Darius Khondji
Darius Khondji داریوش خنجی | |
|---|---|
 Khondji in 2017. | |
| Born | 21 October 1955 |
| Nationality | Iranian |
| Alma mater | UC Los Angeles New York University International Center for Photography |
| Occupation | Cinematographer |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Spouse | Marianne Chemetov |
| Children | 3 |
Darius Khondji AFC, ASC (Persian: داریوش خنجی; born 21 October 1955) is an Iranian-French cinematographer.[1][2] Khondji has worked with a number of high-profile directors, including David Fincher, Woody Allen, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Gus Van Sant, Roman Polanski, Wong Kar-wai, Michael Haneke, Danny Boyle, Stephen Frears, Philippe Parreno, Bong Joon-ho, Nicolas Winding Refn, Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, Jonathan Glazer, Pablo Larraín, the Safdie brothers, Alejandro G. Iñárritu and James Gray. He has been nominated for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award and three César Awards.
Early life and education[edit]
Khondji was born in Tehran, Iran, to an Iranian father and a French mother. At an early age, his family relocated in France. He became interested in film early on and made Super-8 films in his teens.[3] Later in life, he moved to the United States to study at UCLA and then majored in film from New York University and the International Center of Photography. During this period, two teachers influenced his decision to become a cinematographer: Jonas Mekas and Haig Manoogian (Martin Scorsese's film teacher).[3] He realized that "all I wanted to do was shoot the other students' films. I was concerned with the power of the image and much less with story."[4]
Career[edit]
After his time in the United States, Khondji returned to France in 1981 and worked as an assistant for cinematographers like Bruno Nuytten, Martin Schafer and Pascal Marti. He also worked as a lighting director on music videos and commercials.[3]
His second feature film was Le tresor des Iles Chiennes (1991), a low budget, black and white, post-atomic adventure film. His work on this movie was significant enough to warrant the Cahiers du cinéma to publish one of its rare interviews with a cinematographer. It was on this film that he demonstrated an affinity for Cinemascope. He remarked in an interview, "I think it's the most beautiful format to frame. One can become absorbed in the faces when they're framed in 'Scope."[4] His subsequent work on Delicatessen established his international reputation and earned him a Cesar nomination for Best Cinematography. One of his highest profile films was Seven which he got based on a Nike ad he shot with David Fincher and his work on Delicatessen. His work on Evita was nominated for an Oscar for the Best Cinematography.
Darius worked on three European-shot films by Woody Allen: Midnight in Paris (2011),[5] To Rome with Love (2012)[6] and Magic in the Moonlight (2014).[7]
In 2012, Khondji shot the Palme D'or-winning film Amour, which also won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and was nominated for Best Picture.[8]
Creative inspiration[edit]
Khondji cites Gregg Toland as his favorite cinematographer. "I particularly admire his work on John Ford's The Grapes of Wrath."[4] He also greatly admires James Wong Howe's work, in particular Hud. Khondji has said that his dream project would be "a 16mm black and white film of On the Road!"[4]
Personal life[edit]
Khondji is married to Marianne Chemetov, a daughter of the French architect Paul Chemetov, and has three children: Marie-Louise, Josephine, and Alexandre.[1]
Filmography[edit]
Short film[edit]
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Courtes chasses | Manuel Flèche | |
| 1985 | Classique | Christian Vincent | |
| 1986 | Sur les talus | Laurence Ferreira Barbosa | |
| 1988 | Une femme pour l'hiver | Manuel Flèche | |
| K.O.K. | Régine Chopinot | ||
| 1991 | Models: The Film | Peter Lindbergh | |
| Le trou de la corneille | François Hanss | ||
| 1994 | Sado et Maso vont en bâteau | Manuel Flèche | Segment of Parano |
| 2002 | Tooba | Shirin Neshat | |
| 2003 | Ich kann dir die Welt nicht zu Füssen legen | Ralf Schmerberg | |
| Engine | Chris Cunningham | ||
| 2008 | Protect You + Me. | Brady Corbet | |
| 2010 | Invisible Boy | Philippe Parreno | |
| 2011 | dior j'adore | Jean-Jacques Annaud | |
| C.H.Z | Philippe Parreno | ||
| 2013 | Castello Cavalcanti | Wes Anderson | |
| Illusions & Mirrors | Shirin Neshat | ||
| 2016 | Anywhen | Philippe Parreno | |
| Anywhen in a Timecolored space | |||
