John Alcott
John Alcott | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 27 November 1930 Isleworth, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 28 July 1986 (aged 55) Cannes, Alpes-Maritimes, France |
| Years active | 1948–1986 |
John Alcott, BSC (27 November 1930 – 28 July 1986)[1] was an English cinematographer, best known for his collaboration with director Stanley Kubrick, with his work on Barry Lyndon (1975) earning him the Academy Award for Best Cinematography.[2]
Early life
Alcott was born in Isleworth, England, in 1930.
He was the son of Arthur Alcott, an executive at Gainsborough Pictures and later Pinewood Studios.[3]
Career
Alcott began his career at a young age as a clapper boy. During the production of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Kubrick promoted Alcott to lighting cameraman, completing the "Dawn of Man" sequence after Geoffrey Unsworth's schedule forced him to depart from production.[4]
Alcott subsequently shot three more films for Kubrick: A Clockwork Orange (1971), Barry Lyndon (1975), and The Shining (1980).[5]
His work on Barry Lyndon broke new grounds in terms of natural lighting. Kubrick completely discarded electric lighting in favor of candle lighting to recreate the mood of an 18th century setting. The film ultimately won Alcott an Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography.
Alcott's work on The Shining also became innovative for inventive uses of a Steadicam to create more fluid camera movements.
In 1981, Alcott moved to the United States, where he directed and shot commercials for television at Paisley Productions.
Alcott was featured in the 1986 PBS documentary Six Kinds Of Light (Masters Of Cinematography).[6]
Death
Alcott died of a heart attack in Cannes, France in 1986, at the age of 55.[1]
His final two films, White Water Summer and No Way Out, were released posthumously, and were dedicated to his memory.
In his memory, the "BSC John Alcott ARRI Award" was created by the British Society of Cinematographers in 1990.[3]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | A Clockwork Orange | Stanley Kubrick | |
| 1974 | Little Malcolm | Stuart Cooper | |
| 1975 | Overlord | ||
| Barry Lyndon | Stanley Kubrick | ||
| 1977 | March or Die | Dick Richards | |
| The Disappearance | Stuart Cooper | ||
| 1978 | Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? | Ted Kotcheff | |
| 1980 | The Shining | Stanley Kubrick | |
| Terror Train | Roger Spottiswoode | ||
| 1981 | Fangio: Una vita a 300 all'ora | Hugh Hudson | Documentary film |
| Fort Apache, the Bronx | Daniel Petrie | ||
| 1982 | Vice Squad | Gary Sherman | |
| The Beastmaster | Don Coscarelli | ||
| 1983 | Triumphs of a Man Called Horse | John Hough | With John Cabrera |
| Under Fire | Roger Spottiswoode | ||
| 1984 | Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes | Hugh Hudson | |
| 1985 | Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend | Bill L. Norton | |
| 1986 | Miracles | Jim Kouf | |
| 1987 | White Water Summer | Jeff Bleckner | Posthumous release |
| No Way Out | Roger Donaldson | ||
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Academy Awards | Best Cinematography | Barry Lyndon | Won | [7] |
| 1971 | British Academy Film Awards | Best Cinematography | A Clockwork Orange | Nominated | [8] |
| 1975 | Barry Lyndon | Won | |||
| 1984 | Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes | Nominated | |||
| 1975 | British Society of Cinematographers | Best Cinematography | Barry Lyndon | Won | |
| 1984 | Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes | Nominated | |||
| 1982 | Evening Standard British Film Awards | Special Award | Won | ||
| 1985 | Best Technical/Artistic Achievement | Won | |||
| 1975 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association | Best Cinematography | Barry Lyndon | Won | |
| National Society of Film Critics | Best Cinematography | Won | |||
| 1983 | Under Fire | Nominated | |||
References
- 1 2 Saxon, Wolfgang (3 August 1986). "John Alcott, An Oscar Winner for Cinematography, Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
- ↑ "Barry Lyndon: Kubrick's neglected masterpiece". The Daily Telegraph. 5 February 2009. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
- 1 2 "John Alcott BSC". British Society of Cinematographers. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
- ↑ "John Alcott". The Independent Film Journal. 80 (3): 6–7. 1977.
- ↑ "Clockwork Orange". 2000. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014.
- ↑ "Six Kinds of Light: John Alcott, a rare documentary on cinematographer best known for his four collaborations with Stanley Kubrick". Cinephilia & Beyond. 18 February 2015. Archived from the original on 12 August 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
- ↑ "The 48th Academy Awards | 1976". www.oscars.org. 4 October 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
- ↑ "Film". Bafta. Retrieved 5 June 2026.