David Tomblin(1930-2005)
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Producer
- Director
Widely regarded as the finest 1st assistant director in the world, and
co-creator, producer, director, and writer of
Le prisonnier (1967).
Born across the road from Borehamwood studios in 1931, Tomblin entered the film business at the age of 14 before national service saw him take a break for a stint in the marines. He returned to the industry in 1952, later taking up a post as 1st assistant director to Stanley Kubrick.
In the late 1950s, he moved into television, working on series such as The Invisible Man (1958), and One Step Beyond (1959). In 1959, he joined the crew of the ITC series Destination danger (1964), and it was here that he met Patrick McGoohan for the first time.
Shortly after, McGoohan and Tomblin created Everyman Films Limited, under whose banner Le prisonnier (1967) was later m made. Tomblin co-created Le prisonnier (1967), working on ideas formulated by McGoohan and story-editor George Markstein (with whom he co-wrote the opening episode, "Arrival"). Tomblin was credited as Producer on all 17 Le prisonnier (1967) episodes, and also directed and co-wrote two more ("Living in Harmony" and "Girl Who Was Death"). It is not doubted that without him, Le prisonnier (1967) would have looked very different, and possibly would not have been made at all.
He continued in TV after Le prisonnier (1967), directing several episodes of the Gerry Anderson series Alerte dans l'espace (1970), Cosmos 1999 (1975), and Poigne de fer et séduction (1972).
However, it was his role as 1st assistant director in blockbuster films that made his name. His credit list is endless, and when interviewed about this list for the Channel 4 documentary Six Into One: The Prisoner File (1984) in 1984, he recalled: "I have just worked on a George Lucas film called "Return Of The Jedi" [Le Retour du Jedi (1983)] and, to get permission to work in the States, I had to write down every film that I had been on. I got to 478 and then decided that was probably enough to convince them that I had a reasonable amount of experience."
Some of the best-known films on which he worked were Gandhi (1982), Out of Africa - Souvenirs d'Afrique (1985), Superman (1978), Un pont trop loin (1977), all 3 "Indiana Jones" films Les Aventuriers de l'arche perdue (1981), Indiana Jones et le Temple maudit (1984), and Indiana Jones et la Dernière Croisade (1989)], Le Retour du Jedi (1983), "Never Say Never Again", Cry Freedom - Le cri de la liberté (1987), Chaplin (1992), Star Wars, épisode I : La Menace fantôme (1999), and _Braveheart_ (a post which re-united him with 'Patrick McGoohan').
In 2003, David was awarded a BAFTA for outstanding contribution to film, and he was working right up until his death, after a short illness, on the film Beyond the Horizon (2009).
Born across the road from Borehamwood studios in 1931, Tomblin entered the film business at the age of 14 before national service saw him take a break for a stint in the marines. He returned to the industry in 1952, later taking up a post as 1st assistant director to Stanley Kubrick.
In the late 1950s, he moved into television, working on series such as The Invisible Man (1958), and One Step Beyond (1959). In 1959, he joined the crew of the ITC series Destination danger (1964), and it was here that he met Patrick McGoohan for the first time.
Shortly after, McGoohan and Tomblin created Everyman Films Limited, under whose banner Le prisonnier (1967) was later m made. Tomblin co-created Le prisonnier (1967), working on ideas formulated by McGoohan and story-editor George Markstein (with whom he co-wrote the opening episode, "Arrival"). Tomblin was credited as Producer on all 17 Le prisonnier (1967) episodes, and also directed and co-wrote two more ("Living in Harmony" and "Girl Who Was Death"). It is not doubted that without him, Le prisonnier (1967) would have looked very different, and possibly would not have been made at all.
He continued in TV after Le prisonnier (1967), directing several episodes of the Gerry Anderson series Alerte dans l'espace (1970), Cosmos 1999 (1975), and Poigne de fer et séduction (1972).
However, it was his role as 1st assistant director in blockbuster films that made his name. His credit list is endless, and when interviewed about this list for the Channel 4 documentary Six Into One: The Prisoner File (1984) in 1984, he recalled: "I have just worked on a George Lucas film called "Return Of The Jedi" [Le Retour du Jedi (1983)] and, to get permission to work in the States, I had to write down every film that I had been on. I got to 478 and then decided that was probably enough to convince them that I had a reasonable amount of experience."
Some of the best-known films on which he worked were Gandhi (1982), Out of Africa - Souvenirs d'Afrique (1985), Superman (1978), Un pont trop loin (1977), all 3 "Indiana Jones" films Les Aventuriers de l'arche perdue (1981), Indiana Jones et le Temple maudit (1984), and Indiana Jones et la Dernière Croisade (1989)], Le Retour du Jedi (1983), "Never Say Never Again", Cry Freedom - Le cri de la liberté (1987), Chaplin (1992), Star Wars, épisode I : La Menace fantôme (1999), and _Braveheart_ (a post which re-united him with 'Patrick McGoohan').
In 2003, David was awarded a BAFTA for outstanding contribution to film, and he was working right up until his death, after a short illness, on the film Beyond the Horizon (2009).
