Harris Savides
Encyclopedia
Harris Savides is a contemporary American cinematographer
. Notable films include Gus Van Sant
's "young death" trilogy (Gerry, Elephant, and Last Days
), The Game
, Zodiac
and American Gangster.
Savides was born in New York City, New York to parents of Greek Cypriot origin. He graduated with a degree in photography and film from the School of Visual Arts
in New York City.
Besides his recent collaborations with Van Sant, the blunt cinematographer is also known for the very delicate images that he created for The Yards
and Birth
. In both instances he underexposed the filmstock by several stops in order to break up the colors and give the blacks a purplish and brownish tint. This non-conventional approach lead to a look that reminds of Georges De La Tour and Caravaggio paintings.
Savides has also shot two films for David Fincher
: The Game
and the mostly digital Zodiac
. He was the cinematographer for Sofia Coppola's Somewhere
(2010), a departure from regular DP Lance Acord
. For the visual style she discussed Bruce Weber
's Hollywood portraits and Helmut Newton
's of models at the Chateau Marmont, and Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles
(1975), a film by Chantal Akerman
about the routine of a Belgian housewife, with Savides. He said, "“The main thing was to tell the story really simply and let it play out in long beats and have the audience discover the moment." Coppola used the lenses that her father had filmed Rumble Fish
(1983) with in an effort to give the film a more period look, although it is set in the present.
Savides lives in Manhattan with his wife, Medine, and daughter, Sophie.
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...
. Notable films include Gus Van Sant
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant, Jr. is an American director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician, and author. He is a two time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director for his 1997 film Good Will Hunting and his 2008 film Milk, both of which were also nominated for Best Picture, and won the...
's "young death" trilogy (Gerry, Elephant, and Last Days
Last Days (film)
Last Days is a 2005 American film directed, produced, and written by Gus Van Sant, and is a fictionalized account of the last days of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain. It was released to theaters in the United States on July 22, 2005, and was produced by HBO. The film stars Michael Pitt as the...
), The Game
The Game (film)
The Game is a 1997 neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher, starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, and produced by Polygram. It tells the story of an investment banker who is given a mysterious gift: participation in a game that integrates in strange ways with his life...
, Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
and American Gangster.
Savides was born in New York City, New York to parents of Greek Cypriot origin. He graduated with a degree in photography and film from the School of Visual Arts
School of Visual Arts
The School of Visual Arts , is a proprietary art school located in Manhattan, New York City, and is widely considered to be one of the leading art schools in the United States. It was established in 1947 by co-founders Silas H. Rhodes and Burne Hogarth as the Cartoonists and Illustrators School and...
in New York City.
Besides his recent collaborations with Van Sant, the blunt cinematographer is also known for the very delicate images that he created for The Yards
The Yards
The Yards is a 2000 American crime film with Mark Wahlberg, James Caan, Joaquin Phoenix, and Charlize Theron, written and directed by James Gray...
and Birth
Birth (film)
Birth is a 2004 film directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Nicole Kidman, Lauren Bacall, Danny Huston and Cameron Bright.The story is about a young widow from a prominent Manhattan-based family named Anna who slowly becomes convinced that her husband, Sean, who died ten years previously, has...
. In both instances he underexposed the filmstock by several stops in order to break up the colors and give the blacks a purplish and brownish tint. This non-conventional approach lead to a look that reminds of Georges De La Tour and Caravaggio paintings.
Savides has also shot two films for David Fincher
David Fincher
David Andrew Leo Fincher is an American film and music video director. Known for his dark and stylish thrillers, such as Seven , The Game , Fight Club , Panic Room , and Zodiac , Fincher received Academy Award nominations for Best Director for his 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and...
: The Game
The Game (film)
The Game is a 1997 neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by David Fincher, starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, and produced by Polygram. It tells the story of an investment banker who is given a mysterious gift: participation in a game that integrates in strange ways with his life...
and the mostly digital Zodiac
Zodiac (film)
Zodiac is a 2007 American mystery-thriller film directed by David Fincher and based on Robert Graysmith's non-fiction book of the same name. The Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros...
. He was the cinematographer for Sofia Coppola's Somewhere
Somewhere (film)
Somewhere is a 2010 American drama film that was written and directed by Sofia Coppola. The film follows Johnny Marco, a newly famous actor, as he recuperates from a minor injury at the Chateau Marmont, a well-known Hollywood retreat. Despite money, fame and professional success, Marco is trapped...
(2010), a departure from regular DP Lance Acord
Lance Acord
Lance Acord, A.S.C. is an American cinematographer.Acord was born in Marin County, California. He attended Sir Francis Drake High School's School Within A School program and went on to study photography and filmmaking at the San Francisco Art Institute. He began his professional career with...
. For the visual style she discussed Bruce Weber
Bruce Weber (photographer)
Bruce Weber is an American fashion photographer and occasional filmmaker. He is most widely known for his ad campaigns for Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Pirelli, Abercrombie & Fitch, Revlon, and Gianni Versace, as well as his work for Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Elle, Life, Interview, and Rolling Stone...
's Hollywood portraits and Helmut Newton
Helmut Newton
Helmut Newton, born Helmut Neustädter was a German-Australian photographer. He was a "prolific, widely imitated fashion photographer whose provocative, erotically charged black-and-white photos were a mainstay of Vogue and other publications."-Early life:Newton was born in Berlin, the son of Klara...
's of models at the Chateau Marmont, and Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles
Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles
Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles is a 1975 film by Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman.Upon its release, The New York Times called Jeanne Dielman the "first masterpiece of the feminine in the history of the cinema." Chantal Akerman scholar Ivone Margulies asserts the picture is a...
(1975), a film by Chantal Akerman
Chantal Akerman
Chantal Anne Akerman is a Belgian film director, artist, and professor of film at the European Graduate School. Akerman's best-known film, Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles , exemplifies a dedication to the ellipses of conventional narrative cinema.-Early life:Akerman was born to...
about the routine of a Belgian housewife, with Savides. He said, "“The main thing was to tell the story really simply and let it play out in long beats and have the audience discover the moment." Coppola used the lenses that her father had filmed Rumble Fish
Rumble Fish
Rumble Fish is a 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. It is based on the novel Rumble Fish by S.E. Hinton, who also co-wrote the screenplay....
(1983) with in an effort to give the film a more period look, although it is set in the present.
Savides lives in Manhattan with his wife, Medine, and daughter, Sophie.