The Pierre Angénieux ExcelLens in Cinematography is an annual award that pays tribute to a prominent international

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

at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

. The award originated in 2013. The name comes from

Pierre Angénieux Pierre Angénieux (; 14 July 1907 in Saint-Héand – 26 June 1998) was a French engineer and optician, one of the inventors of the modern zoom lenses, and famous for introducing the Angénieux retrofocus. Biography Angénieux graduated from the ...

, inventor of the retrofocus zoom mechanism and founder of the French manufacturer of high-end zoom lenses. It is not awarded to a film from the

official selection but pays tribute to a prominent director of photography whose career is commended by the industry for his/her aesthetic work.

History

This award is organized by ''

Angénieux Angénieux is a French manufacturer of photographic and cinematographic lenses. The main markets are cinema, television, space travel and medicine. The company is part of the Thales Group, which represents Angénieux in 48 countries. The company ...

'', a French manufacturer of zoom lenses since 1935, official partner of the

. This award celebrates a cinematographer for his/her career, not as a

brand ambassador A brand ambassador (sometimes also called a corporate ambassador) is a person paid by an organization or company to represent its brand in a positive light, helping to increase brand awareness and sales. The brand ambassador is meant to embody the ...

. Despite his 2015 award, Roger A. Deakins acknowledged that he does not shoot with zoom lenses. The company explains this sponsorship, writing: "For more than 80 years, with their demanding aesthetics and techniques, directors of photography have secured the success of ''Angénieux'' zoom lenses. In honor, ''Angénieux'' turns the spotlight to these image professionals without whom cinema would not exist". Since 2018, the promising work of a young film professional is also highlighted during the ceremony to celebrate the future of cinematography.

Awards ceremony

The ceremony takes place within

main venue, generally during the festival's last week (month of May), with the honoree walking on the red carpet. An overview of his/her filmography is projected, then the President of ''Angénieux'' and the Director of the festival speak along with former partners who explain their experiences and the reasons of this tribute. An ''Angénieux'' zoom lens engraved with the name of the recipient is offered as the award. A first masterclass was organized during the 4th edition of the event with Peter Suschitzky to explain his lighting techniques and his collaboration with

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, producer and actor. He is a principal originator of the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation, infectious diseases, and ...

. Since then, a masterclass prior to the awarding ceremony is part of the event.

List of cinematographers honored with Pierre Angénieux Tribute

* 2013:

Philippe Rousselot Philippe Rousselot, (born 4 September 1945) is a French cinematographer, best known for his wide range of work in both European and mainstream American cinema, from drama, to fantasy, and action. He is the recipient of three César Awards, a B ...

(AFC, ASC) * 2014:

Vilmos Zsigmond Vilmos Zsigmond (; June 16, 1930 – January 1, 2016) was a Hungarian-American cinematographer. His work in cinematography helped shape the look of American movies in the 1970s, making him one of the leading figures in the American New Wave ...

(HSC, ASC) * 2015: Roger A. Deakins (BSC, ASC) * 2016: Peter Suschitzky (ASC) * 2017:

Christopher Doyle Christopher Doyle, also known as Dù Kěfēng (Mandarin) or Dou Ho-Fung (Cantonese) () (born 2 May 1952) is an Australian cinematographer, best known for his work in Hong Kong cinema. He has worked on over fifty Chinese-language films, being ...

(HKSC) * 2018: Edward Lachman (ASC) ** Promising cinematographer: Cecile Zhang, China *2019:

Bruno Delbonnel Bruno Delbonnel, , (born 1957) is a French cinematographer, known for works from a number of high-profile directors, including Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Tim Burton, the Coen brothers, Joe Wright and Wes Anderson. Life and career Delbonnel was born ...

(AFC, ASC) **Promising cinematographer: Modhura Palit, Calcutta, India. *2020: No festival due to Covid-19 *2021:

Agnès Godard Agnès Godard (born 28 May 1951) is a French cinematographer. She is most famous for her long-running collaboration with filmmaker Claire Denis. For her work, she has won a César Award. Life and career Godard originally studied journalism, but s ...

(AFC) **Promising cinematographer: Pamela Albarrán, Mexico *2022:

Darius Khondji Darius Khondji (; born 21 October 1955) is an Iranian-French cinematographer. He is known for his work with directors such as Jean-Pierre Jeunet, David Fincher, Michael Haneke, Woody Allen, James Gray, Bong Joon-ho, Wong Kar-Wai, and the Safdi ...

(AFC, ASC) **Promising cinematographer: Evelin van Rei, Netherland *2023: Barry Ackroyd (BSC) **Promising cinematographer: Haya Khairat, Egypt *2024:

Santosh Sivan Santosh Sivan ISC (born 8 February 1964) is an Indian cinematographer, film director, producer and actor known for his works in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi cinema. Santosh graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India and has, to ...

(ISC, ASC) **Promising cinematographer: Kadri Koop, Estonia *2025:

Dion Beebe Dion Beebe A.C.S. A.S.C. ( ; born 18 May 1968) is an Australian–South African cinematographer. Early life and education Originally from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, his family moved to Cape Town, South Africa, in 1972. Dion studied ...

(ACS, ASC)

References

Cannes Film Festival awards {{film-award-stub