Simon West

SIMON WEST

Date of Birth: 1961

British born, director West spent his early years in Hertfordshire. By the age of 20 he had joined the BBC in London as an apprentice film editor. For the next four years West worked on a number of award-winning documentaries and series.

After leaving the BBC, West began freelancing as a director. During his freelancing years he was given a grant to write and direct the half hour film, Dolly Mixtures. The work led him to a contract with Limelight London to direct music videos and commercials. His work was rewarded with a plane ticket to the States and an office in Los Angeles. His excellence in commercial work continued on this side of the pond, winning him the Golden Lion and a Clio from two advertising festivals.

In 1993 he joined Satellite Films to continue his successful run in commercial work. Clients included Miller Beer, Ford, Budweiser, Sprite and AT&T. The work continued to attract more awards from festivals around the world.

West took a giant leap of faith into feature work with the film Con Air in 1997. The film, which starred Nicholas Cage, Monica Potter and John Cusack, proved to be a good move with an excellent showing at the box office. His second film, The General's Daughter, received the worst movie award at the Santa Fe Film Critics Circle Awards but still made a strong showing at the box office. West continued to work on feature films at the start of the new millennium with Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) with Angelina Jolie and When a Stranger Calls (2006). After directing for television for the next few years, West returned to the big screen with a bang—quite literally actually—in 2012 when he helmed the action-packed sequel The Expendables 2 starring Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Liam Hemsworth.

Filmography:

The Expendables 2 (2012)
The Mechanic (2011)
Purple Mountain (2008)
When a Stranger Calls (2006)
The Sailmaker (2004)
The Prisoner (2001)
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001)
The General's Daughter (1999)
Con Air (1997)