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Boris Kaufman

 
Cinematographer: Boris Kaufman
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  • Born: 1906 in Bialystock, Russia
  • Died: 1980 in Loa Angeles, California
  • Occupation: Cinematographer
  • Active: '30s, '50s-'60s
  • Major Genres: Drama, Comedy Drama
  • Career Highlights: The Pawnbroker, On the Waterfront, L'Atalante
  • First Major Screen Credit: Zero for Conduct (1933)

Biography

Cinematographer Boris Kaufman was born in Poland, the youngest son of a Russian librarian. Kaufman was at the forefront of the "experimental" film movement by right of birth: his older brothers were filmmakers Dziga Vertov and Mikhail Kaufman. While his brothers established themselves in the Soviet film industry, Kaufman set up shop in Paris, where he'd been educated. He was director of photography on all the major works of influential French director Jean Vigo, whose death in 1934 left Kaufman temporarily rudderless. Relocating to the U.S. in 1942, Kaufman had to spend several years lensing U.S. and Canadian documentaries and government films before he was permitted to climb back up the ladder to feature films. He won an Academy Award for his first Hollywood feature On the Waterfront (1954), which set the standard for the stark, naturalistic black-and-white photography that would be the hallmark of his future work. In 1956, Kaufman was Oscar-nominated for his work on Baby Doll (1956). He made a rare foray into Technicolor for 1961's Splendor in the Grass, then returned to his true monochromatic metier. Kaufman was a favorite of director Sidney Lumet, who engaged the cinematographer's services for 12 Angry Men (1957), Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962), The Pawnbroker (1965) and many other choice projects. Boris Kaufman retired in 1970, after working on Otto Preminger's Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (1970). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
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Wikipedia: Boris Kaufman
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Boris Abelevich Kaufman, A.S.C. (Russian: Борис Абелевич Кауфман; August 24, 1897 – June 24, 1980) was an Oscar-winning (1954) cinematographer. He was the younger brother of famous filmmakers Dziga Vertov (Denis Kaufman) and Mikhail Kaufman.

Kaufman was born into a family of Jewish intellectuals living in Białystok at the time when the Congress Poland was a part of the Russian Empire.

After the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, Poland regained its independence, and Boris moved there with his parents. Mikhail and Denis stayed in the Soviet Union and became notable Soviet filmmakers producing avant-garde and agitprop films. The three brothers later stayed in touch mainly by way of letters; Vertov visited Boris Kaufman in Paris twice, in 1929 and 1931.

After graduating from Sorbonne University, Boris turned to cinematography. He collaborated with Jean Vigo and later Dimitri Kirsanoff.

During World War II, he served in the French Army against the Nazis and when France lost he managed to escape to Canada. After working briefly with John Grierson, for the National Film Board of Canada, Kaufman moved to the United States in 1942.

He supported himself shooting short subjects and documentaries until Elia Kazan chose him to shoot his first American feature film, On the Waterfront (1954), for which Kaufman won an Academy Award for Best Cinematography and Golden Globe Award (1955). For the film Baby Doll (1956), Kaufman received a second Oscar nomination.

He was the director of photography on Sidney Lumet's first film, 12 Angry Men (1957), and The Pawnbroker (1964), among other notable films.

Boris Kaufman retired in 1970 and died in New York City in 1980.

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Cinematographer. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Boris Kaufman".  Read more