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- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Producer
Matthew Libatique is an American cinematographer. He is best known for his work with director Darren Aronofsky on the films Pi (1998), Requiem for a Dream (2000), The Fountain (2006), Black Swan (2010), Noah (2014) and Mother! (2017). He also shot Bradley Cooper's directorial debut film, A Star Is Born (2018).
Libatique also work as an cinematographer in the films Tigerland (2000), Phone Booth (2002), Iron Man (2008), Iron Man 2 (2010) and Venom (2018).
He has received two Academy Awards nominations for Best Achievement in Cinematography, one for Black Swan and the other for A Star Is Born.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
David Higgs is known for RocknRolla (2008), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011) and Leap Year (2010).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Jeff Cutter was born in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is known for Prey (2022), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Non-Stop (2014).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Jeff Cutter was born in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is known for Prey (2022), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Non-Stop (2014).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Jeff Cutter was born in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is known for Prey (2022), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Non-Stop (2014).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Jeff Cutter was born in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is known for Prey (2022), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Non-Stop (2014).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Jeff Cutter was born in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is known for Prey (2022), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Non-Stop (2014).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Jeff Cutter was born in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is known for Prey (2022), 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) and Non-Stop (2014).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Entering films in 1923 as an assistant cameraman, Burnett Guffey was picked by John Ford to handle second-unit photography on The Iron Horse (1924). After that film, however, Guffey returned to his assistant cameraman position, a job he held until 1928, when he became a camera operator. In that capacity he photographed such major productions as Ford's The Informer (1935), Alfred Hitchcock's Foreign Correspondent (1940) and Charles Vidor's Cover Girl (1944), among others. Guffey was finally hired as a director of photography by Columbia. Highly regarded by his colleagues for his crisp imaging and superb compositions, Guffey won two Academy Awards, for From Here to Eternity (1953) and Bonnie and Clyde (1967).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Harry Stradling Jr. was born on 7 January 1925 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a cinematographer, known for The Way We Were (1973), Little Big Man (1970) and 1776 (1972). He was married to Janet Cecile Goldwater, Stephanie Miller and Beverly Jean Snyder. He died on 17 October 2017 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Producer
David Franco was born on 14 September 1963 in France. He is a cinematographer and producer, known for Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) and Ultraviolet (2006).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Tak Fujimoto was born on 12 July 1939 in San Diego, California, USA. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Sixth Sense (1999) and Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Paul Cameron, ASC's visually groundbreaking work as a director and a director of photography has helped shape the craft of cinematography in the 21st century. Cameron recently directed multiple episodes of "Special Ops: Lioness", created by Taylor Sheridan for Paramount+, as well as multiple episodes of HBO's acclaimed "Westworld" series. Previously, Cameron was Cinematographer on "Reminiscence", starring Hugh Jackman and Rebecca Ferguson, "21 Bridges", and "The Commuter", starring Liam Neeson. His other DP credits include: "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales", "Man on Fire", "Déjà Vu", "Collateral", "Dead Man Down", "Total Recall", "Swordfish", and "Gone in Sixty Seconds", among others. Cameron is on the Board of Governors for The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, has won both Clio and AICP awards, and is represented by DDA.- Cinematographer
- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
Ace cinematographer Owen Roizman was born September 22, 1936, in Brooklyn, New York. His father Sol was a cinematographer for Fox Movietone News and his uncle Morrie Roizman was a film editor. Owen studied math and physics at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania. He began his career shooting TV commercials, and made his feature debut as a director of photography with the obscure and little seen 1970 movie Stop! (1970). Owen brought a strong and compelling sense of raw, gritty, documentary-style realism to William Friedkin's harsh and hard-hitting police action thriller classic The French Connection (1971). Roizman received a well-deserved Academy Award nomination for his outstanding visual contributions to this picture; he went on to garner four additional Oscar nominations, for The Exorcist (1973), Tootsie (1982), Network (1976) and Wyatt Earp (1994). Owen gave a similar rough and grainy look to the edgy urban thrillers The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) and Straight Time (1978). His other films encompass an impressively diverse array of different genres which include horror ("The Exorcist"), science fiction (The Stepford Wives (1975)), comedy (The Heartbreak Kid (1972) "Tootsie"), musicals (Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978)), drama (True Confessions (1981), Absence of Malice (1981)) and even Westerns (The Return of a Man Called Horse (1976), "Wyatt Earp"). His last feature to date was French Kiss (1995). In the early 1980s Owen took a hiatus from shooting films and formed the commercial production company Roizman and Associates. He has directed and/or photographed hundreds of TV commercials. In 1997 he was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Cinematographers.- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
- Cinematographer
Tilman Büttner was born on 22 January 1964 in East Germany. He is a cinematographer, known for Russian Ark (2002), Pandorum (2009) and Hitman: Agent 47 (2015).- Cinematographer
- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
John A. Alonzo was born on 12 June 1934 in Dallas, Texas, USA. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Chinatown (1974), The Magnificent Seven (1960) and Star Trek: Generations (1994). He was married to Suzanne L. Heltzel and Jan Murray. He died on 13 March 2001 in Beverly Hills, California, USA.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Visual Effects
Stanley Cortez was born Samuel Krantz in New York City, New York, the son of Sarah (Lefkowitz) and Moses/Morris Krantz, Austrian Jewish immigrants. His famous actor brother, born Jacob Krantz, changed his name to Ricardo Cortez in order to acquire a more suitably romantic Hollywood image. Stanley changed his name accordingly. After studies at New York University he embarked on a photographic career, first as assistant to noted portrait photographers Streichan and Bachrach (he designed many of their lavish background sets), then as camera assistant for Pathé Revue and for various Manhattan-based film companies. Grabbing the chance to join Gloria Swanson Productions, Stanley then spent a lengthy apprenticeship in the 1920s and early 1930s learning the intricacies of his craft from such established Hollywood cinematographers as Lee Garmes and Hal Mohr. After moving from studio to studio, either as a camera assistant or shooting screen tests, he was signed to a seven-year contract by Universal in 1936, albeit consigned to its "B" unit. His first film as full director of photography was Four Days Wonder (1936). During World War II, he was assigned to the Army Pictorial Service of the Signals Corps.
Much of his subsequent career was spent on fairly routine and undistinguished second features and it was not until he started working for charismatic filmmakers like Orson Welles and David O. Selznick that he was able to fully develop some of his experimental techniques. One of his low-budget outings, a gothic old-dark-house horror/comedy entitled The Black Cat (1941), rather impressed the genial Mr. Welles who promptly hired him for The Magnificent Ambersons (1942). This was the first of two Cortez films generally regarded as visual masterpieces, with beautiful lighting effects, clever angles and lingering close-ups. Of particular note are the staircase scene and the famous long shot -- via hand-held camera -- of the abandoned mansion. Despite critical plaudits, "Ambersons" was a financial disaster for RKO (it cost $1,1 million and lost $624,000 at the box office) and Cortez was partly blamed for costly delays and extravagant scenes, some 40-50 minutes of which were cut by direct orders from studio boss George Schaefer without consulting either Welles or Cortez. The latter ended up being indirectly censured by receiving lesser assignments. What remained of "Ambersons" has become more appreciated as a sublime visual experience with the passing of time.
The second outstanding Cortez contribution was the chillingly dark, haunting thriller The Night of the Hunter (1955)--a brilliant allegory of good versus evil masterminded by Charles Laughton in his sole directorial effort. Cortez's lighting and use of irises are reminiscent of German expressionist cinema, or, at least, the work of Karl Struss and Charles Rosher on Sunrise (1927). Among many indelible images are the flowing hair of drowned Shelley Winters in the underwater current and the lights flickering across the water in what is an almost surreal nightly landscape.
A third Cortez effort deserving of mention is the superior psychological drama The Three Faces of Eve (1957), his differential lighting for the face of schizophrenic Eve White (Joanne Woodward) effectively contrasting the multiple personalities within her psyche. Sadly, by the end of the decade Cortez's career went into a decline. It continued that way through the 1960s, the quality of his assignments fluctuating wildly between the occasional "A" picture (The Bridge at Remagen (1969)) and Z-grade turkeys like The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1966) and The Navy vs. the Night Monsters (1966).- Cinematographer
- Director
- Camera and Electrical Department
Caleb Deschanel is an American film cinematographer and film/television director. He has been nominated for six Academy Awards, each time in the field of cinematography. The first nomination came in 1983 for the film The Right Stuff (1983). His second was in 1984 for The Natural (1984), the third in 1996 for Fly Away Home (1996), the fourth in 2000 for The Patriot (2000), the fifth for The Passion of the Christ (2004), and the sixth for Never Look Away (2018).
