For Jimmy Glasberg

By Stéphane Cami, AFC, and Etienne Fauduet, AFC

Contre-Champ AFC n°339

[ English ] [ français ]

Following the news of Jimmy Glasberg’s death, the AFC received many notes of sympathy, some long and some short. Here are two of them, written by Stéphane Cami, AFC, and Étienne Fauduet, AFC

Étienne Fauduet, AFC
The camera was a part of Jimmy’s body; I was his assistant in the mid-1970s.
We’d met, water up to mid-thigh, in the Gironde!
I’d been hired as a "spare tire" on Hu-Man, by Jérôme Laperrousaz, a film on which he was the DoP. Image, always the image.
A bit later, we shot advertisement parodies near Beauvais, directed by Charles Nemes, with the actors of the Splendid for their show. Jimmy and I would make the round trip, he on his Susuki and I on my Honda. Of course, we couldn’t let the opportunity to race one another pass. No matter who arrived first, he was the winner: he had twice as many repairs to make to his motorcycle as I did! I owe a lot to Jimmy Glasberg’s generosity and warmth, the "Pole" of Cavaillon: my first second crew (alongside Jeanne Moreau and Therence Stamp); my first feature film…
Goodbye Jimmy; my thoughts go out to your loved ones.

Jimmy Glasberg, Place des Vosges in 2021 - Photo Stéphane Cojot-Goldberg
Jimmy Glasberg, Place des Vosges in 2021
Photo Stéphane Cojot-Goldberg

Stéphane Cami, AFC
I barely knew Jimmy but I was very moved by his death. I met him when I was a young DoP, we’d met at Gédéon, a production company. His kindness, his humanity, and his willingness to share what he knew, moved me.
I would also run into him at the AFC assemblies, where his southern accent was always a beam of sunlight.
A few months ago, I spoke to him on the telephone following the message the AFC published in support of the strikes for wage increases.
He’d called me, enthusiastic and in agreement with the message. I found in him the warm, enthusiastic, engaged man who was still passionate about his profession. We discussed his shoots, and the project he was working on of mounting a film that he had the dailies of. He briefly touched on his health problems. Now, Jimmy has left us and he has left a great void in our profession and our association.

(Translated from French by A. Baron-Raiffe, for the AFC)