OLIVER STAPLETON

#1: From interview [Cinefii, 2013]

#2: "The Water Horse" [2006]

OLIVER STAPLETON BSC

Born: 12 April 1948, London, UK, as Oliver David Whiteside Stapleton.

Education: University of Cape Town [1967-70; Psychology]; National Film and Television School [NFTS], UK [graduated in 1980].

Career: Lived in South Africa [1966-1974]. Before his study at the NFTS, he worked for 6 years as a still ph in South Africa and England. 'My studenthood at the age of 27, after 6 years struggle as a stills photographer, marked an all time low financially, but a real period of learning to light and photograph films. But the best bit was the 18 months I spent making 'Shadowplay', writing, directing and editing what turned out to be a flawed but quite curious 70 minute drama about ex-South Africans struggling with paranoia in London low life. All that time in front of the Steenbeck [a flatbed editing machine] with my own material laced across the mattress and coffee machine taught me more about shooting than I could ever learn on the floor staring at a tin of Heinz or a packet of Omo.'

Ph music videos and commercials [dir by Stephen Frears, a.o.].

Directed, wrote and edited the student film 'Shadowplay' [1980; ph: Richard Greatrex; 16mm/b&w; 68m].

Appeared in the doc 'The Oliver Stapleton Cinematography Masterclass' [d: Trevor Forrest; ph: Jason Ellis; prod BSC].

Awards: MTV Award [1986] for 'The Sun Always Shines on TV' [a: a-Ha; d: Steven Barron]; ACE Award nom [1989] for 'Danny, the Champion of the World'; Independent Spirit Award nom [1990] for 'Earth Girls Are Easy'; Camerimage 'Golden Frog' nom [2001] for 'Buffalo Soldiers'; AFI [Aus] Award nom [2003] for 'Ned Kelly'.

Websites: Oliver Stapleton [technical] & Oliver Stapleton [a 'Sailing Adventures' diary by his wife Juliet Crittenden].

See also: 'So You Wanna Work in Movies?'