He is the father of actresses Emily Deschanel and Zooey Deschanel.- Cinematographer
- Additional Crew
- Director
Adam Sikora was born on 3 May 1960 in Mikolów, Slaskie, Poland. He is a cinematographer and director, known for Boze Cialo (2006), Essential Killing (2010) and Autsajder (2018).- Cinematographer
- Producer
- Director
Peter Kelisek was born on 13 September 1976 in Zilina, Slovakia. Peter is a cinematographer and producer, known for Dunaj, k vasim sluzbám (2023), Hrana - 4 filmy o Marekovi Brezovskom (2014) and Sestricky (2018).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
John Bailey was born on 10 August 1942 in Moberly, Missouri, USA. He was a cinematographer and director, known for In the Line of Fire (1993), American Gigolo (1980) and The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1991). He was married to Carol Littleton. He died on 10 November 2023 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Cinematographer
- Director
- Actor
Rodrigo Prieto is a Mexican cinematographer. He is best known for Brokeback Mountain (2005), Babel (2006), Argo (2012), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), and Silence (2016).
He also worked with Alejandro González Iñárritu on the acclaimed Amores perros (2000), 21 Grams (2003), and Biutiful (2010).
Pietro was nominated for two Academy Award for Best Cinematography, first in Brokeback Mountain and later in Silence.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Ivan Slapeta was born on 28 March 1938 in Olomouc, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for Bloudení (1966), I Killed Einstein, Gentlemen (1970) and Shadows of a Hot Summer (1978).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Josef Hanus was born on 19 November 1930 in Innsbruck, Austria. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for Blbec z Xeenemunde (1963), Akce Bororo (1973) and Valcík pro milión (1961).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Sasa Rasilov was born on 25 February 1936 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Jak se zbavit Helenky (1968), Smrt na cukrovém ostrove (1962) and Smyk (1960). He died on 18 March 2000 in Prague, Czech Republic.- Cinematographer
- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
Julius Vegricht was born on 25 October 1907 in Prague, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary [now Prague, Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Prstýnek (1945), Zíznivé mládí (1943) and Karel a já (1942). He died on 11 October 1988 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic].- Director
- Writer
- Actor
Martin Fric was born on 29 March 1902 in Prague, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary [now Czech Republic]. He was a director and writer, known for Workers, Let's Go (1934), Capek's Tales (1947) and Tajemství krve (1953). He was married to Suzanne Marwille. He died on 26 August 1968 in Prague, Czechoslovakia.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Jan Roth was born on 10 November 1899 in Nachod, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary [now Náchod, Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Dívka v modrém (1940), Rozkosný príbeh (1937) and Sprung ins Glück (1937). He was married to Alena Rothová Pajerová. He died on 4 October 1972 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Prague, Czech Republic].- Cinematographer
- Visual Effects
- Camera and Electrical Department
Robert Elswit is an American cinematographer. He is best known for Boogie Nights (1997), Magnolia (1999), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), There Will Be Blood (2007), Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011), Inherent Vice (2014), and Nightcrawler (2014).
Elswit frequently works with director Paul Thomas Anderson and has worked with George Clooney several times. He shot Clooney's black and white, multiple-Oscar nominated film Good Night, and Good Luck. Notably, Elswit shot the film in color, then converted the film into black and white in post production.
He received his first Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography in 2006 for his work on the movie Good Night, and Good Luck. Two years later, he would again be nominated and this time win the Oscar for Best Cinematography, for his work on There Will Be Blood.- Cinematographer
- Director
- Actor
Michael Ballhaus was a German cinematographer. He worked on many American films, including Baby It's You (1983), Old Enough (1984), After Hours (1985), The Color of Money (1986), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Goodfellas (1990), Dracula (1992), The Age of Innocence (1993), Gangs of New York (2002), and The Departed (2006).
