Ridley Scott

Infobox Actor


name = Sir Ridley Scott
birthname =
birthdate = birth date and age|mf=yes|1937|11|30
location = South Shields, England, U.K.
othername = Rid
R-Scott
spouse = Felicity Heywood (1964-1975)
Sandy Watson (1979-1989)
occupation = film director and producer
yearsactive = 1965 - present
baftaawards = Michael Balcon Award
1995
emmyawards = Outstanding Made for Television Movie
2002 "The Gathering Storm"
goldenglobeawards = Best Motion Picture - Drama
2000 "Gladiator"
awards = Saturn Award for Best Direction
1979 "Alien"
George Pal Memorial Award
2004 Lifetime Achievement

Sir Ridley Scott (born November 30, 1937 in South Shields, Tyne and Wear) is a British Academy Award Nominated and Golden Globe, Emmy Award and BAFTA Award winning film director and producer known for his stylish visuals and an obsession for detail. His films include "Alien", "Blade Runner", "Thelma & Louise", "Gladiator", "Black Hawk Down", "Matchstick Men", "Kingdom of Heaven", and "American Gangster". His brother is fellow film director Tony Scott.

Background

Scott grew up in an Army family, meaning that for most of his early life his father — an officer in the Royal Engineers — was absent. Ridley's older brother, Frank, joined the Merchant Navy when he was still young and the pair had little contact. During this time the family moved around, living in (amongst other areas) Cumbria, Wales and Germany. After the Second World War the Scott family moved back to their native north-east England, eventually settling in Teesside (whose industrial landscape would later inspire similar scenes in "Blade Runner"). He enjoyed watching films. Among Scott's favourites were (and remain) "Lawrence of Arabia", "Citizen Kane" and "Seven Samurai". [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/callingtheshots/ridley_scott.shtml BBC Movies: Calling the Shots] ] Scott studied in Teesside from 1954 to 1958, at Grangefield Grammar School, Stockton and later in West Hartlepool College of Art, graduating with a Diploma in Design. He progressed to an M.A. in graphic design at London's Royal College of Art from 1960 to 1962.

At the RCA he contributed to the college magazine, 'ARK' and helped to establish its film department. For his final show he made a black and white short film, 'Boy and Bicycle', starring his younger brother, Tony Scott, and his father. The film's main visual elements would become features of Scott's later work; it was issued on the 'Extras' section of 'The Duellists' DVD. After graduation in 1963 he secured a job as a trainee set designer with the BBC, leading to work on the popular television police series 'Z-Cars' and the science fiction series 'Out of the Unknown'. Scott was an admirer of Stanley Kubrick early in his development as a director. For his entry for the BBC traineeship Scott remade 'Paths of Glory' as a short film.

He was assigned to design the second "Doctor Who" serial, "The Daleks", which would have entailed realising the famous alien creatures. However, shortly before he was due to start work a schedule conflict meant that he was replaced on the serial by Raymond Cusick.cite book|title=The Handbook: The First Doctor - The William Hartnell Years 1963-1966|first=David J.|last=Howe|authorlink=David J. Howe|coauthors=Mark Stammers, Stephen James Walker|publisher=Virgin Books|year=1994|id=ISBN 0-426-20430-1|pages=p. 61] At the BBC, Scott was placed into a director training programme and, before he left the corporation, had directed episodes of "Z-Cars", its spin-off, "Softly, Softly", and adventure series "Adam Adamant Lives!".

Five members of the Scott family are directors, all working for Ridley Scott Associates (RSA). Brother Tony has been a successful film director for more than two decades; sons, Jake and Luke are both acclaimed commercials directors as is his daughter, Jordan. Jake and Jordan both work from Los Angeles and Luke is based in London.

