Nigel Bluck

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Nigel Bluck
Born1971 (age 54–55) [1]
Education Elam School of Fine Arts, Auckland [2]
Australian Film Television and Radio School (Cinematography)
Known for True Detective (s. 2–3)
Website nigelbluck.com

Nigel Bluck (born 1971) is a New Zealand cinematographer known for his work in feature films and television across New Zealand, Australia and the United States. He made his feature film debut as cinematographer with Stickmen (2001) and later worked as a second unit cinematographer on The Lord of the Rings trilogy. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

He completed his high school education at Dunedin’s Logan Park High School. [3]

Bluck studied cinematography at the Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS). [4] After graduating, he worked in commercial production before transitioning to feature films. [4] Bluck's first feature film as cinematographer was Stickmen (2001), directed by Hamish Rothwell. The two had previously collaborated on television commercials. [1]

Career

Bluck's first feature film as director of photography was Stickmen (2001), directed by Hamish Rothwell. The two had previously collaborated on multiple television commercials. The film employed a bleach bypass technique during the interneg stage, a decision Bluck described as bold at the time. Due to Bluck’s relative inexperience, the New Zealand Film Commission appointed cinematographer Alun Bollinger MNZM as the A-camera operator and mentor on the project. [1]

Early in his career, Bluck worked as a second unit cinematographer on The Lord of the Rings trilogy. At the time, he had recently completed his first feature film, Stickmen , in Wellington, New Zealand. His involvement with the project came through a connection with cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, whom he met via his partner, who was working as a camera assistant on the production. Lesnie attended the premiere of Stickmen and offered Bluck the position despite the film containing no visual effects. Bluck later described the experience as a significant learning opportunity, involving nine months of stage work focused on bluescreen lighting and early visual effects techniques. [5]

Bluck has stated that his work on the Australian film Son of a Gun , starring Ewan McGregor, contributed to him being hired for True Detective . According to Bluck, his agent presented the film to executive producer Scott Stephens, who expressed interest after multiple viewings. He noted that True Detective marked his first experience working in television and within a multi-director format. Fitzgerald served as the second unit director of photography on the series. [3]

"I feel that my natural curiosities and inclinations toward art, science and storytelling fit best in the (cinematography form of the) filmmaking process".

— Nigel Bluck in an interview with Variety.
April 21, 2015. [6]

In Tigertail, Bluck shot the flashback sequences on 16mm to give them a hazy, half-remembered memory look. [7]

Awards and recognition

Bluck was awarded Best Cinematography at the San Sebastian Film Festival for his work on Half Moon. [4]

Reception

Joyce King Heyraud reviewed Handsome Harry in Psychological Perspectives: A Quarterly Journal of Jungian Thought and stated that "The photography (Nigel Bluck) captures the light and mood reminiscent of American artist Edward Hopper". [8]

Stephen Holden, in the opening paragraph of his New York Times review, wrote that "here, on the edge of the outback, the environment is so luminous that every outdoor shot has an aura of magical realism" in reference to The Tree (2010), a French-Australian co-production shot by Bluck. [9] [10]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleDirectorNotesRef(s)
2001 Stickmen Hamish Rothwell [11] [5]
2001–2003 The Lord of the Rings (film series) Peter Jackson 2nd unit under Andrew Lesnie [5]
2006 Half Moon Bahman Ghobadi With Crighton Bone [12]
2007 The Home Song Stories Tony Ayres Best Cinematography - AFI Award, Kodak IF Award for Best Cinematography [1] [13] [14]
2009 Handsome Harry Bette Gordon [15] [16]
2010 The Tree Julie Bertuccelli [17] [3]
2014 Son of a Gun Julius Avery [18] [19]
2019 The Peanut Butter Falcon Tyler Nilson
Michael Schwartz		 [20]
2020 Tigertail Alan Yang [7]
2022 The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent Tom Gormican [5]
2023 Americana Tony Tost [21]
2025 Lilo & Stitch Dean Fleischer Camp [22] [23]
Anaconda Tom Gormican [24]
Easy's Waltz Nic Pizzolatto

