JACK HILDYARD

GREAT CINEMATOGRAPHERS

#1: "The Message" [1976]

#2: With Katherine Hepburn - "Summer Madness" [1954]

JACK HILDYARD

Born: 17 March 1908, London, UK.

Died: September 1990, London, UK.

Career: Entered film industry in 1932 as clapper boy at Elstree Studios. Became c.op in 1937.

Was one of the founding members of the BSC.

His brother David [1916-2008] was a sound recordist/mixer.

Appeared in the doc 'The Making of an Epic: Mohammad Messenger of God' [1976; prod: Geoffrey Helman; ph: Nic Knowland, Mike Delaney & Geoff Mulligan; 45m].

Awards: 'Oscar' AA [1957] & BSC Award [1958] for 'The Bridge on the River Kwai'; BAFTA Film Award nom [1964] for 'The V.I.P.s'; BAFTA Film Award nom [1965] for 'The Yellow Rolls-Royce'; BAFTA Film Award nom [1967] for 'Modesty Blaise'; BSC Lifetime Achievement Award [1990].

Jack Hildyard's filmography proves two adages - that a cameraman in usually no better than his director, and that most cameramen will accept any weird assignment so long as it's set in some exotic location. Thus, the fascinatingly mixed bunch of films below, a tribute to Hildyard's stamina, both physical and aesthetic. It would be in character if he celebrates his 70th birthday with an on-the-spot reconstruction of warfare in the Sumatra jungles. [Bob Baker in 'Film Dope', #24, March 1982.]

FILMS
1944	Caesar and Cleopatra [Gabriel Pascal] c; cph: Jack Cardiff (ext ph Egypt), Robert Krasker & Freddie Young
1945	The Way to the Stars/Johnny in the Clouds [Anthony Asquith] b&w; co-2uc; ph: Derick Williams
1946	School for Secrets/Secret Flight [Peter Ustinov] b&w; sfx ph: Harry Waxman & John Howell
1947	While the Sun Shines [Anthony Asquith] b&w
1947	The First Gentleman/Affairs of a Rogue [Alberto Cavalcanti] b&w
1947	Vice Versa [Peter Ustinov] b&w
1948	Sleeping Car to Trieste [John Paddy Carstairs] b&w
1948	Cardboard Cavalier [Walter Forde] b&w
1949	The Perfect Woman [Bernard Knowles] b&w
1949	The Chiltern Hundreds/The Amazing Mr. Beecham [John Paddy Carstairs] b&w
1949	The Reluctant Widow/The Inheritance [Bernard Knowles] b&w
1950	Tony Draws a Horse [John Paddy Carstairs] b&w
1950	The Dancing Fleece [Frederick Wilson] 16mm/c; comm short/20m; prod Crown Film Unit
1951	Talk of a Million/You Can't Beat the Irish [John Paddy Carstairs] b&w

[Far right] with Yvonne De Carlo, dir Ken Annakin [back to cam] and Albert Lieven

"Hotel Sahara"

1951	Hotel Sahara [Ken Annakin] b&w
1951	Home at Seven/Murder on Monday [Ralph Richardson] b&w; cph: Ted Scaife
1952	Edinburgh [David Eady] c; doc/18m; cph: Stanley Grant

[Left] with c.op Denys Coop [?] and dir David Lean - "The Sound Barrier"

1952	The Sound Barrier/Breaking the Sound Barrier [David Lean] b&w; aph: John Wilcox, Jo Jago & Peter Newbrook
1952	Folly to Be Wise [Frank Launder] b&w
1953	The Heart of the Matter [George More O'Ferrall] b&w

1953	Hobson's Choice [David Lean] b&w
1954	The Green Scarf [George More O'Ferrall] b&w
1954	The Teckman Mystery [Wendy Toye] b&w
1954	Summer Madness/Summertime [David Lean] c
1955	The Deep Blue Sea [Anatole Litvak] cs/c
1955	The March Hare [George More O'Ferrall] cs/c
1955	Charley Moon [Guy Hamilton] c
1956	Anastasia [Anatole Litvak] cs/c
1956	The Living Idol [Albert Lewin & René Cardona] cs/c

Betty Forster - JH - c.op Peter Newbrook - c.asst Gerry Fisher

"The Bridge on the River Kwai"

1956	The Bridge on the River Kwai [David Lean] cs/c; filmed 1956-57
1957	The Gypsy and the Gentleman [Joseph Losey] c
1957	Another Time, Another Place [Lewis Allen] vv/b&w
1958	The Journey [Anatole Litvak] c; 2uc: John (von) Kotze
1958	The Devil's Disciple [Guy Hamilton] b&w
1959	Jet Storm/Killing Urge [Cy Endfield] b&w

#1: [Right] with actor Montgomery Clift - "Suddenly, Last Summer"

#2: With actress Elizabeth Taylor

1959	Suddenly, Last Summer [Joseph L. Mankiewicz] b&w; spec pfx: Tom Howard
1959	The Sundowners [Fred Zinnemann] c; 2uc: Skeets Kelly
1960	The Millionairess [Anthony Asquith] cs/c
*1960*	Cleopatra [Rouben Mamoulian] abandoned; some footage used in final version (1963; ph: Leon Shamroy)
1961	The Road to Hong Kong [Norman Panama] b&w

With Ava Gardner - "55 Days at Peking"

