David Yates

This article is about the director. For the American otorhinolaryngologist, see David Gilbert Yates. For the Australian judge, see David Yates (judge).

David Yates
File:DavidYates HallowsPrem.jpg Yates in 2010
Born	David Yates
Nationality	British
Occupation(s)	Film director, TV director
Years active	1988 – present
Style	Drama, Realism, Versatile
Spouse	Yvonne Walcott Yates

David Yates (born 30 November 1963) is a British director of film and television, best known for helming the final films in the successful Harry Potter series. After completing their theatrical run between the years 2007 and 2011, Yates' Potter films became the highest-grossing entries since the first instalment. Yates is also known for directing several television films and dramas, such as the acclaimed BBC political thriller State of Play, which was adapted into a theatrical film in 2009. One of his directorial trademarks is the use of the hand-held camera.

Among various awards, Yates has achieved success at the BAFTA Awards, Emmy Awards and has been acknowledged at the Saturn Awards.

Early life

David Yates was born in St Helens, England in 1963. From an early age he was fascinated with the works of film directors, with Steven Spielberg’s 1975 film Jaws and Christian Nyby’s 1951 film The Thing from Another World being two favourites in particular. Yates went to see Jaws in the cinema, where at least a dozen of his subsequent 35 viewings took place. He attempted to understand the production and story elements of motion pictures, observing the characterization, pacing and suspense and with each viewing, surveying the reactions of the audience. He began pulling friends and family into the cast of short films at the age of fourteen, using a camera his mother had given him. Yates then followed up on a more academic track, taking up the subjects of sociology, political studies, and literature at St Helens College before moving onto the University of Essex.

Career

Film and TV projects (1988-2005)

Living in Swindon in the 1980s, Yates became a freelancer for Cre8 Studios whose facilities helped him make his first serious film, When I Was a Girl. Yates said that the studio was "the perfect place to experiment and where I really grew to understand how films could be made." The short film, which was shot in Swindon town under a grant from Thamesdown Arts, later made the festival circuit and helped with his acceptance into the National Film and Television School in Beaconsfield, where he studied under its directing program. When I Was a Girl also marked Yates' entry into the UK’s entertainment industry, with the BBC hiring him to make the dramatic short Oranges and Lemons in 1991. He also directed the short film The Weaver's Wife along with Good Looks and an episode of the film studies programme, Moving Pictures, which explored low-budget filmmaking in Britain.

File:Yates tich.jpg

Yates in 1998.

From 1994 to 1995, Yates directed several episodes of the ITV police series The Bill, before directing and producing (alongside Alistair Clarke) three episodes of the English television documentary, Tale of Three Seaside Towns. The programme followed media personalities Russell Grant, Honor Blackman and Pam Ayres visiting and exploring three towns in the South Coast. Yates directed the short film Punch before making his feature film debut in 1998 with the release of The Tichborne Claimant, the small independent film that was written by Joe Fisher and based on the Tichbourne Case.

Yates returned to television in 2000 to helm several episodes of the BBC miniseries The Sins, along with directing The Way We Live Now, a four-part television adaptation of the novel of the same name by Anthony Trollope. At the 2002 BAFTA Awards, Yates shared a Best Drama Serial award win with screenwriter Andrew Davies and producer Nigel Stafford-Clark. One year later, Yates was back with a nomination for the short film, Rank, which expressed the elements of racism and friendship through the story of a street gang that cross Glasgow to witness the arrival of a group of Somali refugees.

The 2003 six-part thriller State of Play was Yates' next directorial achievement. The acclaimed TV serial, scripted and created by Paul Abbott, became a major turning point in Yates' career with it being recognised by various award ceremonies, notably achieving the Peabody Award for Broadcasting Excellence, along with Yates himself being nominated for a BAFTA TV Award and winning a Directors Guild of Great Britain Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement. The quality of the serial sparked Hollywood film bosses to consider adapting it into a film, with producer Andrew Hauptman claiming that "it's a blistering political thriller and we want to make an equally blistering movie." Abbot sold the rights to Universal Studios, however Yates had little say in the matter as Abbot was the original creator of the serial. The film was eventually released in 2009.

