Cameraperson (2016)
84%RT Audience Score: 68%
Awards & Nominations: 23 wins & 38 nominations
Fresh and inventive yet immediately accessible, Cameraperson distills its subject’s life and career into an experience that should prove immediately absorbing even for those unfamiliar with her work
Cameraperson is like a scrapbook of life, but instead of photos, it’s a collection of moments captured on film. Kirsten Johnson takes us on a journey through her career as a cinematographer, showing us the beauty and tragedy of the world through her lens. It’s a fascinating and thought-provoking documentary that makes you question your own role as an observer. Plus, it’s a great reminder that sometimes the most unexpected moments can be the most powerful.
Production Company(ies)
The Weinstein Company, UK Film Council Momentum Pictures,
Distributor
Janus Films
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
Washington, District of Columbia, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated
Year of Release
2017
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.78 : 1
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Runtime:1h 42m
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Language(s):English, Bosnian, Arabic, Dari, Hausa, Fur
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 9, 2016 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 7, 2017
Genre(s)
Documentary
Keyword(s)
documentary, Kirsten Johnson, cinematographer, memoir, footage, behind the camera, life, career, experience, observers, ethical responsibilities, emotional responsibilities, unexpected life, varied authors, auteur theory, memories, war, motherhood, oppression, creative process, people behind the camera, reviewed by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, K Austin Collins, Adam Graham, Alissa Wilkinson, Wendy Ide, Hannah McGill, Calum Baker, David Bax, Andrew F Peirce, Andrew Gaudion, Dustin Chang, directed by Kirsten Johnson, produced by Kirsten Johnson, Marilyn Ness, MPAA rating, box office performance, budget, starring Kirsten Johnson, Roger Phenix, written by Kirsten Johnson, genre: Documentary
Worldwide gross: $109,464
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $132,039
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,994
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 14,399
US/Canada gross: $102,033
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $123,076
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,633
US/Canada opening weekend: $12,760
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $15,392
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,593
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Roger Phenix – self
Gini Reticker – executive producer
Abigail Disney – executive producer
Marilyn Ness – producer
Director(s)
Kirsten Johnson
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Kirsten Johnson, Marilyn Ness
Film Festivals
Sundance, South by Southwest, Cannes
Awards & Nominations
23 wins & 38 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (107) | Top Critics (37) | Fresh (106) | Rotten (1)
An autobiography of sorts, Cameraperson demands we think beyond Johnson’s own extraordinary career and reflect upon our own status as observers, and the ethical and emotional responsibilities that come with it.
August 25, 2018
Alexandra Heller-Nicholas
The Blue Lenses
TOP CRITIC
Cameraperson is at its best when it captures instances of unexpected life.
August 10, 2017
K. Austin Collins
The Ringer
TOP CRITIC
A life behind the lens is examined in “Cameraperson,” a fascinating, purposely disjointed documentary from director Kirsten Johnson.
April 14, 2017 | Rating: B+
Adam Graham
Detroit News
TOP CRITIC
Watching Cameraperson, we take Johnson’s rich images into ourselves. Having watched them, experienced them, they become entangled with us, too.
February 7, 2017
Alissa Wilkinson
Vox
TOP CRITIC
Although we only see Johnson’s face once, briefly, it’s a detailed self-portrait of an extraordinary woman.
January 29, 2017 | Rating: 4/5
Wendy Ide
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
Cameraperson is haunted – as one senses Johnson may be – by the question of whether and how much documentary filmmakers should intervene in the lives of their subjects.
January 27, 2017
Hannah McGill
Sight & Sound
TOP CRITIC
Through her smart balancing of tones, Johnson creates a graceful, ground-breaking and thoroughly cinematic work of art.
August 12, 2021 | Rating: 5/5
Calum Baker
Radio Times
Cameraperson serves a secondary function as a rebuttal to the auteur theory, locating a common voice in the works of varied authors.
January 5, 2021
David Bax
Battleship Pretension
To explore Kirsten Johnson’s immersive Cameraperson is to witness a unique, powerful memoir unfolding and unfurling.
October 5, 2020
Andrew F. Peirce
The Curb
It is a fascinating and largely successful exploration of a form, a body of work, and of an incredibly talented cinematographer. Utterly captivating.
August 30, 2020 | Rating: 4/5
Andrew Gaudion
THN
Memories shape who we are as individuals. With that context in mind, Cameraperson becomes one individual’s noble attempt to capture those unforgettable moments in her life and forever memorialize them.
July 17, 2020
Dustin Chang
ScreenAnarchy
Gorgeous and captivating; full of themes of war, motherhood, and oppression; this is a compelling, moving look at the creative process and the people behind the camera.
July 3, 2020 | Rating: A
Brent McKnight
The Last Thing I See…
Plot
Cameraperson is a documentary that explores the life and career of cinematographer Kirsten Johnson through decades of footage shot all over the world, offering a unique perspective on the art of filmmaking and the ethical responsibilities of being an observer.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Cameraperson on Fresh Kernels.
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