Ballhaus was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, for Broadcast News (1987), The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989), and Gangs of New York (2002), but never won.
His son Florian Ballhaus is also a cinematographer who worked on Flightplan (2005) and The Devil Wears Prada (2006).
Ballhaus died on 11 April 2017, at the age of 81.- Camera and Electrical Department
- Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
- Director
Alexander Witt was born in 1952 in Santiago, Chile. He is an assistant director and director, known for Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004), No Time to Die (2021) and Casino Royale (2006).- Cinematographer
Jirí Sámal was born on 14 October 1934 in Trebíc, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He is a cinematographer, known for Cesta kolem mé hlavy (1985), Cest a sláva (1969) and Stud (1967).- Cinematographer
- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
Josef Strecha was born on 3 November 1907 in Prague, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary [now Prague, Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Distant Journey (1949), Pereje (1941) and 105 % alibi (1959). He died on 29 March 1985 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Prague, Czech Republic].- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
Zdenek Prchlík was born on 28 April 1922 in Zlín, Czechoslovakia. He is a cinematographer, known for Ctyri v kruhu (1968), Marketa Lazarová (1967) and Temné slunce (1980).- Actor
- Cinematographer
Petr Volf was born on 15 March 1940 in Jicín, Protektorát Cechy a Morava [now Czech Republic]. He is an actor and cinematographer, known for Kdyby tisíc klarinetu (1965) and Zabitá nedele (1990).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Mihai Malaimare Jr. was born in 1975 in Bucharest, Romania. He is a cinematographer and director, known for The Master (2012), Jojo Rabbit (2019) and The Harder They Fall (2021).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Producer
Michael Barrett was born on 28 May 1970 in Riverside, California, USA. He is a cinematographer and producer, known for Ted (2012), Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005) and Bobby (2006). He has been married to Anna Faris since July 2021. He was previously married to Natasha Sabrina Sizlo.- Cinematographer
- Actor
- Camera and Electrical Department
Petr Koblovsky was born on 13 December 1972 in Moravská Trebová, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for Pravidla lzi (2006), Long Live the Family (2011) and Chyby (2021).- Cinematographer
- Director
- Camera and Electrical Department
Anton Peschke was born in 1946 in Vienna, Austria. He is a cinematographer and director, known for Time of Vengeance (1990), The Seventh Continent (1989) and Showchance (1969).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Ed Wild is known for Welcome to the Punch (2013), The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024) and Guy Ritchie's the Covenant (2023).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Miroslav Ondrícek was born on 4 November 1934 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer, known for Amadeus (1984), Hair (1979) and A League of Their Own (1992). He was married to Eva. He died on 28 March 2015 in Prague, Czech Republic.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Petr Rovný was born on 14 May 1910 in Plzen, Cechy, Austria-Hungary [now Czech Republic]. He is a cinematographer, known for Mrtvý mezi zivými (1947), Lavina (1946) and Nevíte o byte? (1947).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Ted Moore was born on 7 August 1914 in Western Cape, South Africa. He was a cinematographer, known for From Russia with Love (1963), A Man for All Seasons (1966) and Dr. No (1962). He died in 1987 in Surrey, England, UK.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Art Department
Rudolf Stahl was born on 12 May 1924 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer, known for Krakatit (1948), The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians (1981) and On the Comet (1970). He died on 12 November 1989 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic].- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Freddie Young was a British cinematographer. He is best known for his work on David Lean's films Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965) and Ryan's Daughter (1970), all three of which won him Academy Awards for Best Cinematography.
Young was an cinematographer on 130 films, including Goodbye, Mr Chips (1939), 49th Parallel (1941), Ivanhoe (1952), Lust for Life (1956), The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (1958), Lord Jim (1965), You Only Live Twice (1967) and Nicholas and Alexandra (1971).
He was also the first British cinematographer to film in CinemaScope.
Young died from natural causes in 1998 at the age of 96.
