John Seale
John Clement Seale ACS ASC (born 5 October 1942) is an Australian retired cinematographer, known for his work in blockbusters and drama films both in Australia and Hollywood, including collaborations with directors Peter Weir and George Miller. His accolades include five Academy Award nominations and six BAFTA Award nominations, winning both for The English Patient (1996).
John Seale

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- Name
- John Seale
- Occupation
- Cinematographer
- Born
- 5 October 1942
- Birthplace
- Warwick, Queensland, Australia
- Nationality
- Australia
- Honours
- Academy Award for Best Cinematography · European Film Award for Best Cinematographer · Member of the Order of Australia · BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography
- Languages
- English
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John Clement Seale ACS ASC (born 5 October 1942) is an Australian retired cinematographer, known for his work in blockbusters and drama films both in Australia and Hollywood, including collaborations with directors Peter Weir and George Miller. His accolades include five Academy Award nominations and six BAFTA Award nominations, winning both for The English Patient (1996).
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Authority files
wikidata · Q918558 · wikipedia · John Seale
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — John Seale • Honorific Suffix — ACS ASC • Occupation — Cinematographer • Born — 5 October 1942 • Birthplace — Warwick, Queensland, Australia • Years Active — 1966–2022 • Title — ACS ASC
Early life
Early life
Seale was born in Warwick, Queensland, Australia, to Marjorie Lyndon (née Pool) and Eric Clement Seale.
Career
Career
Seale started his career collaborating with director Peter Weir, both as a camera operator and director of photography, gaining a reputation as one of Australia's leading cinematographers. He received an Oscar nomination for his first American film, Witness, as well as for Rain Man, and Cold Mountain, while winning one for The English Patient. In addition to cinematography, Seale directed a feature film, Till There Was You (1990). Seale was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2002 Australia Day Honours in recognition of his "service to the arts as an Australian and internationally acclaimed cinematographer". After shooting The Tourist (2010), Seale decided to retire from the film industry, before returning in 2012 to shoot George Miller's Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), for which he received another Academy Award nomination. He retired again after the production of Miller's following film Three Thousand Years of Longing (2022).
Television
Television
• Year — Title — Director — Notes • 1979 — New South Wales Images — Russell Boyd — Documentary film • 1985 — Winners — Carl Schultz — Episode "Top Kid"

Cinematographer John Seale at the AACTA Festival in February 2026
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Cinematographer John Seale at the AACTA Festival in February 2026
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Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1942
John Seale born at Warwick.
Film
Director • Till There Was You (1990) Cinematographer • Year — Title — Director — Reference(s) • 1976 — Deathcheaters — Brian Trenchard-Smith • 1980 — Fatty Finn — Maurice Murphy • 1981 — Doctors and Nurses • The Survivor — David Hemmings • 1982 — Ginger Meggs — Jonathan Dawson • Fighting Back — Michael Caulfield • 1983 — Goodbye Paradise — Carl Schultz • BMX Bandits — Brian Trenchard-Smith • Careful, He Might Hear You — Carl Schultz • 1984 — Silver City — Sophia Turkiewicz • 1985 — Witness — Peter Weir • 1986 — The Hitcher — Robert Harmon • Children of a Lesser God — Randa Haines • The Mosquito Coast — Peter Weir • 1987 — Stakeout — John Badham • 1988 — Gorillas in the Mist — Michael Apted • Rain Man — Barry Levinson • 1989 — Dead Poets Society — Peter Weir • 1991 — The Doctor — Randa Haines • 1992 — Lorenzo's Oil — George Miller • 1993 — The Firm — Sydney Pollack • 1994 — The Paper — Ron Howard • 1995 — Beyond Rangoon — John Boorman • The American President — Rob Reiner • 1996 — The English Patient — Anthony Minghella • Ghosts of Mississippi — Rob Reiner • 1998 — City of Angels — Brad Silberling • 1999 — At First Sight — Irwin Winkler • The Talented Mr. Ripley — Anthony Minghella • 2000 — The Perfect Storm — Wolfgang Petersen • 2001 — Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone — Chris Columbus • 2003 — Dreamcatcher — Lawrence Kasdan • Cold Mountain — Anthony Minghella • 2004 — Spanglish — James L. Brooks • 2006 — Poseidon — Wolfgang Petersen • 2010 — Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time — Mike Newell • The Tourist — Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck • 2015 — Mad Max: Fury Road — George Miller • 2022 — Three Thousand Years of Longing
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q918558: John Seale
Reputable secondary · Wikidata
- “John Seale”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
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John Seale received Academy Award for Best Cinematography, European Film Award for Best Cinematographer, Member of the Order of Australia and BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography. Recorded as having received Academy Award for Best Cinematography, European Film Award for Best Cinematographer and Member of the Order of Australia.
Recognition and collections
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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