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Alex Thomson

Known For
Camera

Known Credits
4

Gender
Male

Birthday
January 12, 1929 (97 years old)

Place of Birth
London, England, UK

Alex Thomson

Biography

Alexander Thomson BSC (12 January 1929 – 14 June 2007) was a British cinematographer.

Born in London, England, he was first offered a job by Bert Easey (1901-1973), who was head of cameras at Denham and Pinewood Studios. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for Excalibur (1981).

His other films included Year of the Dragon (1985), Legend (1985), Labyrinth (1986), The Krays (1990), Alien 3 (1992), Cliffhanger (1993), Demolition Man (1993), Executive Decision (1996) and two of Kenneth Branagh's Shakespeare adaptations, Hamlet (1996) and Love's Labour's Lost (2000).

After beginning his film career in the late 1940s, he went on to serve as a camera operator under cinematographer Nicolas Roeg on twelve films between 1961 and 1966. In 1998 he shot the Royal Premiered CinemaScope short "The Troop" (dir: Marcus Dillistone) An interview with Alex Thomson appears in a new book Conversations with Cinematographers by David A Ellis, published by Scarecrow Press. Thompson was an avid user of Joe Dunton's custom-built Xtal Xpress lenses, shooting many of his more high-profile projects such as Labyrinth, Legend, The Keep, Year of the Dragon and The Sicilian with them.

He was married to the sculptor Diana Thomson, and they had a daughter. Thomson died on 14 June 2007, at the age of 78, in Chertsey, Surrey.

Known For

Camera

2004Der letzte Flug...Director of Photography
2003Listening...Director of Photography
2000A Shot at Glory...Director of Photography
2000Love's Labour's Lost...Director of Photography
1996Hamlet...Director of Photography
1996Executive Decision...Director of Photography
1995The Scarlet Letter...Director of Photography
1994Black Beauty...Director of Photography
1993Demolition Man...Director of Photography
1993Cliffhanger...Director of Photography
1993Cliffhanger...Camera Operator
1992Alien³...Director of Photography
1990Mr. Destiny...Director of Photography
1990The Krays...Director of Photography
1989The Rachel Papers...Director of Photography
1989Leviathan...Director of Photography
1988High Spirits...Director of Photography
1988Track 29...Director of Photography
1987Date with an Angel...Director of Photography
1987The Sicilian...Director of Photography
1986Duet for One...Director of Photography
1986Labyrinth...Director of Photography
1986Raw Deal...Director of Photography
1985Legend...Director of Photography
1985Year of the Dragon...Director of Photography
1984Electric Dreams...Director of Photography
1983The Keep...Director of Photography
1983Bullshot...Director of Photography
1983Eureka...Director of Photography
1981Skokie...Director of Photography
1981Excalibur...Director of Photography
1980The Gold Bug...Director of Photography
1978The Class Of Miss MacMichael...Director of Photography
1978Superman...Additional Photography
1978The Cat and the Canary...Director of Photography
1978Rosie Dixon - Night Nurse...Director of Photography
1972Fear Is the Key...Director of Photography
1972Death Line...Director of Photography
1972Dr. Phibes Rises Again...Director of Photography
1971The Road Builder...Director of Photography
1970The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer...Director of Photography
1970I Start Counting...Director of Photography
1969The Best House in London...Director of Photography
1968The Strange Affair...Director of Photography
1968Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush...Director of Photography
1966A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum...Camera Operator
1966Fahrenheit 451...Camera Operator
1966Judith...Camera Operator
1965Doctor Zhivago...Camera Operator
1965Every Day's a Holiday...Camera Operator
1964The Masque of the Red Death...Camera Operator
1964The System...Camera Operator
1964Nothing But the Best...Camera Operator
1964The Caretaker...Camera Operator
1963Dr. Crippen...Camera Operator
1961Girl on Approval...Camera Operator

Crew

2000Love's Labour's Lost...Cinematography
1979Follow that Rainbow...Cinematography

Acting

2008The Making of Casino Royale, 1967as Self - Camera Operator Stunt Unit
2003Wreckage and Rage: Making 'Alien³'as Self
2002Creating a Myth... the Memories of 'Legend'as Himself
1981The Making of Excalibur: Myth into Movieas Self