Biography
John Alcott (27 November 1930 – 28 July 1986) was an English cinematographer. He began his career in the camera department at Gainsborough Studios and later assisted Geoffrey Unsworth before joining Stanley Kubrick's production of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), where he took over as lighting cameraman for the 'Dawn of Man' sequence.
Alcott shot three further films for Kubrick: A Clockwork Orange (1971), Barry Lyndon (1975) and The Shining (1980). His work on Barry Lyndon, which used only natural and candlelight, earned him the Academy Award for Best Cinematography. He received BAFTA and BSC awards for the same film and a BAFTA nomination for A Clockwork Orange.
After moving to the United States in 1981, Alcott worked on films including The Beastmaster (1982), Under Fire (1983), Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984) and No Way Out (1987). He died of a heart attack in Cannes, France, aged 55.