Early career

Scott left the BBC in 1968 and established a production company, Ridley Scott Associates, working with Sir Alan Parker, Hugh Hudson, Hugh Johnson and employing his younger brother, Tony. Having cut his teeth on UK television commercials in the 1970s — most notably the 1974 Hovis advert, "Bike Round" (New World Symphony), which was filmed in Shaftesbury, Dorset — he graduated to Hollywood, where he produced and directed a number of top box office films.

"The Duellists"

"The Duellists" of 1977 was Ridley Scott's first feature film. It was produced in Europe and won a Best Debut Film medal at the Cannes Film Festival but made limited commercial impact in the US. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, it featured two French Hussar officers, D'Hubert and Feraud (played by Keith Carradine and Harvey Keitel). Their quarrel over an initially minor incident turns into a bitter, long-drawn out feud over the following fifteen years, interwoven with the larger conflict that provides its backdrop. The film is lauded for its historically authentic portrayal of Napoleonic uniforms and military conduct, as well as its accurate early-nineteenth-century fencing techniques recreated by fight choreographer William Hobbs.

"Alien"

Scott's box office disappointment with "The Duellists" was compounded by the success being enjoyed by Alan Parker with American-backed films — Scott admitted he was "ill for a week" with envy. Scott had originally planned to next adapt an opera, "Tristan und Isolde", but after seeing "", he became convinced of the potential of large scale, effects-driven films. He therefore accepted the job of directing "Alien", the ground-breaking 1979 horror/science-fiction film that would give him international recognition. Whilst mostly filmed in 1978, Scott's talent for high-quality production design and atmospheric visuals, and the film's emphasis on realism over movie heroics have given Alien almost ageless appeal.

While Scott would not direct the three "Alien" sequels, the female action hero Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) introduced in the first film, would become a cinematic icon. Scott was involved in the 2003 restoration and re-release of the film including media interviews for its promotion. At this time Scott indicated that he had been in discussions to make the fifth and final film in the "Alien" franchise. However, in a 2006 interview, the director remarked that he had been unhappy about "Alien: The Director's Cut", feeling that the original was "pretty flawless" and that the additions were merely a marketing tool. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/nolavconsole/ukfs_news/hi/newsid_6060000/newsid_6068400/bb_rm_6068470.stm BBC News: A good year ahead for Ridley] ]

"Blade Runner"

After a year working on the film adaptation of "Dune", Scott signed to direct the film version of Philip K. Dick's novel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?", (which would be retitled "Blade Runner"), following the sudden death of his brother Frank. Starring Harrison Ford and featuring an acclaimed soundtrack by Vangelis, "Blade Runner" was a flop when released in theatres in 1982, and was pulled shortly thereafter. However, it would eventually achieve cult status through re-issue on television and through home video. Scott's notes were used by Warner Brothers to create a rushed director's cut in 1991 which removed the voiceovers and modified the ending. Today "Blade Runner" is often ranked by critics as one of the most important science fiction films of the 20th century [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/news/page/0,12983,1290764,00.html "The Guardian": Top 10 sci-fi films] ] and is usually discussed along with William Gibson's novel "Neuromancer" as initiating the cyberpunk genre. Scott personally supervised a digitally restored "Blade Runner" and approved the "Final Cut", which was released theatrically in Los Angeles, New York and Toronto on October 5 2007, and as an elaborate DVD release on December 18 2007, following the resolution of a number of rights issues between Warner Bros and the film's guarantors. [http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?id=36328 "Blade Runner" Final Cut Due," SciFi Wire, May 26, 2006] ] Scott regards "Blade Runner" as his "most complete and personal film". cite journal|title=Scott's Corner|journal=The Observer|date=2002-01-02|first=Lynn|last=Barber|coauthors=|volume=|issue=|pages=|id= |url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/interview/interviewpages/0,,628186,00.html|format=|accessdate=2007-02-22]