FILMS
1977	Red Square at Noon [John Tchalenko] 16mm/b&w; doc/30m; prod NFTS
1977	Working with Hot Glass [John Tchalenko] c; doc/45m; cph: Steve Alcorn; prod for the Crafts Advisory Committee
1979	Halfway Round the Circle Now [Lloyd Phillips] c; short/24m; cph: Scott Thomas; prod NFTS
1979	The Scent of the Lilies [John Tchalenko] 16mm/c; short/34m; cph: Belinda Parsons; prod NFTS
1979	The Wardrobe [Martin Ketterer] ?; short/?m; cph: Lloyd Phillips; prod NFTS
1980	Pictures of Mother [Paul Rapley] 16mm/c; short/46m; cph: Jack Lach & Chris Cox; prod NFTS
1980	Biceps of Steel [Julien Temple] c; mus short (with hard rock band SamSon)/12m; 2nd camera; ph: Richard Greatrex
1980	The Boldon Lad [John Tchalenko] 16mm/c; mus doc/35m; prod Arts Council of Great Britain
1980	Sam Sherry/Sam Sherry - Stepdancer [John Tchalenko] 16mm/c; doc/16m; prod Arts Council of Great Britain
1981	Poets Against the Bomb [Francis Fuchs] 16mm/c; doc/27m; cph: Diane Tammes & Pasco MacFarlane; filmed on 15 April in the Chelsea Town Hall
1981	Out of Order [Arthur Ellis] b&w-c; short/33m; cph: Robert Ede
1981	The Secret Policeman's Other Ball [Julien Temple] c; theatrical perf/99m; with 'The Secret Policeman's Ball' (1979) recut into combined version for tv in USA
1982	Eastbourne... Britain's Quality Resort [David Gowing] c; comm doc/20m; prod for the British Tourist Authority
1982	Ten Years in an Open Necked Shirt [Nick May] 16mm/c; dram + perf + interv/52m; lighting cam; add cam: Richard Greatrex, Steven Alcorn & David Scott
1983	Mantrap/ABC Mantrap [Julien Temple] c/V; mus docudrama/55m
1983	Undercover/The Rolling Stones - Undercover of the Night [Julien Temple] c/V; pop promo 'The Rolling Stones'/5m
1984	Jazzin' for Blue Jean [Julien Temple] c; short/20m
1984	Restless Natives [Michael Hoffman] c; addph: Fiona Cunningham-Reid
1985	Running Out of Luck/She's the Boss [Julien Temple] c/V; mus promotional film/80m
1985	Absolute Beginners [Julien Temple] sts/c
1986	Hail! Hail! Rock 'n' Roll [Taylor Hackford] 35mm+s16-to-35mm/c; doc + interviews + concert film/121m; concert 2uc: Ed Lachman; c.op doc: Ed Lachman & Rick Robertson; c.op concert: Joan Churchill, Philip Holahan, a.o.; the concerts were filmed on 16 October 1986 in St. Louis, USA
1987	Aria [seg #4 'Rigoletto: La donna è mobile' dir by Julien Temple] c; 10 seg
1987	Prick Up Your Ears [Stephen Frears] c
1987	Sammy and Rosie Get Laid [Stephen Frears] c
1988	Cookie [Susan Seidelman] c
1988	Earth Girls Are Easy [Julien Temple] p/c
1988	Danny, the Champion of the World [Gavin Millar] c; 2uc: Wally Byatt & David Worley; wildlife ph: Michael Richards
1989	She-Devil [Susan Seidelman] c
1989	The Grifters [Stephen Frears] c; 2uc: Marc Reshovsky
1990	Let Him Have It [Peter Medak] c; aph: Peter Allwork
1991	Hero/Accidental Hero [Stephen Frears] c
1993	Look Who's Talking Now [Tom Ropelewski] c; 2uc: Philip Linzey; spec vfx: Bill Neil
1994	Restoration [Michael Hoffman] c; 2uc: Ian McMillan
1995	Kansas City [Robert Altman] c
1995	The Van [Stephen Frears] c
1996	Journey of Radiance [ep #25 'Benares, January 1910' dir by Deepa Mehta & #24 'Peking, March 1910' dir by Gavin Millar] b&w-c/V; ph ep #24; ph ep #25: Giles Nuttgens; comp of ep of tv-series 'The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles'
1996	One Fine Day [Michael Hoffman] c; 2uc: John Thomas
1996	[Robert Altman's] Jazz '34 - Remembrances of Kansas City Swing [Robert Altman] c; mus doc/57m & 72m; ed from footage shot for 'Kansas City' (1995)
1996	The Designated Mourner [David Hare] c
1997	The Object of My Affection [Nicholas Hytner] c; addph: David Dunlap & (uncred) Fred Elmes
1997	The Hi-Lo Country [Stephen Frears] 2.35 Research/c
1998	[William Shakespeare's] A Midsummer Night's Dream [Michael Hoffman] 2.35 Research/c; 2uc: Ian McMillan
1999	The Cider House Rules [Lasse Hallström] s35/c
1999	Birthday Girl [Jez Butterworth] c; 2uc: Peter Robertson
1999	State and Main [David Mamet] c
2000	Pay It Forward [Mimi Leder] c
2000	Buffalo Soldiers [Gregor Jordan] c; 2uc: Nic Sadler
2001	The Shipping News [Lasse Hallström] s35/c; 2uc: Andrew Mondshein, Mike Thomas & Gordon Miller; uwph: Mike Thomas
2002	Ned Kelly [Gregor Jordan] s35/c; 2uc (+ 2ud): Brad Shield
2002	Cheeky [David Thewlis] c; 2uc: Sam Garwood
2003	An Unfinished Life [Lasse Hallström] 2.35 Research/c; 2uc: Doug Schwartz & Roger Vernon; aph: Ron Goodman
2004	Casanova [Lasse Hallström] s35/c; 2uc: John Clothier
2005	The Hoax [Lasse Hallström] c; ph Washington, D.C.: Richard Rutkowski; Indio ph: Chris Lombardi; aph Puerto Rico: Milton Graña
2006	The Water Horse [: Legend of the Deep] [Jay Russell] s35/c; addph: Rob Marsh; scenic unit ph: Martin Layton; aph: Jeremy Braben
*2006*	Rain in Spain [Lasse Hallström] announced; status unknown
2007	How to Lose Friends & Alienate People [Robert Weide] c; 2uc: Howard Atherton

