British cinematographer's Jack Hildyard entered the film industry as
a 17-year-old clapper boy at Elstree Studios in 1932. Hildyard then
became camera operator in 1937, distinguishing himself in the Technicolor
field with such films as The Divorce of Lady X (1938) and Henry
V (1945). A full lighting cameraman from Caesar and Cleopatra (1945)
onward, Hildyard worked predominantly for Rank and then British Lion
before moving to Hollywood in 1957. Hildyard was closely associated
with director David Lean
on The Sound Barrier
(1952), Hobson's
Choice (1954), Summertime
(1955) and won an Oscar for his work on the epic Bridge
on the River Kwai (1957). He continued working as a cinematographer
until retiring from big screen productions after the historic Middle
East films Lion of the Desert (1980) and Clash of Loyalties (1983).
