Eduardo Serra
Eduardo Martins Serra was a Portuguese cinematographer who spent most of his career working in European film productions, mostly in French, Portuguese and British films, with frequent collaborations with directors Patrice Leconte and Claude Chabrol.
Serra is also known for his work on the M. Night Shyamalan film Unbreakable and the final two Harry Potter films, The Deathly Hallows – Part 1 and Part 2.
Life and career
From 1960 to 1963, Serra studied engineering at Lisbon's Instituto Superior Técnico, but he had to leave the country after his involvement in students' protests against Salazar's dictatorship. He settled in France, where he was accepted to Vaugirard film school in Paris; he graduated in 1966. In 1970 he got his second degree from the Paris-Sorbonne University, in Art History and Archeology.Serra was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography. His first nomination was for his work on The Wings of the Dove, for which he also won a BAFTA. He received his second Academy Award and BAFTA nominations for Girl with a Pearl Earring.
In 2004, Serra was made Commander of the Order of Prince Henry the Navigator, a civilian award presented for services to Portuguese culture, by President Jorge Sampaio. In 2017, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, promoted him to the senior rank of Grand Officer of the same Order.
Serra died on 19 August 2025, at the age of 81.
Filmography
Short film| Year | Title | Director |
| 1976 | Les derniers beaux jours | Jean-Yves Rondière |
| 1980 | Une voix | Dominique Crèvecoeur |
| 1982 | Une histoire dérisoire | Michel Campioli |
| 1985 | Duty Free Shop | Michel Campioli |
| 1993 | Die Inschrift des Gottes | Heinz Peter Schwerfel |
| 2012 | A Therapy | Roman Polanski |
Feature film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1980 | À vendre | Christian Drillaud | |
| 1983 | No Trace of Sin | José Fonseca e Costa | |
| 1983 | Itinéraire bis | Christian Drillaud | |
| 1983 | Debout les crabes, la mer monte! | Jean-Jacques Grand-Jouan | |
| 1984 | Le garde du corps | François Leterrier | |
| 1984 | Pinot simple flic | Gérard Jugnot | |
| 1984 | Marche à l'ombre | Michel Blanc | |
| 1985 | Slices of Life | François Leterrier | |
| 1985 | Les Spécialistes | Patrice Leconte | 1st collaboration with Leconte |
| 1985 | Contes clandestins | Dominique Crèvecoeur | With Dominique Chapuis and Gérard Sterin |
| 1985 | Le mariage du siècle | Philippe Galland | With Gérard Sterin |
| 1985 | Moi vouloir toi | Patrick Dewolf | |
| 1987 | Tant qu'il y aura des femmes | Didier Kaminka | |
| 1988 | A Mulher do Próximo | José Fonseca e Costa | |
| 1988 | Tropical Snow | Ciro Durán | |
| 1990 | The King's Trial | João Mário Grilo | |
| 1990 | The Hairdresser's Husband | Patrice Leconte | |
| 1991 | Lapse of Memory | Patrick Dewolf | |
| 1992 | Map of the Human Heart | Vincent Ward | |
| 1992 | Le zèbre | Jean Poiret | |
| 1992 | Amor e Dedinhos de Pé | Luís Filipe Rocha | |
| 1993 | Tango | Patrice Leconte | |
| 1993 | Artcore oder Der Neger | Heinz Peter Schwerfel | |
| 1994 | Le parfum d'Yvonne | Patrice Leconte | |
| 1994 | Dead Tired | Michel Blanc | |
| 1995 | Funny Bones | Peter Chelsom | |
| 1995 | L'amour conjugal | Benoît Barbier | |
| 1996 | Les Grands Ducs | Patrice Leconte | |
| 1996 | The Jew | Jom Tob Azulay | |
| 1996 | Jude | Michael Winterbottom | |
| 1996 | The Disappearance of Finbar | Sue Clayton | |
| 1997 | The Wings of the Dove | Iain Softley | |
| 1997 | The Swindle | Claude Chabrol | 1st collaboration with Chabrol |
| 1998 | What Dreams May Come | Vincent Ward | |
| 1999 | The Color of Lies | Claude Chabrol | |
| 2000 | Passion of Mind | Alain Berliner | |
| 2000 | The Widow of Saint-Pierre | Patrice Leconte | |
| 2000 | Unbreakable | M. Night Shyamalan | |
| 2002 | Papillons de nuit | John Randolph Pepper | |
| 2002 | Rue des plaisirs | Patrice Leconte | |
| 2002 | O Delfim | Fernando Lopes | |
| 2003 | The Flower of Evil | Claude Chabrol | |
| 2003 | Girl with a Pearl Earring | Peter Webber | |
| 2004 | Intimate Strangers | Patrice Leconte | |
| 2004 | The Bridesmaid | Claude Chabrol | |
| 2004 | Beyond the Sea | Kevin Spacey | |
| 2005 | Il ne faut jurer de rien! | Eric Civanyan | |
| 2006 | Comedy of Power | Claude Chabrol | |
| 2006 | Blood Diamond | Edward Zwick | |
| 2007 | A Girl Cut in Two | Claude Chabrol | |
| 2008 | Defiance | Edward Zwick | |
| 2009 | Bellamy | Claude Chabrol | |
| 2010 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 | David Yates | Shot back-to-back |
| 2011 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 | David Yates | Shot back-to-back |
| 2012 | Belle du Seigneur | Glenio Bonder | |
| 2013 | A Promise | Patrice Leconte |
Documentary film
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1983 | Des terroristes à la retraite | Mosco Boucault | With Guy-Auguste Boléat, François Catonné, Guy Chanel, Jean Orjollet, Philippe Rousselot and Carlo Varini |
| 1984 | Nasdine Hodja au pays du business | Jean-Patrick Lebel | |
| 1986 | I Grandi Manoveri | Heinz Peter Schwerfel | |
| 2007 | Fados | Carlos Saura | With Jose Luis Lopez-Linares |
Television
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
| 1987 | Die dritte Dimension | Heinz Peter Schwerfel | Miniseries |
| 1991 | Cycle Simenon | Jacques Fansten | Episode "Le mouchoir de Joseph" |
Awards and nominations
Academy Awards| Year | Title | Category | Result |
| 1997 | The Wings of the Dove | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
| 2003 | Girl with a Pearl Earring | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
American Society of Cinematographers
Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts
| Year | Category | Title | Result |
| 1992 | Map of the Human Heart | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
BAFTA Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
| 1997 | The Wings of the Dove | Best Cinematography | Won |
| 2003 | Girl with a Pearl Earring | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
British Society of Cinematographers
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
| 1997 | The Wings of the Dove | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
| 2003 | Girl with a Pearl Earring | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
Camerimage
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
| 1996 | Jude | Golden Frog | Nomitated |
| 1996 | Jude | Silver Frog | Won |
| 1997 | The Wings of the Dove | Golden Frog | Nomitated |
| 1997 | The Wings of the Dove | Bronze Frog | Won |
César Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
| 1990 | Le mari de la coiffeuse | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
Satellite Awards
| Year | Title | Category | Result |
| 2003 | Girl with a Pearl Earring | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |
| 2010 | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 | Best Cinematography | Nomitated |