Robin Vidgeon

Last updated

Robin Vidgeon
Robin Vidgeon.jpg
Born (1939-08-12) 12 August 1939 (age 84)
London, England
OccupationCinematographer
Notable awardsJohn Alcott Memorial Reward (1999)
PartnersAngela Dawson

Robin Vidgeon (born 12 August 1939) BSC, is a retired cinematographer best known for his work on Hellraiser , Hellbound: Hellraiser II and Nightbreed . For many years, he was a focus puller, working with the late cinematographer Douglas Slocombe and camera operator Bernard (Chic) Waterson. [1] [2]

Contents

Early life

As a child, Robin took an early interest in film, creating his own dark room and using a 9.5mm projector to screen movies for his neighbors. In 1956, he would go to work at Pinewood Studios cleaning equipment boxes. In 1959, he left Pinewood and applied for various jobs in the industry before he was eventually hired by Douglas Slocombe to work as a focus puller on Circus of Horrors . [3] [2]

Work with Slocombe

For the next twenty five years, Robin would work with Slocombe on numerous films such as Rollerball, The Great Gatsby and Close Encounters of the Third Kind , to name just a few. After completing production on the Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade , Robin would part with Slocombe and go on to work as a cinematographer. [4] [2] [1]

Director of Photography

Following his work with Slocombe, Robin began working as a Cinematographer on movies such as The Mission, The Penitent before going to work with Clive Barker on his directorial debut, Hellraiser . Robin would also go on to film Hellbound: Hellraiser II and Nightbreed with Barker. [2] [1]

Throughout the 1980s and 90's, Robin would continue to work as a cinematographer, citing his work on Anthony Hopkins' directorial debut, August, as one of his most memorable experiences. [2] [1] [3]

During 1994–1995, Robin was the acting president of British Society of Cinematographers, and has been an honorary member since that time. [5]

Retirement

Since his retirement in 2013, Robin has worked as a cinematography tutor at the London Film Academy. He has also taught Film & Digital Cinematography at the Met Film School, and given masterclasses at the University of Greenwich.

In March 2022, Robin was a guest on The Ghost Of Hollywood , where he would discuss his career in depth, including his work with Slocombe, Waterson, Hopkins and Barker. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clive Barker</span> English author, film director and visual artist

Clive Barker is an English novelist who came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the Books of Blood, which established him as a leading horror writer. He has since written many novels and other works. His fiction has been adapted into films, notably the Hellraiser series, the first installment of which he also wrote and directed, and the Candyman series. He was also an executive producer of the film Gods and Monsters, which won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

<i>Hellraiser</i> 1987 film by Clive Barker

Hellraiser is a 1987 British supernatural horror film written and directed by Clive Barker, and produced by Christopher Figg, based on Barker's 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart. The film marked Barker's directorial debut. Its plot involves a mystical puzzle box that summons the Cenobites, a group of extra-dimensional, sadomasochistic beings who cannot differentiate between pain and pleasure. The leader of the Cenobites is portrayed by Doug Bradley, and identified in the sequels as "Pinhead".

<i>Midian</i> (album) 2000 studio album by Cradle of Filth

Midian is the fourth studio album by English extreme metal band Cradle of Filth. It was released on 30 October 2000, through Music for Nations. The album marks the return of guitarist Paul Allender to the band, as well as the introduction of drummer Adrian Erlandsson and keyboard player Martin Powell. It also features Doug Bradley as the narrator for various songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doug Bradley</span> English actor and author

Douglas William Bradley is an English actor and author, best known for his role as the lead Cenobite "Pinhead" in the Hellraiser film series and for narration on various Cradle of Filth albums.

Cenobite (<i>Hellraiser</i>) Fictional creatures in the works of author Clive Barker

The Cenobites are fictional, extra-dimensional, and seemingly demonic beings who appear in the works of Clive Barker. Introduced in Barker's 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart, they also appear in its sequel novel The Scarlet Gospels, the Hellraiser films, and in Hellraiser comic books published (intermittently) between 1987 and 2017. In the novel Weaveworld, they are mentioned in passing as "The Surgeons". The Cenobites appear in prose stories authorized but not written by Clive Barker, such as the anthology Hellbound Hearts edited by Paul Kane and Marie O'Regan, the novella Hellraiser: The Toll, and the novel Sherlock Holmes and the Servants of Hell written by Paul Kane.

<i>Nightbreed</i> 1990 film

Nightbreed is a 1990 American dark fantasy horror film written and directed by Clive Barker, based on his 1988 novella Cabal. It stars Craig Sheffer, Anne Bobby, David Cronenberg, Charles Haid, Hugh Quarshie, and Doug Bradley. The film follows an unstable mental patient named Aaron Boone who is falsely led to believe by his doctor that he is a serial killer. Tracked down by the police, his doctor, and his girlfriend Lori, Boone eventually finds refuge in an abandoned cemetery called Midian among a tribe of monsters and outcasts known as the "Nightbreed" who hide from humanity.

