Meet the Nominees: 37^th Annual ASC Awards

With the ASC Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography taking place on Sunday, March 5, here’s a guide to our 32 nominees in every competitive category, which were announced on January 9.

Be sure to watch our livestream of the event starting at 10:30 PM PST from the Beverly Hilton here.

EPISODE OF A ONE-HOUR SERIES COMMERCIAL TELEVISION AWARD

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Atlanta, “Andrew Wyeth. Alfred’s World.”
Christian Sprenger, ASC

After the Chicago native received a bachelor’s degree in film at Columbia College Chicago, Sprenger relocated to Los Angeles, where he began working as a cinematographer on commercials and music videos. In 2018, he won an Emmy for the “Teddy Perkins” episode of Atlanta (and a nomination for the series GLOW). In 2022, he won an Emmy for the Atlanta episode “Three Slaps” (also earning a nomination for Station Eleven). His other series credits include What We Do in the Shadows, Baskets, The Last Man on Earthand Reservation Dogs. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Atlanta, “New Jazz”
Stephen Murphy BSC, ISC

Coming to cinematography with a background in painting, sculpture and model-making, Murphy fell in love with black-and-white photography and printing while at college, and quickly shifted his focus to pursue a career in the camera department. He completed his undergraduate studies in his native Ireland before moving to London to pursue a career as a cinematographer. His recent credits include episodes of Amazon’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith and Hanna, as well as the Netflix feature No One Gets Out Alive, and additional photography on the Oscar-nominated The Favourite. He currently sits on the BSC board of governors. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Barry, “Starting Now”
Carl Herse

The cinematographer studied film at Columbia College in Chicago, after which he worked in set lighting while building up his resume. His television credits include Comedy Central’s Nathan for You, Fox’s The Last Man on Earth, A24’s Moonbase 8, Showtime’s Black Monday, and Apple TV+’s The Afterparty. He earned an Emmy nomination for his work on this same episode from the third season of HBO Max’s wry comedy Barry. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Russian Doll, “Matryoshka”
Ula Pontikos, BSC

Originally from Gdynia, Poland, Pontikos developed a passion for photography and cinema at an early age and graduated from the National Film and Television School in London. In 2011, her first feature, Weekend, earned her the title of Breakthrough Talent of 2012 by BBC Film. Her other credits include Lilting, for which she won the Sundance World Cinema Cinematography Award, Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool, and the series Three Women. In 2022, the NFTS awarded her the annual Sue Gibson BSC Award for her work on Russian Doll, which is also nominated for an Emmy. This is her first ASC Award nomination.

Hacks, “The Click”
Adam Bricker

Originally from Chicago, Bricker graduated from the USC School of Cinematic Arts, later gaining on-set experience by working as a gaffer, camera assistant and operator while also shooting short films, documentaries, and indie features. Based in Los Angeles, his other series work includes American Vandal, Brockmire, Sorry for Your Loss and #BlackAF. He has earned three Emmy nominations, for the Chef’s Table episode “Corrado Assenza” and the Hacks episodes “Primm” and “The Click.” He earned a previous ASC Award nomination for the Hacks episode “There Is No Line,” and is also nominated this year in the Documentary category for Chef’s Table,“Pizza: Franco Pepe.”

DOCUMENTARY AWARD

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All That Breathes
Ben Bernhard & Riju Das

This film previously won the Cinema Eye Honor Award for Outstanding Cinematography, the DOC NYC Cinematography Award, and the Documentary Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. It is nominated for the Best Documentary Feature Academy Award. This marks the first ASC Award nomination for both cinematographers.

Bernhard received his Masters degree in Cinematography at the Deutsche Film-und Fernsehakademie Berlin. His previous work includes the feature documentary Aquarela, the feature drama Talking About the Weather, and the Netflix docuseries Neymar: The Perfect Chaos.

Born and raised in Calcutta, India, Das studied cinematography at the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune. His credits include the Marathi language features Gachchi, Home Sweet Home and Habaddi, which received an award for Best Feature Film Cinematography at the Yellowstone International Film Festival. His documentary work includes Battle of Benaras and National Geographic’s The Great Indian Election.

Chef’s Table: Pizza, “Franco Pepe”
Adam Bricker

Originally from Chicago, Bricker graduated from the USC School of Cinematic Arts, later gaining on-set experience by working as a gaffer, camera assistant and operator while also shooting short films, documentaries and indie features. Based in Los Angeles, his other series work includes American Vandal, Brockmire, Sorry for Your Loss and #BlackAF. He has earned three Emmy nominations — for the Chef’s Table episode “Corrado Assenza” and the Hacks episodes “Primm” and “The Click.” He earned a previous ASC Award nomination for the Hacks episode “There Is No Line,” and is also nominated this year in the One-Hour Series Commercial Television Award category for “The Click.”

