Famous 20th Century Cinematographers

Alfonso Cuarón is a Mexican filmmaker who works in a wide range of genres. He has multiple romantic, action, drama, and fantasy movies to his credit. The son of a doctor and a biochemist, he chose an unconventional profession for himself. After completing his studies, he began working as a director. He has received four Academy Awards. 

English cinematographer Roger Deakins is known for his collaborations with ace directors such as Sam Mendes and the Coen brothers. He gained fame with his Academy Award-winning cinematography in the films 1917 and Blade Runner 2049, and his work on The Shawshank Redemption and A Beautiful Mind.

Todd Fisher is an American cinematographer, director, producer, and actor. The son of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, Todd played a major role in carrying on the legacy of his parents by serving important positions in the Debbie Reynolds Hotel & Casino and Debbie Reynolds Management Company, Inc. In 2013, he became the CEO of the Hollywood Motion Picture Museum.

David Lean was an English film producer, director, editor, and screenwriter. He is best remembered for directing large-scale epics like The Bridge on the River Kwai, A Passage to India, and Lawrence of Arabia. David Lean is widely regarded as one of the most prominent figures in British cinema. He won many prestigious awards, including two Academy Awards.

Best known for his over two-decade-long stint as a Turner Classic Movies host, Robert Osborne also gained fame for his penning The Official History of the Academy Awards and the National Film Book Award-winning 50 Golden Years of Oscar. A qualified journalist, he also wrote columns for The Hollywood Reporter.

Louis Malle was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his film Le Monde du silence, which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1957. He was also the recipient of two Golden Lion awards, one of the only four directors to have achieved this feat. He was active in both French cinema and Hollywood.

Emmanuel Lubezki is a Mexican cinematographer best known for his innovative uses of continuous uninterrupted shots and natural lighting in cinematography. A member of the American Society of Cinematographers, Lubezki has worked with acclaimed American directors like Tim Burton, Mike Nichols, and Michael Mann. Emmanuel Lubezki is the first person to win three consecutive Academy Awards for Best Cinematography.

Zack Snyder is an American filmmaker who specializes in making superhero and comic book films, such as 300, Man of Steel, and Justice League. His style of filmmaking has inspired a lot of young directors all over the world. Away from the film industry, Zack plays an important role in the lives of his children, four of whom he adopted.

Agnes Varda was a Belgian-born French film director, screenwriter, and artist. She was a key figure in the development of the French New Wave film movement of the 1950s and 1960s. She often made films addressing women’s issues and other social justice problems. She was honored with an Academy Honorary Award. She was married to director Jacques Demy. 

Caleb Deschanel is an American film and television director and cinematographer. In 2000, he won the American Society of Cinematographers Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography for his work in the epic historical revisionist war film, The Patriot. Deschanel has also played an important role in shaping the careers of his daughters, Zooey and Emily Deschanel.

Martin Kenzie was a British cinematographer and second unit director. One of the most important members of the British Society of Cinematographers, Kenzie worked in popular and critically acclaimed films like The Shining, Aliens, Return of the Jedi, and The King's Speech. Martin Kenzie died at the age of 56 due to cancer.

Russ Meyer was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, editor, and cinematographer. He is best remembered for directing a series of popular sexploitation films, such as Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens and Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! After his death, the majority of his estate and money went to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, as per his will.

Gareth Edwards is a British filmmaker best known for his 2010 independent science-fiction horror film Monsters, for which he worked as the writer, cinematographer, director, and visual effects artist. He then went on to direct films like Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Godzilla.

Nicolas Roeg was an English cinematographer and film director. He is best remembered for directing films like Performance, The Man Who Fell to Earth, Don't Look Now, and The Witches. A highly influential filmmaker, Nicolas Roeg is credited with inspiring other prominent directors like Christopher Nolan, Steven Soderbergh, and Danny Boyle.

Alexandra Pelosi is an American documentary filmmaker, journalist, and writer. Many of her documentary films including Journeys with George, which she made from her recordings of George W. Bush's presidential campaign, have earned her critical acclaim. Alexandra Pelosi has also contributed immensely to NBC News where she worked as a field producer for a decade.

Eleanor Coppola is an American artist, documentary filmmaker, and writer. The wife of Francis Ford Coppola, Eleanor has often been credited for the success of her husband. Eleanor Coppola is also credited with founding an organization called Circle of Memory which aims at commemorating loved ones. She also manages the Rubicon Estate Winery which is owned by her family.

Lloyd Kaufman is an American film producer, director, actor, and screenwriter. Kaufman is credited with co-founding Troma Entertainment film studio along with producer Michael Herz. Kaufman is also credited with directing many successful films like Tromeo and Juliet and The Toxic Avenger. As an actor, he played important roles in films, such as The Transfiguration.

Lynne Ramsay is a Scottish film director, producer, writer, and cinematographer. She is best known for directing films like Ratcatcher, We Need to Talk About Kevin, and You Were Never Really Here. A critically-acclaimed filmmaker, Lynne Ramsay has won several important awards, including British Academy Film Awards and Critics Awards.

Patrick McDermott was an American cameraman who has been missing since June 30, 2005. McDermott, who was in an on-again, off-again relationship with Olivia Newton-John for nine years, disappeared from a fishing charter boat off the coast of Los Angeles. His disappearance has given rise to many theories, including McDermott faking his own death to start life afresh in Mexico.

