Ruth De Jong

Ruth De Jong
Born
San Bernardino, California, U.S.
EducationTexas Christian University (BFA)
OccupationsProduction designer, art director
SpouseCharlie Skinner

Ruth De Jong is an American production designer and art director. She is known for her long creative partnership with production designer Jack Fisk, and for her work on films directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, Terrence Malick, and Jordan Peele. She was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Production Design for the film Oppenheimer.[1][2] She was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for her work on Twin Peaks.[3]

Early life and education

De Jong was born in San Bernardino, California, and moved to Charlottesville, Virginia at age 12. She attended Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas, where she played on the women's soccer team and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and photography in 2004.[4] She also worked as a freelance photographer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram during her time at TCU. After graduating, she was accepted to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts for graduate study in painting but deferred enrollment to work in film, ultimately not attending.[5]

Career

De Jong's entry into film came through production designer Jack Fisk, the husband of actress Sissy Spacek and father of De Jong's childhood friend Schuyler Fisk. Fisk recruited her to assist him on Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood (2007). [5] She worked her way up through the art department before making her debut as a production designer on Kenneth Lonergan's Manchester by the Sea (2016).[4]

David Lynch recommended De Jong to design the 2017 continuation of Twin Peaks after Fisk was unavailable; the project earned her an Primetime Emmy Award nomination.[5] She subsequently designed Jordan Peele's Us (2019) and Nope (2022), and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023), for which she received both an Academy Award nomination and the ADG Award for Excellence in Production Design for a Period Film.[6] She reteamed with Nolan for The Odyssey (2026).[7]

Outside of film, De Jong co-founded De Jong & Co., a furniture and interior design firm, with her brothers Peter and Philip.[5]

Personal life

De Jong is married to location manager Charlie Skinner, whom she met on a commercial shoot in 2014. They have a daughter, Sadie, born in 2019, and own a ranch in Livingston, Montana as well as a loft in Downtown Los Angeles.[4]

Filmography

As production designer

As art director

As assistant art director

Other film credits

Selected awards and nominations

In 2024, Jong received the Art Directors Guild Award for Excellence in Production Design for a Period Film award at the 28th Annual Art Directors Guild Awards.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "The 96th Academy Awards (2024) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Oscar Nominations 2024 List: Nominees by Category". ABC. January 23, 2024. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Outstanding Production Design For A Narrative Contemporary Program (One Hour Or More) - 2018". Television Academy. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 "From 'Twin Peaks' to 'Us,' She Sets the Scene". TCU Magazine. May 12, 2020. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Ruth De Jong". The Great Discontent. May 25, 2017. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  6. ↑ "'Oppenheimer,' 'Poor Things' Take Top Honors at Art Directors Guild Awards". Variety. February 11, 2024. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  7. ↑ "the odyssey". SAMANTHA ENGLENDER. Retrieved 2026-07-09.
  8. ↑ Thompson, Jazz Tangcay, Jaden; Tangcay, Jazz; Thompson, Jaden (February 11, 2024). "'Oppenheimer,' 'Poor Things' Take Top Honors at Art Directors Guild Awards".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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