By: Jack O’Neill

Visual DirectorrIDLEY Scott

BACKGROUND

• Born November 30, 1937 at South Shields, England

• Raised by a Military family and experience constant moving from England to Germany

• Enjoyed watching films such as Lawrence of Arabia, Citizen Kane, and Seven Samurai

• Graduated from West Hartlepool College of Art with a Diploma in Design

• Studied at Royal College of Art, helped established its film department

• Formed Ridley Scott Associates with brother Tony Scott (director of Top Gun and True Romance) and produce numerous critically acclaimed commercials

• Releases his first directed film The Duelists in 1977

Major Films

SIGNATURE STYLES

• Scott visual style is well known for incorporating detailed production design and innovative, atmospheric lighting

• Video Example of Scott's Visual work

• Most of Scott’s films are slowly paced building the tension of their action sequences (ex: Alien, Blade Runner, Kingdom of Heaven and Prometheus)

• At times Scott has been revered as the “father” of the director’s cut, having released numerous extended cuts of his films after their theatrical releases; claiming they are his true visions.

SIGNATURE STYLES

• Scott hand draws every storyboard for his films, known as Ridleygrams

• Scott’s view on storyboarding http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7bqso7mGXU&feature=player_embedded

Ridleygram for Alien

SIGNATURE STYLES

• Strong female characters: Sigourney Weaver in Alien (1979), Geena Davis & Susan Sarandon in Thelma & Louise (1991), Alison Lohman in Matchstick Men (2003), all the female characters in A Good Year (2006), Cate Blanchett and Eileen Atkins in Robin Hood (2010)

• Sweeping landscapes/backdrops - at times, with close-up of a character's face in foreground - as shown in Gladiator (2000) and Kingdom of Heaven (2005).

• Scott favors extensive use of the two-camera 'V' set-up, thus enabling his actors to play more fluidly off one another without being constantly interrupted by calls to "Cut!".

random Facts

• Has worked with actor Russell Crowe for 5 films

• Gladiator

• A Good Year

• American Gangster

• Body of Lies

• Robin Hood

• Directed critically acclaimed Superbowl ad "1984" for Apple Computers (1984)

• He was awarded Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire in the 2003 Queen's New Years Honors List for his services to the Film Industry.

SOURCES• "Ridley Scott." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 18 June 2012.

<http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000631/>.

• "Ridley Scott." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 18 June 2012. Web. 18 June 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ridley_Scott>.

• "Ridley Scott." - Rotten Tomatoes. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 June 2012. <http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/ridley_scott/>.

SCOTT’S VISUALS