[1] The native New Yorker began his career as a stage lighting designer in the music industry following graduation from New York University in the late 1960s.
He commenced his own production design career in TV commercials for ten years from 1985 to 1995 (for such clients as Pepsi, Nike, Jeep, Coke and Levi's), which led to his ongoing associations with directors Scott and Fincher.
Max has been nominated for four Academy Awards: once each for his Production Design work on Gladiator (2000), American Gangster (2007), The Martian (2015) and Napoleon (2023).
After The Martian, Max worked on All the Money in the World (2017) Exodus: Gods and Kings, The Counselor, Kingdom of Heaven, Robin Hood, Black Hawk Down and Body of Lies.
More recently, he completed The Last Vermeer, which was based on a true story of art forgery, set in Holland just after World War II, and The Last Duel, a medieval drama made in France and Ireland.