Terence Davies, Esteemed British Director of ‘Distant Voices, Still Lives,’ Dies at 77

variety.com:

Michaela Zee Terence Davies, the British filmmaker known for “Distant Voices, Still Lives,” “The Deep Blue Sea” and “The Long Day Closes,” has died.

He was 77. The news of Davies’ death was shared on his official Instagram page: “It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of Terence Davies, who died peacefully at home after a short illness, today on 7th October 2023.” Davies was admired for his period films as well as his early autobiographical trilogy about growing up in Liverpool. “Being in the past makes me feel safe because I understand that world,” he told the Guardian in 2022.

Though his films were widely recognized for their sensitive depictions of gay life, Catholicism and other frequent themes, they didn’t amass a huge number of awards, which he considered in his typically philosophical way. “It would have been nice to be acknowledged by Bafta.

Again, there’s also part of me that thinks: isn’t it just vanity? If a film lives every time it’s seen, that’s the real reward,” he told the Guardian. “I think I’ve achieved what I set out to do.” Born to a large Catholic family in Liverpool, Davies left school at 16 and worked for 10 years as a clerk before attending Coventry Drama School.