Yates then moved on to helm more high-profile projects such as the television adaptation of The Young Visiters, starring Jim Broadbent alongside Hugh Laurie. He also directed Channel 4's two-part drama Sex Traffic which won eight BAFTA Awards including Best Editing for Mark Day, who regularly collaborated with Yates on many of his television projects and short films. Day commented on working with Yates saying that "we are very good friends because we have spent so much time together", also commenting on how Yates shot Sex Traffic, attesting that "David shoots in a similar style from piece to piece, although this wasn’t quite as frantic as State of Play." Yates was also nominated for another Directors Guild Award for his gritty direction of Sex Traffic and also won his second BAFTA Award for Best Drama Serial.

Yates gained an Emmy Award nomination for his direction of Richard Curtis' script to the 2005 television film The Girl in the Café, starring Bill Nighy and Kelly Macdonald. The film tells the story of Lawrence (Nighy), an aging, lonely civil servant who falls for Gina (Macdonald), an enigmatic young woman. When he takes her to the G8 Summit in Reykjavik, however, their bond is tested by Lawrence's professional obligations. As well as receiving success in Britain on BBC Wales, the film was noted in the United States where it was broadcast on Home Box Office. The film won three Emmy Awards, most notably the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Made for Television Movie, along with achieving four other nominations including Outstanding Casting by Fiona Weir, who was also the casting director of the Harry Potter films.

Harry Potter films (2006-2011)

Yates at his first Harry Potter premiere in Los Angeles, California.

Yates received his highest-profile assignment in late 2005 when he was chosen by Warner Bros. Pictures to direct the fifth entry in the Harry Potter film series, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. When asked how he got the job of director by a journalist from The Observer, Yates stated that "David Heyman, who produces the Harry Potter films, was a big fan of the TV work I'd done. There were certainly other directors in the frame, such as Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who directed Amélie. But as Order of the Phoenix is quite edgy and emotional, and it's got a political backstory, the studio saw a fit with me. I think they wanted to wake it up a bit, make it real." Before production began in early 2006, Yates was invited to visit Leavesden Studios and observe filming of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which was directed by Mike Newell. Yates took Newell to a pub and "picked his brains about what it was going to be like to step into someone's shoes on a movie of this scale." He was also involved in conversations with Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban director Alfonso Cuarón and author J. K. Rowling prior to the start of production on Order of the Phoenix. Yates was then reunited with Mark Day and Nicholas Hooper, who had worked with him on some of his previous television credits as editor and composer respectively. The first scene Yates shot featured a giant, named Grawp, interacting with human characters. The scene was CGI-heavy and was also the very first high-scale visual effects piece Yates filmed in his career. Being the husband of Yvonne Walcott and the uncle of famous football player Theo Walcott, Yates allowed the family to make a cameo appearance in the film. However, Walcott himself dropped out due to his commitments to Arsenal Football Club.

The fifth film opened to critical and commercial success, becoming an instant high performer at the box office and scoring 78% on the film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. Yates obtained awards for his work on the film, including winning the title of Best Director at the 2008 Empire Awards and collecting the People's Choice Award for Best European Film from the European Film Academy. Yet the film was sharply criticised by fans for having the shortest running time in the series, with Yates claiming that the original cut was "probably over three hours", resulting in much material being chopped and edited to fit within the studio's preferred time frame. Yates described the film as portraying a social-realist theme.

Yates was then selected to direct the sixth instalment in the franchise, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. During production on this film, Alan F. Horn announced that the seventh and final novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was to be split into two cinematic parts with Yates, once again, as the director. In an interview with the Directors Guild of America, Yates spoke of the studio and producers' decision to appoint him as the director for the final four films, declaring that "they wanted to do a Harry Potter that felt realer, and more grown up. What’s smart about the studio and the producers is they have always wanted to push it a bit. Chris [Columbus] did a wonderful job of casting and making this world incredibly popular. But rather than do more of the same, they said, 'Let's bring in Alfonso Cuarón and let him run with it. Then later, let's bring in David Yates, who’s done all this hard-hitting stuff on TV. It's a testament to their ambition to try and keep the franchise fresh. The bizarre thing is, I did one and they asked me to stay for three more, so obviously they liked something."

