Francis Lee

With the death of Michael Ballhaus, ASC, which occurred in Berlin on Tuesday, 11 April 2017 at the age of 81, cinematography has lost one of its most talented artisans. Director of Photography for Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, and Mike Nichols, amongst others, he constantly experimented during his forty-year-long career, filming each of his movies in a style that was often highly innovative. Whoever has seen The Marriage of Maria Braun will have been impressed by his impressive risk-taking, which was one of the great cinematographer’s hallmarks.

Avec la disparition de Michael Ballhaus, ASC, survenue à Berlin mardi 11 avril 2017 à 81 ans, la photographie de cinéma perd l’un de ses plus talentueux artisans. Chef opérateur de Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola ou encore Mike Nichols, entre autres réalisateurs, il n’aura eu de cesse, pendant près de quarante ans, d’expérimenter pour chacun des films qu’il a photographiés un style bien souvent novateur. Qui aura vu Le Mariage de Maria Braun, tourné à ses débuts, aura gardé en mémoire quelques belles prises de risque, un signe distinctif des grands cinéastes.

Before he was fêted within the temple of French cinephilia, Darius Khondji agreed to participate in a particular sort of interview during which we asked him to react to a series of surprise images. The DoP of Delicatessen and Seven discussed some of his memories, inspirations, anxieties, and passions with us. (FR)