This Stolen Country of Mine
Wolfgang Held, ASC

Hailing from Bonn, Germany, Held studied American literature in Germany and earned an MFA in film from Temple University. Settling in New York, he began working with Albert Maysles. His honors include a shared Emmy for the reality program Carrier and an Emmy nomination for The Andy Warhol Diaries. In addition to shooting for such directors as Larry Charles, Ron Howard, Matthew Heineman and Nanette Burstein, he spent months on the road with Sacha Baron Cohen for the mockumentary Brüno. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

EPISODE OF A ONE-HOUR SERIES COMMERCIAL TELEVISION AWARD

Category sponsored by William F. White

Better Call Saul, “Saul Gone”
Marshall Adams, ASC

Growing up in Los Angeles making Super 8 skateboarder movies, Adams worked as a PA on commercials and docs before discovering his passion for lighting. Gaining experience as a camera assistant and then gaffer on features and TV series, his break came when asked to shoot second unit on Felicity for Michael Bonvillian, ASC. Adams later took over cinematography duties for the series’ fnal season. His other credits include Monk, CSI: NY, Grimm and the feature El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie. He previously earned an ASC Award nomination for Better Call Saul in 2021, and another for Servant in 2022.

Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, “Is My Very Nature That of the Devil”
Jesse M. Feldman

The cinematographer is a graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts and his credits include the series MacGruber, The Chi and American Horror Story, as well as features including 1 Night and Take Me Home. His credits as an additional director of photography include The Disaster Artist; Genius: Aretha; The People v OJ Simpson; The Assassination of Gianni Versace; Feud: Bette and Joan; and Future Man. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Snowfall, “Departures”
Christian “Tico” Herrera, CCR

A native of Costa Rica now based in Los Angeles, Herrera’s other series credits include Queen Sugar and Sons of Thunder, and he has photographed music videos for artists including Destructo and Ricky Martin. His feature credits include the popular Disney Plus musical Zombies 3 and Buscando a Marcos Ramírez. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Snowpiercer, “Bound by One Track”
Jaime Reynoso, AMC

Born in Mexico City, Reynoso started practicing still photography at age 16 and took his first job on set, as a camera trainee, for the film Like Water for Chocolate, photographed by ASC members Steven Bernstein and Emmanuel Lubezki. He received an MFA in cinematography at the American Film Institute. His feature credits include the Robbing Peter, Curandero, Cansada de Besar Sapos, A Cambodian Winter and Tlatelolco, Summer of ’68. His other television credits include The New Look, Bloodline, The Kominsky Method — for which he was nominated for a 2022 ASC Award — John Leguizamo’s Latin History for Morons, Ballers, Shooter, An Unknown Enemy and Aquí en la Tierra.

The Old Man, “IV”
Jules O’Loughlin, ASC, ACS

A native of Australia, O’Loughlin graduated from the Australian national film school, AFTRS, in 2004. His credits include the series Black Sails and the features Wish You Were Here, Sanctum, Krampus, The Whole Truth, The Duel and The Hitman’s Bodyguard. He is a 12-time winner of the Australian Society of Cinematographers Award, a three-time Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Award nominee and became a member of the ASC in 2016. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

MOTION PICTURE, LIMITED SERIES, OR PILOT MADE FOR TELEVISION AWARD

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Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, “The Autopsy”
Anastas N. Michos, ASC, GSC

After a lengthy career as a top camera/Steadicam operator, Michos became known for his cinematography in such feature films as Man on the Moon, Duplex, Mona Lisa Smile, Perfect Stranger, The Women, Black Nativity, The Keeping Man, The First Purge Vanquish and This is the Night. In television, his projects include the telefilms Whitney and With This Ring and the series Being Mary Jane, Ambitions and Quantico. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, “The Outside”
Jeremy Benning, CSC

Starting his career behind the camera at age 11, Benning shot candid street-photo essays. He later spent more than 16 years as a Steadicam operator and was an early adopter of digital capture technologies. His television work includes The Boys, The Expanse, Condor and The Long Road Home (directed by Mikael Salomon, ASC). His feature credits include the documentary Alone Across the Arctic and Spin. He received an ASC Award in 2014 for the Nat Geo docudrama Killing Lincoln.