Half-Blood Prince became the second highest-grossing film of 2009 and received a high score of 87% from top film critics, which led to a "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes. Radio 5 Live's renowned professional film critic Mark Kermode, who specialises in fantasy and horror films, expressed positive analysis of the film by commenting on its thematic content, saying it's the "closest I've seen to a proper kids horror film in as much as a film about good verses evil". A notable and recognised achievement of Half-Blood Prince is that it is the only film in the franchise to gain an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography. Yates worked alongside cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel and digital film colourist Peter Doyle on extensively colour grading the picture and developing the "choice of angles, the extreme close-ups, [and] the pacing of the scenes." Yates described the style of the film as "very layered" and "incredibly rich." Even though the film garnered a mix of accolades and was acclaimed for its stylised character-driven approach, some fans complained about the script's deviation from the source material and its slight romantic comedy nature.

Yates began to film the two parts of Deathly Hallows back to back in early 2009, with the final shoot taking place on 12 June 2010. Yates stated that he filmed the two parts of the final adaptation differently, with Part 1 being "quite vérité" and having a "road movie" style, while Part 2 is "much more operatic, colourful and fantasy-oriented", a "big opera with huge battles". While on the set of Deathly Hallows, Yates gave an interview with the Los Angeles Times in which he spoke of working with the three lead actors of the series: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint. He said, "It was an extraordinary bit of judgment, bringing those three in. They have been so stable and level-headed and in working with them I continue to be impressed by how keen they are to challenge themselves and to try new things to bring out the characters that they portray."

Part 1 was released in November 2010 to record-breaking success along with generally positive reviews. Some of which reflected on Yates' directing, with The Dallas Morning News stating that "David Yates' fluid, fast-paced direction sends up the crackling tension of a thriller." A review from a top critic at The New York Times talked about Yates' focus on the plot and character development, claiming that he "has shown a knack for capturing and quickening Ms. Rowling’s storytelling rhythm. He has also demonstrated a thorough, uncondescending sympathy for her characters, in particular the central trio of Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and Harry himself." Some audiences have criticised Part 1 for being too faithful to the book, having a somewhat slow place and for feeling like the "prelude it is". Attending the world premiere in Leicester Square, London, Harry Potter producer David Heyman expressed his view that Yates "has done the most incredible job with these films".

David Yates has worked in production on the Harry Potter film series for six consecutive years, from 2006 to 2011. Yates has directed the most films in the series, helming four out of the eight entries. Yates' predecessors, Alfonso Cuarón and Mike Newell, helmed one film each while Chris Columbus directed the first two instalments. All of Yates' films have been a success financially and critically. Daniel Radcliffe commented on working with Yates and compared his directorial style with the previous directors, saying that "he took the charm of the films that Chris [Columbus] made and the visual flair of everything that Alfonso [Cuarón] did and the thoroughly British, bombastic nature of the film directed by Mike Newell and he's added his own sense of grit and realism to it that perhaps wasn’t there so much before .... I think we all had a fantastic time working with David. I know we did."

Filmography

"People who work in television often don't think they can trust filmmakers because they are supposed to be a bit more arty and self indulgent, and people in film might think anyone who works in television is a hack. If we had more filmmakers working in television, and more television writers and directors working in film, we'd have a much healthier and more vital industry."

"I like to create an atmosphere where actors feel safe enough to take risks. I certainly don't believe in being a macho bully; I'm not interested in frightening good work out of people. It's bollocks."

"In an ideal world, I'd bounce between big projects and no-budget TV dramas with fantastic scripts. A lot of Hollywood films tend to be bloated, bombastic, loud. At the same time, I do like the infrastructure of making a blockbuster; it's like having a big train set."

— Quotes from David Yates on television and filmmaking.

