 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Andrew Lesnie" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(November 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Andrew Lesnie | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1 January 1956 Sydney,New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 27 April 2015(2015-04-27) (aged 59) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Years active | 1978–2014 |
Andrew LesnieACSASC (1 January 1956 – 27 April 2015) was an Australian cinematographer.
He was best known for his collaboration with directorPeter Jackson onThe Hobbit trilogy (2012–2014) andThe Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–2003), with the latter earning him theAcademy Award for Best Cinematography in 2002 for his work onThe Fellowship of the Ring.
Lesnie was born in Sydney, New South Wales, on 1 January 1956,[1] the son of Shirley (Lithgow) and Allan Lesnie, who worked for the family's company, butcher suppliers Harry Lesnie Pty Ltd.
He was educated atSydney Grammar School. Andrew was well liked and popular at school. Lesnie finished 6th form and hisHigher School Certificate in 1974.[2] He started his career in 1978 as an assistant camera operator on the filmPatrick (1978) while he was still in school atAustralian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS).[3]
His first job after graduation in 1979 was as a cameraman on theLogie Award-winning Australian magazine-style afternoon TV showSimon Townsend's Wonder World. Simon Townsend gave Lesnie almost daily opportunities to develop his craft with little restriction over a wide variety of stories and situations, and to experiment with camera and lighting techniques in hundreds of locations and situations. After two years of working on the show, Lesnie moved on to numerous Australian film and television productions, including the mini-seriesBodyline.[4]
Later, he worked as a second camera assistant on the filmThe Killing of Angel Street (1981).[3]
Lesnie would then go on to develop his craft as he photographed films such asStations (1983),The Delinquents (1989),Temptation of the Monk (1993), andSpider and Rose (1994).[3]
Lesnie's work began receiving major attention after the release of the anthropomorphic pig storyBabe (1995) and its sequel,Babe: Pig in the City. He was director of photography onPeter Jackson'sLord of the Rings trilogy, and received anOscar for his work onThe Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring in 2002. Since then, he filmed several other Jackson-directed films, includingKing Kong andThe Lovely Bones, and also filmedThe Hobbit films directed by Jackson.
Lesnie used motion picture camera companyArri'sArriflex 435,Arriflex 535, andArriCam Studio35mm film cameras for the trilogy. He usedCarl Zeiss Ultra Prime Lenses andKodak's 5279 (tungsten-balanced) film stock to photograph the films.[5]
Lesnie planned far ahead into the production withPeter Jackson with previsualisation programs to help establish frame sizes and angles, as well as construction of sets.[6] During filming, Lesnie emphasised earthy colours in the makeup and wardrobe of the cast and extras.[7]
At the acceptance speech for his Oscar win forFellowship of the Ring, Lesnie dedicated his acceptance to chief lighting technicianBrian Bansgrove, who he described as a major contributor to the quality of the film's cinematography.[8]
For production, Lesnie usedRed Digital Cinema's Epic cameras as well asCarl Zeiss Ultra Prime Lenses to photograph the film.Jackson and Lesnie decided to shoot the film in 3D with as many as 15stereoscopic camera rigs (2 cameras each) with3ality.[9] They also decided to shoot the film in an uncommon frame rate of 48 frames per second versus the industry standard of 24 frames per second. This would make Lesnie the first cinematographer to employ such a method that claims to induce more clarity, reduce motion blur, and make 3D easier to watch.[10][11]
Lesnie's final film,The Water Diviner, directed by and starringRussell Crowe, was released in Australia in December 2014 and in America in April 2015, one week before his death.
Lesnie lived on Sydney's north coast. He was a member of both theAustralian Cinematographers Society and theAmerican Society of Cinematographers. Lesnie died of a heart attack in his Sydney home on 27 April 2015, after having suffered from a heart condition for half a year.[12][13]
Documentary film
| Year | Title | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | The Comeback | Kit Laughlin |
| 1988 | Schwarzenegger: Total Rebuild |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | The Same Stream | James Bradley | |
| 1983 | Stations | Jackie McKimmie | |
| 1984 | The Man You Know | Steve Jacobs | |
| 2013 | Reunion | Simon Stone | Segment ofThe Turning[14] |
Feature film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979-1986 | Wonder World! | 497 episodes | |
| 1986 | Cyclone Tracy | Donald Crombie Kathy Mueller | Miniseries |
| 1988 | Melba | Rodney Fisher | 6 episodes |
| The Rainbow Warrior Conspiracy | Chris Thomson | Miniseries | |
| 1990 | Winners | George Whaley | Episode "Mr Edmund" |
| 1994-1995 | House of Fun | Rebel Penfold-Russell |
TV movies
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Stages: Peter Brook and the C.I.C.T in Australia | Robert Mellor | Documentary film |
| 1989 | The Saint: Fear in Fun Park | Donald Crombie | |
| How Wonderful! | Lynn Hergarty |
{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)