John Mathieson (cinematographer)
{{Short description|English cinematographer and commercial director}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2014}}
{{BLP sources|date=March 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = John Mathieson
| honorific_suffix = CAL
| image = John Mathieson in Bitola.jpg
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1961|5|3}}
| birth_place = Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England
| death_date =
| death_place =
| years_active = 1988–present
| organization = British Society of Cinematographers
| spouse = Maria Tamander
| website =
}}
John Mathieson (born 3 May 1961){{cite web |url=http://www.cinematographers.nl/PaginasDoPh/mathieson.htm |title=John Mathieson |work=Cinematographer.nl |access-date=19 October 2013}} is an English cinematographer and commercial director. He is one of a group of filmmakers who emerged from the music video industry of the late 1980s and 1990s.
He is a frequent collaborator with director Ridley Scott, winning a BAFTA Award and a nomination for the Academy Award for his work on Gladiator (2000).
Life and career
Mathieson was born on Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England. Beginning his career in the British film industry as camera assistant to Gabriel Beristain, Mathieson worked his way through the ranks. In 1988 he garnered recognition for the ground breaking video "Peek-a-Boo"{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9415tgSlPo|title = - YouTube|website = YouTube}} for Siouxsie and the Banshees, directed by Peter Scammell. He collaborated with John Maybury, director of the Sinéad O'Connor video "Nothing Compares 2 U", going on to photograph Maybury's award-winning film Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon. Mathieson honed his craft through the 1990s shooting numerous television commercials and music videos for artists including Madonna, Prince and Massive Attack.
In the mid 1990s Mathieson photographed two feature films for director Karim Dridi, for which he was later bestowed the honour of Chevalier by the French government. He came to the attention of Tony Scott whilst shooting television commercials for the London-based company RSA Films. After working as visual effects cinematographer on Enemy of the State for Tony Scott, Mathieson photographed the film Plunkett & Macleane for Jake Scott. Having seen Mathiesons work on Plunkett, Ridley Scott invited him to work on his next project. Mathieson has photographed five films for Ridley Scott, nominated for an Academy Award for Gladiator in 2000 and won the BAFTA award for best Cinematography in the same year. His second Oscar nomination came for The Phantom of the Opera (2004) directed by Joel Schumacher.
Despite a career now cemented in big budget film production, Mathieson maintains links with independent British film, working on more modest budget projects including Trauma directed by Marc Evans and Stoned directed by Stephen Woolley.
Mathieson acted as cinematographer on the DC Films production Batgirl.{{Cite web |last=Anderson |first=Jenna |date=November 15, 2021 |title=Batgirl Lands Doctor Strange 2, Logan Cinematographer John Mathieson |url=https://comicbook.com/dc/news/batgirl-movie-doctor-strange-2-logan-cinematographer-john-mathieson/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211115235441/https://comicbook.com/dc/news/batgirl-movie-doctor-strange-2-logan-cinematographer-john-mathieson/ |archive-date=November 15, 2021 |access-date=November 16, 2021 |website=ComicBook.com}} The film was cancelled in August 2022.{{Cite web |last=Gonzalez |first=Umberto |date=August 2, 2022 |title='Batgirl' Won't Fly: Warner Bros. Discovery Has No Plans to Release Nearly Finished $90 Million Film |url=https://www.thewrap.com/batgirl-movie-dead-warner-bros-discovery-has-no-plans-to-release-nearly-finished-90-million-film/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802202744/https://www.thewrap.com/batgirl-movie-dead-warner-bros-discovery-has-no-plans-to-release-nearly-finished-90-million-film/ |archive-date=August 2, 2022 |access-date=August 2, 2022 |website=TheWrap}}
Personal life
Mathieson lives in the United Kingdom, and is married to Maria Tarmander. He has earned a Knighthood of the Order of Arts and Letters for his contributions to the entertainment industry.
Filmography
= Feature film =
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Director ! Notes |
|---|
| rowspan=3|1994
| Parris Patton | Direct-to-video |
| Remembrance of Things Fast: True Stories Visual Lies
| |
| Pigalle
|rowspan=2|Karim Dridi | |
| 1995
| Bye-Bye | |
| 1997
| |
| rowspan=2|1998
| Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon | John Maybury | |
| Vigo
| |
| 1999
| |
| 2000
|rowspan=2|Ridley Scott | 1st collaboration with Scott |
| rowspan=2|2001
| Hannibal | |
| K-PAX
| |
| 2003
| Ridley Scott | |
| rowspan=2|2004
| Trauma | |
| The Phantom of the Opera
| |
| rowspan=2|2005
| Ridley Scott | |
| Stoned
| |
| 2007
| |
| rowspan=2|2009
| Duncan Ward | |
| Cracks
| |
| rowspan=3|2010
| |
| Burke & Hare
| |
| Robin Hood
| Ridley Scott | |
| 2011
| |
| 2012
| |
| 2013
| 47 Ronin | Carl Rinsch | |
| rowspan=2|2015
| Pan | With Seamus McGarvey |
| The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
|rowspan=2|Guy Ritchie | |
| rowspan=2|2017
| King Arthur: Legend of the Sword | |
| Logan
| |
| rowspan=2|2018
| Jake Scott | |
| Mary Queen of Scots
| |
| 2019
| |
| 2022
| Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness | |
| rowspan=2|2024
| Ridley Scott | |
| Bonhoeffer
| |
| 2025
| {{Pending film|Jurassic World Rebirth}} |
= Television =
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Director ! Notes |
|---|
| 1997
| Episodes "The Swords" and "Ménage à Trois" |
| 2012
| Episode "The Man" |
| TBA
| Untitled Project Icon | Miniseries |
TV movies
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Director |
|---|
| 1998 |
| 2013
| The Vatican |
= Music video =
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Artist ! Director |
|---|
| 1990
| "All My Trials" |
| 1991
| "Mysterious Ways" | U2 |
| 1993
| "Heart-Shaped Box" | Nirvana |
| rowspan=3|1998
| "Drowned World/Substitute for Love" | Madonna |
| "Special"
| Garbage |
| "Rabbit in Your Headlights"
| UNKLE ft. Thom Yorke |
| 1999
| Garbage |
| rowspan=2|2000
| "Ex-Girlfriend" | No Doubt |
| "American Pie"
| Madonna | Philipp Stölzl |
| 2008 |
| 2012
| "Black Chandelier" | Big TV! |
Awards and nominations
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Title ! Award/Nomination |
|---|
| 1993 |
| rowspan=2|2000 |
| Gladiator
|BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography |
| 2004
|Nominated–Academy Award for Best Cinematography |
| 2009
|Nominated–Camerimage Golden Frog |
| 2012
|Nominated–BSC Award for Best Cinematography in a Feature Film |
| 2015
|Pan |Nominated–Camerimage Jury Award for Best 3D Film |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9781856693349/New_Cinematographers/index.aspx New Cinematographers] by Alex Ballinger {{ISBN|978-1-85669-334-9}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20070306191857/http://www.cameraguild.com/awards/oscars-05/mathieson.htm The Phantom of the Opera Oscar nomination]
- [http://www.cinematographers.nl/PaginasDoPh/mathieson.htm Internet Encyclopedia of Cinematographers]
- {{IMDb name|0558822|John Mathieson}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for John Mathieson
|list =
{{BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography 1985–2009}}
{{British Society of Cinematographers Award for Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature Film}}
{{San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Cinematography}}
{{Satellite Award Best Cinematography}}
}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathieson, John}}
Category:Best Cinematography BAFTA Award winners