Dean Raymond Cundey, A.S.C. (born March 12, 1946) is an American cinematographer and film director. He is known for his collaborations with

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, actor, and composer. Although he worked in various film genres, he is most commonly associated with horror, action, and science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s. He ...

, Steven Spielberg, Robert Zemeckis, as well as his extensive work in the

horror genre Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian ...

, in addition to numerous

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

and

comedy films A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

. He was nominated for an

Academy Award for Best Cinematography The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work on one particular motion picture. History In its first film season, 1927–28, this award (like others such as the acting awards) w ...

for his work on ''

Who Framed Roger Rabbit ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' is a 1988 American live-action/animated comedy mystery film directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Frank Marshall and Robert Watts, and loosely adapted by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman from Gary K. Wolf's 19 ...

'' and has been nominated for numerous BAFTAs and BSC Awards.

Life and career

Cundey was born in

Alhambra, California Alhambra (, , ; from "Alhambra") is a city located in the western San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, United States, approximately eight miles from the Downtown Los Angeles civic center. It was incorporated on July 11 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. As a child, he used to build model sets, suggesting an interest in films from an early age. Cundey already had several low-budget films when he met

Debra Hill Debra Hill (November 10, 1950 – March 7, 2005) was an American film producer and screenwriter, best known for producing various works of John Carpenter. She also co-wrote four of his films: ''Halloween'', '' The Fog'', ''Escape from New York ...

, who in 1978 recruited him to work on '' Halloween'', a film she co-wrote with director

. Having Cundey work on a film brought considerable advantages. In addition to his considerable skill as a cinematographer and

director of photography The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

, he also had the advantage of owning most of his own equipment packed in a large van, referred to by Debra Hill as the "movie van". Cundey's work on ''Halloween'' is cited by many fans as being among his best as director of photography. In addition to his lighting skills, particularly in the famous hallway scene where the hidden face of Michael Myers is slowly revealed by way of a blue light next to the mask, he was among the first cinematographers to make use of a recent invention called the

steadicam Steadicam is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for motion picture cameras invented by Garrett Brown and introduced in 1975 by Cinema Products Corporation. It was designed to isolate the camera from the camera operator's movement, keeping th ...

, or

panaglide Panaglide is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for motion picture cameras made by Panavision. The Panaglide steadies the camera operator's movement, allowing for a smooth shot. The Panaglide was used in such films as '' Halloween'' and Ter ...

. The panaglide allowed the camera operator to "wear" the camera and obtain shots that were previously deemed too difficult or even impossible. In ''Halloween'', the panaglide was used as a point of view reference for Michael Myers, allowing the audience to see what he saw.

Other noteworthy films

Cundey would go on to work with Carpenter and Hill again on the films ''

The Fog ''The Fog'' is a 1980 American supernatural horror film directed by John Carpenter, who also co-wrote the screenplay and created the music for the film. It stars Adrienne Barbeau, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Atkins, Janet Leigh and Hal Holbrook. It ...

'', ''

Escape From New York ''Escape from New York'' is a 1981 American science fiction film, science fiction action film co-written, co-scored and directed by John Carpenter. It stars Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Donald Pleasence, Isaac Hayes, Adrienne B ...

'', '' The Thing'', '' Halloween II'', and '' Halloween III: Season of the Witch''. He would also return to work with Carpenter for the last time on the 1986 big budget science fiction/comedy adventure ''

Big Trouble in Little China ''Big Trouble in Little China'' (also in known as ''John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China'') is a 1986 American fantasy action comedy film directed by John Carpenter and starring Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun and James Hong ...

''. Cundey also served as Director of Photography on the 3D movie ''

Honey, I Shrunk the Audience! ''Honey, I Shrunk the Audience'' (known as ''MicroAdventure!'' in Tokyo Disneyland) was a 4D film spin-off of the '' Honey, I Shrunk the Kids'' film series that was shown at several Disney theme parks. The audience wore 3D glasses, and the gim ...

'' which ran in five Walt Disney theme parks around the world.

Later work

In addition to his work with Carpenter, Cundey would go on to lend his talents for the films '' Psycho II'', ''

'', the ''Back to the Future'' trilogy, ''

What Women Want ''What Women Want'' is a 2000 American romantic fantasy comedy film written by Josh Goldsmith, Cathy Yuspa, and Diane Drake, directed by Nancy Meyers, and starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt. The film earned mixed reviews from critics but wa ...

'', '' Apollo 13'', '' Jurassic Park'', ''

Romancing the Stone ''Romancing the Stone'' is a 1984 action-adventure romantic comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Diane Thomas and produced by Michael Douglas, who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. The f ...

'', '' Road House'', and '' Garfield: The Movie'' to name a few. In 1997, he made his directorial debut with the direct-to-video sequel ''

Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves ''Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves'' is a 1997 American science fiction comedy film, and the third installment in the ''Honey, I Shrunk the Kids'' film series. The film marks the directorial debut of cinematographer Dean Cundey and was released throu ...

''. He recently worked in Canada on ''

Camp Rock ''Camp Rock'' is a 2008 American musical television film directed by Matthew Diamond from a screenplay by Karin Gist, Regina Hicks, Julie Brown, and Paul Brown. The 73rd Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM), the film stars Demi Lovato, Joe Jo ...

,'' one of several movies that he has filmed outside the United States, including ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' which was filmed primarily in England. In 2011, Cundey shot the comedy film ''Jack and Jill'', a film which involved extensive split-screen and

motion control Motion control is a sub-field of automation, encompassing the systems or sub-systems involved in moving parts of machines in a controlled manner. Motion control systems are extensively used in a variety of fields for automation purposes, includi ...

effects to create the illusion of actor Adam Sandler interacting with multiple on-screen personas.

Filmography

Film

Television

Other credits

Awards and recognition

Cundey is a member of the

American Society of Cinematographers The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC), founded in Hollywood in 1919, is a cultural, educational, and professional organization that is neither a labor union nor a guild. The society was organized to advance the science and art of cinem ...

. His work on ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'' earned him an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination. On February 2, 2014, he was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award by The ASC; John Carpenter introduced him.Deadline.com
/ref> * 1988

for Best Cinematography: ''

'' (nomination) * 1988 BSC Award for Best Cinematography: ''

'' (nomination) * 1991 ASC Award for Outstanding Cinematography in Theatrical Releases: ''Hook'' (nomination) * 1995 BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography: ''Apollo 13'' (nomination) * 1995 BSC Award for Best Cinematography: ''Apollo 13'' (nomination) * 1995 ASC Award for Outstanding Cinematography in Theatrical Releases: ''Apollo 13'' (nomination) * 1995 Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Cinematography: ''Apollo 13'' (nomination) * 1999 Society of Camera Operators President's Award (won) * 2002 Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Camera Photography: ''

Religion & Ethics Newsweekly ''Religion & Ethics Newsweekly'' was an American weekly television news-magazine program which aired on PBS. History and content Premiering in 1997, ''Religion & Ethics Newsweekly'' was devoted to news of religion and spirituality, along with ...

: The Face: Jesus in Art'' (won) * 2014 ASC Award Lifetime Achievement Award (won)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cundey, Dean 1946 births American cinematographers Living people People from Alhambra, California