In 2003, a survey conducted by the International Cinematographers Guild placed Young among the ten most influential cinematographers in history.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Michael Reed was born on 7 July 1929 in Wandsworth, London, England, UK. He was a cinematographer, known for Philip Marlowe, Private Eye (1983), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) and The Groundstar Conspiracy (1972). He died on 15 December 2022 in the UK.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Writer
Bedrich Batka was born on 21 August 1922 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and writer, known for Sign of the Cancer (1967), Ctyri v kruhu (1968) and 105 % alibi (1959). He died on 6 June 1994 in Floral Park, New York, USA.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Jean Tournier was born on 3 April 1926 in Toulon, Var, France. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Moonraker (1979), The Day of the Jackal (1973) and The Train (1964). He died on 5 December 2004 in Paris, France.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Dante Spinotti was born in Tolmezzo, Udine, in the northeastern Italian Region of Friuli. He began his career at RAI (Italian TV), before that he spent lot of time in Kenia as cinematographer for his uncle. In 1985, producer Dino De Laurentiis offered him a chance to work in USA for the first time with Michael Mann for the feature Manhunter (1986). From that experience, Spinotti became one of the most appreciated cinematographer in Hollywood. His particular vision gives a movie a great sense of reality. Among his works are: The Last of the Mohicans (1992) (Academy Nomination), Heat (1995), L.A. Confidential (1997) (Academy Nomination), The Insider (1999) (Academy Nomination), and Wonder Boys (2000). He married his wife Marcella, and they live in Los Angeles, Rome, and Tolmezzo.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Alan Hume was born on 16 October 1924 in London, England, UK. He was a cinematographer and director, known for Lifeforce (1985), Runaway Train (1985) and Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983). He was married to Sheila Nevard. He died on 13 July 2010 in Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire, England, UK.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
London-born Douglas Slocombe has long been regarded as one of the film industry's premiere cinematographers, but he began his career as a photojournalist for Life magazine and the Paris-Match newspaper before World War II. During the war he became a newsreel cameraman, and at war's end he went to work for Ealing Studios as a camera operator, making his debut as a full-fledged cinematographer on Ealing's Dead of Night (1945). Slocombe is credited with giving Ealing's films the unique, realistic look it was famous for. He left Ealing and went freelance, not wanting to be tied down to a single studio, and divided his time between England and America. He won the BAFTA--the British equivalent of the Oscar--three times, for The Servant (1963), The Great Gatsby (1974) and Julia (1977). A favorite of director Steven Spielberg, he was noted for never having used a light meter while shooting Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), an almost indispensable tool for most cinematographers.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Peter Sova was born on 25 September 1944 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Push (2009), Gangster No. 1 (2000) and Wicker Park (2004). He was married to Elizabeth Hickox. He died on 27 August 2020 in South Kortright, New York, USA.- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
John Alcott, the Oscar-winning cinematographer best known for his collaboration with director Stanley Kubrick, was born in 1931, in Isleworth, England, the son of movie executive Arthur Alcott, who would become the production controller at Gainsborough Studios during the 1940s.
Alcott began his film career as a clapper boy, the lowest member of a camera crew. By the early 1960s he had worked his way up to focus puller, the #3 position on a camera crew after the lighting cameraman and camera operator. As a focus puller Alcott was responsible for measuring the distances between the camera and the subject being shot, which is critical during traveling shots, and more vitally, he was tasked with adjusting the lens when the camera is following a subject.
By the mid-'60s Alcott was a member of the camera team of master cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth, working on Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). When Unsworth had to leave the project during its two-year-long shoot to meet other commitments, Alcott was elevated to lighting cameraman by Kubrick. Thus began a collaboration that would reach its zenith a decade later with Barry Lyndon (1975). His association with Kubrick propelled him to the top of his craft, in terms of both style and in pushing the technical aspects of the discipline.
Alcott preferred lighting that appeared natural and did not draw attention to itself. His ideas meshed perfectly with those of Kubrick, and the two developed their ideas about "natural" lighting in two landmark films, A Clockwork Orange (1971) and "Barry Lyndon", which incorporated scenes shot entirely by candlelight. The idea of using candlelight solely for illumination was discussed by Alcott and Kubrick after the wrap of "2001" for Kubrick's planned film about the life of Napoleon, but there wasn't a fast-enough lens in existence then.