"1984" Apple Macintosh commercial

"1984" is a 1984 American television commercial directed by Scott, written by Steve Hayden and Lee Clow, produced by Chiat/Day, and starring Anya Major as the unnamed heroine and David Graham as "Big Brother." [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0333986/otherworks David Graham] ] [ [http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=741952#a Google Answers article #741952] ] It was released for a single airing in the United States on January 22, 1984 during the third quarter of Super Bowl XVIII. [ [http://www.duke.edu/~tlove/mac.htm Apple's 1984: The Introduction of the Macintosh in the Cultural History of Personal Computers] ] It introduced the Macintosh personal computer for the first time and is now considered a "watershed event" [ [http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/kevinmaney/2004-01-28-maney_x.htm Apple's '1984' Super Bowl commercial still stands as watershed event] ] and a "masterpiece."cite web
url=http://edition.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/02/02/eye.ent.commercials/
title= Why 2006 isn't like '1984'
accessdate= 2008-05-10
author=
last=Leopold
first=Todd
authorlink=
coauthors=
date= February 3, 2006
work=
publisher=CNN ] "1984" used the unnamed heroine to represent the coming of the Macintosh (indicated by her white tank top with a Picasso-style picture of Apple’s Macintosh computer on it) as a means of saving humanity from "conformity" (Big Brother).cite web
url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb197/is_200401/ai_n5556112
title= The Story Behind Apple's '1984' TV commercial: Big Brother at 20
accessdate= 2008-05-09
author=
last=Cellini
first=Adelia
authorlink=
coauthors=
month=January | year=2004
work= MacWorld 21.1, page 18
publisher= ]

These images were an allusion to George Orwell's noted novel, "Nineteen Eighty-Four", which described a dystopian future ruled by a televised "Big Brother."

"Legend"

In 1985 Scott directed "Legend", a fantasy film produced by Arnon Milchan. Having not tackled the fairy tale genre, Scott decided to create a "once upon a time" film set in a world of fairies, princesses, and goblins. Scott cast Tom Cruise as the film's hero, Jack, Mia Sara as Princess Lily, and Tim Curry as the Satan-like Lord of Darkness. But a series of problems with both principal photography and post-production (including heavy editing and substitution of Jerry Goldsmith's original score) hampered the film's release and as a result "Legend" received scathing reviews. It has since become a cult classic thanks to a DVD release that restores Scott's original, intended vision.

"Someone to Watch Over Me" and "Black Rain"

Hungry for a real box office hit and also for respect from the press which considered him a commercial filmmaker devoted only to fantastic visuals without much substance, Scott decided to postpone further incursions into the science fiction and fantasy genre, in order to avoid being typecast, by focusing more in down-to-earth, mature, suspense thrillers.

Among them came "Someone to Watch Over Me", a romantic police drama starring Tom Berenger, Lorraine Bracco and Mimi Rogers in 1987, and "Black Rain", a 1989 cop drama starring Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia, shot partially in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan. Both met with mild success at the box office.

Again, Scott was praised for his lavish visuals, but was still being criticised for making films that were little more than extended versions of his glossy TV commercials, which he kept directing due to the lucrative nature of the advertising business.

"Thelma & Louise" and "1492"

"Thelma & Louise" (1991) starred Geena Davis as Thelma, Susan Sarandon as Louise who are on a journey of personal discovery, friendship, and love, with the two committing crimes along the cross-country trek. These crimes strengthen Thelma and Louise's bond. Harvey Keitel is featured as a sympathetic detective who tries to solve crimes that the two women commit. The movie proved to be a success and revived Scott's reputation as a film maker.

However, Scott's next project was less successful. He oversaw the making of an independent movie '. It is a visually striking film about the story of Christopher Columbus. However it is considered to be his slowest-paced movie. Scott would not release another film for four years after '.

Mature period

In 1995, together with his brother Tony, Scott formed the film and television production company Scott Free Productions in Los Angeles. All of his subsequent feature films, starting with "White Squall" and "G.I. Jane", a female tabloid version of "Full Metal Jacket" starring Demi Moore and Viggo Mortensen, have been produced under the Scott Free banner. Also in 1995 the two brothers purchased a controlling interest in Shepperton Studios, which were later merged with Pinewood Studios. Scott and his brother are currently producing (since 2005) the CBS series "Numb3rs" — a crime drama focused on a mathematician who helps the FBI solve crimes using his genius in mathematics.

