| Duncan Jones | |
|---|---|
Jones at the Tribeca Film Festival for the premiere of his film Moon, April 30, 2009 |
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| Born | Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones[1] 30 May 1971 Bromley[1] (or Beckenham), London, United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Film director |
| Years active | 2002–present |
Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones (born 30 May 1971),[1] also known as Zowie Bowie, is an English film director best known for directing the science fiction films Moon (2009) and Source Code (2011).
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Duncan is the only child from the marriage of David Bowie (born David Robert Jones) and his first wife, the former American model Mary Angela Barnett. He was born at Bromley Hospital[1] (or, according to some sources, Beckenham Hospital) in South London. His son's birth prompted Bowie to write the song "Kooks" for his 1971 album Hunky Dory. Duncan Jones is the half-brother of Alexandria "Lexi" Jones (born 2000), from his father's second marriage to the fashion model Iman, and Stacia Larranna Celeste Lipka (born 1980), from his mother's relationship with musician Drew Blood (né Andrew Lipka). He also has a stepsister, Zulekha Haywood (born 1978), who is the daughter of Iman and former NBA basketball player Spencer Haywood, Iman's second husband.
As a child, Jones spent time growing up in Berlin, London and Vevey, Switzerland where he attended the first and second grade at the Commonwealth American School in Lausanne. When David and Angela divorced in February 1980, David Bowie was granted custody of 9-year-old Jones (who was then known as Zowie), and he visited his mother on his school vacations. At age 14, he enrolled in the Scottish boarding school, Gordonstoun.
Around age 12, Zowie decided that he preferred to be called "Joey", and used this nickname for some time until shortening it to "Joe" in his later teen years. The press reported that he went by "Joe" in 1992 when attending his father's wedding to Iman (he was the best man).[2]
According to the Newham Recorder, he reverted to his birth name, Duncan Jones, around the age of 18.[3] Jones is an atheist.[4]
By 1995, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in philosophy from the College of Wooster. He then pursued a PhD degree at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee but left before completion to attend London Film School, where he graduated as a director.
He was one of many cameramen at his father's widely-televised 50th birthday party directed by Englishman Tim Pope at Madison Square Garden and also at two BowieNet concerts at Roseland Ballroom in New York City in June 2000. He was also the in-game cinematics director for the political simulator Republic: The Revolution, as well as scripting elements of the game.[5]
Duncan Jones directed the 2006 campaign for the French Connection fashion label. The concept of 'Fashion vs Style' was to re-invigorate the brand and move it away from the former incarnation of FCUK, which style pundits believed had become tired and overused.[6][7]
The advert debuted in the week ending 20 February 2006 and featured two women (representing fashion and style) fighting and briefly kissing each other.
The advertisement reportedly generated 127 complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority, but the complaints did not lead to any action.[7]
Following on from the success of Moon, Jones is currently planning a follow-up which will serve as an epilogue. "Sam (Rockwell) has agreed to do a little cameo in the next film," says Jones, who ultimately hopes to do three films in the Moon series.[8] Later, he said that he would be doing "another science fiction film, called Mute, which takes place in a future Berlin. It's a Blade Runner-inspired piece, a little love letter to that film."[9] The premise is that in future Berlin, a woman's disappearance causes a mystery for her partner, a mute bartender. He must go up against the city’s gangsters to solve the mystery.[10] The film takes place in the same timeline as Jones' Moon, and will feature Sam Rockwell in a cameo as his character Sam Bell.[11]
It was announced in 2009 that he would direct the feature film adaptation of Escape from the Deep: The Epic Story of a Legendary Submarine and Her Courageous Crew by Alex Kershaw,[12] but on Twitter Duncan Jones said he would not be directing Escape From the Deep claiming "not on the sub movie anymore, but trying hard to get one of two things made next. Mute is one of those 2".[13]
He directed the Summit Entertainment project Source Code,[14] a science-fiction thriller from Vendome Pictures, which was produced by Mark Gordon. Actor Jake Gyllenhaal played the lead role in the film.[15] Source Code was released on DVD and Blu-ray on July 26, 2011 in the United States.
Jones was one of the top candidates to direct the upcoming Superman reboot before the job ultimately went to Zack Snyder. He was also considered for Dredd, but turned it down as he preferred his own vision to the Alex Garland script.[16] He was also rumored to helm the next X-Men film, The Wolverine starring Hugh Jackman, but Jackman and 20th Century Fox decided on James Mangold instead.[17]
Currently, Jones is writing the script for his untitled third film. He is also in talks for a graphic novel.
Jones' first feature film, Moon, was nominated for 7 British Independent film awards and won 2, both going to Jones. It was also nominated for 2 BAFTA Awards at the 2010 ceremony, winning 1. There have been 19 other nominations and wins for the film, from film festivals and societies.