Michael Ballhaus

Michael Ballhaus, ASC (5 August 1935 – 12 April 2017) was a German cinematographer and filmmaker, known for his collaborations with directors Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Martin Scorsese, Mike Nichols, and James L. Brooks. He was nominated three times each for the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography, and won two German Film Awards.

Early life Ballhaus was born on 5 August 1935 in Berlin, to actors and . His uncle was actor and director Carl Ballhaus.

He was influenced by family friend Max Ophüls, and appeared as an extra in Ophüls' last film Lola Montès (1955).

Career Ballhaus came to prominence with his work with Rainer Werner Fassbinder beginning with Whity (1971), in addition to The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972), Chinese Roulette (1976) and The Marriage of Maria Braun (1978). In 1990, he was the head of the jury at the 40th Berlin International Film Festival.

After settling in the United States, he worked on many American films, such as Goodfellas (1990), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), Wild Wild West (1999) and Gangs of New York (2002).

Ballhaus also made an appearance in Rosa von Praunheim's film Fassbinder's Women (2000).

He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, but never won. He did win awards at the Chicago Film Critics Association, the Boston Society of Film Critics, and twice at the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.

His documentary In Berlin, made with Ciro Cappellari, was released in May 2009.

Ballhaus's final film was Sherry Hormann's 3096 Days in 2013.

In 1993, Ballhaus joined the Academy of Arts, Berlin. He was also a member of the Freie Akademie der Künste Hamburg, and was a co-founding member of the Deutsche Filmakademie in 2003.

Personal life Ballhaus was married to actress and art director Helga Maria Betten from 1958 until her death in 2006. They had two sons, Florian, who is also a cinematographer, and Jan Sebastian, an assistant director.

In 2011, Ballhaus married German-American director Sherry Hormann.

Death Ballhaus died at his home in Berlin at the age of 81 on 12 April 2017, after a short illness.

Filmography Feature film Cinematographer

Executive producer The Thirteenth Floor (1999)

Associate producer Remembrance (2011)

Short film Cinematographer Year Title Director Notes 1978 Teile I Valie Export Segment of I (Beat (It)) 1979 Bourbon Street Blues Hans SchönherrTilman Taube 2001 Gone UndergroundSu Turhan 2002 Mutti2007 Die sanfte Schminke des LichtsAlexander Kluge Nachts träumen die Lampen desAteliers von ihrem wahren Leben 2009 Purple Sunrise Nina Vukovic With Armin Dierolf 2013 First Fassbinder Matthew Cheney

Producer Last Night (2004)

Television Cinematographer

Documentary works Cinematographer Year Title Director Notes 1961 Traumland der Sehnsucht Wolfgang Müller-Sehn with Wolfgang Müller-Sehn 1971 Berlin – Anhalter Bahnhof – XXV Jahre danach Leonid Wawiloff 1973 Ich bin ein Bürger der DDR Erika Runge 1977 Nur zum Spaß, nur zum Spiel Volker Schlöndorff 1977 Curd Jürgens Bernhard Wicki With Xaver Schwarzenberger1978 Germany in Autumn Rainer Werner Fassbinder Venedig – Die Insel der Glückseligen am Rande des Untergangs Christian Rischert 1981 Oye Raimundo, adónde vas? Jaime CarrascoFrancisco ChavezLuis LuponeJesús Sánchez

Director Year Title Notes1971 Die Verabredung mit der Wirklichkeit Fassbinder produziert: Film Nr. 8 With Dietmar Buchmann 2009 In Berlin Also writer and editor 2011 Unser Franken With Ulla Ballhaus

Awards and nominations +Michael Ballhaus awards and nominationsNominations Academy Awards BAFTA Film Awards German Film Award Independent Spirit Awards

Academy Awards Year Category Title Result 1988 Best Cinematography Broadcast News 1990 The Fabulous Baker Boys 2003 Gangs of New York

British Academy Film Awards Year Category Title Result 1991 Best Cinematography Goodfellas 1994 The Age of Innocence 2003 Gangs of New York

German Film Awards

Independent Spirit Awards Year Category Title Result 1986 Best Cinematography After Hours

Critics awards

Film festivals Other accolades