Lost Ollie, “Bali Hai”
C. Kim Miles, ASC, CSC, MySC

Born in Malaysia, Miles studied still photography at the University of Victoria in Canada and worked his way through the grip and camera departments. After shooting commercials in South East Asia, he photographed episodes of the superhero series Arrow and The Flash, which led to shooting the Robert Zemeckis feature Welcome to Marwen. His television work includes Mortal Kombat: Legacy, Lost in Space, Home Before Dark, Yellowjackets and Project Blue Book. For the latter, he won an ASC Award in 2020, and earned another nomination in 2021.

The Old Man, “I”
Sean Porter

Launching his feature career with films including Bass Ackwards, Eden and It Felt Like Love, (the latter earning an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Cinematography), Porter’s other feature credits include Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter; Green Room; 20th Century Women; Rough Night; the Best Picture Academy Award-winning drama Green Book; and, most recently, The Greatest Beer Run Ever. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, “The Swan”
Todd Banhazl, ASC

Based in Los Angeles, Banhazl became a member of the ASC in 2022. His credits include the features Hustlers, for which he earned an Independent Spirit Award Nomination for Best Cinematography, and Blow the Man Down, which was awarded Special Jury Award for Cinematography at the Tribeca Film Festival. The sports drama Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty documents the success of the Los Angeles basketball team in the 1980s and Banhazl previously earned an Emmy nomination for the episode “Pieces of a Man.” This is his first ASC Award nomination.

SPOTLIGHT AWARD

Category sponsored by Panavision

War Sailor
Sturla Brandth Grøvlen, DFF

Born in Trondheim, Norway, Grøvlen graduated from the Bergen Academy of Art and Design and The National Film School of Denmark and now lives and works in Copenhagen. His credits include the single-take thriller Victoria, for which he received the Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution at the 65th Berlinale in 2015. That same year, he received the Silver Frog at Camerimage for Rams. His additional feature credits include Wendy, Shirley, Before the Frost, Another Round and Beautiful Beings. His work on The Innocentsearned the Sven Nykvist Cinematography Award at the 2022 Göteborg Film Festival. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

God’s Country
Andrew Wheeler

Pittsburgh-raised and Los Angeles-based, Wheeler works internationally in feature films, commercials, and television. His feature credits include the SXSW hit Cheap Thrills and the Netflix project Small Crimes, both directed by Evan Katz, as well as Shoplifters of the World, directed by Stephen Kijak. Recently, Wheeler shot Michael Shannon’s directorial debut, Eric Larue. His recent television credits include the pilots for Kill the Orange-Faced Bear and 1266. His nominated project God’s Country marks his reunion with director Julian Higgins, with whom he shot the Student Academy Award-winning short Thief. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

The Quiet Girl
Kate McCullough, ISC

After studying at the Łódź Film School in Poland, McCullough teamed up with Michael Lavelle, ISC to shoot Ken Wardrop’s feature doc His & Hers, for which they jointly won the Cinematography Award in World Cinema - Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival. Her additional non-fiction credits include Here Was Cuba, The Farthest (for which she was nominated for an Outstanding Lighting Direction Emmy), Songs for While I’m Away (which earned an Award for Excellence from the Guild of Television Camera Professionals), and the Golden Frog-nominated I, Dolours. Her narrative credits include the feature Arracht, and the BBC miniseries Normal People, which received an Irish Film & Television Award for Best Cinematography. Performed in Gaelic, The Quiet Girl (An Cailín Ciúin) won Best Cinematography at the Irish Film & Television Awards and an Excellence Award in Cinematography at the European Film Awards. This is McCullough’s first ASC Award nomination.

EPISODE OF A ONE HOUR SERIES NON-COMMERCIAL TELEVISION AWARD

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1899, “The Calling”
Nikolaus Summerer

The German-born cinematographer studied at the University of Television and Film Munich. His work includes the Netflix series Dark, for which he won the German Television Academy Award, and the films Unter der Sonne, which won the Vision Award for Cinematography at Sundance, Who Am I, which received the German Camera Award for Best Cinematography and was nominated for the German Film Academy Award, The Siege of Jadotville and Das letzte Schweigen (The Silence). This is his first ASC Award nomination.

House of the Dragon, “The Green Council”
Alejandro Martinez

Born and raised in Mexico City, Martinez’s early work in the horror and thriller genres led him to Spanish director Gabe Ibáñez, with whom he collaborated on the short Máquina, and the features Hierro and Autómata, the latter of which earned him a Goya Award nomination for Best Cinematography. His other recent credits include The Alienist and The Mosquito Coast. This is his first ASC Award nomination.

