Robert Milton Young (November 22, 1924 – February 6, 2024) was an American film and television director, cinematographer, screenwriter, and producer. Young was considered a trailblazer in the

independent filmmaking An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, in ...

sector and for frequently casting

Edward James Olmos Edward James Olmos (born February 24, 1947) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Detective List of Blade Runner (franchise) characters#Gaff, Gaff in ''Blade Runner'' (1982) and its sequel ''Blade Runner 2049'' (2017), Lieuten ...

in his movies, directing him in ''

Alambrista! ''Alambrista!'' is a 1977 film directed by Robert M. Young and starring Domingo Ambriz and Trinidad Silva. It won four awards in 1977. In 2023, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library o ...

'' (1977), ''

The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez ''The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez'' is a 1982 American Western crime film directed by Robert M. Young and starring Edward James Olmos as Gregorio Cortez. It is based on the book ''With His Pistol in His Hand'' by Americo Paredes. In 2022, th ...

'' (1982), '' Saving Grace'' (1986), '' Triumph of the Spirit'' (1989), ''

Talent for the Game ''Talent for the Game'' is a 1991 film directed by Robert M. Young and starring Edward James Olmos, Lorraine Bracco, Terry Kinney, Jamey Sheridan, and Jeff Corbett. The plot concerns a baseball scout. Scenes were filmed on the Palouse in the s ...

'' (1991), ''

Roosters The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

'' (1993), '' Slave of Dreams'' (1995), and ''

Caught Caught is a method of dismissing a batsman in cricket. A batsman is out caught if the batsman hits the ball, from a legitimate delivery, with the bat, and the ball is caught by the bowler or a fielder before it hits the ground. If the catch ...

'' (1996). He produced Olmos's directorial debut, ''

American Me ''American Me'' is a 1992 American crime drama film produced and directed by Edward James Olmos, in his directorial debut, from a screenplay by Floyd Mutrux and Desmond Nakano. Olmos stars as Montoya Santana, who is loosely based on Mexican Maf ...

'' (1992).

Early life and education

Robert Milton Young was born in New York City on November 22, 1924. His father was a cameraman who later owned a film laboratory. Robert began college at

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

to become a

chemical engineer A chemical engineer is a professional equipped with the knowledge of chemistry and other basic sciences who works principally in the chemical industry to convert basic raw materials into a variety of Product (chemistry), products and deals with ...

. He left after two years to join the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and served in the Pacific in New Guinea and in the Philippines. Upon returning to America after the war, he decided to study English literature at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

.Alexander, Geoff
"Biography: Robert M. Young"
''Academic Film Archive of North America'' (AFANA). Young also developed an interest in filmmaking and graduated from Harvard in 1949.Ireland, Corydon
"Nothing but a breakthrough: Landmark 1964 film about race by two Harvard grads launches Film Archive's season"
''The Harvard Gazette'', January 11, 2013

Career

After graduation, Young formed a cooperative partnership with two friends making educational films. In 1960, he worked for

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

making public affairs programs for ''NBC White Paper''. In 1960, on behalf of NBC, he went to the American South to make the film ''Sit-In'' about the civil rights protests and sit-ins. The film won a

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Foster Peabody, George Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and in ...

."NBC WHITE PAPER: U.S. News Documentary"
,

Museum of Broadcast Communications The Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC) is an American museum that showcases historic and contemporary radio and television content. It is headquartered in Chicago. Museum locations (1987–present) The Museum of Broadcast Communications wa ...

, Chicago, Illinois. Young later left NBC to pursue narrative film work. Young won a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1975. In 1985 he was a member of the jury at the

14th Moscow International Film Festival The 14th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 28 June to 12 July 1985. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Soviet film '' Come and See'' directed by Elem Klimov, the American film ''A Soldier's Story'' directed by Norman Jewison and ...

Death

Young died in Los Angeles on February 6, 2024, at the age of 99.>

Filmography

Filmmaking credits

Feature films

Documentaries

''Cancelled film: Cortile Cascino'' (1962)

Television

Technical credits

Feature films

Documentaries and other

Television

References

External links

*
"Robert M. Young Filmography"
''Fandango''

Robert M. Young at the Cannes Festival
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Robert M. 1924 births 2024 deaths American cinematographers American male screenwriters American television directors Directors of Caméra d'Or winners Emmy Award winners Film directors from New York City Film producers from New York (state) George Polk Award recipients Harvard University alumni Military personnel from New York City Military personnel from New York (state) MIT School of Engineering alumni Peabody Award winners Screenwriters from New York (state) United States Navy personnel of World War II Writers from New York City

Early life and education

Career

Death

Filmography

Filmmaking credits

Feature films

Documentaries

Television

Technical credits

Feature films

Documentaries and other

Television

References

Further reading

External links