Veteran British director of photography Roger Deakins has finally ended his 13-film losing streak at the Oscars by winning the best cinematography Academy award for Blade Runner 2049.
Deakins is one of Hollywood’s most renowned cinematographers, having picked up his first nomination in 1994 for The Shawshank Redemption, and had subsequent nods for the likes of Fargo, Skyfall and Sicario. He is arguably best known for his work with the Coen brothers, having shot 11 of their films, but has also formed partnerships with Sam Mendes and Denis Villeneuve.
Villeneuve is the director of Blade Runner 2049, a sequel to the widely admired 1982 sci-fi film directed by Ridley Scott; it stars Ryan Gosling as a replicant “blade runner” who, as part of his search for rogue replicants, tracks down Harrison Ford’s Deckard, the protagonist of the first film.
In winning the Academy award for cinematography at the 14th attempt, Deakins saw off a nominations list that included Dunkirk’s Hoyte van Hoytema, Darkest Hour’s Bruno Delbonnel, and Mudbound’s Rachel Morrison, the first woman ever to be nominated in this category.