Television

YearTitleNotes
2015–2019 True Detective 10 episodes
2017 S.W.A.T. 1 episode
2019 Prodigal Son 1 episode

Personal life

Bluck resides in Los Angeles with his wife, cinematographer Jacueline Fitzgerald, who is originally from Christchurch, and their son. [3] [22]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 acmag (1 March 2017). "True Detective, Season Two". Australian Cinematographer Magazine. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Nigel Bluck | NZ On Screen". www.nzonscreen.com. NZ On Screen. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Croot, James (5 September 2015). "True Detective's Kiwi insider". www.stuff.co.nz. Archived from the original on 15 July 2025. Retrieved 26 July 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 "Spoiler Alert Radio: Nigel Bluck – Director of Photography". spoileralertradio.libsyn.com. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Mulcahey, Matt (13 May 2022). ""Contrast is the Toughest Thing to Shift": DP Nigel Bluck on the Two Nicolas Cages of The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent – Filmmaker Magazine". Filmmaker Magazine. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  6. ↑ Staff, Variety (21 April 2015). "10 Cinematographers to Watch". Variety. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  7. 1 2 Stiff, Victor (10 April 2020). "Tigertail Review: A Heartfelt Meditation on Love, Family, and Communication". That Shelf. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  8. ↑ King Heyraud, Joyce (10 March 2011). "A Review of "Handsome Harry": (2009). Directed by Bette Gordon". Psychological Perspectives. 54 (1): 114–116. doi:10.1080/00332925.2011.547145. ISSN   0033-2925.
  9. ↑ "A Tree That Shelters Animal Life and Maybe Even a Dead Parent (Published 2011)". 14 July 2011. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  10. ↑ crafttruck (18 April 2013). Nigel Bluck – Craft Truck – Through the Lens – S01EP11 . Retrieved 3 September 2025– via YouTube.
  11. ↑ Rooney, David (19 May 2001). "Stickmen". Variety. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  12. ↑ Catsoulis, Jeannette (14 December 2007). "Harsh Realities and Mystical Power". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  13. ↑ "Noise dominates Australian critics awards". Screen. Retrieved 29 December 2025.
  14. ↑ Krauth, Kirsten (8 November 2020). "Awards Special: Back from the Brink – IF Awards 2005–2007". Inside Film: If (114): 42–43. doi:10.3316/informit.710785675609586.
  15. ↑ Holden, Stephen (16 April 2010). "A Sexual Advance, a Savage Beating, Years of Guilt". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  16. ↑ Mukhopadhyay, Arka (20 April 2022). "Where Was The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent Filmed?". The Cinemaholic. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  17. ↑ Schenker, Andrew (11 July 2011). "Review: The Tree". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 26 July 2025.
  18. ↑ Dalton, Stephen (16 October 2014). "'Son of a Gun': London Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  19. ↑ "Spreading their wings". The Australian . 31 January 2020.
  20. ↑ "'Peanut Butter Falcon' DP Explains Why a 2-Camera Setup Is Your Best Friend | No Film School". nofilmschool.com. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  21. ↑ "[SXSW 2023] Writer-Director Tony Tost Talks His Star-Studded Feature Debut AMERICANA". disappointment media. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  22. 1 2 babrams (3 June 2025). "Stitch, Surf, and Studio Magic: DP Nigel Bluck Takes Us Into the Wild World of the Live-Action "Lilo & Stitch"". Motion Picture Association. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  23. ↑ "EP 241- Behind the Lens: DP Nigel Bluck on Filming Lilo & Stitch 🌟". 24 June 2025. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
  24. ↑ Han, Angie (23 December 2025). "'Anaconda' Review: An Action-Comedy Starring Jack Black, Paul Rudd and a Giant CG Snake Should Be Way More Fun". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
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