Patrick O'Neill (born June 28th, 1939 in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
) is an American independent experimental filmmaker and artist who has also worked in the special effects industry. Although his work embraces an extremely wide technical and aesthetic scope, he is perhaps best known for his startling, surrealistic, and humorous film compositions achieved through a mastery of the
optical printer
An optical printer is a device consisting of one or more film projectors mechanically linked to a movie camera. It allows filmmakers to re-photograph one or more strips of film. The optical printer is used for making visual effects for motion p ...
. His films and other artworks often reveal a complex and mysterious interest in the connections and clashes between the natural world and human civilization. O'Neill has also produced a prodigious body of work in drawing, collage, sculpture, installation, and many other media.
Career
His early 16mm films include ''Runs Good'' (1971), ''Easyout'' (1971), and ''Down Wind'' (1973). His later 35mm films include ''
Water and Power'' (1989), ''Trouble in the Image'' (1996), and ''
The Decay of Fiction'' (2002). On December 30, 2008, ''Water and Power'' was added to the
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation (library and archival science), preservation, each selected for its cultural, historical, and aestheti ...
.
Prints of O'Neill's films are held in numerous archives and museums around the world; his complete collection resides at the
Academy Film Archive
The Academy Film Archive is part of the Academy Foundation, established in 1944 with the purpose of organizing and overseeing the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' educational and cultural activities, including the preservation of mot ...
, where several of his short works—including ''By the Sea'', ''Bump City'', and ''7362''—have been preserved. Two of O'Neill's longer films have also been preserved by the Academy in collaboration with O'Neill: ''Water and Power'', in 2009, and ''Trouble in the Image'', in 2016.
He has also taught at the
California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a Private university, private art school in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for ...
. He influenced a generation of CalArts students, who include
Adam Beckett Adam Beckett (1950 in Los Angeles – 1979 in Val Verde) was an animator, special effects artist and teacher, most notable for his work on ''Star Wars''.
Work
Beckett developed a unique technique that involved creating a loop of images that contin ...
, Robert Blalack, Chris Casady, and
Larry Cuba Larry Cuba (born 1950) is a computer-animation artist who became active in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Born in 1950 in Atlanta, Georgia, he received A.B. from Washington University in St. Louis in 1972 and his Master's Degree from California In ...
, who all later went on to work on the special effects of the original ''
Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...
''.
Filmography
* ''By the Sea'' (with
Robert Abel) (1963)
* ''Bump City'' (1964)
* ''7362'' (1965–67)
* ''Coming Down'' (aka ''Heresy'') (1968) (promo film for
The United States of America
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguou ...
)
* ''Screen'' (1969)
* ''Runs Good'' (1971)
* ''Easyout'' (1972)
* ''The Last of the Persimmons'' (1972)
* ''Down Wind'' (1973)
* ''Saugus Series'' (1974)
* ''Sidewinder's Delta'' (1976)
* ''Two Sweeps'' (1977)
* ''Foregrounds'' (1978)
* ''Sleeping Dogs (Never Lie)'' (1978)
* ''Let's Make a Sandwich'' (1982)
[Trouble in the Image, BAMPFA](_blank)
/ref>
* '' Water and Power'' (1989)
* ''Trouble in the Image'' (1996)
/ref>
Notes
References
*''Pat O'Neill: Views From Lookout Mountain'' by Paul Arthur, Howard Singerman, Erika Suderburg, and Julie Lazar ed.Steidl/Santa Monica Museum of Art, 2004
*''Pat O'Neill: Another Kind of Record''. Los Angeles: The Ice Plant, 2008
*"An Interview with Pat O'Neill" David James. Millennium Film Journal'' No 30/31 Fall 1997.
External links
Official website
*
Canyon Cinema
Rosamund Felsen Gallery
Review of Decay of Fiction
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Pat
1939 births
American experimental filmmakers
Artists from Los Angeles
Living people
Collage filmmakers