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John Seale

Camera

Born October 5, 1942 · Warwick, Queensland, Australia

Biography

John Clement Seale AM ACS ASC (born 5 October 1942) is an Australian cinematographer. He has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and an American Society of Cinematographers Award. Seale started his career collaborating with director Peter Weir as both a camera operator and director of photography, gaining a reputation as one of Australia's leading cinematographers. He then earned international prominence working with directors such as Anthony Minghella, Wolfgang Petersen, Ron Howard, Sydney Pollack, and George Miller. Seale received the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for The English Patient (1996). He was also Oscar-nominated for Witness (1985), Rain Man (1988), Cold Mountain (2003), and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). Seale's other work includes the films Children of a Lesser God (1986), Dead Poets Society (1989), The Firm (1993), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001). Seale was born in Warwick, Queensland, Australia, to Marjorie Lyndon (née Pool) and Eric Clement Seale. He received Oscar nominations for his work on Witness, Rain Man, and Cold Mountain and won for The English Patient. Seale directed one film, Till There Was You, in 1990. He is a four-time Oscar nominee, five-time BAFTA nominee, and four-time ASC Award nominee. His greatest commercial successes have been Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which grossed US$974 million; Rain Man, which grossed US$354 million; Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, which grossed US$335 million; The Perfect Storm, which grossed US$328 million; and The Tourist, which grossed US$278 million. He came out of retirement in 2012 to shoot Mad Max: Fury Road, for which he received another Academy Award nomination. Seale was appointed a member of the Order of Australia in the 2002 Australia Day Honours in recognition of his "service to the arts as an Australian and internationally acclaimed cinematographer." Description above from the Wikipedia article John Seale, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Awards & recognition

  • Member of the Order of Australia · 2014
  • Academy AwardBest Cinematography · 1997
  • BAFTA AwardBest Cinematography · 1997
  • European Film AwardBest Cinematographer · 1997
  • Academy AwardBest Cinematography · 2016 · nominated
Show all 10 awards →
  • Academy AwardBest Cinematography · 2004 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Cinematography · 1997 · nominated
  • European Film AwardBest Cinematographer · 1997 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Cinematography · 1989 · nominated
  • Academy AwardBest Cinematography · 1986 · nominated

Filmography43 titles

Dead Poets Society

1989Director of Photography

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

2001Director of Photography

Rain Man

1988Director of Photography

Mad Max: Fury Road

2015Director of Photography

The Talented Mr. Ripley

1999"A" Camera Operator, Director of Photography

Picnic at Hanging Rock

1975Camera Operator

The English Patient

1996Camera Operator, Director of Photography

Lorenzo's Oil

1992Director of Photography

Witness

1985Director of Photography

Gorillas in the Mist

1988Director of Photography

The Hitcher

1986Director of Photography

Three Thousand Years of Longing

2022Director of Photography

Cold Mountain

2003Director of Photography

Children of a Lesser God

1986Director of Photography

Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation!

2008as Self

City of Angels

1998Director of Photography

The Firm

1993Director of Photography

The Year of Living Dangerously

1982Second Unit Director of Photography

The Last Wave

1977Camera Operator

The Man from Hong Kong

1975Additional Photography

Final Destination

2000First Assistant Camera

Ghosts of Mississippi

1996Director of Photography

The Paper

1994Director of Photography

The Perfect Storm

2000Director of Photography

The American President

1995Director of Photography

Beyond Rangoon

1995Camera Operator, Director of Photography

The Doctor

1991Director of Photography

Stakeout

1987Director of Photography

The Boy Who Cried Werewolf

2010First Assistant "B" Camera

The Mosquito Coast

1986Director of Photography

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

2010Director of Photography

Careful, He Might Hear You

1983Cinematography

The Tourist

2010Director of Photography

Money Movers

1978Camera Operator

Spanglish

2004Director of Photography

At First Sight

1999Director of Photography

Poseidon

2006Director of Photography

Replicant

2001First Assistant Camera

Dreamcatcher

2003Director of Photography

Deathcheaters

1976Director of Photography

BMX Bandits

1983Director of Photography

Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball

2010First Assistant "B" Camera

The Survivor

1981Director of Photography