Alan Stewart was born in Comrie, Perthshire, Scotland in 1960. He studied Advertising and
Industrial Photography for three years at Glasgow’s College of printing and when in his final year,
working with 16mm film, his love of filmmaking was born, graduating in 1984.
Having a friend who was a clapper loader opened the door into the professional world of
film and he took the opportunity to be the camera tea boy on a drama production photographed
by respected Scottish DoP, Mark Littlewood.
Littlewood’s Glasgow based production company, Pelicula, had a strong reputation for
producing meaningful work. It was with this company, over many years, that Stewart went on to
travel the world and learn his trade working on a variety of projects ranging from commercials,
documentaries, music videos and films.
Moving up through the camera department from tea boy to clapper loader, focus puller to
operator whilst working in Scotland also gave him the opportunity to work alongside many well
known DoP’s from around the world, Tom Stern ASC, Ellen Kuras ASC, Wolfgang Shuschitzky and
Seamus McGarvey BSC being a notable few. It was this Scottish encounter in the early 90’s with
McGarvey that would have later impact on Stewart’s career.
He moved south, to England, mid 90’s. The task of having to re-establish himself was
made easier by the fact that he had worked with so many great English based DoP’s with whom
he had previously worked with in Scotland. Adrian Wild was one such commercial’s DoP who he
worked with in those early days in England. A chance encounter in 1996 when operating on a
short film called ‘The Hard Case’ directed by a pre ‘Lock Stock’ Guy Richie would have a
significant influence in years to come. In 1997 Stewart was jointly BAFTA nominated for his work
on the BBC drama,’Holding On’.
Remi Adefarasin BSC also had an important influence on his career and he operated for
Remi on a variety of projects and eventually shot second unit for Remi over the years. He was
fortunate enough to operate for Remi on ‘Band of Brothers’ in 2000 alongside respected operator,
the late, Martin Kenzie BSC. This project is still one of his personal career highlights.
Moving away from operating and Stedicam after ‘Band of Brothers’, shooting more
commercials and music videos helped him make the move towards lighting. In 2005 Stewart shot
his first feature film, a low budget UK project set in London, India and the Isle of Man. In mid 2006
it was Remi who offered him the opportunity to shoot, and as it turned out, direct the second unit
on Shekhar Kapur’s ‘Elizabeth the Golden Years’. Again in 2006 shooting and directing second
unit on Ian Softley’s ‘Inkheart’ photographed by Roger Pratt BSC. Also in the same year, again for
Remi, shooting and directing a third unit on ‘Fred Claus’. In 2008, when asked to shoot the
second unit on the first ‘Sherlock Holmes’, Stewart was reunited with the now more established
Guy Richie.
A period of about ten years followed shooting second unit on a number of studio films and
given the opportunity to work again with Seamus McGarvey BSC, Dion Beebe ASC, Philippe
Rousselot AFC, ASC, Andrew Dunn BSC and John Mathieson BSC to name a few. Over the years
he was again teamed with Seamus McGarvey BSC and shot the second unit for him on Joe
Wright’s ‘Anna Karenina’ and later, ‘Pan’
Continuing to shoot second unit work led to shooting the additional Photography for Dion
on ‘Mary Poppins’, Seamus on ‘Pan’ and John on ‘King Arthur’.
More recently Stewart has gone on to shoot Disney’s ‘Aladdin’, Warner Brother’s live
action animation hybrid ‘Tom and Jerry’ and Miramax’s ‘The Gentlemen’ and also ‘Wrath of Man’.
He is currently prepping an ‘Untitled Guy Richie spy movie’.