Conversations with Cinematographers - by David A Ellis (Hardcover)

About the Book

In Conversations with Cinematographers, David A. Ellis has assembled interviews with some of the most influential and highly regarded cameramen of the last half century and more. While their names may not be known by the general public, these men and their work have left indel...

Book Synopsis

David A. Ellis has interviewed some of the most influential and highly regarded cameramen of the last half century and more, and he has assembled these exchanges in Conversations with Cinematographers. While their names may not be known by the general public, these men and their work have left indelible imprints on the silver screen. Among those interviewed are several award-winning artists:

- Douglas Slocombe (Kind Hearts and Coronets, Julia, Raiders of the Lost Ark)
- Oswald Morris (The Guns of Navarone, Fiddler on the Roof, Oliver!)
- Christopher Challis (A Shot in the Dark, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Top Secret!)
- Billy Williams (Women in Love, The Wind and the Lion, Gandhi)
- Freddie Francis (Sons and Lovers, The Elephant Man, Glory)
- Chris Menges (The Killing Fields, The Mission, The Reader)
- John De Borman (The Full Monty, Hamlet, An Education)
- Gilbert Taylor (Dr. Strangelove, A Hard Day's Night, Frenzy, Star Wars)
- Jack Cardiff (Black Narcissus, The Red Shoes, The African Queen)
- Nicolas Roeg (Fahrenheit 451, Far from the Madding Crowd, Petulia)
- Alex Thomson (Excalibur, Legend, Hamlet)
- Walter Lassally (Tom Jones, Zorba the Greek, Heat and Dust)
- Anthony Dod Mantle (Slumdog Millionaire, The Last King of Scotland, 127 Hours)

Along with several camera operators who were also interviewed, these cinematographers recount their experiences on sets and reveal what it was like to work with some of the most acclaimed directors of all time, including Alfred Hitchcock, Fred Zinnemann, Carol Reed, John Huston, David Lynch, and Steven Spielberg. With valuable insight into the craft of moviemaking, this collection of interviews will appeal to film professors, scholars, and students, as well as anyone with an interest in the art of cinematography.

Review Quotes

In Conversations with Cinematographers, David has interviewed many of the most influential and highly regarded movie cameramen and Directors of Photography in the business. The interviews cover nearly 70 years of film-making, with the earliest films in the filmography...spotted dating back to 1940....These cinematographers recount their experiences on sets and reveal what it was like to work with some of the most acclaimed directors of all time, including Alfred Hitchcock, Fred Zinnemann, Carol Reed, John Huston, David Lynch, and Steven Spielberg. The book provides valuable insights into the craft of moviemaking, and this collection of interviews will appeal to anybody with an interest in the cinema industry as well as to film academics and students.


Many of the names of the men interviewed in this book will not be familiar to the general public, but the movies they have choreographed through their cinematography will be. They play a key role in bringing movies to life by conveying both the visions of the director and the screenwriter through cinematography. Among the 13 interviewed are Chris Menges (e.g., The Killing Fields, The Reader), Freddie Francis (e.g., The Elephant Man, Glory), and Gilbert Taylor (e.g., Dr. Strangelove, Star Wars). In the interviews the author touches on such topics as memorable experiences on the sets of famous movies, what it is really like to work with famous directors, and how they broke into and moved up in the film industry. With the wide interest in cinematography and film making today, this will be a useful and popular title in a wide range of libraries, including those that serve film students, film scholars, and professors.

About the Author

David A. Ellis is a freelance journalist who has contributed articles to British Cinematographer magazine.