Vittorio Storaro: Biography

After attending the Duca D'Aosta Technical Photographic Institute, the Italian Cinemagraphic Training Center, and Centro Sperimental di Cinematografia, Italian cinematographer Vittorio Storaro manned the cameras for his first film, L'Uccello dalle piume di cristallo, in 1969. He then went on to enjoy what has been a prolific and respected career, often working with the finest in the business. Among the many directors who have benefited from the know-how of Storaro and his faithful Italian camera crew have been Michael Apted (Agatha [1979]), Richard Donner (Ladyhawke [1983]), and especially Bernardo Bertolucci (Last Tango in Paris [1972], 1900 [1976], The Sheltering Sky [1990]). Storaro won an Oscar for his photography on Bertolucci's The Last Emperor (1987), and additional Oscars for his work on the films of two other frequent collaborators, Warren Beatty (Reds [1981]) and Francis Ford Coppola (Apocalypse Now [1979]). Coppola was, in fact, such an admirer of Storaro's work that he signed Storaro for Apocalypse Now before he'd even cast the film.

The cinematographer again collaborated with Bertolucci for 1994's Little Buddha. Two years later, Storaro worked on Beatty's Bulworth, and also lent his talent to Carlos Saura's Tango, for which he won a Jury Technical Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide