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Norman Reynolds Death: Oscar-Winning Art Director Died, Cause Of Death?
At the age of 89, Norman Reynolds, who won two Academy Awards for his work as a production and art designer on a variety of Star Wars and Indiana Jones films, passed away.
Director Steven Spielberg once referred to Norman Reynolds as the “creative core” of the franchises. Reynolds was responsible for designing various Star Wars and Indiana Jones films.
In this post, you will learn about his legacy as well as his passing.
Who was Norman Reynolds? His Remarkable Legacy
The news of Norman Reynolds’s passing was initially reported by the BBC. LucasFilm LTD. has since confirmed the news. He was 89.
British production designer Norman Reynolds enjoyed a successful career spanning many decades. His credits include films like “Mission: Impossible,” “Alien 3,” and “Empire of the Sun.” The latter resulted in a nomination for an Oscar Award for him.
Yet, his contributions to the Star Wars and Indiana Jones film series will forever be his most famous works.
The 1977 film “Star Wars: A New Hope,” on which Norman Reynolds worked as an art director, provided him with his first major break in the industry.
For his labor, he and three of his coworkers, John Barry, Leslie Dilley, and Roger Christian, were honored with an Academy Award.
In 1980, he was nominated for an Academy Award for his work as the production designer on the film “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” which earned him a further nomination for the award along with Dilley, Harry Lange, Alan Tomkins, and Michael D. Ford.
His sense of design, creativity, and ability to manage large projects led to him becoming the production designer for the film.
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Reynolds’ vision gave birth to ideas that have since become legendary, such as the carbon-freezing chamber where Han Solo was kidnapped and the planet Dagobah, which was Yoda’s home planet.
The native of the United Kingdom made significant contributions to the artistic direction of all three films that comprised the first Star Wars trilogy.
He served as art director for “A New Hope” and as production designer for “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi.”
According to a biography that was made available by Lucasfilm, Reynolds collaborated extensively with John Barry, the overall production designer for A New Hope, to assist in developing the fundamental architectural concept that underpins the architecture and structure of the Star Wars universe.
In 1978, they won the Academy Award for art direction, joining art director Leslie Dilley and set decorator Roger Christian as winners of that award.
Reynolds was hired as the production designer for “The Empire Strikes Back” while Barry sought a career in filmmaking as a director.
The iconic golden idol that Indiana Jones (Ryan Reynolds) seeks to acquire in the opening sequence of the movie Raiders was sculpted by Norman Reynolds, who worked with Spielberg for the first time on the production of Raiders.
Reynolds made use of an Incan fertility sculpture that he had acquired on one of his excursions outside of the United States.
In addition to this, he was responsible for the construction of the enormous boulder that Indiana Jones dodges as it makes its way through the temple.
Spielberg was the one who continually requested that it be made bigger, according to Reynolds, who was cited as saying so.
Together with art director Dilley and set decorator Michael Ford, Raiders earned Norman Reynolds his second Oscar Award for art direction in 1982. The award was presented to all three of them.
Norman Reynolds Cause Of Death
It has been announced that the British production designer Norman Reynolds has passed away. The reason for his passing is still a mystery at this point.
His wife and children were reportedly by his side when he passed away, allowing for a calm and quiet passing.
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