1962	55 Days at Peking [Nicholas Ray; (uncred; finished film) Guy Green & Andrew Marton] str/c; 2uc: Manuel Berenguer
1962	Live Now - Pay Later [Jay Lewis] b&w
1962	The Valley of the Fallen/El valle de los Caídos [Andrew Marton] ?; short/20m; prod by the Samuel Bronston Studios
1963	The V.I.P.s/International Hotel [Anthony Asquith] p/c; 2uc: Douglas Adamson
1963	Circus World/The Magnificent Showman [Henry Hathaway] str70/c; 2uc: Claude Renoir; spec pfx: Linwood G. Dunn
1964	The Yellow Rolls-Royce [Anthony Asquith] p/c; 2uc: Douglas Adamson
1965	Battle of the Bulge [Ken Annakin] up70/c; 2uc: John Cabrera; aph: Jack Willoughby
1965	Modesty Blaise [Joseph Losey] c; Amsterdam loc ph: Davis Boulton
1966	Casino Royale [John Huston, Kenneth Hughes, Val Guest (+ add seq), Robert Parrish & Joseph McGrath] p/c; addph: Nicolas Roeg & John Wilcox
1967	The Long Duel [Ken Annakin] p/c; 2uc: John Cabrera
1968	Villa Rides! [Buzz Kulik] p/c; 2uc: John Cabrera
1968	Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter [Saul Swimmer] p/c
1968	Hard Contract [S. Lee Pogostin] p/c; spec pfx: L.B. Abbott & Art Cruickshank
1968	Topaz [Alfred Hitchcock] c; ph cons: Hal Mohr; spec pfx: Albert Whitlock
1970	Puppet on a Chain [Geoffrey Reeve & (add scenes/boat chase) Don Sharp] c; 2uc: Skeets Kelly
*1971*	The Playroom [Ken Annakin] abandoned with 5 days shooting to go
1972	Stuffy Old Bank [Ronald Spencer] 16mm/c; comm doc/11m; for Barclays Bank
1972	Si può essere più bastardi dell'ispettore Cliff?/Servizio di scorta/Blue Movie Blackmail/Mafia Junction/Super Bitch [Massimo Dallamano] c
1973	My Word is My Bond [Ronald Spencer] c; comm doc/17m
1973	The Last Chapter [David Tringham] c; short/29m
1973	The Beast Must Die/Black Werewolf [Paul Annett] c
1976	Emily/The Awakening of Emily [Henry Herbert] c
1976	al-Risâlah [Moustapha Akkad] c; 170m

1976	The Message/Mohammed, Messenger of God [Moustapha Akkad] p/c; spec pfx: Said Bakr & Ibrahim Salem; English version (177m) of 'al-Risâlah'
1976	Not Now, Comrade [Harold Snoad & Ray Cooney] c
1977	The Wild Geese [Andrew V. McLaglen] c; 2uc: Dudley Lovell; spph: Tony Braun
1979	[Omar Mukhtar:] Lion of the Desert [Moustapha Akkad] p/c
1981	al-Mas'ala Al-Kubra/Clash of Loyalties [Mohamed Shukri Jameel] c; addph: Majid Kamel

TELEVISION
1973	Mousey [Daniel Petrie] tvm; released theatrically as 'Cat and Mouse'
1976	Beauty and the Beast [Fielder Cook] tvm; cph: Paul Beeson; ep #238 'Hallmark Hall of Fame'-series
1983	The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood [Ray Austin] tvm
1984	Ellis Island [Jerry London] 3-part miniseries; cph: Ennio Guarnieri & Dudley Lovell
1984	Florence Nightingale [Daryl Duke] tvm

FILMS AS CAMERA OPERATOR
1934	Freedom of the Seas [Marcel Varnel] focus puller; ph: Otto Kanturek
1937	Over the Moon [Thornton Freeland & (uncred) William K. Howard] ph: Harry Stradling Sr.; released in 1939
1937	The Divorce of Lady X [Tim Whelan] ph: Harry Stradling Sr.
1938	Pygmalion [Anthony Asquith & Leslie Howard] ph: Harry Stradling Sr.
1938	The Mikado [- The Town of Titipu] [Victor Schertzinger] co-c.op; ph: Bernard Knowles & William V. Skall
1939	French Without Tears [Anthony Asquith] ph: Bernard Knowles
1940	Spy for a Day/Live and Let Live [Mario Zampi] ph: Bernard Knowles
1940	Major Barbara [Gabriel Pascal] ph: Ronald Neame & (loc ph) Freddie Young
1941	'Pimpernel' Smith/Mister V/The Fighting Pimpernel [Leslie Howard] ph: Mutz Greenbaum
1941	A Yank in the R.A.F. [Henry King] co-c.op 2u; 2uc: Ronald Neame; ph: Leon Shamroy
1942	The First of the Few/Spitfire [Leslie Howard] ph: Georges Périnal
1942	Thunder Rock [Roy Boulting] ph: Mutz Greenbaum
1942	Squadron Leader X. [Lance Comfort] ph: Mutz Greenbaum
1943	The Flemish Farm [Jeffrey Dell] ph: Eric Cross
1943	Escape to Danger [Lance Comfort & Victor Hanbury] ph: Guy Green
1943	The Lamp Still Burns [Maurice Elvey] ph: Robert Krasker
1943	The Chronicle History of King Henry the Fift with His Battell Fought at Agincourt in France/Henry V [Laurence Olivier] ph: Robert Krasker