# Newton Thomas Sigel

Newton Thomas Sigel, ASC (born August 1955; sometimes credited as Tom Sigel) is an American cinematographer best known for his collaborations with director Bryan Singer on films like The Usual Suspects, Valkyrie, and the X-Men film franchise. He has also worked with filmmakers like Haskell Wexler, Mike Newell, David O. Russell, Terry Gilliam, Alan Ball, Robert Redford, and Nicolas Winding Refn. He is a BAFTA Award, Independent Spirit Award, Critics' Choice Award, and Satellite Award nominee.

## Life and career

Sigel was born in Detroit, Michigan, and studied painting in New York City, becoming an artist-in-residence at the Whitney Museum of American Art. He began his career working with experimental filmmaker Kenneth Anger as a camera operator. Becoming a documentary filmmaker, he shot a number of projects filming, including El Salvador: Another Vietnam, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. His photography caught the attention of DP Haskell Wexler, and the two spent several years developing what would become the 1985 film Latino, his first feature film as director of photography.
Sigel worked mostly on television films and as a second unit DP throughout the 1980s before shooting the comedy film Rude Awakening. He regularly served under Robert Richardson on films like Platoon and The Doors. Starting with The Usual Suspects, he has become the regular cinematographer of director Bryan Singer.

## Personal life

Sigel is Jewish and married to Lisa Chang. His father, Irving Sigel, was a psychologist who worked for the Educational Testing Service. His mother, Roberta Sigel, was a professor at Rutgers who studied gender and politics.

## Filmography
### Cinematographer
#### Film

| Year | Title | Director |
| 1985 | Latino | Haskell Wexler |
| 1989 | Rude Awakening | David Greenwalt Aaron Russo |
| 1991 | Salmonberries | Percy Adlon |
| 1992 | Crossing the Bridge | Mike Binder |
| 1992 | Into the West | Mike Newell |
| 1993 | Indian Summer | Mike Binder |
| 1993 | Money for Nothing | Ramón Menéndez |
| 1994 | Blankman | Mike Binder |
| 1995 | The Usual Suspects | Bryan Singer |
| 1996 | Foxfire | Annette Haywood-Carter |
| 1996 | The Trigger Effect | David Koepp |
| 1996 | Blood and Wine | Bob Rafelson |
| 1998 | Fallen | Gregory Hoblit |
| 1998 | Apt Pupil | Bryan Singer |
| 1999 | Brokedown Palace | Jonathan Kaplan |
| 1999 | Three Kings | David O. Russell |
| 2000 | X-Men | Bryan Singer |
| 2002 | Confessions of a Dangerous Mind | George Clooney |
| 2003 | X2: X-Men United | Bryan Singer |
| 2005 | The Brothers Grimm | Terry Gilliam |
| 2006 | Superman Returns | Bryan Singer |
| 2007 | Towelhead | Alan Ball |
| 2008 | Leatherheads | George Clooney |
| 2008 | Valkyrie | Bryan Singer |
| 2010 | Leap Year | Anand Tucker |
| 2010 | Frankie & Alice | Geoffrey Sax |
| 2010 | The Conspirator | Robert Redford |
| 2011 | Drive | Nicolas Winding Refn |
| 2013 | Jack the Giant Slayer | Bryan Singer |
| 2014 | Seventh Son | Sergei Bodrov |
| 2014 | X-Men: Days of Future Past | Bryan Singer |
| 2016 | Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny | Yuen Woo-ping |
| 2016 | X-Men: Apocalypse | Bryan Singer |
| 2017 | Marshall | Reginald Hudlin |
| 2018 | Bohemian Rhapsody | Bryan Singer |
| 2020 | Extraction | Sam Hargrave |
| 2020 | Da 5 Bloods | Spike Lee |
| 2021 | Cherry | Anthony and Joe Russo |
| 2022 | Dog | Channing Tatum Reid Carolin |
| 2023 | Candy Cane Lane | Reginald Hudlin |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1994 | Suspicious | David Koepp | |
| 2001 | Ambush | John Frankenheimer | Segment of The Hire |
| 2004 | Keep Right | Tim Godsall | |
| 2005 | The Big Empty | Himself Lisa Chang | |
| 2013 | Happy Birthday | Brett Ratner | Segment of Movie 43 |
| 2018 | Arcade Fire: Money + Love | David Wilson | With Christophe Collette |