After a search, Kubrick located three unique 50mm f/0.7 still-camera camera lenses designed by the Zeiss Corporation for use by NASA in its Apollo moon-landing program in order to shoot still pictures in the low light levels of outer space. The lens was 2 f stops faster than the fastest movie camera lens made at the time.
Kubrick tasked Cinema Products Corp. to adapt a standard 35mm non-reflexed Mitchell BNC movie camera so that the camera could accept the lens. The camera was outfitted with a side viewfinder from one of the old Technicolor three-strip cameras that used mirrors rather than prisms (like a modern camera) to show what it "sees", the mirrors providing a much brighter image than did a prism-based single-lens reflex system, which could not obtain enough light to register an image. There was no real problem with parallax, as the viewfinder was mounted close to the lens.
Cinema Products also created two special lenses by mating a 70mm projection lens with the remaining 0.7 Zeiss 50mm lenses. This battery of three lenses allowed Kubrick and Alcott to shoot the indoor scenes using nothing but candlelight. It was a formidable task, as the lenses could not be focused by eye. Metal shields also had to be installed above the sets, which were filmed in actual castles and manor houses in Ireland and England, to keep the heat and smoke from the candles from damaging the ceilings. Fortitously, the shields also reflected the candlelight back into the scene (this approach was later used successfully by lighting cameraman Alwin H. Küchler on the western The Claim (2000), which shot its saloon interiors in very low light). The candles had to be constantly replaced to keep continuity during the scenes, and shooting was hampered by the fact that many of the manor houses were open to the public and the crew had to wait until the intervals between tours to film a scene.
Alcott told "American Cinematographer" in a December 1975 interview that the ultra-fast lens had no depth of field at all. This necessitated the scaling of the lens by doing hand tests. Alcott's focus puller, Douglas Milsome (who would succeed him as Kubrick's cinematographer), used a closed-circuit video camera at a 90-degree angle to the film camera to keep track of the distances to maintain focus. A grid was placed over the TV screen and, by taping the various actors' positions in the set, the distances could be transferred to the TV grid to allow the actors a limited scope of movement during the scene, while keeping in focus.
Alcott won an Academy Award for his work on "Barry Lyndon", which is considered one of the most visually beautiful movies ever made. (Three of Alcott's movies were ranked in the top 20 of "Best Shot" movies in the period after 1950-97 by the American Society of Cinematographers: "2001" at #3, "Barry Lyndon" at #16, and "A Clockwork Orange", for which he won the British Academy Award, at #19.) Alcott realized Kubrick's vision by evoking the paintings of Corot, Gainsborough, and Watteau, creating gorgeous tableaux. It was the aesthetic opposite of the cubism evoked by "A Clockwork Orange",
While shooting what would turn out to be his last film for Kubrick, The Shining (1980), Alcott lit the hotel sets with "practicals" (sources of lighting that are visible on screen as part of the set, such as lighting fixtures). As on "Barry Lyndon", Alcott supplemented the lighting with illumination coming into the set from outside the windows, though the "windows" on "The Shining" were part of a set. The high temperatures (110 degrees Fahrenheit) caused by the 700,000 watts of illumination outside the set's "windows" Alcott used to create the high white effect favored by Kubrick caused the set to burn down.
Alcott, who shot films and TV commercials for other directors in the UK, moved to the US in 1981 in order to obtain more steady work than was possible in the ailing British film industry. His non-Kubrick projects as a cinematographer included three films with director Stuart Cooper and two with Roger Spottiswoode. Alcott could not shoot Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket (1987), which commenced shooting in 1985 and -- like any Kubrick shoot -- would involved a substantial commitment of time, as Alcott was committed to other projects (Kubrick hired Douglas Milsome, who had been Alcott's focus puller on "Barry Lyndon" and "The Shining", to shoot "Jacket"). His non-Kubrick oeuvre was eccentric, and included the Canadian slasher film My Bloody Valentine (1981), but he was able to bring his outstanding visual quality to such movies as Fort Apache the Bronx (1981), The Beastmaster (1982), Under Fire (1983) and Hugh Hudson's Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984).
