# John Bailey (cinematographer)

John Ira Bailey ASC (August 10, 1942 – November 10, 2023) was an American cinematographer and film director known for his collaborations with directors Paul Schrader, Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Apted, and Ken Kwapis. In August 2017, Bailey was elected president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He was succeeded by casting director David Rubin in August 2019.

## Early life

John Ira Bailey was born August 10, 1942, in Moberly, Missouri, and raised in Norwalk, California. He attended Pius X High School in Downey, California, and briefly studied chemistry at Santa Clara University before transferring to Loyola University, Los Angeles, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1964. He earned a graduate degree from the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) in 1968.

## Career

Bailey spent 11 years apprenticing as a crew member with cinematographers such as Vilmos Zsigmond and Néstor Almendros, working on Two-Lane Blacktop, The Late Show, 3 Women, Winter Kills, and Days of Heaven. He earned his first credit as director of photography for Boulevard Nights, followed by Ordinary People and American Gigolo.
In 1985, Bailey shared the Cannes Film Festival Best Artistic Contribution Award with Eiko Ishioka and Philip Glass for Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. He was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography for Tough Guys Don't Dance and the Camerimage Golden Frog Award for Best Cinematography for Forever Mine. He was a member of the American Society of Cinematographers and member of the jury at the Venice Film Festival in 1987. He worked on numerous comedy films such as Groundhog Day, As Good as It Gets, and The Producers. He was a veteran documentary cameraman.
Bailey's credits as a director include The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, China Moon, Mariette in Ecstasy, and Via Dolorosa.

## Personal life and death

Bailey was married to film editor Carol Littleton from 1972. They resided in Los Angeles. He died in his sleep on November 10, 2023, at the age of 81.