"Gladiator" and subsequent works

The huge success of Scott's film "Gladiator" (2000) has been credited with the revival of the nearly defunct genre of the "sword and sandal" historical epic.Fact|date=August 2007 Scott then turned to "Hannibal", the sequel to Jonathan Demme's "The Silence of the Lambs". 2001 also saw the release of Scott's war film "Black Hawk Down" (2001), which further established Scott's position as both a critically and financially successful film maker and went on to earn two Oscars.

In 2003 Scott directed "Matchstick Men", adapted from the novel by Eric Garcia and starring Nicolas Cage, Sam Rockwell and Alison Lohman. It received mostly positive reviews and performed moderately at the box office.

In 2005 the director made the internationally successful "Kingdom of Heaven", a movie about the Crusades which consciously sought to connect history to current events. While on location in Morocco during filming, Scott reportedly received threats from extremists. The Moroccan government also sent the Moroccan cavalry as extras in the epic battle scenes.

Unhappy with the theatrical version of the film (which he blamed on paying too much attention to the opinions of preview audiences), Scott supervised a director's cut of "Kingdom of Heaven", which was released on DVD in 2006. [ [http://www.kingdomofheavendvd.com "Kingdom of Heaven: Director's Cut" DVD official website] ] In an interview to promote the latter, when asked if he was against previewing in general, Scott stated:

"It depends who's in the driving seat. If you've got a lunatic doing my job, then you need to preview. But a good director should be experienced enough to judge what he thinks is the correct version to go out into the cinema.""Total Film" magazine, July 2006: 'Three hours, eight minutes. It's beautiful.' (Interview to promote "Kingdom of Heaven: The Director's Cut")]

"A Good Year" and "American Gangster"

Scott teamed up again with actor Russell Crowe, directing the movie "A Good Year", which is based on the best-selling book. The film was released on November 10 2006, with a score by Marc Streitenfeld. Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corp and Subsidiary studio 20th Century Fox (who backed the film) dismissed "A Good Year" as "a flop" at a shareholders' meeting only a few days after the film was released. [cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=A Good Year is a 'flop', Murdoch admits | date=2006-11-16 | publisher= | url =http://film.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1949283,00.html | work =Guardian Unlimited | pages = | accessdate = 2007-02-24 | language = ]

Scott's next directorial work was on "American Gangster", the story of real-life drug kingpin Frank Lucas, working for the first time with Denzel Washington and again with Russell Crowe. He is the third director to attempt the project after Antoine Fuqua's attempt (under the working title "Tru Blu") was shut down by the studio due to an escalating budget. Washington had been cast in the initial Steven Zaillian-drafted incarnation of the project (reuniting him with Fuqua who had directed him in his Best Actor Oscar-winning performance in "Training Day") along with Benicio del Toro playing Richie Roberts. Both actors were paid salaries of $20m and $15m respectively without doing any production on the film. The project was then handed to the director of "Hotel Rwanda", Terry George, who was rumoured to be working on a less harsh version of the script with Don Cheadle in the starring role. Eventually George and Cheadle dropped out and Scott took over the project in early 2006. Scott brought Zaillian back on board to rewrite the script to focus on the dynamic between Frank Lucas and Richie Roberts. Washington signed back on to the project as Lucas and Crowe signed on to play Roberts. The film finally premiered in November 2007 to positive reviews and good box office.

Planned projects

Scott is set to direct an adaptation of Robin Hood called "Nottingham" in which Russell Crowe will portray both the Sheriff of Nottingham [cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=Ridley Scott to Direct Nottingham | date=2007-04-30 | publisher= | url =http://www.cinemafusion.com/index.php?/weblog/comments/ridley_scott_to_direct_nottingham/ | work =Cinema Fusion | pages = | accessdate = 2007-04-30 | language = ] and Robin Hood.

