Cameraperson


Cameraperson is a 2016 autobiographical collage documentary film. The film is an account by director Kirsten Johnson about her life and career as a cinematographer. It relies on footage shot by Johnson across the years in numerous different countries.
Cameraperson premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to critical acclaim and won the top prize at the Sheffield Doc/Fest.

Reception

Cameraperson has a 99% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 109 reviews, with an average score of 8.5/10; the site's consensus reads: "Fresh and inventive yet immediately accessible, Cameraperson distills its subject's life and career into an experience that should prove immediately absorbing even for those unfamiliar with her work." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 89 out of 100, based on 21 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Accolades

As of January 2017, Cameraperson has won 23 international awards, including the following:
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipientsResult
Boston Online Film Critics Association10 December 2016Best DocumentaryCamerapersonWon
Boston Online Film Critics Association10 December 2016Best EditingNels BangerterWon
Boston Society of Film Critics11 December 2016Best EditingNels BangerterWon
Camden International Film Festival10 September 2016Best Documentary FeatureKirsten JohnsonWon
Camerimage19 November 2016Best Feature Documentary FilmKirsten JohnsonNomitated
Central Ohio Film Critics AssociationBest DocumentaryCamerapersonNomitated
Chicago Film Critics Association15 December 2016Best DocumentaryCamerapersonNomitated
Chicago Film Critics Association15 December 2016Best EditingNels BangerterNomitated
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US11 January 2017The UnforgettablesKirsten JohnsonWon
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US11 January 2017Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature FilmmakingKirsten JohnsonWon
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US11 January 2017Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature FilmmakingMarilyn NessWon
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US11 January 2017Outstanding Achievement in DirectionKirsten JohnsonNomitated
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US11 January 2017Outstanding Achievement in EditingNels BangerterWon
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US11 January 2017Outstanding Achievement in CinematographyKirsten JohnsonWon
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards3 November 2016Most Compelling Living Subject of a DocumentaryKirsten JohnsonWon
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards3 November 2016Best Documentary FeatureCamerapersonNomitated
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards3 November 2016Best Director Kirsten JohnsonNomitated
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards3 November 2016Most Innovative DocumentaryCamerapersonNomitated
DOXA Documentary Film Festival15 May 2016Feature Documentary AwardKirsten JohnsonWon
Florida Film Critics Circle23 December 2016Best DocumentaryCamerapersonWon
Gotham Awards28 November 2016Best DocumentaryCamerapersonNomitated
Independent Spirit Awards25 February 2017Best Documentary FeatureCamerapersonNomitated
IndieWire Critics Poll19 December 2016Best DocumentaryCameraperson
IndieWire Critics Poll19 December 2016Best EditingNels Bangerter
IndieWire Critics Poll19 December 2016Best CinematographyKirsten Johnson
IndieWire Critics Poll19 December 2016Best First FeatureKirsten Johnson
International Documentary Association9 December 2016Best FeatureKirsten JohnsonNomitated
International Documentary Association9 December 2016Best EditingNels BangerterWon
Montclair Film Festival8 May 2016Bruce Sinofsky Prize for Documentary FeatureKirsten JohnsonWon
National Board of Review29 November 2016Freedom of Expression AwardCamerapersonWon
Online Film Critics Society3 January 2017Best Documentary FilmCamerapersonNomitated
RiverRun International Film Festival17 April 2016Special Jury Prize - Documentary FeatureKirsten JohnsonWon
San Francisco Film Critics Circle11 December 2016Best Documentary FilmKirsten JohnsonNomitated
San Francisco International Film Festival5 May 2016Best Documentary FeatureKirsten JohnsonWon
Sarasota Film Festival9 April 2016Jury Prize - Best Documentary FeatureKirsten JohnsonWon
Seattle Film Critics AssociationBest Documentary FeatureKirsten JohnsonNomitated
Sheffield Doc/Fest19 June 2016Grand Jury AwardKirsten JohnsonWon
Toronto Film Critics Association11 December 2016Best Documentary FilmKirsten JohnsonWon
Traverse City Film Festival31 July 2016Founders Prize - Best US DocumentaryKirsten JohnsonWon
Utah Film Critics Association18 December 2016Best Documentary FeatureCamerapersonWon
Vancouver Film Critics Circle20 December 2016Best DocumentaryCamerapersonWon
Zurich Film Festival25 September 2016Best International Documentary FilmKirsten JohnsonNomitated

Home media

As it was distributed by Janus Films, Cameraperson received a Blu-ray and DVD release on 7 February 2017 by The Criterion Collection, a sister company of Janus.