House of the Dragon, “The Lord of the Tides”
Catherine Goldschmidt

Born in California and raised in New Jersey, Goldschmidt earned a BA in Film Studies from Wesleyan University and an MFA in Cinematography from the American Film Institute. Her television credits include episodes of Season 12 of Doctor Who, Roku’s Dummy, BBC/Amazon’s Chloe and A Discovery of Witches for Sky/AMC. She was named a “Rising Star of Cinematography” in 2022 by American Cinematographer. This is her first ASC Award nomination.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, “Everything is Bellmore”
Alex Nepomniaschy, ASC

A member of ASC since 2000, he was born in Moscow and graduated from the American Film Institute with a Master of Fine Arts degree in Cinematography in 1982. His extensive television credits include Tales From the Crypt, Criminal Minds, Big Love, Blue Bloods, The Mentalist, The Americans and Gilmore Girls: A Year in The Life. His feature credits include the documentary Beirut: The Last Home Movie and the narrative projects Safe, Never Been Kissed and Narc (for which he earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination). He earned a previous ASC Award nomination for the series Sable in 1989.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, “How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?”
M. David Mullen, ASC

Born in Iwakuni, Japan, Mullen’s feature credits include Twin Falls Idaho (earning a Film Independent Spirit Award nomination), Jackpot, Northfork (again earning a Spirit Award nomination), The Astronaut Farmer, Jennifer’s Body and The Love Witch. His other series credits include Big Love, The Good Wife, United States of Tara, Smash, Extant, Get Shorty and Westworld. The cinematographer received ASC Award nominations in 2019, 2020 and 2021 for his work in Mrs. Maisel, as well as four Emmy nominations with two wins.

Westworld, “Années Folles”
John Conroy, ASC, ISC

This is the third ASC Award nomination for the Irish cinematographer, who has credits on more than 80 productions, including the features Parked, The Sea, The Happy Prince, Yardie and Flora and Son. His series credits include Silent Witness, The Tunnel, Broadchurch, Luther (for which he earned an Emmy nomination), Penny Dreadful (for which he earned his first ASC Award nomination), The Terror (for which he won the ASC Award) and Modern Love.

THEATRICAL FEATURE FILM

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Elvis
Mandy Walker, ASC, ACS

Born in Melbourne, Australia, Walker studied film criticism and cinema theory with filmmaker and academic John Flaus. Her other feature credits include Tracks, Hidden Figures, The Mountain Between Us and Mulan. On the 2008 feature Australia, she became she first woman to photograph a feature with a budget over $100 million, and she is also the first woman of the Motion Picture Academy’s Cinematographers Branch to be elected to the Board of Governors. With Elvis, she has earned her first ASC Award nomination, and is also nominated for the Academy Award.

Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths
Darius Khondji, ASC, AFC

Born in Tehran, Iran, the cinematographer was raised in Paris and studied at the International Center of Photography (ICP) and New York University Film School. His other features include Delicatessen, The City of Lost Children, Seven (earning an ASC Award nomination), Stealing Beauty, Evita (earning ASC Award and Oscar nominations), Alien: Resurrection, Midnight in Paris, The Immigrant(earning a third ASC Award nod), The Lost City of Z, Armageddon Time, Uncut Gems and the forthcoming Mickey 17. His work on Bardo also earned him the Silver Frog and FIPRESCI awards at the Carmerimage Festival and an Oscar nomination.

Empire of Light
Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC

This is the 17th ASC Award nomination for the cinematographer, who previously won for The Shawshank Redemption, The Man Who Wasn’t There, Skyfall, Blade Runner 2049 and 1917. He has received 16 Academy Award nominations — including one for Empire of Light — winning for Blade Runner 2049 and 1917, and earned five BAFTA Awards, for The Man Who Wasn’t There, No Country for Old Men, True Grit, Blade Runner 2049 and 1917. He was the ASC Lifetime Achievement Award honoree in 2011.

Top Gun: Maverick
Claudio Miranda, ASC

Hailing from Valparaíso, Chile, Miranda worked as a gaffer on films including Crimson Tide, The Game and Fight Club. As a cinematographer, his other feature credits include Failure to Launch, Tron: Legacy, Oblivion, Tomorrowland, Only the Brave and Spiderhead. He earned previous ASC Award nominations for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008; also earning an Oscar nomination) and Life of Pi (2013; winning the Oscar).

The Batman
Greig Fraser, ASC, ACS

Born in Melbourne, Australia, Fraser studied at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT University). His credits include Zero Dark Thirty, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Snow White and the Huntsman and Vice. He previously won ASC Awards for Lion (2016; as well as an Oscar nomination) and Dune: Part One (2021; also an Academy Award), and earned an ASC nomination for The Mandalorian(2019; also winning an Emmy).

You’ll find more ASC Awards details regarding our nominees and honorees here.