Janusz Zygmunt Kamiński (; born June 27, 1959) is a Polish

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 ...

and

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

. He established a partnership with

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...

, working as a cinematographer of all of his films since 1993, winning one

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 his

holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

drama ''

Schindler's List ''Schindler's List'' is a 1993 American epic historical drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and written by Steven Zaillian. It is based on the historical novel '' Schindler's Ark'' (1982) by Thomas Keneally. The film follows ...

'', and another one for the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

epic ''

Saving Private Ryan ''Saving Private Ryan'' is a 1998 American epic war film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. Set in 1944 in Normandy, France, during World War II, it follows a group of soldiers, led by Captain John Miller ( Tom Hanks) ...

''. Aside from a total of seven Academy Award nominations, he has also received five nominations from the

BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...

, and six from 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 ...

. In addition to his collaborations with Spielberg, he has also worked with

Cameron Crowe Cameron Bruce Crowe (born July 13, 1957) is an American filmmaker and journalist. He has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, and Grammy Award as well as a nomination for a Tony Award. Crowe started his career a ...

James L. Brooks James Lawrence Brooks (born May 9, 1940) is an American director, producer, screenwriter and co-founder of Gracie Films. He co-created the sitcoms ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'', ''Taxi'', and ''The Simpsons'' and directed the films '' Terms of ...

Julian Schnabel Julian Schnabel (born October 26, 1951) is an American painter and filmmaker. In the 1980s, he received international attention for his "plate paintings"—with broken ceramic plates set onto large-scale paintings. Since the 1990s, he has been a ...

and

John Krasinski John Burke Krasinski (; born October 20, 1979) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his role as Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'' (2005–2013), where he was also a producer and occasional director. He directed, co-w ...

. Kamiński has also worked in the field of directing, first with the horror film ''Lost Souls'' (2000), and the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

series ''

The Event ''The Event'' (stylized as THE EVƎNT) is an American television series containing elements of science fiction, Action fiction, action/adventure and political allegory. It was created by Nick Wauters and aired on NBC from September 20, 2010, to ...

'' (2011) and WE TV series ''The Divide'' (2014). In 2019, the

included ''Schindler's List'' and ''Saving Private Ryan'', both shot by Kamiński, on the list of the best-photographed films of the 20th century.

Early life and education

Kamiński was born in

Ziębice Ziębice () is a town in Ząbkowice Śląskie County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It lies on the Oława River, approximately east of Ząbkowice Śląskie and south of the regional capital Wrocław. It is the seat of t ...

, Poland, the son of mother, Jadwiga Celner, and father, Marian Kamiński. In 1981, he emigrated to the United States at the age of 21 after

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Jaruzelski imposed

martial law Martial law is the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. Martial law can continue for a specified amount of time, or indefinitely, and standard civil liberties ...

. He attended Columbia College in Chicago from 1982 to 1987, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree, taking up filmmaking as a profession before attending to the

AFI Conservatory The AFI Conservatory is a private non-profit graduate film school in the Hollywood Hills district of Los Angeles. Students (called "Fellows") learn from the masters in a collaborative, hands-on production environment with an emphasis on stor ...

, where he graduated with a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

degree. He would then take his first opportunity filming and helping direct the music video for Club of Rome’s smash hit ‘Why Can't I Dance With Phil Donahue’.

Career

He worked under cinematographer

Phedon Papamichael Phedon Papamichael, American Society of Cinematographers, ASC (, ''Faidon Papamihail''; born February 1962) is a Greek cinematographer and film director, known for his collaborations with directors James Mangold and Alexander Payne. He has been a ...

, first as a gaffer, and eventually as

second unit A second unit is a discrete team of filmmakers tasked with filming shots or sequences of a production, separate from the main or "first" unit. The second unit will often shoot simultaneously with the other unit or units, allowing the filming s ...

director of photography. He shot numerous

B-movies A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second half of a double feature, s ...

for directors

Roger Corman Roger William Corman (April 5, 1926 – May 9, 2024) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Known under various monikers such as "The Pope of Pop Cinema", "The Spiritual Godfather of the New Hollywood", and "The King of Cult", he w ...

and

Katt Shea Kathleen Ann Shea (born October 9, 1959) is an American actress, film director, and acting teacher. She is best known for directing the erotic thriller ''Poison Ivy (1992 film), Poison Ivy'', which was nominated for the 1992 Sundance Grand Jury P ...

, as well as the romantic musical comedy ''

Cool as Ice ''Cool as Ice'' is a 1991 American musical teen drama film, directed by David Kellogg, written by David Stenn and starring rapper Vanilla Ice in his feature film debut. The plot focuses on Johnny Van Owen, a freewheeling, motorcycle-riding rap ...

'', starring

Vanilla Ice Robert Matthew Van Winkle (born October 31, 1967), known professionally as Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, actor, and television host. Born in Dallas, raised in Miami, he was the first solo white rapper to achieve commercial success foll ...

. Kamiński was first discovered by

in 1991. After seeing the television film ''

Wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, rather than being intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is any different from the native plant, eve ...

'', Spielberg hired Kamiński to shoot '' Class of '61'', a television film in which Spielberg served as producer. He won twice the Academy Award for Best Cinematography in the 1990s, for ''

'' and ''

''. He has been nominated five additional times for '' Amistad'', ''

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly ''The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'' (original French title: ''Le Scaphandre et le Papillon'') is a memoir by journalist Jean-Dominique Bauby. It describes his life before and after a massive stroke left him with locked-in syndrome. The French ...

'', ''

War Horse The first evidence of horses in warfare dates from Eurasia between 4000 and 3000 BC. A Sumerian illustration of warfare from 2500 BC depicts some type of equine pulling wagons. By 1600 BC, improved harness and chariot design ...

'', ''

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

'', and ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a Musical theatre, musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a Book (musical theatre), book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo an ...

''. In 2010, he was awarded the Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal by the AFI Conservatory. Kamiński became a member of the

(ASC) in 1994, but resigned in 2006. In 2018 Kamiński worried that professional cinematographers were digitally losing control of their own images. In 2010 Kamiński abandoned the Chris Curling female fighter pilot

project ''The Night Witch'', and in 2012 Kamiński discussed directing a Los Angeles-based version of the drama ''"XXXXXX"'' but nothing became of it.

Personal life

Kamiński was married to actress

Holly Hunter Holly Hunter (born March 20, 1958) is an American actress. For her performance as a mute Scottish woman in ''The Piano'' (1993), she won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She earned three more Academy Award nominations for '' Broadcast News'' ( ...

from 1995 until 2001. In 2004, he married

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

reporter Rebecca Rankin; they divorced in 2010.

Filmography

Director

Short film * ''Making a Scene'' (2013) Feature film * '' Lost Souls'' (2000) * ''Hania'' (2007) * ''American Dream'' (2021) Television

Cinematographer

Short film Feature film TV movies TV series

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
Janusz Kamiński
at culture.pl {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaminski, Janusz 1959 births AFI Conservatory alumni Best Cinematographer Academy Award winners Best Cinematography BAFTA Award winners Columbia College Chicago alumni German-language film directors Independent Spirit Award winners Living people People from Ziębice Polish cinematographers Polish emigrants to the United States Polish film directors