François Catonné

Any cinematographer who has worked with stars as illustrious as Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, Monica Bellucci, and Jane Birkin must be highly talented and sought-after within the French film industry -- and such is the case with François Catonné. After studying photography at Louis Lumiére College, a vocational school in Paris, Catonné spent a few years working on film shoots as an assistant in the camera department. This proved an advantageous pursuit, as it allowed him to work closely with some renowned cinematographers, including the prolific Tonino Delli Colli (frequent collaborator of Sergio Leone and Pier Paolo Pasolini), whom Catonné assisted on Louis Malle's "Lacombe, Lucien" (1974), as well as the legendary Sven Nykvist (Ingmar Bergman's cinematographer of choice), whom Catonné assisted on Roman Polanski's surreal thriller "The Tenant" (1976). With such experiences informing his philosophy and technique, Catonné swiftly evolved into a respected cinematographer in his own right, contributing his talents to commercials, shorts, documentaries, and feature films spanning multiple genres. Among Catonné's most famous works from his long and accomplished career include "Indochine" (1992), the Vietnam-set Catherine Deneuve drama which won Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards and earned Catonné a César Award, and Bertrand Blier's 2000 comedy "Actors."