Rodrigo Prieto


Rodrigo Prieto is a Mexican cinematographer. He has been associated as the lead cinematographer for Martin Scorsese and Alejandro González Iñárritu, among other directors.

Life and career

Rodrigo Prieto was born in Mexico City, Mexico. His grandfather, Jorge Prieto Laurens, was the mayor of Mexico City and leader of the Chamber of Deputies of Mexico, but was later persecuted by the country's ruler because of political differences. Prieto's grandfather escaped with his family to Texas and then to Los Angeles. There, Prieto's father would spend most of his childhood. Prieto's father studied aeronautical engineering at New York University, where he met and married Prieto's mother, an artist. Rodrigo Prieto graduated from Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica in Mexico City. Prieto has become an established cinematographer, working with such names as Spike Lee, Curtis Hanson, Ang Lee and Pedro Almodóvar . Nonetheless, his political legacy still has a visible effect on his career. In 2002, Prieto shot Frida, a film about Frida Kahlo, a communist Mexican artist. In 2003, Prieto cooperated with Oliver Stone in two documentary projects: Comandante, about Fidel Castro, and Persona Non Grata, about Yasser Arafat. In 2004, Prieto shot Alexander for Stone. Prieto also worked with Alejandro González Iñárritu on the acclaimed Amores perros, 21 Grams, Babel and Biutiful.
Prieto is noted for his unconventional use of the camera often combined with strong moody lighting. In 25th Hour, Prieto utilized overexposure and other techniques to create original dream-like images to signify that the events shown on screen are memories or visions. Similarly innovative photography could be spotted in Frida, featuring strong colors and sharp imagery blended with atmospheric yellows and browns, as well as his experimental use of infrared during a battle scene in Alexander. Prieto also is interested in evoking naturalism, most evident in The Homesman and Brokeback Mountain. Prieto not only shot Brokeback Mountain, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography, but appeared in a cameo role within the film as a Mexican gigolo whom Jake Gyllenhaal's character, Jack Twist, meets.
Prieto has most recently formed an artistic collaboration with Martin Scorsese; first on The Wolf of Wall Street, Silence, for which he garnered his second Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography, and most recently The Irishman, released in November 2019. In December 2019, Prieto announced that the shooting schedule for Scorsese's upcoming film Killers of the Flower Moon would start as reported in March 2020. He served as cinematographer for the music videos for two of Taylor Swift's 2020 singles, "The Man", which references one of his previous films, The Wolf of Wall Street'', and "Cardigan".

Personal life

Prieto resides in Los Angeles, California with his wife Monica and they have two daughters: Maria Fernanda and Ximena.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

[Academy Awards]

[BAFTA Awards]

[American Society of Cinematographers Awards]

Other awards

Ariel Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
1996All of Them WitchesBest Cinematography
1999Fibra ÓpticaBest Cinematography
1999Un embrujoBest Cinematography
2001Amores perrosBest Cinematography
2011BiutifulBest Cinematography

Circuit Community Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2006BabelBest Cinematography
2016SilenceBest Cinematography

Boston Society of Film Critics
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography

Critics' Choice Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2020The IrishmanBest Cinematography

Camerimage
YearFilmCategoryResult
2000Amores PerrosGolden Frog
2004AlexanderGolden Frog
2004AlexanderSilver Frog
2006BabelMain Competition Golden Frog
2007Lust, CautionMain Competition Golden Frog
2012ArgoMain Competition Golden Frog
2012 Lana Del Rey: Blue JeansBest Cinematography in a Music Video
2016 VinylJury Award Best Pilot
2020The IrishmanMain Competition Golden Frog

Chicago Film Critics Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2006BabelBest Cinematography
2016SilenceBest Cinematography

Chlotrudis Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
200421 GramsBest Cinematography

Cinema Writers Circle Awards, Spain
YearFilmCategoryResult
2010Broken EmbracesBest Cinematography

CinEuphoria Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2012BiutifulBest Cinematography

Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2006BabelBest Cinematography
2016SilenceBest Cinematography

Dublin Film Critics' Circle
YearFilmCategoryResult
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography

Independent Spirit Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2008Lust, CautionBest Cinematography

Florida Film Critics Circle
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography

Georgia Film Critics Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2017SilenceBest Cinematography

Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2007Lust, CautionBest Cinematography

Goya Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2011BiutifulBest Cinematography

Houston Film Critics Society
YearFilmCategoryResult
2020The IrishmanBest Cinematography

International Cinematographers' Film Festival Manaki Brothers
YearFilmCategoryResult
2008Lust, CautionGolden Camera 300

International Cinephile Society Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2006Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2017SilenceBest Cinematography

International Online Cinema Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2006Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2007BabelBest Cinematography
2017SilenceBest Cinematography

Latino Entertainment Journalists Association Film Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2020The IrishmanBest Cinematography

National Society of Film Critics
YearFilmCategoryResult
2017SilenceBest Cinematography

North Texas Film Critics Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2016Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography

Online Film & Television Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2006Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2017SilenceBest Cinematography

Online Film Critics Society Award
YearFilmCategoryResult
2006Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2007BabelBest Cinematography
2020The IrishmanBest Cinematography

Phoenix Critics Circle
YearFilmCategoryResult
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography

Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2016SilenceBest Cinematography

San Diego Film Critics Society
YearFilmCategoryResult
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography

San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle
YearFilmCategoryResult
2016SilenceBest Cinematography

San Sebastián International Film Festival
YearFilmCategoryResult
1998Un embrujoJury Prize for Best Cinematography

Satellite Awards
YearFilmCategoryResult
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography

St. Louis Film Critics Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2005Brokeback MountainBest Cinematography
2006BabelBest Cinematography
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography

Tribeca Film Festival
YearFilmCategoryResult
2013LikenessJury Award Best Cinematography in a Narrative Feature

Venice Film Festival
YearFilmCategoryResult
2007Lust, CautionGolden Osella Best cinematography

Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association
YearFilmCategoryResult
2019The IrishmanBest Cinematography