Sydney Samuelson

Sir Sydney Wylie Samuelson, CBE (born 7 December 1925) was appointed in 1991 by the government of the UK as the first British Film Commissioner.[1] Early life[edit] Sydney Wylie Samuelson was born on 7 December 1925. His father, G. B. Samuelson, was a cinema pioneer of the silent film era. Career[edit] Samuelson started his career as a rewind boy at the Luxor cinema in Lancing, West Sussex. After working in several cinemas in the Midlands as a relief operator for the ABC circuit, he got a job as a trainee film editor with Gaumont British, which was then at Lime Grove in London. After serving in the Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force he got a job as a trainee cameraman with the Colonial Film Unit. In 1954 he set up Samuelson Film Service, hiring out film equipment. He went on to become the first British Film Commissioner and remained in the post for six years. He was chosen as chairman of the Management board of BAFTA

BAFTA in 1976 and is a permanent trustee. In 1985 he received the Michael Balcon Award and in 1993 a Fellowship of BAFTA, the Academy’s highest honour. In 1995 he received a knighthood from Charles, Prince of Wales, awarded by Elizabeth II

Elizabeth II for services to the British Film Commission. Samuelson is featured in the book Conversations with Cinematographers by David A Ellis, published by the American publisher Scarecrow Press. He wrote a foreword for the book In Conversation with Cinematographers (Rowman and Littlefield) by David A Ellis. He was the first President of the UK Jewish Film Festival. He remained in the role until 2005, and as of 2010 is currently the UKJFF Honorary Lifetime Patron References[edit]

^ BFI

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0760567/bio

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BAFTA
BAFTA Fellowship recipients

1971–2000

Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock (1971) Freddie Young (1972) Grace Wyndham Goldie (1973) David Lean
David Lean (1974) Jacques Cousteau
Jacques Cousteau (1975) Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin (1976) Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier (1976) Denis Forman (1977) Fred Zinnemann
Fred Zinnemann (1978) Lew Grade
Lew Grade (1979) Huw Wheldon
Huw Wheldon (1979) David Attenborough
David Attenborough (1980) John Huston
John Huston (1980) Abel Gance
Abel Gance (1981) Michael Powell
Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger
Emeric Pressburger (1981) Andrzej Wajda
Andrzej Wajda (1982) Richard Attenborough
Richard Attenborough (1983) Hugh Greene (1984) Sam Spiegel
Sam Spiegel (1984) Jeremy Isaacs (1985) Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg (1986) Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini (1987) Ingmar Bergman
Ingmar Bergman (1988) Alec Guinness
Alec Guinness (1989) Paul Fox (1990) Louis Malle
Louis Malle (1991) John Gielgud
John Gielgud (1992) David Plowright (1992) Sydney Samuelson (1993) Colin Young (1993) Michael Grade
Michael Grade (1994) Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder (1995) Jeanne Moreau
Jeanne Moreau (1996) Ronald Neame
Ronald Neame (1996) John Schlesinger
John Schlesinger (1996) Maggie Smith
Maggie Smith (1996) Woody Allen
Woody Allen (1997) Steven Bochco
Steven Bochco (1997) Julie Christie
Julie Christie (1997) Oswald Morris (1997) Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter (1997) David Rose (1997) Sean Connery
Sean Connery (1998) Bill Cotton
Bill Cotton (1998) Eric Morecambe
Eric Morecambe & Ernie Wise
Ernie Wise (1999) Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor (1999) Michael Caine
Michael Caine (2000) Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick (2000) Peter Bazalgette
Peter Bazalgette (2000)