#### Television

TV movies
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1987 | Home Fires | Michael Toshiyuki Uno | With Rick F. Gunter |
| 1987 | Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Pat Hobby Teamed with Genius | Rob Thompson | |
| 1987 | Tales from the Hollywood Hills: A Table at Ciro's | Leon Ichaso | |
| 1988 | Perfect People | Bruce Seth Green | |
| 1989 | Roe vs. Wade | Gregory Hoblit | |
| 1990 | Rock Hudson | John Nicolella | |
| 1990 | Challenger | Glenn Jordan | |
| 1990 | Turner & Hooch | Donald Petrie | TV pilot |
| 1990 | Red Hot + Blue: A Tribute to Cole Porter | Percy Adlon | Segment "So In Love" |
| 1990 | A Promise to Keep | Rod Holcomb | |
| 1991 | Murder in High Places | John Byrum | |
| 1993 | Daybreak | Stephen Tolkin | |
| 1994 | A Time to Heal | Michael Toshiyuki Uno | |
TV series
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1987 | Great Performances | Paul Bogart | Episode "Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Natica Jackson" |
| 1988 | The Wonder Years | Steve Miner Carol Black Neal Marlens Jeffrey D. Brown | 3 episodes |
| 1999 | Cop Rock | Gregory Hoblit | Episode "Pilot" |
| 2004 | House | Bryan Singer | Episode "Pilot" |
| 2015 | Battle Creek | Bryan Singer | Episode: "The Battle Creek Way" |
| 2017 | The Gifted | Bryan Singer | Episode "eXposed" |
| 2023 | Citadel | Himself Jessica Yu | 4 episodes |

#### Documentary works

Film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1980 | We Are the Guinea Pigs | Joan Harvey | With Mark Benjamin, Tom Houghton, Tom Hurwitz and Peter Schnall |
| 1981 | El Salvador: Another Vietnam | Glenn Sillber Teté Vasconcellos | |
| 1983 | When the Mountains Tremble | Himself Pamela Yates | |
| 1988 | Inheritance | William Donovan | |
| 1990 | Teatro! | Edward Burke Ruth Shapiro Pamela Yates | |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director |
| 1983 | Atomic Artist | Glenn Silber |
TV movie
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1992 | Oliver Stone: Inside Out | Steven Fischler Joel Sucher | With Martin D. Toub |
TV series
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1999 | American Masters | Steven Fischler Joel Sucher | Episode "Martin Scorsese Directs" |

### Director

Documentary film
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1981 | Resurgence: The Movement for Equality vs. the Ku Klux Klan | Co-directed with Pamela Yates |
| 1983 | When the Mountains Tremble | Co-directed with Pamela Yates |
TV movie
* Point of Origin (2001)
TV series
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 2004-2006 | House | Episodes "Maternity" and "Lines in the Sand" |
| 2023 | Citadel | 6 episodes (Co-directed 2 episodes with Jessica Yu) |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Title | Awards/Nominations |
| 1983 | When the Mountains Tremble | Sundance Special Jury Award for Best Documentary |
| 1995 | The Usual Suspects | Nominated- Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography |
| 2011 | Drive | Nominated- Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- Georgia Film Critics Association Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- Gold Derby Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- IndieWire Critics Poll Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- Satellite Award for Best Cinematography Nominated- St. Louis Film Critics Association Award for Best Cinematography |
| 2014 | X-Men: Days of Future Past | Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Virtual Cinematography |
| 2018 | Bohemian Rhapsody | Nominated- BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography |
| 2020 | Da 5 Bloods | Nominated- Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Cinematography |
| 2021 | Cherry | Nominated- ASC Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography |