John Safran is an Australian documentary maker and media personality, well-known for pranks and indelicate handling of controversial issues. He is known for his outlandish stunts such as rummaging through Australian television personality Ray Martin's rubbish in John Safran: Media Tycoon (an early pilot for a TV series), placing a temporary fatwa on the life of Rove McManus and sneaking nine young men into an exclusive Melbourne nightclub by disguising them as members of American nu-metal band Slipknot. John also won four AFI awards for this comedy documentary series John Safran's Music Jamboree and John Safran vs God.
Safran spent portions of 2007 in Los Angeles shooting a pilot entitled John Safran Saves America for American MTV in which he tried to convince emos to fight in Iraq, hit the couch with therapists who claim they can cure people of racism, and attempted to become gay to increase his standing in Hollywood. Safran stated in an interview that he hasn't heard back from the production company Reveille Productions whether the program has been purchased for production or not but as the months go on, "the answer isn't getting any yesser".
In 2009 John Safran's Race Relations, an eight part comedy documentary television series, was picked up by the ABC. As part of this series, on 10 April 2009, John Safran took part in a devotional crucifixion, an annual event occurring on Good Friday in the Philippines. Safran was crucified in Barangay Kapitangan, Paombong, Bulacan, just outside of Manila along with three other men and one woman. He had nails driven through his hands and feet and hung on the cross for five minutes before being taken down and given medical treatment in a nearby tent set up for treatment.
In 2010 John Safran's Race Relations was nominated for a Logie Award in the category of Light Entertainment.
