# Robert Elswit

Robert Christopher Elswit, ASC (born April 22, 1950) is an American cinematographer.
He has collaborated with Paul Thomas Anderson from 1996 to 2014, winning the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for There Will Be Blood.
Elswit has also collaborated with directors and screenwriters Tony and Dan Gilroy on all of the six films that either brother directed.

## Biography

Elswit was born in Los Angeles. An early short film he worked on was the 1982 television adaptation of Ray Bradbury's short story All Summer in a Day. Elswit worked as a visual effects camera operator at John Dykstra's Apogee Productions Inc. on each film, including Star Trek: The Motion Picture, The Empire Strikes Back and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, before shooting made-for-television films and shows. Elswit has been a fierce defender of shooting on film, and whenever possible avoids using digital cameras. Images shot digitally, he said, have "no texture, no grain." He started shooting digitally, starting with Nightcrawler. Elswit has worked with George Clooney several times. He shot his black and white, multiple-Oscar nominated film Good Night, and Good Luck. Elswit shot the film in color, and converted the film into black and white in post production. According to Elswit, the technique preserved the subtlety of the colors (as complex shades of blacks and greys) and made the overall look much richer in the final film. Elswit was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for Good Night, and Good Luck, but lost to Dion Beebe for Memoirs of a Geisha. Elswit won the award for There Will Be Blood in 2008. Elswit has cited early independent filmmaker John Cassavetes as a major influence. Elswit is a graduate of the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts and worked there as a teaching assistant. Elswit is the godfather to the actor Jake Gyllenhaal.

## Filmography
### Television

| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1980 | CBS Library | Seth Pinsker Sam Weiss | Episode "The Incredible Book Escape" |
| 1985 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Michael Toshiyuki Uno | Episode "The War Between the Classes" |
| 1989 | Dream Street | Mark Rosner | Episode "Pilot" |
| 1992 | Human Target | Max Tash | Episode "Pilot" |
| 1997 | Prince Street | Roger Spottiswoode | Episode "Pilot" |
| 2016 | The Night Of | Steven Zaillian | Episode "The Beach" |
| 2024 | Ripley | Steven Zaillian | Miniseries |
TV movies
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1982 | All Summer in a Day | Ed Kaplan | |
| 1983 | Tiger Town | Alan Shapiro | |
| 1984 | A Single Light | Karl Epstein | |
| 1986 | The Children of Times Square | Curtis Hanson | |
| 1987 | A Different Affair | Noel Nosseck | |
| 1987 | Long Gone | Martin Davidson | |
| 1987 | Into the Homeland | Lesli Linka Glatter | |
| 1989 | Double Exposure: The Story of Margaret Bourke-White | Lawrence Schiller | |
| 1990 | A Killing in a Small Town | Stephen Gyllenhaal | |
| 1990 | Steel Magnolias | Thomas Schlamme | |
| 1990 | Opposites Attract | Noel Nosseck | |
| 1991 | Prison Stories: Women on the Inside | Donna Deitch Joan Micklin Silver | Segments "Esperanza" and "Parole Board" |
| 1991 | The Summer My Father Grew Up | Michael Tuchner | |
| 1991 | Paris Trout | Stephen Gyllenhaal | |
| 1991 | Vidiots | Howard Storm | |
| 1992 | A Murderous Affair: The Carolyn Warmus Story | Martin Davidson | |

