The American Cinematheque has announced the special series ‘Rodrigo Prieto: An American Cinematheque Retrospective’ dedicated to the Mexican Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto. Taking place December 30, 2023 through January 7, 2024 at the Aero Theatre, the Egyptian Theatre and Los Feliz 3 in Los Angeles, the retrospective series will screen five films photographed by the Mexican DP: Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) by Martin Scorsese, Broken Embraces (2009) by Pedro Almodóvar, 25th Hour by Spike Lee (2002), and Brokeback Mountain (2005) by Ang Lee.
Born in Mexico City, Prieto is one of the most respected and acclaimed cinematographers in the world, He is known for his meticulous setups, unconventional camerawork, rich use of color, and creating a moving, visceral experience for the audience.
Nominated for three Academy Awards for his work on Brokeback Mountain, Martin Scorsese’s Silence (2017) and The Irishman (2019), he has also been recognized by Independent Spirit Awards, BAFTA Awards, Online Film Critics Society Awards, and American Society of Cinematographers Awards. While passionate about his work as a cinematographer, Rodrigo directed his first short film, Likeness, starring Elle Fanning, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Rodrigo is a frequent collaborator with Martin Scorsese, Ang Lee, Oliver Stone, and Alejandro González Iñárritu. His first collaboration with Iñárritu, Amores Perros (2000), is widely hailed as the cinematographer’s breakthrough, and spurred Rodrigo’s relocation from Mexico to Los Angeles. This movie, along with their next two projects, 21 Grams and Babel, are regarded as the three films that have led the renaissance of Mexican cinema. Out of all the Iñárritu films he’s worked on, Rodrigo has said that Biutiful is the one of which he’s most proud.
Other notable films Rodrigo has DPed include Passengers, Argo, Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, Julie Taymor's The Glorias and this year’s films Killers of the Flower Moon and Greta Gerwig's Barbie. Rodrigo is currently in post-production for his first film as a director, an adaptation of Pedro Peramo by Juan Rulfo, which is considered the most important Mexican novel of the 20th century.
