ALLEN DAVIAU

(14 June 1942 - 15 April 2020)

The American cinematographer Allen Daviau, who has died aged 77 from complications with Covid-19, was a celebrated figure in the film world, having worked with Steven Spielberg, John Schlesinger, Barry Levinson and Albert Brooks, among others. His early career comprised thousands of commercials, documentaries and special effects work, the last for Roger Corman’s The Trip in 1967. The following year saw him working with Spielberg on his short Amblin’. Daviau had already worked with Spielberg as camera operator on another short, Slipstream, which then led to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and, more importantly, E.T., on which Daviau was Director of Photography. He was nominated for an Academy Award and the film won six Oscars.

Daviau also worked with Spielberg on The Color Purple, Empire of the Sun, and segments of Twilight Zone: The Movie and Amazing Stories. For Barry Levinson he did Avalon and Bugsy, and for John Schlesinger The Falcon and the Snowman. Other films on Daviau’s cv include William Dear’s Bigfoot and the Hendersons, Albert Brooks’ Defending Your Life with Meryl Streep, Peter Weir’s Fearless with Jeff Bridges, Frank Marshall’s Congo, Rand Ravich’s The Astronaut’s Wife with Johnny Depp and Stephen Sommers’ Van Helsing with Hugh Jackman, the last being Daviau’s final feature, in 2004. After that he made some more shorts until in 2012 he had surgery which left him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He spent his last years in the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Los Angeles. His other Oscar nominations were for The Color Purple, Empire of the Sun, Avalon and Bugsy. He received Lifetime Achievement awards from both the Art Directors Guild and the American Society of Cinematographers.

MICHAEL DARVELL