Year(s)	Title	Role(s)	Description
1988	When I Was a Girl	Director Producer Writer	Short film
1991	The Weaver's Wife	Director Producer Writer	Short film
1991	Oranges and Lemons	Director	Short film
1992	Good Looks	Director	Short film
1994	Moving Pictures	Director	1 episode of television series: Low Budget
1994-1995	The Bill	Director	5 episodes of television series: Full Contact Death and Taxes Other Voices Feeling Guilty Life's a Bitch
1995	Tale of the Three Seaside Towns	Director Producer	3 episodes of television documentary: Weymouth Eastbourne Brighton
1996	Punch	Director	Short film
1998	The Tichborne Claimant	Director	Independent film
2000	The Sins	Director	3 episodes of television series: Greed Envy Lust
2001	The Way We Live Now	Director	4-part television serial
2002	Rank	Director	Short film
2003	State of Play	Director	6-part television serial
2003	The Young Visiters	Director	Television film
2004	Sex Traffic	Director	Television film, 2-part drama
2005	The Girl in the Café	Director	Television film
2007	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix	Director	Theatrical film
2009	Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince	Director	Theatrical film
2010	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1	Director	Theatrical film
2011	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2	Director	Theatrical film

Accolades

Year	Award	Category	Title	Result
1991	Cork International Film Festival Award	Best European Short	When I Was a Girl	Won
1991	San Francisco International Film Festival: Golden Gate Award	Best Short Film	When I Was a Girl	Won
1991	Belfort Film Festival Award	Best Film	When I Was a Girl	Won
1992	Chicago International Film Festival Award	-	Good Looks	Won
1998	Emden Film Festival Award	-	The Tichborne Claimant	Nominated
2002	British Academy Television Awards	Best Drama Serial Shared with: Nigel Stafford-Clark Andrew Davies	The Way We Live Now	Won
2003	British Academy Film Award	Best Short Film Shared with: Andrew O'Connell Robbie McCallum	Rank	Nominated
2003	Royal Television Society Award	Best Drama Serial	State of Play	Won
2003	Directors Guild of Great Britain Award	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in TV Movie/Serial	State of Play	Won
2004	British Academy Television Award	Best Drama Serial Shared with: Hilary Bevan Jones Paul Abbot	State of Play	Nominated
2004	Directors Guild of Great Britain Award	Outstanding Directorial Achievement in TV Movie/Mini-Series	Sex Traffic	Nominated
2005	Royal Television Society Award	Best Drama Serial	Sex Traffic	Won
2005	British Academy Television Award	Best Drama Serial Shared with: Derek Wax Abi Morgan	Sex Traffic	Won
2006	Academy of Television Arts & Sciences: Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Directing for a Mini-Series, Movie or Dramatic Special	The Girl in the Café	Nominated
2006	Academy of Television Arts & Sciences: Primetime Emmy Award	Outstanding Made for Television Movie	The Girl in the Café	Won
2007	National Movie Award	Best Family Film	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix	Won
2008	Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Saturn Award	Best Director	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix	Nominated
2008	Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Saturn Award	Best Fantasy Film	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix	Nominated
2009	Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Saturn Award	Best Fantasy Film	Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince	Nominated
2009	Satelitte Awards	Best Motion Picture (Animated or Mixed Media)	Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince	Nominated
2010	National Movie Award	Best Family Film	Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince	Won
2010	National Movie Award	Special Recognition Shared with: David Heyman David Barron Harry Potter cast and crew	Harry Potter	Won
2010	NFTS Honory Fellowship Award	Outstanding Contribution to the British Film and Television Industry	-	Won

Note: Not all awards are contained in the list above due to the section's size restrictions. More accolades for Yates' work can be found here.

• Due to size restrictions, only the Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Saturn Awards, Satellite Awards, National Movie and TV Awards, Emmy Awards, RTS Awards & the DGGB Awards are included.

Future projects

Yates is developing a war picture called Saint Nazaire, a film based on the St Nazaire Raid in the Second World War. The film is reported to be written by Joe Fisher, edited by Mark Day and produced by Heyday Films through Warner Bros. Pictures. Yates stated that he wants to bring his TV drama, Sex Traffic, to the big screen. Yates had also been chosen to direct an adaptation of The Giver, however he pulled out due to his increasing work on Deathly Hallows, therefore postponing The Giver for several years. During an interview with Collider in November 2010, producer David Heyman revealed that he is in talks with Yates about upcoming projects.

External links

• David Yates at IMDb
• David Yates: Casarotto Ramsay & Associates Ltd.
• David Yates: Yahoo! Movies Biography
• David Yates: Warner Bros. Awards, FYC 2010

Template:Link GA Hallows Horcruxes (talk) 22:41, 25 January 2011 (UTC)