RIDLEY SCOTT (Director) was born in South Shields, Northumberland, England. Reared in London, Cumbria, Wales and Germany, he returned to Northeast England to live in Stockton-on-Tees. He studied at the West Hartlepool College of Art where he excelled at graphic design and painting. Scott also studied at the Royal Academy of Art, where his contemporaries included David Hockney. It was there that Scott made his first short film.
Graduating with honors, Scott was awarded a traveling scholarship to the United States for one year. During that time, he was employed by Time Life, Inc. where he worked with award-winning documentarians Richard Leacock and D.A. Pennebaker. Upon his return to the U.K., he joined the BBC as a production designer and, within a year, was promoted to their directing team.
After three years, he left to form his own company, RSA, which soon became one of the most successful commercial production houses in Europe. Over the years, he has directed over two thousand commercials, many of which have won awards at the Venice and Cannes Festivals, as well as being honored by the New York Art Directors’ Club. In addition to his film work, Scott remains actively involved with RSA. With offices in London, New York and Los Angeles, RSA represents some of the most acclaimed directors in the advertising industry.
Scott began his feature film directing career with The Duellists, which brought him the Jury Prize at the 1978 Cannes Film Festival. His second film was the breakthrough hit Alien which won an Academy Award® for Special Effects. This was followed by a picture which has since become considered one of the landmark science fiction films of all time – Blade Runner, starring Harrison Ford. Some of Scott’s other directorial credits include Legend, starring Tom Cruise, Someone to Watch Over Me, starring Tom Berenger, and Black Rain, starring Michael Douglas and Andy Garcia.
In 1987, Scott formed Percy Main Productions to develop and produce features. Percy Main’s first film was the Academy Award®-winning Thelma and Louise, followed by 1492: Conquest of Paradise, both of which he directed. Scott also produced The Browning Version, directed by Mike Figgis and starring Albert Finney and Greta Scacchi.
In 1995, Scott, along with his brother Tony, formed Scott Free Productions, a film and television production company. Since its inception, Scott Free has produced such feature films as White Squall, starring Jeff Bridges and G.I. Jane, starring Demi Moore, which were both directed by Ridley Scott. He also served as producer on Clay Pigeons, starring Vince Vaughn, and Where the Money Is, starring Paul Newman. Scott Free has also produced The Hunger, a CableAce Award-winning anthology series for Showtime.
Ridley and Tony Scott also own the historic Shepperton Studios and The Mill, a state-of-the-art CGI studio, both in the U.K.
Scott’s latest film Gladiator, starring Russell Crowe, has been setting international box office records since its release in May. He also produced the Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning HBO feature “RKO 281" starring Liev Schreiber, James Cromwell and Melanie Griffith.
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