Rumoured future projects include "Shadow Divers" (though currently unattached) and "The Invisible World" (production notes unknown). He also has a historical epic called "Tripoli" planned, with Russell Crowe and Ben Kingsley attached, and a western in development, "Blood Meridian", based on the book by Cormac McCarthy. In 2000, he was attached to do an adaptation of Ben Elton's novel "Popcorn". He and brother Tony are also looking at remaking the 1979 film "The Warriors", with Tony set to direct as his next film after "Déjà Vu". It was recently announced that he will direct Brave New World [ [http://www.filmjunk.com/2008/03/27/ridley-scott-to-direct-aldous-huxleys-brave-new-world/ Ridley Scott to Direct Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World? - Film Junk ] ]

Recently it was announced that his next project would be "Body of Lies", the adaptation of the fiction bestseller of the same name, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe once more attached to star. Previously the project had been named "Penetration". On June 19 2007 it was announced that Scott would direct a film version of the game "Monopoly". [ [http://www.worstpreviews.com/headline.php?id=4473&count=0 WorstPreviews.com: Ridley Scott's "Monopoly" film confirmed] ]

Scott will also direct "Child 44" an adaptation of the novel by Tom Rob Smith, a period thriller set during the Stalinist-era about a Russian secret police officer who is framed by a colleague for treason. He will be producer of the horror movie "Tell-Tale", which Michael Cuesta is set to direct and Josh Lucas to star in as a man whose heart-transplant leads him to find the killer of his heart's previous owner before its past catches up to him. And "Factor X" about a young counter-terrorism expert from Washington who works with Wichita police detective Ken Landwehr (Eric Bana) to solve the infamous case of the BTK serial killer active in Kansas from 1974-91, but who was finally captured in 2005. Scott is currently developing a film about Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. A production schedule or release date for the film has yet to be announced. The film is set 1987.

With brother Tony Scott, acquired the rights to the Lachlan Fox thriller series by Australian novelist James Clancy Phelan No casting announcement yet as to who will play the investigative reporter, nor which book in the series will make it to screen first in this Jason Bourne-like franchise. [http://www.jamesphelan.com.au/]

In April 2008, Scott announced his new project "The Kind One", a period drama set for release in 2010. The film will star recent Academy Award nominee Casey Affleck. [cite news | url = http://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/7175/news/film/ridley_scott_taking_on_the_kind_one | title = Paste Magazine :: News :: Ridley Scott, Casey Affleck take on The Kind One | publisher = Paste | date = 2008-04-17 | accessdate = 2008-04-27]

Approach and style

Initially Scott was hardly known as an actors' director, but he has become more receptive to ideas from his cast as his career has developed. Examples include Susan Sarandon's suggestions that the character of Louise pack shoes in plastic bags in one scene of "Thelma & Louise", and another where her character exchanges jewellery for a hat and other items, as well as Tim Robbins' collaboration with Scott and Susan Sarandon to rework the final scene with a more upbeat ending. Russell Crowe has commented, "I like being on Ridley's set because actors can perform [...] and the focus is on the performers.""American Gangster" DVD, "Fallen Empire: The Making of American Gangster" documentary]

On the other hand, he can be a demanding and difficult director to work for. He was nicknamed "Guvnor" in the "Blade Runner" production. Several crew members wore protest t-shirts with slogans such as "Yes Guvnor, my ass" and "Will Rogers never met Ridley Scott" in reference to Will Rogers' most famous quotation, "I never met a man I didn't like". [ [http://www.answers.com/topic/i-never-met-a-man-i-didn-t-like Answers.com: I never met a man I didn't like] ] This was mainly in response to the way that Scott directed his first American crew, which some considered too harsh.

