John Seale, ASC, ACS
Cold Mountain

John Seale, ACS, ASC was born and raised in Australia. During his early teens, he was a "jackeroo" (cowboy), herding sheep and mending fences on his uncle's ranch on the edge of the Queensland desert. He began his career shooting newsfilm and documentaries. Seale transitioned into narrative filmmaking as a camera operator working with some of Australia's most talented cinematographers. He won an Oscar for The English Patient and other nominations for Witness and Rain Man. His body of work also includes such memorable films as The Mosquito Coast, Children of A Lesser God, Gorillas in the Mist, Dead Poets Society, Ghosts of Mississippi, The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Perfect Storm and City of Angels.

Synopis: Amid the horrors of the Civil War, a Confederate soldier deserts his post and embarks on a dangerous odyssey that will take him home to the woman he loves. Meanwhile, she is struggling and ill prepared to survive the harsh conditions that the war has caused.

Quote: "For the recreation of the huge Civil War battle, we used everything to shoot that sequence, which we regarded as Dante's Inferno. Steadicams, cranes, and suspended and handheld cameras were in the action. The explosion was scripted to happen at dawn. Reports said that the plume of dust and rubbish from the explosion turned day into night ... so there's a lot of smoke and darkness and graphic images of war."

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