John Charles worked for New Zealand television before moving to the Australian Broadcasting Commission in Sydney. He wrote the film music for The God Boy, Goodbye Pork Pie, Utu, The Quiet Earth and many others. In 1994 the CD of The Quiet Earth and the television film Iris won the Australian Guild of Screen Composers APRA Award for Best Soundtrack Album. Several other of his film and television scores have been nominated for awards.
 
Charles teaches at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School in Sydney, and plays jazz piano for the swing big band The Mellotones, and for other smaller groups.