Tributes from the film industry have been paid to renowned UK production designer Stuart Craig, who died aged 83 on September 7.
The news was first announced via the British Film Designers Guild. Craig’s family told The Guardian he died peacefully at home on Sunday after 14 years with Parkinson’s disease.
Craig won three Oscars – for Gandhi, Dangerous Liaisons and The English Patient and was nominated 11 times in all. He also won three Baftas from 16 nominations, including seven for the Harry Potter films.
David Yates, who directed four of the Potter films, said: “Stuart Craig was a softly spoken, gentle soul – full of grace, tall, slender, willowy, polite and kind – but despite appearances he masterfully stewarded a gigantic industrial creative machine.”
“The people who worked with Stuart – me included – had a deep, and respectful loyalty to him; in part because he was a visionary production designer, and in part because he was just a lovely man. That loyalty was clear to see among his team, whom he nurtured and challenged in equal measure.”
Heyday Films’ David Heyman who produced the Harry Potter franchise, added: “Stuart Craig was one of the greatest production designers to work in film. He was also the kindest, most generous and supportive man. He had exquisite taste and a wonderful sense of story. He also had the extraordinary ability to bring out the very best in everyone around him. It was a privilege to work with him, and to be in his orbit.”
JK Rowling said working with Craig was “one of the privileges of my life”, adding: “He was a true visionary and conjured the wizarding world for the screen as nobody else could have done. He was also one of the nicest people you ever could hope to meet. My deepest condolences to his loved ones.”
BFDG member Neil Lamont said in his tribute: “I bet that anyone you ask, “which designer would you like to work with the most” the answer 100% would be Stuart Craig, and anyone who met him will remember their encounter forever.”
Craig’s other films included The Elephant Man, The Mission, Shadowlands, The Secret Garden and Notting Hill.