Oliver Wood (21 February 1942 – 13 February 2023) was an English cinematographer, best known for his work in American films, mostly in the action, thriller and comedy genres.
He was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography for The Bourne Ultimatum.
Early life Wood was born in London on 21 February 1942. One of his early jobs in the film industry was as an assistant to director John Boorman, while he was head of the BBC's documentary department.
Wood shot the (now partially-lost) 1967 short film Popdown in London, and Rene Daalder's 1969 film The White Slave, and was a camera assistant for the Michael Winner-directed music hall documentary A Little of What You Fancy in 1968. In the late 1960s, Wood moved to New York City.
He cited French New Wave cinematographer Raoul Coutard as one of his strongest influences.
Career His first break in the US came when he was hired by director Leonard Kastle to shoot The Honeymoon Killers, a low-budget film based on the real-life serial killer couple Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck, "the Lonely Hearts Killers." He utilized high-contrast black-and-white film stock and natural lighting to give the dark comedy a cinéma vérité-inspired pseudo-documentary look.Gary Giddins, The Honeymoon Killers , The Criterion Collection The film is now considered a cult classic, and Wood's photography was noted at the time.
He shot numerous B-movies and independent films throughout the late 1970s and 1980s, frequently collaborating with cinematographers Joseph Mangine and Fred Murphy. He also worked as a camera operator on higher-profile projects including Body Rock (1984) and To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), both of which were shot by Robby Müller. He also became a music video and commercial cinematographer, working for directors like Bob Giraldi and Rupert Wainwright.
His big break came when he was director of photography for 53 episodes of the crime drama Miami Vice, serving as the series primary DP between 1987 and 1989. His work on the series caught the attention of producers, enabling him to work on big-budget Hollywood films including Die Hard 2 (1990), Face/Off (1997), U-571 (2000) Fantastic Four (2005), and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013).
He was the original director of photography on the swashbuckling action film Cutthroat Island, but suffered an on-set injury and was replaced by Peter Levy.
He shot the Bourne Trilogy, where he worked with director Paul Greengrass on Supremacy and Ultimatum, producing a spontaneous, naturalistic effect, often using multiple cameras, frequently handheld, citing films such as The Battle of Algiers as an influence.Jon Silberg, "The Bourne Ultimatum" , American Cinematographer magazine, September 2007David Heuring, "Homeward Bound" , ICG Magazine, August 2007 He was nominated for a BAFTA for The Bourne Ultimatum (2007).2008 Winners , BAFTA, accessed 21 January 2016
In 2016, Wood shot the remake of Ben-Hur, directed by Timur Bekmambetov, utilizing GoPro cameras to film the movie's action sequences.
Personal life and death Wood married twice, once to Jane Forth. He had two daughters, and a son.
Wood died from cancer at his home in Los Angeles, California on 13 February 2023 at the age of 80.
Filmography Film Year Title Director Notes1969 Popdown Fred Marshall De blanke slavin Rene Daalder With Jan de Bont 1970 The Honeymoon Killers Leonard Kastle 1977 Danny Gene Feldman 1978 Feedback Bill Doukas 1979 Don't Go in the House Joseph Ellison 1982 Maya Ágúst Ágústsson1983 The Returning Josh Bender The Sex O'Clock News Romano Vanderbes1984 In Our Words Robert RichterStanley Warnow Documentary film Alphabet City Amos Poe1986 Joey Joseph Ellison Quiet Cool Clay Borris With Jacques Haitkin Neon Maniacs Joseph Mangine With Joseph Mangine1990 Die Hard 2Renny Harlin The Adventures of Ford Fairlane1991 Mystery Date Jonathan Wacks Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey Peter Hewitt1993 For Love or Money Barry Sonnenfeld Rudy David Anspaugh Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit Bill Duke 1994 Terminal Velocity Deran Sarafian 1995 Mr. Holland's Opus Stephen Herek1996 Celtic Pride Tom DeCerchio 2 Days in the Valley John Herzfeld1997 Face/Off John Woo Switchback Jeb Stuart 1998 Mighty Joe Young Ron Underwood With Donald Peterman 2000 U-571 Jonathan Mostow2002 The Adventures of Pluto Nash Ron Underwood I Spy Betty Thomas The Bourne Identity Doug Liman2003 National Security Dennis Dugan Freaky Friday Mark Waters2004 Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed Raja Gosnell The Bourne Supremacy Paul Greengrass 2005 Fantastic Four Tim Story 2006 Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby Adam McKay 2007 The Bourne Ultimatum Paul Greengrass Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography 2008 Step Brothers Adam McKay 2009 Surrogates Jonathan Mostow 2010 The Other Guys Adam McKay 2012 Safe House Daniel Espinosa2013 2 Guns Baltasar Kormákur Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues Adam McKay 2015 Child 44 Daniel Espinosa2016 Grimsby Louis Leterrier Ben-Hur Timur Bekmambetov Jack Reacher: Never Go Back Edward Zwick2018 The Equalizer 2 Antoine Fuqua Holmes & Watson Etan Cohen 2022 Morbius Daniel Espinosa
Television TV movies Year Title Director 1985 City Boy Bob Giraldi 1987 Nasty Hero Nick Barwood 1991 Angel City Renny Harlin
TV series Year Title Director Notes 1987–89 Miami Vice 53 episodes 2020 Cine Chalom Yossi Benavraham Episode "EXTRAIT DU FILM "VOLTE FACE" DE JOHN WOO... 1997"
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Profile Selected Resume