### Feature film

Key :
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1981 | The End of August | Bob Graham | |
| 1982 | Waltz Across Texas | Ernest Day | |
| 1983 | Summerspell | Lina Shanklin | |
| 1985 | The Sure Thing | Rob Reiner | |
| 1985 | Moving Violations | Neal Israel | |
| 1985 | Desert Hearts | Donna Deitch | |
| 1986 | Trick or Treat | Charles Martin Smith | |
| 1987 | Amazing Grace and Chuck | Mike Newell | |
| 1988 | Return of the Living Dead Part II | Ken Wiederhorn | |
| 1989 | How I Got into College | Savage Steve Holland | |
| 1989 | Heart of Dixie | Martin Davidson | |
| 1990 | Bad Influence | Curtis Hanson | |
| 1992 | The Hand That Rocks the Cradle | Curtis Hanson | |
| 1992 | Waterland | Stephen Gyllenhaal | |
| 1993 | A Dangerous Woman | Stephen Gyllenhaal | |
| 1994 | The River Wild | Curtis Hanson | |
| 1996 | Hard Eight | Paul Thomas Anderson | First of 6 collaborations with Anderson |
| 1996 | The Pallbearer | Matt Reeves | |
| 1996 | Boys | Stacy Cochran | |
| 1997 | Boogie Nights | Paul Thomas Anderson | |
| 1997 | Tomorrow Never Dies | Roger Spottiswoode | |
| 1999 | 8mm | Joel Schumacher | |
| 1999 | Magnolia | Paul Thomas Anderson | |
| 2000 | Bounce | Don Roos | |
| 2001 | Heist | David Mamet | |
| 2001 | Impostor | Gary Fleder | |
| 2002 | Punch-Drunk Love | Paul Thomas Anderson | |
| 2003 | Behind the Red Door | Matia Karrell | |
| 2003 | Gigli | Martin Brest | |
| 2003 | Runaway Jury | Gary Fleder | |
| 2005 | Good Night, and Good Luck | George Clooney | |
| 2005 | Syriana | Stephen Gaghan | |
| 2006 | American Dreamz | Paul Weitz | |
| 2007 | Michael Clayton | Tony Gilroy | |
| 2007 | There Will Be Blood | Paul Thomas Anderson | |
| 2008 | Redbelt | David Mamet | |
| 2008 | The Burning Plain | Guillermo Arriaga | |
| 2009 | Duplicity | Tony Gilroy | |
| 2009 | The Men Who Stare at Goats | Grant Heslov | |
| 2010 | The Town | Ben Affleck | |
| 2010 | Salt | Phillip Noyce | |
| 2011 | Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol | Brad Bird | |
| 2012 | The Bourne Legacy | Tony Gilroy | |
| 2014 | Inherent Vice | Paul Thomas Anderson | |
| 2014 | Nightcrawler | Dan Gilroy | |
| 2015 | Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation | Christopher McQuarrie | |
| 2016 | Gold | Stephen Gaghan | |
| 2017 | Suburbicon | George Clooney | |
| 2017 | Roman J. Israel, Esq. | Dan Gilroy | |
| 2018 | Skyscraper | Rawson Marshall Thurber | |
| 2018 | Write When You Get Work | Stacy Cochran | |
| 2019 | Velvet Buzzsaw | Dan Gilroy | |
| 2020 | The King of Staten Island | Judd Apatow | |
| 2021 | King Richard | Reinaldo Marcus Green | |
| 2024 | Bob Marley: One Love | Reinaldo Marcus Green | |
| 2025 | Ella McCay † | James L. Brooks | Post-production |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1988 | Cadillac Dreams | Matia Karrell | |
| 1998 | Richard Lester! | Stacy Cochran | Documentary short |
| 2010 | Lost Masterpieces of Pornography | David Mamet | Video short |
| 2019 | Snowbrawl | David Leitch | |

## Accolades

Academy Awards
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Won |
American Society of Cinematographers
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Outstanding Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
| 2007 | Outstanding Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Won |
BAFTA Awards
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
Boston Society of Film Critics
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Won |
British Society of Cinematographers
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
Camerimage
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Golden Frog Award | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
Chicago Film Critics Association
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
| 2014 | Best Cinematography | Inherent Vice | Nominated |
Daytime Emmy Award
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 1984 | Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography | CBS Schoolbreak Special (For episode "The War Between The Classes") | Won |
Houston Film Critics Society
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2014 | Best Cinematography | Inherent Vice | Nominated |
Independent Spirit Award
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 1997 | Best Cinematography | Hard Eight | Nominated |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Won |
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Won |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | 2nd place |
National Society of Film Critics
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2002 | Best Cinematography | Punch-Drunk Love | 3rd place |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | 2nd place |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Won |
New York Film Critics Circle
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | 2nd place |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Won |
Online Film Critics Society
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
Primetime Emmy Award
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2024 | Outstanding Cinematography for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie | Ripley (For episode "V Lucio") | Won |
San Diego Film Critics Society
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | 2nd place |
| 2014 | Best Cinematography | Nightcrawler | Won |
Satellite Awards
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
| 2010 | Best Cinematography | Salt | Nominated |
| 2014 | Best Cinematography | Inherent Vice | Nominated |
St. Louis Film Critics Association
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 2005 | Best Cinematography | Good Night, and Good Luck | Nominated |
| 2007 | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
| 2014 | Best Cinematography | Nightcrawler | Nominated |
Other awards
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result |
| 1988 | CableACE Award | Best Cinematography | Long Gone | Nominated |
| 2007 | Austin Film Critics Association | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Won |
| 2007 | International Online Cinema Awards | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Nominated |
| 2007 | New York Film Critics Online | Best Cinematography | There Will Be Blood | Won |
| 2014 | Utah Film Critics Association | Best Cinematography | Nightcrawler | Won |