| 2018 | Why Can't We Get Along | Aaron Duffy Benjamin Millepied Bob Partington |
|
| 2019 | ANIMA | Paul Thomas Anderson | |
| 2020 | Strasbourg 1518 | Jonathan Glazer | Shot during the COVID-19 pandemic, using iPhone cameras [9] |
Feature film[edit]
Television[edit]
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Méliès 1988 | Aline Issermann | Episode: "Bénie soit celle par qui le scandale arrive" |
| 2015 | The Devil You Know | Gus Van Sant | Failed pilot |
| 2019 | Too Old to Die Young | Nicolas Winding Refn | 7 episodes |
| 2021 | Lisey's Story | Pablo Larraín | Miniseries |
Music videos[edit]
| Year | Title | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | "Fever" | Madonna |
| 1996 | "You Must Love Me" | |
| "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" | ||
| 1998 | "Frozen" | |
| 1999 | "Afrika Shox" | Leftfield |
| 2000 | "Dirge" | Death in Vegas |
| 2001 | "Boiler" | Limp Bizkit |
| 2008 | "Miles Away" | Madonna |
| 2010 | Sticky & Sweet Tour | |
| 2011 | "Marry the Night" | Lady Gaga |
| 2014 | "Everything" | Neneh Cherry |
| 2017 | "Look What You Made Me Do" | Taylor Swift |
| 2018 | "The Icon Project" | Eminem |
| 2019 | "Marcy Me" | Jay-Z |
Awards and nominations[edit]
Academy Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Evita | Best Cinematography | Nominated |
| 2022 | Bardo | Nominated |
BAFTA Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Evita | Best Cinematography | Nominated |
American Society of Cinematographers
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Se7en | Outstanding Cinematography | Nominated |
| 1996 | Evita | Nominated | |
| 2013 | The Immigrant | Spotlight Award | Nominated |
British Society of Cinematographers
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Se7en | Best Cinematography | Nominated |
| 1996 | Evita | Nominated | |
| 2011 | Midnight in Paris | Nominated |
César Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Delicatessen | Best Cinematography | Nominated |
| 1995 | The City of Lost Children | Nominated | |
| 2012 | Amour | Nominated |
Chicago Film Critics Association
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Se7en | Best Cinematography | Won |
| 1996 | Evita | Nominated | |
| 2022 | Bardo | Nominated |
Independent Spirit Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Midnight in Paris | Best Cinematography | Nominated |
| 2013 | The Immigrant | Nominated |
Other Awards
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Los Angeles Film Critics Association | Best Cinematography | Se7en | Nominated |
| 1996 | Globo d'oro | Best Cinematography | Stealing Beauty | Won |
| Camerimage | Golden Frog | Nominated | ||
| David di Donatello | Best Cinematography | Nominated | ||
| 2012 | European Film Awards | Best Cinematographer | Amour | Nominated |
| 2013 | New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Cinematographer | The Immigrant | Won |
| National Society of Film Critics | Best Cinematography | Nominated | ||
| 2014 | Lumières Awards | Best Cinematography | Magic in the Moonlight | Nominated |
| 2016 | San Diego Film Critics Society | Best Cinematography | The Lost City of Z | Nominated |
| London Film Critics' Circle | Technical Achievement of the Year | Nominated |
Exhibitions[edit]
- 2010: Discovery award laureate and exhibition at Les Rencontres d'Arles festival, France.
References[edit]
- ^ a b "Darius Khondji". IMDb. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
- ^ Alex Ballinger (12 October 2004). New Cinematographers. Laurence King Publishing. pp. 2–. ISBN 978-1-85669-334-9.
- ^ a b c Sciolino, Elaine (2012-07-13). "The Cinematography of Darius Khondji". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-03.
- ^ a b c d Darke, Chris (April 1996). "Inside the Light". Sight and Sound.
- ^ "Contender – Director of Photography Darius Khondji, Midnight in Paris - Below the Line". Below the Line. 2011-12-15. Retrieved 2017-03-03.
- ^ "Cinematographer Darius Khondji on Woody Allen's To Rome with Love - Studio Daily". www.studiodaily.com. 22 June 2012. Retrieved 2017-03-03.
- ^ "Cinematographer Darius Khondji, AFC, ASC, discusses his work on "Magic in the Moonlight", a film by Woody Allen". www.afcinema.com (in French). Retrieved 2017-03-03.
- ^ "Darius Khondji AFC / Amour - British Cinematographer". British Cinematographer. 2015-05-22. Retrieved 2017-03-03.
- ^ "Strasbourg 1518: reliving a 16th-century 'dancing plague' in lockdown". the Guardian. 2020-07-19. Retrieved 2021-07-03.
External links[edit]
- Darius Khondji at IMDb
- An interview with Darius Khondji
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