Ruth De Jong

Ruth De Jong is an American production designer and art director. She is known for her long creative partnership with production designer Jack Fisk, and for her work on films directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, Terrence Malick, and Jordan Peele. She was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Production Design for the film Oppenheimer. She was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for her work on Twin Peaks.

Early life and education

De Jong was born in San Bernardino, California, and moved to Charlottesville, Virginia at age 12. She attended Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas, where she played on the women's soccer team and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and photography in 2004. She also worked as a freelance photographer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram during her time at TCU. After graduating, she was accepted to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts for graduate study in painting but deferred enrollment to work in film, ultimately not attending.

Career

De Jong's entry into film came through production designer Jack Fisk, the husband of actress Sissy Spacek and father of De Jong's childhood friend Schuyler Fisk. Fisk recruited her to assist him on Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood (2007). She reteamed with Nolan for The Odyssey (2026).

Outside of film, De Jong co-founded De Jong & Co., a furniture and interior design firm, with her brothers Peter and Philip.