Alcott suffered a massive heart attack and died on July 28, 1986, in Cannes, France. At the time of his death he was considered one of the film industry's great artist-technicians, someone who through his ability to push back the boundaries of what was technically possible, linked technology to aesthetic needs and contributed to the development of cinema as an art form. His last film, No Way Out (1987), was dedicated to his memory. The British Society of Cinematographers named one of its awards the "BSC John Alcott ARRI Award" in his honor to commemorate his role as a lighting cameraman in the development of film as an art form.- Camera and Electrical Department
- Cinematographer
- Director
Alec Mills was born on 10 May 1932 in London, England, UK. He was a cinematographer and director, known for Moonraker (1979), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983). He was married to Zsuzsa Szemes. He died on 12 February 2024 in Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Bill Butler was born on 7 April 1921 in Cripple Creek, Colorado, USA. He was a cinematographer, known for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Jaws (1975) and Grease (1978). He was married to Iris Butler and Alma Hortense Smith. He died on 5 April 2023 in Los Angeles, California, USA.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Robert Fraisse was born in 1940 in Paris, France. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for Enemy at the Gates (2001), Babylon A.D. (2008) and Ronin (1998).- Cinematographer
- Cinematographer
- Additional Crew
- Writer
Jan Stallich was born on 19 March 1907 in Prague, Austria-Hungary [now Czech Republic]. Jan was a cinematographer and writer, known for Horské volání S.O.S. (1929), Rusalka (1963) and Starci na chmelu (1964). Jan died on 14 June 1973 in Prague, Czechoslovakia.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Václav Hunka was born on 24 April 1910 in Cachovice, Austria-Hungary [now Czech Republic]. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Bláznova kronika (1964), Zítra se bude tancit vsude (1952) and 13. revír (1946). He died on 7 September 1977 in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic].- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Producer
Pablo Diez was born on 5 November 1973 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Pablo is a cinematographer and producer, known for Welcome to Eden (2022), Til Death Do Us Part (2023) and Killer Book Club (2023).- Cinematographer
- Director
- Camera and Electrical Department
Richard Angst was born on 23 July 1905 in Zurich, Switzerland. He was a cinematographer and director, known for The White Hell of Pitz Palu (1929), The Tiger of Eschnapur (1959) and Kokumin no chikai (1938). He died on 24 July 1984 in Berlin, Germany.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
David Klein was born in December 1972. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for The Mandalorian (2019), The Book of Boba Fett (2021) and Deadwood: The Movie (2019). He has been married to Marnie Shelton since 24 November 2001.- Director
- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
During his last years at school he spent most of his time writing a thesis on 'the future of film' On leaving school he joined Gaumont British Studios at Lime Grove as an apprentice to a stills photographer for a year. He claimed this taught him more about the art of photography than any other form of training could. He then became a clapper boy at B.I.P. Studios at Elstree then moved to British Dominion where he became a a camera assistant. Next was a move to Pinewood and his call up for war duty much of which was spent as a one man film unit based at Aldershot where he learnt more about his craft than about soldering.. After the war he returned to Shepperton Studios to work for Alexander Korda and Powell and Pressburger. He also worked for John Huston on 'Moby Dick' for which he was responsible for all the second unit photography and special effects.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
John R. Leonetti was born on 4 July 1956 in California, USA. He is a cinematographer and director, known for Annabelle (2014), The Conjuring (2013) and Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Along with László Kovács, a fellow student who fled Hungary in 1956, Zsigmond rose to prominence in the 1970s. He is known for his use of natural light and vivid use of color on features such as The Long Goodbye (1973) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977).- Cinematographer
- Editorial Department
- Camera and Electrical Department
Camilla Hjelm was born on 8 February 1974 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She is a cinematographer, known for Land of Mine (2015), Angels of Brooklyn (2002) and The Outsider (2018).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Fred J. Koenekamp was born on 11 November 1922 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was a cinematographer, known for The Towering Inferno (1974), Patton (1970) and The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984). He died on 31 May 2017 in Bonita Springs, Florida, USA.- Director
- Cinematographer
- Writer