Born in Switzerland to Dutch parents, Hoyte van Hoytema feels more connected to Sweden than any other country in the world. Currently a Swedish citizen, he lives and works in Sweden, having Swedish wife and daughter. He has worked as cinematographer in numerous films, documentaries and television productions and has won several awards for his contributions.

Robert Frank was a Swiss documentary filmmaker and photographer best remembered for his photographic book The Americans which earned him comparisons with the likes of Tocqueville. An acclaimed photographer, Robert Frank won many prestigious awards, such as Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography in 1996 and the Edward MacDowell Medal in 2002.

Peter Greenaway is a Welsh artist, film director, and screenwriter. He is best known for making films with common traits, such as the contrasts of nature and architecture, costume and nudity, sexual pleasure and painful death, and furniture and people. Some of his best-known films include The Pillow Book and Goltzius and the Pelican Company.

Conrad Hall was a cinematographer best remembered for working in films, such as In Cold Blood, American Beauty, and Cool Hand Luke. In 2003, he was named among the most influential cinematographers in history. One of the most celebrated and decorated cinematographers, Conrad Hall won many prestigious awards including three Academy Awards and three British Academy Film Awards.

Sean Stone is an actor, filmmaker, and TV host. He gained massive popularity for hosting the RT America show Watching the Hawks with Tyrel Ventura and Tabetha Wallace. The son of an actor father, he was introduced to show business as a child. After establishing himself as an actor, he made his directorial debut with the film Graystone. 

Mike Figgis is an English film director, composer, and screenwriter. He achieved popularity after the release of the 1995 American drama film Leaving Las Vegas, for which he received two nominations at the Academy Awards. Mike Figgis is credited with founding an independent filmmakers’ online community called Shooting People.

Robert Richardson is a prominent cinematographer who has won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography three times. He often collaborates with the directors Errol Morris, Oliver Stone, Quentin Tarantino, and Martin Scorsese. He attended the AFI Conservatory before beginning his career as a camera operator. Over the years, he evolved into one of the most successful cinematographers in Hollywood. 

John Schwartzman is a cinematographer best known for his work in the movies Jurassic World and The Amazing Spider-Man. He studied at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts and began his career in the 1980s. He has been nominated for an Academy Award. Actors/musicians Jason and Robert Schwartzman are his siblings. 

Chris Marker was a French photographer, writer, multimedia artist, film director, and film essayist. He is considered an exponent of the Left Bank subgroup of the French New Wave that came into existence in the 1950s and 1960s. After starting his career by working with members of the Left Bank Film Movement, Marker went on to help popularize the genre.

Spanish director, screenwriter, producer, actor, cinematographer, editor, musician and composer Jesús Franco Manera, considered as a cult director by both critics and public, is most reputed as a director of exploitation and B-movies. His expansive career spanning over five decades saw him writing, directing, producing and acting in around 173 feature films.

Best known for his Academy Award-winning work in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond was regarded as a prominent pillar of the American New Wave movement. He was also known for his signature use of colors, natural light, and the technique of flashing or pre-fogging.

Wally Pfister is a cinematographer and director. He started working as a production assistant after high school and eventually became a successful cinematographer. He often collaborates with acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan and the two men have worked together in films like Memento and Inception. He won an Academy Award for Best Cinematography for Inception.  

Rupert Wyatt is an English screenwriter, producer, and director. He is best known for directing popular films like The Escapist and Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Rupert Wyatt's work has received nominations at the Saturn Awards, Empire Awards, London Film Critics' Circle, and British Independent Film Awards.

Robert Elswit is a cinematographer best known for his work on the historical drama film, Good Night, and Good Luck and the epic period drama film, There Will Be Blood. The latter earned him an Academy Award for Best Cinematography. Beginning his career as a  visual effects camera operator, he went on to become a highly influential cinematographer. 

Herschell Gordon Lewis was a filmmaker who specialized in the horror genre. He is credited with creating the "splatter" subgenre of horror films, for which he is often referred to as the "Godfather of Gore." He studied journalism at Northwestern University and held a few other jobs before venturing into cinema. He was also a published author of several books. 

Matthew Libatique is a cinematographer. He studied at California State University and later trained in cinematography at AFI Conservatory. He began his career with music videos and branched out into films as well. He often collaborates with director Darren Aronofsky. He received the Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography for his work in the horror film Black Swan.   

Haskell Wexler was an American cinematographer, film director, and producer. In a survey conducted by the International Cinematographers Guild, Wexler was named among the ten most influential cinematographers in history. One of the most decorated cinematographers, Haskell Wexler received several prestigious awards including two Academy Awards in five nominations. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Rodrigo Prieto is a Mexican cinematographer who is a member of both the Mexican Society of Cinematographers and the American Society of Cinematographers. He has closely worked with acclaimed directors like Martin Scorsese and Alejandro González Iñárritu. He is the recipient of numerous awards and nominations, including three Academy Award nominations and three BAFTA Award nominations. 

Ernest R. Dickerson is a director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. He received his training at the Tisch School of the Arts, where Spike Lee was a classmate. The two worked together on Lee's 1983 master's degree thesis student film. As a director, Dickerson is best known for horror and action movies. He is a recipient of an NAACP Image Award.