Tilda Swinton

The 28-minute video art piece is based on a 13th-century Icelandic Laxdæla Saga, and it tells a mythological story of a young woman whose dreams tell of the future.

Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress.

Known for her roles in independent films and blockbusters, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for three Golden Globe Awards.

Katherine Matilda Swinton was born on 5 November 1960 in London, the daughter of Judith Balfour (née Killen; 1929–2012) and Sir John Swinton (1925–2018), the Laird of Kimmerghame House.

She has three brothers.

In 1983, Swinton graduated from New Hall at the University of Cambridge with a degree in social and political sciences.

While at Cambridge, she joined the Communist Party; she later joined the Scottish Socialist Party.

It was in college that Swinton began performing on stage.

Swinton joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1984, appearing in Measure for Measure.

Swinton began her career by appearing in Derek Jarman's experimental films Caravaggio (1986), The Last of England (1988), War Requiem (1989), and The Garden (1990).

On television, she appeared as Julia in the 1986 mini-series Zastrozzi: A Romance based on the Gothic novel by Percy Bysshe Shelley.

Her first film was Caravaggio in 1986, directed by Derek Jarman.

She also worked with the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh, starring in Mann ist Mann by Manfred Karge in 1987.

In 1987, Swinton starred along Bill Paterson in Peter Wollen's Friendship's Death, she played a female extraterrestrial robot on a peace mission to Earth.

Swinton went on to star in several Jarman films, including The Last of England (1987), War Requiem (1989) opposite Laurence Olivier, and Edward II (1991), for which she won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the 1991 Venice Film Festival.

In 1988, Swinton was a member of the jury at the 38th Berlin International Film Festival.

Her father was a retired major-general in the British Army, and was Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire from 1989 to 2000.

Her mother was Australian.

Her paternal great-grandfather was a Scottish politician and herald, George Swinton, and her maternal great-great-grandfather was the Scottish botanist John Hutton Balfour.

The Swinton family is an ancient Anglo-Scots family that can trace its lineage to the Middle Ages.

Swinton considers herself "first and foremost" a Scot.

Swinton attended three independent schools: Queen's Gate School in London, the West Heath Girls' School, and also Fettes College for a brief period.

West Heath was a boarding school, where she was a classmate and friend of Lady Diana Spencer, the future Princess of Wales.

As an adult, Swinton has spoken out against boarding schools, stating that West Heath was "a very lonely and isolating environment" and that she thinks boarding schools "are a very cruel setting in which to grow up and I don't feel children benefit from that type of education. Children need their parents and the love parents can provide."

Swinton spent two years as a volunteer in South Africa and Kenya before university.

She performed in the performance art piece Volcano Saga by Joan Jonas in 1989.

Swinton won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival for her portrayal of Isabella of France in Edward II (1991).

She next starred in Sally Potter's Orlando (1992), for which she was nominated for the European Film Award for Best Actress.

She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her performance in The Deep End (2001), followed with appearances in Vanilla Sky (2001) and Adaptation (2002).

For the film Young Adam (2003), Swinton won the British Academy Scotland Award for Best Actress.

Prior to this, she appeared in the film Constantine (2005), and subsequently had roles in Julia (2008) and I Am Love (2009).

Swinton gained wider recognition for her portrayals as the White Witch in The Chronicles of Narnia series (2005–2010) and the Ancient One in the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise.

In 2006, Swinton was awarded an honorary degree by the Edinburgh Napier University for her services to performing arts.

She was awarded the Richard Harris Award by the British Independent Film Awards in recognition of her contributions to the British film industry.

Swinton's performance in Michael Clayton (2007) won her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.

She gained acclaim for her performance in Lynne Ramsay's psychological thriller We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) for which she received a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

She is also known for her roles in the Wes Anderson films Moonrise Kingdom (2012), The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), Isle of Dogs (2018), The French Dispatch (2021), and Asteroid City (2023).

In 2013, she was given a special tribute by the Museum of Modern Art.

In 2020, The New York Times ranked her as one of the greatest actors of the 21st century.

In 2020, Swinton was awarded the British Film Institute Fellowship for her "daringly eclectic and striking talents as a performer and filmmaker and recognises her great contribution to film culture, independent film exhibition and philanthropy."