Personal Info
Birth date
1936-12-01 (88 Years)
Gender
Female
Known for
Acting
Place of birth
Gladstone, Queensland, Austrailia
Also known as
-Melissa Jaffer
Biography
Melissa Jaffer (born December 1, 1936) is an Australian actress. She is best known for her television roles, but has also appeared in many Australian films. Jaffer has made many appearances in television series, including Kings, Mother and Son, G. P., Brides of Christ, Grass Roots and All Saints. Jaffer is probably best known to international audiences for her role as aging mystic Utu-Noranti Pralatong in the science fiction series Farscape. In 1976, Jaffer tied for the first AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role opposite Jacki Weaver for her performance in Caddie. In 1980 she played the part of Cousin Edie in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's children's television series The Nargun and the Stars. In the 2015 film Mad Max: Fury Road she played the role of "Keeper of the Seeds". The short film Dear Life is her latest project.
Filmography
Farscape
7.88
Overview:
A freak accident during an experimental space mission catapults Astronaut John Crichton across a thousand galaxies to an alien battlefield.E Street
6
Overview:
An Australian television soap opera, set in a tough fictional inner-city district called Westside. The stories revolve around the local community there. Created by Forrest Redlich and produced by Network Ten from 24 January 1989 to 13 May 1993.Mad Max: Fury Road
7.627
Overview:
An apocalyptic story set in the furthest reaches of our planet, in a stark desert landscape where humanity is broken, and most everyone is crazed fighting for the necessities of life. Within this world exist two rebels on the run who just might be able to restore order.Police Rescue
6.4
Overview:
Police Rescue was an Australian television series The series dealt with the New South Wales Police Rescue Squad based in Sydney and their work attending to various incidents from road accidents to train crashes.All Saints
6.2
Overview:
Medical drama focusing on the working and personal lives of the doctors and nurses working on the front line of a busy inner city Emergency Department at All Saints Hospital.Sally Marshall Is Not an Alien
NYR
Overview:
A young girl obsessed with watching the heavens bets her telescope with the local bully that their oddly acting new neighbours are not aliens from outer space.The Lost World
7.15
Overview:
Early 20th-century adventurers find themselves fighting for survival after their hot-air balloon crashes into a remote part of the Amazon, stranding them on a prehistoric plateau.Three Thousand Years of Longing
6.888
Overview:
A solitary scholar discovers an ancient bottle while on a trip to Istanbul and unleashes a djinn who offers her three wishes. Filled with reluctance, she is unable to come up with one, so the djinn tries to inspire her with his stories.Komodo
5.156
Overview:
During the 70's, some Komodo Dragon eggs were dumped on an North Carolina island. Somehow, the baby Komodos survived, and twenty years later they have grown up and taken over the island for themselves. Young Patrick has lost his parents and his dog to the lizards, but didn't see them himself, which has left him traumatized. Now, with his therapist Victoria, they return to confront his fears.Starstruck
5.6
Overview:
A Sydney teen tries to make it as a rock singer, with help from her odd 14-year-old cousin.The Coolangatta Gold
5
Overview:
Steve Lucas is a nineteen year old who is filled with the burning resentment of being forced to live in his brother's shadow. His brother Adam, is burdened by his father's desire for glory, and must win The Coolangatta Gold Tri-Aquathon, It is the greatest endurance test of them all: a marathon involving a 20 kilometer beach run, 6 kilometer swim and a 17 kilometer surf ski from Surfers Paradise along the golden arc of beach to Coolangatta and back to the start. The Coolangatta Gold is a story of human endeavor and endurance against overwhelming odds.The Distant Home
5
Overview:
Government authorities incarcerate a girl whose extraterrestrial origin is discovered after an accident with a car.The Cars That Ate Paris
5.5
Overview:
The small town of Paris, Australia deliberately causes car accidents, then sells/salvages all valuables from the wrecks as a means of economy.Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars
7.759
Overview:
When a full-scale war is engaged by the evil Scarran Empire, the Peacekeeper Alliance has but one hope: reassemble human astronaut John Crichton.Caddie
5.8
Overview:
Proud and classy Caddie Marsh is forced to get a job as a barmaid and raise two children on her own after her husband walks out on her.Strangers
NYR
Overview:
When aged-care facility workers find two residents in bed together, familial tensions rise.My Mother Frank
4
Overview:
When a meddlesome mother enrolls in university with her son, old and new worlds collide with awesome consequences.The Farm
NYR
Overview:
After the death of his father, Tom Cooper want to modernise the family farm, and borrows a lot of money. When disaster strikes, the loan cannot be repaid.Brides of Christ
7
Overview:
