Poland’s pioneering EnergaCamerimage International Film Festival revealed Tuesday that industry veteran Nathan Crowley will receive a special award for achievement in production design at the event’s upcoming 32nd edition in Toruń.
Crowley is best known for his long-running collaboration with Christopher Nolan, which earned him Oscar nominations for production design on The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Interstellar, Dunkirk and Tenet (he also was nominated for Damien Chazelle’s First Man). On the small screen, he picked up an Emmy nomination for his work on the HBO series Westworld. By no means slowing down, his recent work includes the adaptations of Wonka and Wicked 1 & 2, and he is next booked to design the new Avengers films for the Russo Brothers at Marvel Films.
“Known for his practical approach to production design, Crowley excels at creating immersive, detailed worlds, blending traditional and modern techniques,” Camerimage organizers said in a statement.
Crowley began his career in Islington, London after studying at the Brighton School of Art in the UK. In the early 1990s, he moved to Hollywood, where he got his break as the second-unit art director on Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula, utilizing practical techniques executed directly in front of the camera.
Crowley’s career led him to Dublin, Ireland, where he worked on films directed by Barry Levinson and Joel Schumacher. His return to the United States proved pivotal, as he began his partnership with Nolan, starting with Insomnia in 2002.
Outside of cinema, Crowley designed four exhibitions for the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, which accompanied the Met Gala, and collaborated with Sofia Coppola on La Traviata at the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma. He is also known for his design of the Space Watch for Hamilton, ODC X-03.
The EnergaCameriaimage festival will open on Nov. 16 with a gala screening of Blitz, the latest feature from Oscar winner Steve McQueen. Cate Blanchett has been named president of the event’s main competition jury, and Shogun star Hiroyuki Sanada will receive an all-new honor for best TV series performance. EnergaCameriaimage concludes with an awards ceremony on Nov. 23.