With dir Anne Fletcher - "The Proposal"

2008	The Proposal [Anne Fletcher] Hawk Scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Barry M. Wilson; aph: Hans Bjerno
2008	Unthinkable [Gregor Jordan] 35mm (+ digital)/c
2009	Don't Be Afraid of the Dark [Troy Nixey] 35mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Ross Emery
2010	Will [Ellen Perry] c; 2uc UK: Alan Stewart; aph: Jeremy Braben
*2010*	Moving Pictures [Crispin Wood] scheduled to start filming Summer 2010; status unknown
2011	The Guilt Trip/My Mother's Curse [Anne Fletcher] Hawk Scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; aph: Phil Pastuhov & Michael Kelem; + uncred co-2ud
2012	Vega [Oliver Stapleton] HD (Canon EOS C300 + GoPro)/c; doc (work-in-progress)
2013	Unfinished Business/Business or Pleasure/Business Trip [Ken Scott] Hawk Scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Jacques Haitkin (uncred), Adrian Cranage (Berlin) & Michael Barrett (USA); addph Boston: Lawrence Sher (reshoots in October 2014)
2014	The Best of Me [Michael Hoffman] HD (ARRI ALEXA XT/Hawk Scope)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; addph: Duane Manwiller; aph: Ron Chapple; uwph: Peter Zuccarini
2014	Hot Pursuit/Don't Mess with Texas [Anne Fletcher] Hawk Scope-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Duane Manwiller; replaced ph Michael Coulter partway through filming
2016	The Comedian [Taylor Hackford] Hawk Scope/c

TELEVISION & INTERNET
1982	Oral History/Mündlich überliefert [Peter Chappell] tvm/57m; ep #3 of 7-part series 'Six Feet of the Country/Sechs Fuß Land/The Nadine Gordimer Stories: Scenes from South Africa', 1981-82
1982	The Rupert Bear Story - A Tribute to Alfred Bestall [Terry Jones] doc/50m; cph: Steven Alcorn; for Channel 4-tv
1982	The Comic Strip Presents [ep #4 (30m) 'Bad News Tour' dir by Sandy Johnson] 35-part series, 1982-93 (+ specials/features); 1st season, 1982-83; + small part
1983	It's All True [Julien Temple] doc/90m; ep BBC2-tv series 'Arena'
1983	The Comic Strip Presents [ep #12 (30m) 'Eddie Monsoon - A Life?' dir by Sandy Johnson (SJ) & #13 (31m) 'Slags' dir by SJ] 2nd season, 1983-84; 2uc ('Slags'): John de Borman (as John de Boorman) & Iain Mackenzie; see 1982
1985	My Beautiful Laundrette [Stephen Frears] tvm/16mm; also released theatrically
1985	The Comic Strip Presents... [ep #14 (36m) 'Consuela (or 'The New Mrs Saunders')' dir by Stephen Frears & #17 (34m) 'Private Enterprise' dir by Adrian Edmondson] 3rd season, 1986; see 1982
1986	The Comic Strip Presents... [ep #18 (50m) 'Mr Jolly Lives Next Door' dir by Stephen Frears] 4th season, 1988; see 1982
1990	Heading Home [David Hare] tvm; ep BBC-tv series 'Screen Two'
1992	The Snapper [Stephen Frears] tvm/16mm; ep BBC-tv series 'Screen Two'
1992	The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles [ep #24 'Peking, March 1910' dir by Gavin Millar] 44-part (8 unaired in USA) series, 1992-96/16mm; 2nd season, 1992-93; other ph: David Tattersall, Jörgen Persson & Giles Nuttgens; also part of the video (Chapter 5) 'Journey of Radiance'; see Films (1996)
2017	Gore [Michael Hoffman] HD (ARRI ALEXA 65)/c; release (in 2018) cancelled in November, following sexual assault and harassment allegations against star Kevin Spacey; for Netflix