His striking visual style, incorporating a detailed approach to production design and innovative, atmospheric lighting, has been influential on a subsequent generation of filmmakers — many of whom have simply imitated his style. Scott commonly uses slow pacing until the action sequences, which are characterised by frequent, rapid edits. Examples include "Alien" and "Blade Runner"; the "LA Times" critic Sheila Benson, for example, would call the latter "Blade Crawler" "because it's so damn slow". Another commonly employed technique is his use of sound or music to build tension, as seen in "Alien" with hissing steam, beeping computers and the noise of the machinery in the space ship.

Scott has developed a method for filming intricate shots as swiftly as possible:

"I like working, always, with a minimum of three cameras. [...] So those 50 set-ups [a day] might only be 25 set-ups except I'm covering in the set-up. So you're finished. I mean, if you take a little bit more time to prep on three cameras, or if it's a big stunt, eleven cameras, and — whilst it may take 45 minutes to set up — then when you're ready you say 'Action!', and you do three takes, two takes and is everybody happy? You say, 'Yeah, that's it.' So you move on."

Although Scott is often known for his painterly directorial style, other techniques and elements include:

*Strong female characters. [ [http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/contributor/1800015105/bio Yahoo! Movies: Ridley Scott] ] [ [http://www.americancinematheque.com/pressreleases/2001/ridleyscott.htm AmericanCinemateque.com: Press release] ]
*In some of his movies there is a strong conflict between father and son that usually ends with the latter killing the former intentionally ("Blade Runner", "Gladiator") or accidentally ("Black Hawk Down"), or witnessing the event ("Kingdom of Heaven"). The Lord of Darkness in "Legend" also mentions his "father" on a few occasions. As part of the conflict between father and son there are some repetitive scenes: in "Gladiator", the son hugs the father seemingly as an expression of love but this embrace turns into the suffocation and death of the father. There is a similar sequence in "Blade Runner".
*In "Gladiator", "Blade Runner" and "Kingdom of Heaven", a son gets to know his father when he is grown up. Other common elements are that the mother is not seen, and that the son or father is seen performing his last actions. For example, Roy Batty is dying when he saves Deckard, Maximus dies after killing Commodus and Godfrey of Ibelin kills some enemies after he has been mortally wounded by an arrow. In addition, the hero is saved from death before attaining his greatest deeds: Deckard is saved by Rachel, Maximus is saved by a slave and Balian is saved by a Muslim enemy. Similar situations can be seen in Tony Scott's "Man on Fire".
*Military and officer classes as characters reflecting his father's career, such as in "G.I. Jane" and "Black Hawk Down".
*Storyboarding his films extensively. These illustrations, when made by himself, have been referred to as "Ridleygrams" in DVD releases.
*Like Stanley Kubrick, Scott was once known for requesting a great many takes. This was evident on "Blade Runner": the crew nicknamed the movie "Blood Runner" because of this.
*He often makes use of classical music (the Hovis advertisements, "Someone to Watch Over Me").
*Extensive use of smoke and other atmospheres (in "Alien", "Blade Runner" and "Black Rain"), plus fans and fan-like objects ("Blade Runner", "Black Rain" and the large Boeing jet engines in the "1984" TV advertisement). Fans are also used in "Hannibal", for symbolic purposes.
*Consistency in his choice of composers, using Jerry Goldsmith ("Alien" and "Legend"), Vangelis ("Blade Runner" and "1492: Conquest of Paradise") or Hans Zimmer ("Black Rain", "Thelma & Louise", "Gladiator", "Hannibal", "Black Hawk Down" and "Matchstick Men"). Scott has also twice used songs by Sting during the film credits ("Valparaiso" for "White Squall" and "Someone to Watch Over Me" for the movie of the same title).