Diane, a young woman growing up in Australia in the mid 1960s, walks away from her fiancé to join a convent after being sure she has a calling to the faith. The Catholic Church and its followers are struggling with huge changes. The Pope has died, there is war in Vietnam and mandatory conscription, there is the Vatican controversy on abortion and contraception, and the changing face of the Church as a whole. Told in six parts, Diane faces her own demons and has to finally decide if she can teach what the Church preaches, or if it's simply impossible for her to reconcile all the contradictions of the faith and uphold her vow of obedience.Grass Roots
NYR
Overview:
Grass Roots is an Australian television series produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation between 2000 and 2003. The series is set around the fictional Arcadia Waters Council near Sydney, and was primarily a satirical look at the machinations of local government. It was written by Geoffrey Atherden. Part of the series was filmed in the inner west Sydney suburb of Concord. Many external shots of Arcadia waters Council chambers used Concord Council Chambers as a setting and as was other various locations around Concord, particularly in the shopping centre and cafes in Majors Bay Road. Beach scenes were filmed at Mona Vale, New South Wales on Sydney's northern beaches, while the location "Cemetery Point" was filmed at the Mona Vale headland reserve.Snobs
7.8
Overview:
Snobs is a 2003 Australian TV series by Southern Star Group broadcast on the Nine Network. The series is set in Eden Beach, a fictional town in Sydney's northern beaches and follows the story of a community of travelers known as "The Ferals" who decide to set up camp in the town, despite protest and anger from residents.Land of Hope
NYR
Overview:
Land of Hope is a 1986 mini series about a Catholic family over eighty years.Molly
NYR
Overview:
After Dan collapses at a train station, he enlists Maxie to watch his beloved dog, Molly. Maxie develops a soft spot for her new furry companion - a dog which has a unique ability to sing in tune.Ride a Wild Pony
6
Overview:
Scott, a poor farm boy, is given a wild pony from a wealthy ranch owner's herd to ride to and from school. Scott and his pony soon become an inseparable team, until one day the pony suddenly disappears. Soon after, the ranch owner's handicapped daughter Josie has a wild pony especially trained to pull her cart. But Scott is convinced that Josie's pony is actually his, which leads to a court battle that divides their small Australian town. One child must ultimately lose the pony when true ownership is decided.Singles
NYR
Overview:
Singles is a 1984 Australian television mini series about Sydney doctor Alison advertises in a singles magazine and meets five different men, the serial looked at a different date each episode.BlackJack
7
Overview:
Jack Kempson started out as an idealistic cop. Thirty years on, he remains relentless in tracking down villains, but has lost confidence in his moral barometer. He turns a blind eye to the dubious methods employed by some of his contemporaries — prepared to let dodgy means be justified by the noble end.The Delinquents
5.096
Overview:
A small town in Australia, in the late 1950s: Brownie and Lola are deeply in love. But because they are under-age, their parents are against their relationship and try to separate them.Kindred
NYR
Overview:
Penny is in her mid-twenties. For years she has suffered from the sexual assaults of her father, who is now beginning to take an interest in her younger sister. She tries to convince her mother and sister of her situation as an incest victim, but they just ignore her. The father tries to keep his secret by isolating Penny, but eventually she is old enough and confident enough to break free, though not without the emotional scars of years of abuse.Do I Have to Kill My Child?
NYR
Overview:
A disturbing drama about a young mother who physically abuses her baby. Feeling overwhelmed and aware that she's not coping after the birth of her third child, she sends desperate cries for help. But her mother, husband, neighbour and clinic sister do not recognise the seriousness of the situation until the baby ends up in hospital with a fractured skull. A heart-wrenching film that illustrates the experiences of many women who suffer from post-natal depression.Acting
TBAOut Of Love (1 Episode) as Unknown
2022Three Thousand Years of Longing as Clementine
2019Strangers as Unknown
2015Mad Max: Fury Road as Keeper of the Seeds
2004Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars (2 Episodes) as Utu-Noranti Pralatong
2003Snobs (26 Episodes) as Gwen
2003BlackJack as Helen Kirsten
2000My Mother Frank as Sister Sebastian
2000Grass Roots (7 Episodes) as Fran Smith
2000The Farm as Helen Cooper
1999Komodo as Patrick's Grandmother
1999Sally Marshall Is Not an Alien as Granny Marshall
1999The Lost World (1 Episode) as Crazy Old Woman
1999Farscape (1, 1, 23 Episode) as Nilaam, Female Pilot, Noranti
1998All Saints (7 Episodes) as Eileen Sullivan
1992The Distant Home as Mrs. Webster
1992You and Me and Uncle Bob as Sylvie
1991Brides of Christ (1 Episode) as Sister Attracta
1991Police Rescue (1 Episode) as Gwen
1989The Delinquents as Aunt Westbury
1989E Street (4 Episodes) as Queenie
1987The Harp in the South (3 Episodes) as Miss Sheily
1986Land of Hope (10 Episodes) as Unknown
1984The Coolangatta Gold as Ballet Teacher
1984Singles (5 Episodes) as Gloria
1983Molly as Aunt Jenny
1983Kindred as Shirley
1982Starstruck as Mrs. Booth
1978Weekend of Shadows as Vi
1976Do I Have to Kill My Child? as Mrs. Hammond
1976Caddie as Leslie
1975Ride a Wild Pony as Mrs. Pirie
1974The Cars That Ate Paris as Beth