March 11, 2021

MIKE RUTTER Associate BSC - 1935 - 6th March 2021

Feature image: Mike Rutter right of frame with John Wayne on 'Brannigan' (1975).  Dir: Douglas Hickox. Dop: Gerry Fisher BSC

We were very sad to hear from his daughter Samantha that Mike had died of a heart attack on Saturday 6th March. 

She wrote:

My Dad passed away on Sat. 6th March, in Portugal.  He died of a heart attack.  Sadly, he has been suffering dementia for the last 2/3 years.

Dad has lived there for 10 years and was married to Luisa who cared for him during his last years.

Before that, Dad lived in northern France where he’s spent 8 happy years. However,  he wanted to move to sunny Portugal after his parents died.

The funeral will be held in Porto, with his Portuguese family.  Unfortunately, due to Covid, we will be unable to attend.

Dad ended his life where he wanted to be - in the sunshine!

Mike had one daughter and a grandson Jack.

MIKE RUTTER Associate BSC

Born 1935, in Golders Green, London, Mike's father, Sydney, was in film distribution for Warner Brothers so it must have seemed the obvious way forward for young Mike. With some help from his father he became a camera assistant. His first known credit as clapper loader was for X The Unknown (1956 d. Leslie Norman, Joe Losey, ph. Gerald Gibbs BSC) at Hammer Films. He eventually graduated to focus puller working mostly as a freelance on films such as Billy Liar (1963 d. John Schlesinger, ph. Denys Coop BSC), Brannigan (1975 d. Douglas Hickox, ph. Gerry Fisher BSC), The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977 d. Don Taylor, ph. Gerry Fisher) and Zefferelli's Jesus of Nazareth (1977 ph. David Watkin Hon BSC and Daniele Nannucci AIC) including Das Boot (1981 d. Wolfgang Petersen, ph. Jost Vacano BVK).

Working under Gerry Fisher, he became a camera operator for The Holcroft Covenant (1985 d. John Frankenheimer, ph. Gerry Fisher). His last credit is for 2 episodes of Silent Witness (1997 d. Nicholas Laughland, ph Ken Westbury BSC).

He became an associate member of the BSC in 1994.

In later years he retired to Portugal.