Joffé began his career in television, his early credits including episodes of Coronation Street and an adaptation of The Stars Look Down for Granada.

After university, Joffé joined Granada Television as a trainee director in 1973, where he directed episodes of Coronation Street,[11][12] Sam,[12] The Stars Look Down,[12] Crown Court,[12] Bill Brand,[12] and Headmaster.

[12] Roland Joffé's first two feature films (The Killing Fields, 1984, and The Mission, 1986) each garnered him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director.

The Killing Fields detailed the friendship of two men, an American journalist for The New York Times, and his translator, a prisoner of the Khmer Rouge in Communist Cambodia.

It won three Academy Awards (for Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, and Best Film Editing) and was nominated for four more (including Best Picture and Best Director).

The Mission was a story of conflict between Jesuit missionaries in South America, who were trying to convert the Guaraní Indians, and the Portuguese and Spanish colonisers, who wanted to enslave the natives.

His 1995 adaptation of The Scarlet Letter was a critical and financial disaster, and his 2007 horror film Captivity drew controversy with its advertising billboards, widely regarded as exploitative and misogynistic.

"[19] In 2013 Joffé directed the internationally co-produced historical epic romance time travel adventure film, The Lovers.

He was the official patron of the 2011 Cambodia Volleyball World Cup held from 23 to 29 July at the National Olympic Stadium Phnom Penh.

[22] Roland Joffé lives on the island of Malta and is an active member of the team organising the Valletta Film Festival.