Luis Gabriel Beristáin, is a Mexican

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

, producer, and

television director A television director is in charge of the activities involved in making a television program or section of a program. They are generally responsible for decisions about the editorial content and creative style of a program, and ensuring the prod ...

known for his work on numerous well-known films including '' The Distinguished Gentleman'', '' The Spanish Prisoner'', '' Blade II'', and '' Street Kings'', and several entries in the

Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on List of Marvel Cinematic Universe films, a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appe ...

including the '' Agent Carter'' television series. He has collaborated with filmmakers like

Guillermo del Toro Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born 9 October 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and artist. His work has been characterized by a strong connection to fairy tales, Gothic fiction, gothicism and horror fiction, horror often blending the genres ...

Derek Jarman Michael Derek Elworthy Jarman (31 January 1942 – 19 February 1994) was an English artist, film maker, costume designer, stage designer, writer, poet, gardener, and gay rights activist. Biography Jarman was born at the Royal Victoria Nursing ...

David Mamet David Alan Mamet (; born November 30, 1947) is an American playwright, author, and filmmaker. He won a Pulitzer Prize and received Tony Award, Tony nominations for his plays ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' (1984) and ''Speed-the-Plow'' (1988). He first ...

, and

David Ayer David Ayer (born January 18, 1968) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for his action work, writing films such as ''Training Day'' (2001), '' The Fast and the Furious'' (2001), and '' S.W.A.T.'' (2003), and directing films such as '' End ...

. He is an active member of both the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., with the stated goal of adva ...

and the

British Academy of Film and Television Arts The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...

Life and career

Beristain was born in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, the son of actor Luis Beristáin. His interest in filmmaking began with his involvement in Mexico's independent film scene in the seventies. He studied Engineering at the

Instituto Politécnico Nacional The National Polytechnic Institute (), abbreviated IPN, is one of the largest public universities in Mexico with 171,581 students at the high school, undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It is the second-best university in Mexico in the techni ...

, and later joined a new

film studies Film studies is an academic discipline that deals with various film theory, theoretical, history of film, historical, and film criticism, critical approaches to film, cinema as an art form and a medium. It is sometimes subsumed within media stud ...

program at the school, while also producing audiovisual training materials for the health department. After filming a number of

documentaries A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". The American author and media analyst Bill ...

, he founded a small commercial production company, before moving to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

in 1977. At the recommendation of director

Sergio Leone Sergio Leone ( ; ; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian filmmaker, credited as the pioneer of the spaghetti Western genre. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest directors in the history of cinema. Leone's film-making style ...

, he relocated to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, where he enrolled in the prestigious National Film and Television School, which accepted only 25 students a year. He was one of only five foreigners to be accepted into the school, and studied cinematography under Oswald Morris and

Billy Williams Billy Leo Williams (born June 15, 1938) is an American former left fielder and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played from 1959 to 1976, almost entirely for the Chicago Cubs. A six-time All-Star, Williams was named the 1961 National L ...

. His first feature film as cinematographer was the 1983 Colombian horror film '' Bloody Flesh'' (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Carne de tu carne'', "Flesh of Your Flesh"), for which he won the Best Cinematography Award at the Bogotá Film Festival. His work on

's 1986 film ''Caravaggio'' earned him a Special Silver Bear Award at the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

. Beristain was one of several cinematographers on the 1987

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film or a portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of three or more shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme, premise ...

''Aria'', which was nominated for a

Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

. Allen Daviau suggested he move to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, where he could apply his talents and unique insight into both Mexican and Anglo cultures. Beristain has been a member of the

British Society of Cinematographers The British Society of Cinematographers (abbreviated B.S.C. or BSC) is an organisation formed in 1949 by Bert Easey (23 August 1901 – 28 February 1973), the then head of the Denham and Pinewood studio camera departments, to represent British c ...

since 1990, and 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 ...

since 2002. While working in 2003's '' S.W.A.T.'', Beristain became friends with executive producer Louis D'Esposito, who after helping form

Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC, formerly known as Marvel Films, is an American film and television production company. Marvel Studios is the creator of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a media franchise and shared universe of films and television ser ...

invited Beristain to do additional photography for ''

Iron Man Iron Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Co-created by writer and editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, the character first appearan ...

''. He wound up in the same function in six other

films, and also served as cinematographer for the D'Esposito-directed Marvel One-Shot short films '' Item 47'' (2012) and '' Agent Carter'' (2013), as well as the television series '' Agent Carter''. Beristein would eventually have his first feature for the studio as cinematographer in 2021's '' Black Widow''. Beristain had a son born in 1980 who lived in Austria and died 2000.

Influences

Gregg Toland,

Freddie Young Frederick A. Young (9 October 1902 – 1 December 1998) was an English cinematographer. Sometimes credited as F. A. Young, his career in motion picture photography spanned more than 130 films across nearly 70 years, between 1919 and 1984. He wa ...

, Emmanuel Lubezki,

Roger Deakins Sir Roger Alexander Deakins , (born 24 May 1949) is an English cinematographer. He is the recipient of five BAFTA Awards for Best Cinematography, and two Academy Awards for Best Cinematography from sixteen nominations. He has collaborated m ...

Filmography

Director

Television

Cinematographer

Film

Short film

Television

Miniseries TV series

Awards and nominations

* 1984 Bogotá Film Festival Award for Best Cinematography: '' Bloody Flesh'' (Won) * 1987 Special Silver Bear Award: ''Caravaggio'' (Won by Derek Jarman but dedicated by him to Beristain) * 1994 VMA Award for Best Cinematography: " Amazing" (Nominated) * 1999 Silver Ariel Award for Best Cinematography: ''The Comet'' (Nominated) *2021 Cinematography Award: Coronado Island Film Festival (Won)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beristain, Gabriel Mexican cinematographers Living people Artists from Mexico City Year of birth missing (living people)