Russell Albion Meyer was born in San Leandro, California, to Lydia Lucinda (Hauck), a nurse, and William Arthur Meyer, a police officer, who divorced during his childhood. His parents were both of German descent. Meyer began winning prizes at 15 with his amateur films. He spent World War II in Europe as a combat cameraman. After the war, he became a professional photographer, shooting some of the earliest Playboy centerfolds. He made his film directorial debut with Mr. Tease and His Playthings (1959), the first nudie (softcore sex) film to make a profit over a million dollars, which led to a string of self-financed films that gradually became more bizarre, violent, and cartoonish. In the mid-1960s, he established his style with his Gothic period, a quartet of black-and-white films: Russ Meyer's Lorna (1964), Mudhoney (1965), Motorpsycho! (1965), and Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965) that many consider to be his best work. After the blockbusting Vixen! (1968), he was hired by 20th-Century Fox to make studio pictures. The first of these, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970), was an enormous hit, but after the lukewarm reception of the uncharacteristically serious The Seven Minutes (1971), Meyer returned to the sex-and-violence films that made his name, culminating in the delirious Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens (1979). He spent the 1980s working on various autobiographies, both in film (Breast of Russ Meyer) and print ("A Clean Breast").- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Additional Crew
Mark Irwin was born on 7 August 1950 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He is a cinematographer, known for Old School (2003), RoboCop 2 (1990) and There's Something About Mary (1998).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Peter Suschitzky was born on 25 July 1941 in Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland. He is a cinematographer and director, known for Dead Ringers (1988), Eastern Promises (2007) and Naked Lunch (1991).- Cinematographer
- Director
- Camera and Electrical Department
One of the highest appraised contemporary cinematographers. He was born in Spain but moved to Cuba by age 18 to join his exiled anti-Franco father. In Havana, he founded a cineclub and wrote film reviews. Then, he went on to study in Rome at the Centro Sperimentale. He directed six shorts in Cuba and two in New York. After the 1959 Cuban revolution, he returned and made several documentaries for the Castro-regime. But after two of his shorts (Gente en la playa (1960) and La Tumba Francesca) had been banned, he moved to Paris. There he became the favourite cameraman of Éric Rohmer and François Truffaut. In 1978, he started his impressive Hollywood-career. In his later years, he co-directed two documentaries about the human rights situation in Cuba: Improper Conduct (1984) (about the persecution of gay people) and Nadie escuchaba (1987). He shot several prestigious commercials for Giorgio Armani and Calvin Klein. Nestor Almendros died of cancer.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Roman Osin was born in 1961 in Leipzig, German Democratic Republic. Roman is a cinematographer, known for The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016), Pride & Prejudice (2005) and The Warrior (2001).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Harris Savides was born on 28 September 1957 in New York City, New York, USA. He was a cinematographer and actor, known for Elephant (2003), Zodiac (2007) and Birth (2004). He was married to Medine Chenet. He died on 9 October 2012 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Janusz Kaminski is a Polish cinematographer and film director. He has established a partnership with Steven Spielberg, working as a cinematographer on his movies since 1993. He won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for his work on Schindler's List (1993) and Saving Private Ryan (1998).
His other film's as an cinematographer includes Amistad (1997), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), Catch Me If You Can (2002), The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007), War Horse (2011), Lincoln (2012), Bridge of Spies (2015), The BFG (2016), and Ready Player One (2018).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Director
Eduardo Serra was born on 2 October 1943 in Lisbon, Portugal. He is a cinematographer and director, known for Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003), Unbreakable (2000) and Blood Diamond (2006).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Actor
Don Burgess was born on 28 May 1956 in Santa Monica, California, USA. He is a cinematographer and actor, known for Forrest Gump (1994), Cast Away (2000) and Contact (1997). He has been married to Bonnie Ann Burgess since 4 December 1982. They have three children.- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
- Editor
Carsten Thiele was born on 28 May 1972 in Berlin, Germany. He is a cinematographer and editor, known for PiperMint... das Leben möglicherweise (2004), Kuma (2012) and Hilflos (2000).- Cinematographer
- Camera and Electrical Department
Mauro Fiore was born on 15 November 1964 in Marzi, Calabria, Italy. He is a cinematographer, known for Avatar (2009), Training Day (2001) and The Island (2005). He has been married to Christine Vollmer since 2000. They have three children.