Born in Thailand, raised in Hong Kong and transplanted to London, Anand Tucker made his mark as a documentary filmmaker before switching to biopics, which allowed him some flights of fancy in the presentation of nonfiction material. Having worked with producers Andy Paterson and Nicolas Kent, as well as composer Barrington Pheloung, on his three documentaries airing on American television, he added screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce and director of photographer David Johnson to his creative team for the films that followed. Though his reach extended his grasp on "Saint-Ex" (1996), a curiously uninvolving look at French aviator-novelist Antoine de Saint-Exupery (despite striking visuals and a valiant attempt to shake up the genre), the director scored with the compelling "Hilary and Jackie" (1998), the story of sibling rivalry and love between virtuoso cellist Jacqueline du Pre and her sister Hilary.