## Filmography
### Cinematographer

Film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1972 | Premonition | Alan Rudolph | |
| 1974 | End of August | Gary Young | |
| 1975 | Legacy | Karen Arthur | |
| 1978 | The Mafu Cage | Karen Arthur | |
| 1979 | Boulevard Nights | Michael Pressman | |
| 1980 | American Gigolo | Paul Schrader | |
| 1980 | Ordinary People | Robert Redford | |
| 1981 | Honky Tonk Freeway | John Schlesinger | |
| 1981 | Continental Divide | Michael Apted | |
| 1982 | Cat People | Paul Schrader | |
| 1982 | That Championship Season | Jason Miller | |
| 1983 | Without a Trace | Stanley R. Jaffe | |
| 1983 | The Big Chill | Lawrence Kasdan | |
| 1984 | Racing with the Moon | Richard Benjamin | |
| 1984 | The Pope of Greenwich Village | Stuart Rosenberg | |
| 1985 | Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters | Paul Schrader | |
| 1985 | Silverado | Lawrence Kasdan | |
| 1986 | Crossroads | Walter Hill | |
| 1986 | Brighton Beach Memoirs | Gene Saks | |
| 1987 | Light of Day | Paul Schrader | |
| 1987 | Tough Guys Don't Dance | Norman Mailer | Uncredited |
| 1988 | Vibes | Ken Kwapis | |
| 1988 | The Accidental Tourist | Lawrence Kasdan | |
| 1990 | My Blue Heaven | Herbert Ross | |
| 1991 | The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe | Himself | |
| 1993 | Groundhog Day | Harold Ramis | |
| 1993 | In the Line of Fire | Wolfgang Petersen | |
| 1994 | Nobody's Fool | Robert Benton | |
| 1996 | Extreme Measures | Michael Apted | |
| 1997 | As Good as It Gets | James L. Brooks | |
| 1998 | Living Out Loud | Richard LaGravenese | |
| 1999 | The Out-of-Towners | Sam Weisman | |
| 1999 | Forever Mine | Paul Schrader | |
| 1999 | For Love of the Game | Sam Raimi | |
| 2000 | Via Dolorosa | Himself | |
| 2001 | Antitrust | Peter Howitt | |
| 2001 | The Anniversary Party | Jennifer Jason Leigh Alan Cumming | |
| 2002 | Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood | Callie Khouri | |
| 2003 | How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days | Donald Petrie | |
| 2004 | Incident at Loch Ness | Zak Penn | Also actor (As "Crew of Herzog in Wonderland") |
| 2005 | The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants | Ken Kwapis | |
| 2005 | Must Love Dogs | Gary David Goldberg | |
| 2005 | The Producers | Susan Stroman | With Charles Minsky |
| 2006 | The Architect | Matthew Tauber | |
| 2007 | The Death and Life of Bobby Z | John Herzfeld | Uncredited |
| 2007 | License to Wed | Ken Kwapis | |
| 2008 | Mad Money | Callie Khouri | |
| 2008 | Over Her Dead Body | Jeff Lowell | |
| 2009 | The Greatest | Shana Feste | |
| 2009 | Brief Interviews with Hideous Men | John Krasinski | |
| 2009 | He's Just Not That Into You | Ken Kwapis | |
| 2010 | When in Rome | Mark Steven Johnson | |
| 2010 | Ramona and Beezus | Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum | |
| 2010 | Country Strong | Shana Feste | |
| 2012 | Big Miracle | Ken Kwapis | |
| 2013 | The Way, Way Back | Nat Faxon Jim Rash | |
| 2013 | A.C.O.D. | Stu Zicherman | |
| 2013 | Snake and Mongoose | Wayne Holloway | |
| 2014 | The Angriest Man in Brooklyn | Phil Alden Robinson | |
| 2014 | The Forger | Philip Martin | |
| 2015 | A Walk in the Woods | Ken Kwapis | |
| 2016 | Burn Your Maps | Jordan Roberts | |
| 2017 | How to Be a Latin Lover | Ken Marino | |
| 2018 | An Actor Prepares | Steve Clark | |
| 2019 | Phil | Greg Kinnear | |
| 2022 | 10 Tricks | Richard Pagano | |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1972 | Open Window | Richard Patterson | |
| 2002 | The Fig Rig | Shari Roman | Documentary short |
| 2003 | ADM: DOP (Anthony Dod Mantle - Director of Photography) | Shari Roman | Documentary short |
| 2009 | Looking at Animals | Marc Turtletaub | |
TV movies
| Year | Title | Director |
| 1978 | Battered | Peter Werner |
| 1980 | City in Fear | Jud Taylor |
| 1989 | Time Flies When You're Alive | Roger Spottiswoode |
| 1996 | Passion | James Lapine |
| 1998 | Always Outnumbered | Michael Apted |
Documentary film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1987 | Swimming to Cambodia | Jonathan Demme | Concert film |
| 1990 | Hollywood Mavericks | Florence Dauman Dale Ann Stieber | With Steve Baum, Frederick Elmes, Marc Gérard, Mead Hunt, Todd McClelland, Peter S. Rosen and Steven Wacks |
| 1991 | A Brief History of Time | Errol Morris | With Stefan Czapsky |
| 2000 | Michael Jordan to the Max | Don Kempf James D. Stern | With Joe D'Alessandro, David Kessler, James Neihouse and Rodney Taylor |
| 2001 | NSync: Bigger Than Live | Himself | With Matthew Williams |
| 2002 | The Kid Stays in the Picture | Nanette Burstein Brett Morgen | |
| 2003 | Digital Babylon | Shari Roman | |
| 2004 | The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing | Wendy Apple | |

### Director

* The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1991)
* China Moon (1994)
* Via Dolorosa (2000) (stage play)
* NSync: Bigger Than Live (2001) (Documentary film)
* Mariette in Ecstasy (2019)

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 1985 | Cannes Film Festival | Best Artistic Contribution | Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters | Won |
| 1988 | Independent Spirit Award | Best Cinematography | Tough Guys Don't Dance | Nominated |
| 1994 | CableACE Award | Television Special | The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe | Won |
| 1994 | CableACE Award | Directing in a Comedy Special | The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe | Nominated |
| 1999 | Camerimage | Golden Frog Award | Forever Mine | Nominated |
| 2001 | Society of Operating Cameramen | President's Award | — | Won |
| 2015 | American Society of Cinematographers | Lifetime Achievement Award | — | Won |
| 2018 | Society of Operating Cameramen | Governor's Award | — | Won |
| 2019 | Camerimage | Lifetime Achievement Award | — | Won |