spring and summer of 1975, records the closure of the Ogilvie colliery in the Rhymney Valley and the effect on the miners and the larger community. The film uses professional and amateur actors to show the relationships between workers, unions and the National Coal Board, along with footage of the political leaders of the
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