Ghislain Cloquet
Encyclopedia
Ghislain Cloquet was a Belgian
-born French cinematographer
. Cloquet was born in Antwerp, Belgium
in 1924. He went to Paris to study and became a French citizen in 1940.
Cloquet is known for his work with Robert Bresson
, though he also collaborated with Claude Sautet
, Jacques Demy
, André Delvaux, and Marguerite Duras
. He shot Jacques Becker
's last film, Le Trou
, and then worked several times with Becker's son Jean, who was also Cloquet's brother-in-law. He also worked with several non-French directors, most notably Woody Allen
, Roman Polanski
, and Arthur Penn
(Four Friends
).
He won an Oscar in 1981 (on his first nomination) for Polanski's Tess, which he completed after the death of Geoffrey Unsworth
.
Cloquet married into the Becker filmmaking family (which included directors Jacques and Jean, cinematographer Étienne, and actress Françoise Fabian), when he wed Jacques Becker's daughter Sophie, then a script girl.
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
-born French cinematographer
Cinematographer
A cinematographer is one photographing with a motion picture camera . The title is generally equivalent to director of photography , used to designate a chief over the camera and lighting crews working on a film, responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image...
. Cloquet was born in Antwerp, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
in 1924. He went to Paris to study and became a French citizen in 1940.
Cloquet is known for his work with Robert Bresson
Robert Bresson
-Life and career:Bresson was born at Bromont-Lamothe, Puy-de-Dôme, the son of Marie-Élisabeth and Léon Bresson. Little is known of his early life and the year of his birth, 1901 or 1907, varies depending on the source. He was educated at Lycée Lakanal in Sceaux, Hauts-de-Seine, close to Paris, and...
, though he also collaborated with Claude Sautet
Claude Sautet
Claude Sautet was a French author and film director.-Biography:Born in Montrouge, Hauts-de-Seine, France, Claude Sautet first studied painting and sculpture before attending a film university in Paris where he began his career and later became a television producer...
, Jacques Demy
Jacques Demy
Jacques Demy was one of the most approachable filmmakers to appear in the wake of the French New Wave. Uninterested in the formal experimentation of Alain Resnais, or the political agitation of Jean-Luc Godard, Demy instead created a self-contained fantasy world closer to that of François...
, André Delvaux, and Marguerite Duras
Marguerite Duras
Marguerite Donnadieu, better known as Marguerite Duras was a French writer and film director.-Background:...
. He shot Jacques Becker
Jacques Becker
Jacques Becker was a French screenwriter and film director.Becker was born in Paris, in an upper class background. During the 1930s he worked as an assistant to director Jean Renoir during his peak period, which produced such cinematic masterpieces as Grand Illusion and The Rules of the Game...
's last film, Le Trou
Le Trou
The Hole is a 1960 French film directed by Jacques Becker. It is an adaptation of José Giovanni's 1957 book of the same name. It was called The Night Watch when first released in the United States, but is released under its French title today...
, and then worked several times with Becker's son Jean, who was also Cloquet's brother-in-law. He also worked with several non-French directors, most notably Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
, Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski is a French-Polish film director, producer, writer and actor. Having made films in Poland, Britain, France and the USA, he is considered one of the few "truly international filmmakers."...
, and Arthur Penn
Arthur Penn
Arthur Hiller Penn was an American film director and producer with a career as a theater director as well. Penn amassed a critically acclaimed body of work throughout the 1960s and 1970s.-Early years:...
(Four Friends
Four Friends (film)
Four Friends is a 1981 American drama film directed by Arthur Penn. The semi-autobiographical screenplay by Steve Tesich follows the path of the title characters from high school to college during the often turbulent 1960s and beyond.-Plot synopsis:...
).
He won an Oscar in 1981 (on his first nomination) for Polanski's Tess, which he completed after the death of Geoffrey Unsworth
Geoffrey Unsworth
Geoffrey Unsworth OBE, BSC was a British cinematographer who worked on nearly 90 feature films spanning over more than 40 years....
.
Cloquet married into the Becker filmmaking family (which included directors Jacques and Jean, cinematographer Étienne, and actress Françoise Fabian), when he wed Jacques Becker's daughter Sophie, then a script girl.