Nelson Coates
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nelson Coates is an American production designer and set designer for film, television, and theater. He was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1994 for his art direction of the miniseries The Stand,[1] for which he designed all 225 sets.[2]
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[edit] Background
The son of two Abilene Christian University education professors, Ed and Jane Coates, Nelson Coates became interested in the arts from a young age, learning to create sculptures from natural fibers with the help of a book given to him at age 14 by his parents.[3] During high school, he became involved in gymnastics, a skill set he used years later when planning escape routes for Wesley Snipes' character in Murder at 1600.[4] Coates went on to attend the college where his parents taught, changing majors from pre-med to theater and eventually graduating with a degree in advertising and public relations.[4]
[edit] Career
After graduating from college, Coates moved to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, where he exhibited his sculptures,[3] acted in local theater,[5] and began his career in theatrical set design.[6][7][8][9]
The Stand was Coates' only television miniseries to date. In addition to designing all sets for the project, he took responsibility for other aspects of creating a realistic Nebraska setting for the Utah-based production. Faced with prices of $40 per stalk for New York-made fake corn, Coates opted instead to grow 3,250 corn stalks as a cost-cutting measure; when a winter storm hit Utah, the reproduction of a cornfield became complicated by the fact that the harsh weather did not allow the corn crop to grow taller than 4 feet.[2]
His 1990s films include 1995's Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead, 1997's Kiss the Girls and Murder at 1600, 1998's Disturbing Behavior and Living Out Loud, and 1999's Stir of Echoes. Other films include Don't Say a Word (2001), Frailty (2001), the science-fiction film Impostor (2001), Antwone Fisher (2002), Runaway Jury (2003), School for Scoundrels (2006), and The Express (2008).
[edit] Notes
- ^ Awards and nominations for Nelson Coates, Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
- ^ a b Michael Booth. "5 Points a star: Hollywood action invades Denver neighborhood," The Denver Post, August 27, 1994, page A1.
- ^ a b Ana Puga. "Metro profile: Nelson Coates," The Dallas Morning News, November 26, 1986, page 14A.
- ^ a b "Movie Minds: Nelson Coates" (cover story), ACU Today, Fall 1998. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
- ^ Jerome Weeks. "'Fantasticks': a charmed life: It's not as good as last year's, but the music is a lot better" (review), The Dallas Morning News, December 6, 1989, page 1C: "Nelson Coates is a bit bland but fine as Matt, who, after all, is a bit bland around the stereotypes. [He] does a forceful job with "I Can See It," Matt's declaration of wanderlust."
- ^ Jerome Weeks, theater critic. "Land ho-ho! Clever 'Rough Crossing' requires a smoother production," The Dallas Morning News, December 3, 1988, page 5C: For his part, designer Nelson Coates has produced two of Stage West's more elegant and elaborate sets — a white deco ship's deck and a large ballroom used for rehearsals.
- ^ Jerome Weeks. "A reunion haunted in quiet sorrow: "A Shayna Maidel' carries solemnity to a tedious end" (review), The Dallas Morning News, May 10, 1989, page 5C: "A Shayna Maidel continues the welcome revival of production values at the Dallas Rep this season — Nelson Coates' stage design is another smart apartment set..."
- ^ Jerome Weeks. "'Postcards' is slow going: Poor pacing and characterization hurt musical" (review), The Dallas Morning News, October 23, 1989, page 5C: "...designers Nelson Coates and Robert Kruger have created an idealized trendy restaurant..."
- ^ Jerome Weeks. "'Mrs. California': the Donna Reed syndrome" (review), The Dallas Morning News, March 17, 1990, page 3C: Designer Nelson Coates, who is responsible for the down-home realism of Theatre Three's Traveling Lady, has created another fine set, this time a TV sound stage of chrome appliances and obsessively sharp angles.
