Stephen Goldblatt

Stephen Goldblatt, A.S.C., B.S.C. is a South African cinematographer, noted for his work on numerous high-profile action films, including the first two entries in the Lethal Weapon Series, as well as for his recent collaborations with director Mike Nichols.

Goldblatt was born on April 29, 1945 in Johannesburg, South Africa. When he was seven years old, he and his family moved to London, where at the age of 18 he started working as a photojournalist for the London Sunday Times. Goldblatt attended Guildford School of Art for photography, but later discovered his interest in film while working on a special assignment for Lions Films at Shepperton Studios. It was this interest that motivated him to attend London's Royal College of Art Film School. Upon graduation, he went to work shooting documentaries and animation, much of it in 16mm. Among his assignments were two "Disappearing World" episodes for Granada TV.

Goldblatt began his career as a cameraman for documentaries and commercials. From 1972-75, he worked shooting TV commercials for directors such as Hugh Hudson, Alan Parker, Ridley Scott, and Brian Gibson. Goldblatt made the transition to feature films in the mid-1980s, quickly acquiring work with directors Tony Scott on The Hunger (1983), Francis Coppola on The Cotton Club (1984), and Richard Donner on Lethal Weapon (1987) and Lethal Weapon 2 (1989).

In the 1990s, Goldblatt joined the Batman series with director Joel Schumacher and shot Batman Forever (1995) and Batman and Robin (1997). In the late 1990s, during a “film sabbatical” and after many years of only taking snapshots, Goldblatt built a darkroom and began to photograph his life and surroundings again. After his sabbatical Goldblatt worked with directors such as Mike Nichols on Angels in America (2003), Closer (2004) and Charlie Wilson’s War (2007), Chris Columbus on Rent (2005) and Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010), Nora Ephron on Julie & Julia (2009), and most recently Tate Taylor on The Help (2011) and Get on Up (2014).

Stephen Goldblatt now lives in Berkeley, California and has three grown children. When he is at home, Goldblatt enjoys tending to his pond and koi fish, gardening, playing his guitar, cooking, reading everyday, and mastering the art of husbanding with his wife Deborah.

• Breaking Glass (1980)
• Outland (1981)
• The Return of the Soldier (1982)
• The Hunger (1983)
• The Cotton Club (1984)
• Young Sherlock Holmes (1985)
• Lethal Weapon (1987)
• Everybody's All-American (1988)
• Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)
• Joe Versus the Volcano (1990)
• The Prince of Tides (1991)
• For the Boys (1991)
• Consenting Adults (1992)
• The Pelican Brief (1993)
• Batman Forever (1995)
• Striptease (1996)
• Batman & Robin (1997)
• Conspiracy (2001)
• Path to War (2002)
• Angels in America (2003)
• Closer (2004)
• Rent (2005)
• Charlie Wilson's War (2007)
• Julie & Julia (2009)
• Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)
• The Help (2011)
• Get On Up (2014)
• The Intern (2015)

One of Stephen Goldblatt's most significant photo shoots was of The Beatles in 1968, who at the time had just finished recording what came to be known as The White Album. The Beatles wanted some fresh publicity photos shot by an unknown photographer, with whom they planned to travel all over London to take random photos. One of Goldblatt's shots became a two-page spread in Life magazine, and a few others were used as album art on Beatles compilations.

• Two Academy Award nominations, one for Barbra Streisand's The Prince of Tides (1991) and the other for Batman Forever (1995).
• Three Primetime Emmy Awards nominations for outstanding cinematography for a miniseries or movie, which include Conspiracy (2001), Path to War (2002), and Angels in America (2003).
• Three American Society of Cinematographers award nominations, two for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases for The Prince of Tides (1991) and Batman Forever (1995), and one for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Movies of the Week/Pilot for Angels in America (2003).
• Two Camerimage nominations, in 2007 winning the Lifetime Achievement Award and a nomination for Main Competition for Get on Up (2014).
• One Hollywood Film Award in 2007 for Cinematographer of the Year.