John Seale

This article is about Australian cinematographer. For the British venereologist, see John R. Seale. For the British politician, see Sir John Henry Seale, 1st Baronet.

AM
John Seale
ACS ASC
Born
John Clement Seale

(1942-10-05) 5 October 1942 (age 82)
Warwick, Queensland, Australia
NationalityAustralian
Years active1966–present
Known forRain Man
The English Patient
The Perfect Storm
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Mad Max: Fury Road
TitleACS ASC
AwardsFull list

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), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). Seale's other work includes for 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).

Early life

Seale was born in Warwick, Queensland, Australia, to Marjorie Lyndon (née Pool) and Eric Clement Seale.[1]

Career

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;[2] Rain Man, which grossed US$354 million;[3] Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, which grossed US$335 million;[4] The Perfect Storm, which grossed US$328 million;[5] and The Tourist, which grossed US$278 million.[6][7]

He came out of retirement in 2012 to shoot Mad Max: Fury Road, for which he received another Academy Award nomination.[8]

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".[9]

Filmography

Film

Director

Cinematographer

Year Title Director Notes
1976 Deathcheaters Brian Trenchard-Smith
1980 Fatty Finn Maurice Murphy
1981 Doctors and Nurses
The Survivor David Hemmings
1982 Ginger Meggs Jonathan Dawson
Fighting Back Michael Caulfield
1983 Goodbye Paradise Carl Schultz
BMX Bandits Brian Trenchard-Smith
Careful, He Might Hear You Carl Schultz
1984 Silver City Sophia Turkiewicz
1985 Witness Peter Weir
1986 The Hitcher Robert Harmon
Children of a Lesser God Randa Haines
The Mosquito Coast Peter Weir
1987 Stakeout John Badham
1988 Gorillas in the Mist Michael Apted
Rain Man Barry Levinson
1989 Dead Poets Society Peter Weir
1991 The Doctor Randa Haines
1992 Lorenzo's Oil George Miller
1993 The Firm Sydney Pollack
1994 The Paper Ron Howard
1995 Beyond Rangoon John Boorman
The American President Rob Reiner
1996 The English Patient Anthony Minghella
Ghosts of Mississippi Rob Reiner
1998 City of Angels Brad Silberling
1999 At First Sight Irwin Winkler
The Talented Mr. Ripley Anthony Minghella
2000 The Perfect Storm Wolfgang Petersen
2001 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Chris Columbus
2003 Dreamcatcher Lawrence Kasdan
Cold Mountain Anthony Minghella
2004 Spanglish James L. Brooks
2006 Poseidon Wolfgang Petersen
2010 Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Mike Newell
The Tourist Florian von Donnersmarck
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road George Miller
2022 Three Thousand Years of Longing

Short film

Year Title Director
1978 The Sparks Obituary Ian Barry
1979 Heart, Head and Hand Peter Weir
1998 Static Derin Seale

Television

Year Title Director Notes
1979 New South Wales Images Russell Boyd Documentary film
1985 Winners Carl Schultz Episode "Top Kid"

Awards and nominations

Major awards

Academy Awards

Year Category Title Result
1985 Best Cinematography Witness Nominated
1988 Rain Man Nominated
1996 The English Patient Won
2003 Cold Mountain Nominated
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Nominated

BAFTA Awards

Year Category Title Result
1985 Best Cinematography Witness Nominated
1988 Gorillas in the Mist Nominated
1996 The English Patient Won
1999 The Talented Mr. Ripley Nominated
2003 Cold Mountain Nominated
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Nominated

American Society of Cinematographers

Year Category Title Result
1988 Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Rain Man Nominated
1996 The English Patient Won
2000 The Perfect Storm Nominated
2000 Cold Mountain Nominated
2011 International Award Won
2015 Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Mad Max: Fury Road Nominated

Miscellaneous awards

British Society of Cinematographers

Year Category Title Result
1985 Best Cinematography Witness Nominated
1988 Dead Poets Society Nominated
1996 The English Patient Nominated
2003 Cold Mountain Nominated
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Nominated

Satellite Awards

Year Category Title Result
1996 Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
1999 The Talented Mr. Ripley Nominated
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Won

Chicago Film Critics Association

Year Category Title Result
1996 Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
1999 The Talented Mr. Ripley Won
2003 Cold Mountain Nominated
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Won

Boston Society of Film Critics

Year Category Title Result
1996 Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
1999 The Talented Mr. Ripley Won
2003 Cold Mountain Nominated

Australian Film Institute

Year Category Title Result
1981 Best Achievement in Cinematography The Survivor Nominated
1983 Careful, He Might Hear You Won
1984 Silver City Nominated

Australian Cinematographers Society

Year Category Title Result
1983 Cinematography of the Year Goodbye Paradise Won
1985 Witness Won

National Society of Film Critics

Year Category Title Result
1996 Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Won

Los Angeles Film Critics Association

Year Category Title Result
1996 Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Won

Florida Film Critics Circle

Year Category Title Result
1996 Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road Won

Other awards

Year Association Category Title Result
1996 Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Best Cinematography The English Patient Won
European Film Award Best Cinematography Won
1997 Brisbane International Film Festival Chauvel Award Won
2015 AACTA Awards Best Cinematography Mad Max: Fury Road Won
Australian Film Critics Association Best Cinematography Won
Santa Barbara International Film Festival Artisan Award Won
New York Film Critics Circle Best Cinematographer Won
Film Critics Circle of Australia Best Cinematography Won
Online Film Critics Society Best Cinematography Won
African-American Film Critics Association Best Cinematography Won
Austin Film Critics Association Best Cinematography Nominated
Broadcast Film Critics Association Best Cinematography Nominated
Houston Film Critics Society Best Cinematography Nominated
London Film Critics' Circle Technical Achievement of the Year Nominated
Camerimage International Film Festival Golden Frog Award Nominated
Santa Barbara International Film Festival Artisan Award in Cinematography Won

References

  1. ^ John Seale Biography (1942–). Filmreference.com. Retrieved on 2012-06-01.
  2. ^ "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  3. ^ "Rain Man". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  4. ^ "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  5. ^ "The Perfect Storm". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  6. ^ "The Tourist". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  7. ^ "Filmography- John Seale". IMDb Pro. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  8. ^ Radish, Christina (1 May 2015). "MAD MAX: FURY ROAD: 18 Things to Know about the Making of George Miller's Epic". Collider. Complex. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  9. ^ "John Clement Seale". Australian Honours Search Facility, Dept of Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 25 July 2020.