Criticism

The criticism most often levelled against Scott is that he is a stylist whose overriding interest in visuals comes at the expense of believable characters and a strong narrative.Fact|date=July 2008

Although some of his films have been highly praised, others have been less successful with audiences and critics. "White Squall", "G.I. Jane" and "Hannibal" are the three major works most often attacked by criticsFact|date=July 2008, while "" was a major commercial failure.Fact|date=July 2008 "Legend" (1985) was, like "Blade Runner" three years before, an initial box-office disaster, but it too has since found cult status.Fact|date=July 2008

Some actors who have worked with Scott have argued that he puts more emphasis on the sets and lining up shots than on them. Perhaps most famously among them, Harrison Ford complained that his relationship with Scott while making "Blade Runner" left a lot to be desired.Fact|date=July 2008 The legend holds that the infamous chestbursting sequence in "Alien" is so effective partly because the director purposely did not warn most of the cast what exactly was about to take place - i.e, that some of their shocked expressions are real. Paul M. Sammon, in his book "", commented in an interview with Brmovie.com that Scott's relationship with his actors has improved considerably over the years. [ [http://www.brmovie.com/Articles/Sammon_Interview_11.htm BRmovie.com: Paul M. Sammon interview] ]

DVD format and director's cut

Scott is known for his enthusiasm for the DVD format, providing audio commentaries and interviews for all his films where possible. In the July 2006 issue of "Total Film" magazine, he stated:

After all the work we go through, to have it run in the cinema and then disappear forever is a great pity. To give the film added life is really cool for both those who missed it and those who really loved it.

The special edition DVDs of Scott's films are often well regarded for their high quality picture and sound, as well as comprehensive documentaries and commentaries, produced by his longtime DVD producer, Charles de Lauzirika.

Running alongside his enthusiasm for DVD, Scott is sometimes considered the "father" of the director's cut, a description which is somewhat ironic considering that the impetus to produce such versions has sometimes begun with other parties. The positive reaction to the "Blade Runner" Director's Cut encouraged Scott to re-cut several movies that were flops at the time of their release (including "Legend" and "Kingdom of Heaven"). Today the practice of alternative cuts is more commonplace, though often as a way to make a film stand out in the DVD marketplace by adding new material.

Awards

Scott has been nominated for three Academy Awards for Directing: for "Thelma & Louise", "Gladiator" and "Black Hawk Down", as well as a Golden Globe, BAFTA and Emmy Award. [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000631/awards IMDb: Ridley Scott — awards] ] He was knighted in the 2003 New Year honours. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/showbiz/2615423.stm BBC News: Bates and Scott lead showbiz honours] ]

Ridley Scott Box Office

Personal life

His current partner is the actress Giannina Facio, whom he has cast in all his movies since "White Squall". He divides his time between homes in London, France, and Los Angeles.

Filmography

Music video

*"Avalon", Roxy Music (1982) (co-directed with Howard Gard)

Commercials

*"Bike Round" for Hovis (1973)
*"Chanel... Share the fantasy." for Chanel (1979)
*"1984" for Apple Computer (1984)
*"The Choice of a New Generation" for Pepsi (1986) (Starred Don Johnson and Glenn Frey)

TV shows (as producer)

*"NUMB3RS" (2005–present) (producer, with Tony Scott)

External links

*
* [http://www.theyshootpictures.com/scottridley.htm They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?]
* [http://www.stv.tv/out/showArticle.jsp?source=opencms&articleId=/out/edimburg_festival/films/ridley_scott_interview Video interview with STV's Grant Lauchlan, discussing "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Blade Runner"]
* [http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,14931-2388287,00.html Times Interview with Ridley Scott] October 5, 2006
* [http://www.totalfilm.com/features/the_total_film_interview_-_ridley_scott2 Total Film: Interview with Ridley Scott] , July 15, 2007
* [http://www.rsafilms.com/ RSA Films (Ridley and Tony Scott's advertising production company)] , November 30, 2007

References

Persondata
NAME= Scott, Ridley
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Scott, Sir Ridley
SHORT DESCRIPTION=English film director, and producer
DATE OF BIRTH= November 30, 1937
PLACE OF BIRTH= South Shields, England
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=