Few authors have enjoyed such a dedicated following as JG Ballard, and though this celebrated author contributed to just a handful of films, his death today represents a considerable loss to the industry. Always pushing the boundaries of narrative and taking on taboo subjects with rare insight, he wielded an influence that was felt far and wide. His passionate interest in cinema contributed to some superb critical writing, and though he had been ill for several years he kept up his work and his social commentary until the end.
Ballard's childhood experiences in a Japanese internment camp were famously celebrated on celluloid by Steven Spielberg, in Empire Of The Sun, which starred the young Christian Bale. Later the author courted controversy with his 'auto-erotic' novel Crash, which David Cronenburg developed as an equally challenging film, starring James Spader. Lesser known projects included an adaptation of his surrealist novel The Atrocity Exhibition, and High Rise, about a group of luxury tower block residents who become increasingly isolated and insane, is currently in production.
Some writers are just irreplacable. Ballard's vision has affected not just our expectations of the future but also our relationship with the world we live in today. It's practically impossible to comment on modern obsessions like sex, cars, architecture, shopping, cocaine or nuclear war without him having got there before, and even after death he will doubtless continue to cast a long shadow.