Pinhead (<i>Hellraiser</i>) Fictional character in the Hellraiser franchise

Pinhead is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the Hellraiser franchise. The character first appeared as an unnamed figure in the 1986 Clive Barker novella The Hellbound Heart. When Clive Barker adapted the novella into the 1987 film Hellraiser, he referred to the character in early drafts as "the Priest" but the final film gave no name. The production and make-up crew nicknamed the character "Pinhead"—derived from his bald head studded with nails—and fans accepted the sobriquet. The name was then used in press materials, tie-in media, and on-screen in some of the film's sequels, although Barker himself despises the moniker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas Slocombe</span> British cinematographer (1913–2016)

Ralph Douglas Vladimir Slocombe OBE, BSC, ASC, GBCT was a British cinematographer, particularly known for his work at Ealing Studios in the 1940s and 1950s, as well as the first three Indiana Jones films. He won BAFTA Awards in 1964, 1975, and 1979, and was nominated for an Academy Award on three occasions.

Paul Kane is an English writer.

<i>Hellbound: Hellraiser II</i> 1988 horror film by Tony Randel

Hellbound: Hellraiser II is a 1988 supernatural horror film directed by Tony Randel and starring Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, Kenneth Cranham and Doug Bradley. The second film in the Hellraiser franchise, Hellraiser II draws heavily upon its precursor, Hellraiser, which was released a year before. Laurence reprises her role as Kirsty Cotton, who is admitted into a psychiatric hospital after the events of the first film. There, the head doctor (Cranham) unleashes the Cenobites, a group of sadomasochistic beings from another dimension.

<i>Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth</i> 1992 horror film

Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth is a 1992 American supernatural horror film and third installment in the Hellraiser film series. It was directed by Anthony Hickox and stars Doug Bradley, Terry Farrell, Paula Marshall, and Kevin Bernhardt. Ashley Laurence, who starred in the previous two films, has a cameo. Following the events of Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988), in which the demon Pinhead (Bradley) is imprisoned in a statue, he resurrects himself by absorbing the life force of unlucky humans. After converting several power-hungry youths into new Cenobites, Pinhead goes on a rampage, opposed by a reporter (Farrell) and the spiritual manifestation of his good half.

<i>Hellraiser</i> (franchise) Horror franchise

Hellraiser is a British-American horror media franchise that consists of eleven films, as well as various comic books, and additional merchandise and media. Based on the novella The Hellbound Heart by English author Clive Barker, the franchise centers around the Cenobites which includes the primary antagonist named Pinhead.

<i>The Scarlet Gospels</i> Novel by Clive Barker

The Scarlet Gospels is a 2015 horror novel by author Clive Barker which acts as a continuation to both his previous novella The Hellbound Heart and his canon of Harry D'Amour stories. The book concerns the Hell Priest, the demonic Cenobite nicknamed "Pinhead", and his efforts to gain power. Occult detective Harry D'Amour must journey into Hell to rescue his friend and stop the Hell Priest's plans. The book was the first in which the Hell Priest was officially given a name by Clive Barker, who disliked the nickname 'Pinhead' given his character by others.

Nicholas Vince is an actor, writer, and film maker who was born in West Germany and lives in South London. He trained at Mountview Theatre Academy, and shortly after graduating he met Clive Barker, modeling for him and later being cast as The Chatterer Cenobite in Hellraiser in 1987 and in its sequel Hellbound: Hellraiser II in 1988. He subsequently played Kinski in Barker's 1990 film Nightbreed. Since 2016 he's been Patron of the London Horror Festival, the UK's original and largest festival of live horror performance. In 2016 he was awarded the "London Horror Society Award for Outstanding Contribution to UK Independent Horror" and in 2018 a "Lifetime of Torment Award" at Texas Frightmare.

Simon Bamford is an English film, television and stage actor. He is well known for playing the Butterball Cenobite in Hellraiser in 1987 and its sequel Hellbound: Hellraiser II in 1988.

John Midgley is an English sound engineer. He won an Oscar in the category Best Sound Mixing for Hugo and has been nominated for another two. He has worked on more than 100 films since 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chatterer</span> Fictional character

Chatterer is a fictional character appearing in the Hellraiser film series. He is a Cenobite, an order of extradimensional sadomasochists who experiment in extreme forms of hedonism. His name comes from the constant clicking of his teeth, his only means of communication. He serves the Cenobites' leader Pinhead. Chatterer has become a fan favourite character in the Hellraiser franchise.

The British Society of Cinematographers Award for Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature Film is an award given annually by the British Society of Cinematographers (BSC). It was first given in 1953, since 1976 a set of nominees is presented.

<i>Hellraiser</i> (2022 film) Film directed by David Bruckner

Hellraiser is a 2022 supernatural horror film directed by David Bruckner, with a screenplay by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski, from a screen story they co-wrote with David S. Goyer. It is a reboot of the Hellraiser franchise, the eleventh installment overall, and a second adaptation of the 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker, which was adapted into the 1987 film Hellraiser. The film stars Odessa A'zion, Jamie Clayton, Adam Faison, Drew Starkey, Brandon Flynn, Aoife Hinds, Jason Liles, Yinka Olorunnife, Selina Lo, Zachary Hing, Kit Clarke, Goran Višnjić, and Hiam Abbass. It follows a young woman recovering from addiction who ends up with a mechanical puzzle box that can summon the Cenobites, humanoid beings who thrive on pain and pleasure.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 ""If You Don't Learn from the Greats, You'd Be Stupid": An Interview with Cinematographer Robin Vidgeon". FilmInt.nu. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Season Two". The Ghost of Hollywood. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Robin Vidgeon BSC". British Cinematographer. 9 May 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  4. "BSC Members | British Society of Cinematographers". bscine.com. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  5. "ROBIN VIDGEON". www.cinematographers.nl. Retrieved 4 March 2022.