Chicago native who started as an assistant cameraman on famed cinematographer Haskell Wexler's "Medium Cool" (1968). Davis moved to L.A. and began his first career as a director of photography working on "Hit Man", "Cool Breeze" (both 1972) and Jonathan Kaplan's "The Slams" (1973). He made his feature directorial debut with the independent musical "Stony Island" (1977), which he co-wrote and produced. Davis returned to cinematography with the unsettling teen drama "Over the Edge" (1979) directed by Jonathan Kaplan and the enjoyably trashy "Angel" (1983).
Davis made his first foray into action films with the Chuck Norris starrer "Code of Silence" (1985). He continued in that vein with his first big hit, "Above the Law" (1988), which showed a flair for location shooting and toplined then-unknown Steven Seagal. He reteamed with Seagal for a second hit, "Under Siege" (1992), a lavish "Die Hard" imitation set on a battleship which boasted taut action highlights. Davis followed his success with the highly successful Oscar-nominated "The Fugitive" (1993), a remake of the 1960s television series starring Harrison Ford and "Steal Big, Steal Little" (1995), a comic fable starring Andy Garcia as stereotypical good and evil twin brothers.
- Also Credited As:
Andy Davis
- Born:
in Chicago, Illinois, USA
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Job Titles:
Director, Director of photography, Screenwriter, Photographer, Journalist
Family
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Father: Nathan Davis. has appeared in son s films
Education
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University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, communications, BS, 1968
Milestones
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1968 Worked as an assistant cameraman on Haskell Wexler s Medium Cool
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1972 First feature as director of photography, Cool Breeze
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1976 Led class-action suit Davis et al vs. IATSE et al , which challenged the union s restrictive roster system, and forced the industry to allow young technicians to work
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1978 Feature directing, screenwriting and producing debut, Stony Island
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1988 First collaboration with Steven Seagal, Above the Law (also served as screenwriter, producer and cinematographer for one segment)
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1992 Directed the Steven Segal action vehicle Under Siege
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1993 Signed a three year non-exclusive deal with Savoy Pictures, allowing him to greenlight films under 25 million
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1994 Helmed the successful screen version of the TV series The Fugitive ; film earned a Best Picture Academy Award nomination
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1995 Stumbled with critics and at the box-office with Steal Big, Steal Little (featuring Andy Garcia as twins) and Chained Reaction (with Keanu Reeves)
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1998 Enjoyed renewed box-office success with A Perfect Murder , an updated remake of Hitchcock s Dial M for Murder
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2002 Helmed the action film Collateral Damage , starring Arnold Schwarzenegger
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2003 Directed Sigourney Weaver and Jon Voight in Holes an adaptation of Louis Sachar s children s book
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2006 Helmed the action-drama, The Guardian, starring Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher
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Founded Wild Onion Pictures
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Moved to L.A. working as a cinematographer on commercials and documentaries
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Worked as a journalist, TV cameraman and photographer prior to his college graduation