Carlo Di Palma (17 April 19259 July 2004) was an Italian

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

, renowned for his work on both color and black-and-white films, whose most famous collaborations were with

Michelangelo Antonioni Michelangelo Antonioni (, ; 29 September 1912 – 30 July 2007) was an Italian filmmaker. He is best known for directing his "trilogy on modernity and its discontents"—''L'Avventura'' (1960), ''La Notte'' (1961), and ''L'Eclisse'' (1962 ...

and

Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...

Early life

Carlo Di Palma was born into a poor Roman family; his mother was a flower seller on the

Spanish Steps The Spanish Steps ( it, Scalinata di Trinità dei Monti) in Rome, Italy, climb a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church, at the top. The monumental stairway ...

, while his father was a camera operator for a number of Italian film studios. In an interview shortly before his death, Di Palma recounted his childhood memories of observing his father in action: "I'd run to the studio or the location, and watch my father work. I was fascinated by the whole experience. I would stand on a crate sometimes and watch. All of the people that were on the location were pleasant to me. I was very quiet and observant, so with that they let me stay on set. I would watch many different directors over and over."

Career

Di Palma's collaborations with Antonioni included ''

Il deserto rosso ''Red Desert'' ( it, Il deserto rosso) is a 1964 drama film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and starring Monica Vitti with Richard Harris. Written by Antonioni and Tonino Guerra, it was Antonioni's first color film. The story follows a trouble ...

'' (1964); the "Il provino" segment in ''I tre volti'' (1965); ''

Blowup ''Blowup'' (sometimes styled as ''Blow-up'' or ''Blow Up'') is a 1966 mystery drama thriller film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and produced by Carlo Ponti. It was Antonioni's first entirely English-language film, and stars David Hemming ...

'' (1966); ''Identification of a Woman ( Identificazione di una donna)'' (1982). With Woody Allen, he worked on ''

Hannah and Her Sisters ''Hannah and Her Sisters'' is a 1986 American comedy-drama film which tells the intertwined stories of an extended family over two years that begins and ends with a family Thanksgiving dinner. The film was written and directed by Woody Allen, who ...

'' (1986), ''

Radio Days ''Radio Days'' is a 1987 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, who also narrates the story. The film looks back on an American family's life during the Golden Age of Radio using both music and memories to tell the story. ...

'' (1987), ''

September September is the ninth month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars, the third of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the fourth of five months to have a length of fewer than 31 days. September in the Northern H ...

'' (1987), '' Alice'' (1990), ''

Shadows and Fog ''Shadows and Fog'' is a 1991 American black-and-white comedy film directed by Woody Allen and based on his one-act play ''Death'' (1975). It stars Allen, Mia Farrow, John Malkovich, Kathy Bates, David Ogden Stiers, Jodie Foster, Lily Tomlin, J ...

'' (1991), ''

Husbands and Wives ''Husbands and Wives'' is a 1992 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. The film stars Allen, Mia Farrow, Sydney Pollack, Judy Davis, Lysette Anthony, Juliette Lewis, Liam Neeson and Blythe Danner. The film debute ...

'' (1992), ''

Manhattan Murder Mystery ''Manhattan Murder Mystery'' is a 1993 American black comedy mystery film directed by Woody Allen, which he wrote with Marshall Brickman, and starring Alan Alda, Allen, Anjelica Huston, and Diane Keaton. The film centers on a married couple's ...

'' (1993), ''

Bullets over Broadway ''Bullets Over Broadway'' is a 1994 American black comedy crime film directed by Woody Allen, written by Allen and Douglas McGrath and starring an ensemble cast including John Cusack, Dianne Wiest, Chazz Palminteri and Jennifer Tilly. The film ...

'' (1994), '' Don't Drink the Water'' (1994), ''

Mighty Aphrodite ''Mighty Aphrodite'' is a 1995 American comedy film written, directed by, and co-starring Woody Allen, alongside Mira Sorvino, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Rapaport, and F. Murray Abraham. The screenplay was vaguely inspired by the story of '' ...

'' (1995), ''

Everyone Says I Love You ''Everyone Says I Love You'' is a 1996 American musical film written and directed by Woody Allen. It stars Allen, Alan Alda, Drew Barrymore, Goldie Hawn, Edward Norton, Julia Roberts, Tim Roth, Natasha Lyonne and Natalie Portman. Set in New York ...

'' (1996), and ''

Deconstructing Harry ''Deconstructing Harry'' is a 1997 American black comedy film written, directed by, and co-starring Woody Allen, alongside Caroline Aaron, Kirstie Alley, Bob Balaban, Richard Benjamin, Eric Bogosian, Billy Crystal, Judy Davis and others. The film ...

'' (1997). He also worked with many other noted film directors during his long and productive career. He is also a little-known film director. Carlo Di Palma moved from Italy to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 1983. He won a

Silver Ribbon The Nastro d'Argento, also known by its translated name Silver Ribbon, is an Italian film award awarded each year since 1946 by the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists (Italian: ''Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani ...

for best cinematography four times: in 1965 for ''

'', in 1967 for ''

L'armata Brancaleone ''L'armata Brancaleone'' (known in English-speaking countries as ''For Love and Gold'' or ''The Incredible Army of Brancaleone'') is an Italian comedy film released on April 7, 1966, written by the duo Age & Scarpelli and directed by Mario Monice ...

'', in 1993 for ''

'', and in 1997 for ''

'', as well as the

Outstanding European Achievement in World Cinema The European Film Awards (or European Film Academy Awards) have been presented annually since 1988 by the European Film Academy to recognize excellence in European cinematic achievements. The awards are given in 19 categories, of which the most ...

award in 2003.

Later years

Di Palma was hired to shoot Allen's film ''

Anything Else ''Anything Else'' is a 2003 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen, produced by Letty Aronson, and starring Jason Biggs, Christina Ricci, Allen, Stockard Channing, Danny DeVito, Jimmy Fallon, Erica Leerhsen and KaDee St ...

'' (2003), and actually started

location scouting Location scouting is a vital process in the pre-production stage of filmmaking and commercial photography. Once scriptwriters, producers or directors have decided what general kind of scenery they require for the various parts of their work t ...

before failing an insurance physical, which was required for all key personnel on the crew, resulting in his replacement by

Darius Khondji Darius Khondji ( fa, داریوش خنجی; born 21 October 1955) is an Iranian-French cinematographer. Khondji has worked with a number of high-profile directors, including David Fincher, Woody Allen, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Gus Van Sant, Roman Po ...

, to Di Palma's great disappointment, as he had been eager to work again after having been on the sidelines for the past six years.

Personal life

In the 1980s, Di Palma married Adriana Chiesa, an exporter of Italian films. She nursed him through his final illness.

References

External links

*
Carlo Di Palma interview
by Nicholas Pasquariello in April, 1974 {{DEFAULTSORT:Di Palma, Carlo 1925 births 2004 deaths European Film Awards winners (people) American cinematographers Italian cinematographers Film people from Rome