Peter Suschitzky, A.S.C. (born 25 July 1941) is a British retired cinematographer and photographer, known for his collaboration with David Cronenberg from 1988 to 2014.
Early life and education Suschitzky was born in London, England, the son of the BAFTA-nominated cinematographer Wolfgang Suschitzky, an Austrian of Jewish descent.
Although music was Peter's passion, he chose to pursue a career in cinematography while studying at Institut des hautes études cinématographiques in Paris, France.
Career He became a clapper boy at the age of 19 and a camera operator at the age of 22.
Among his first films as DP was It Happened Here, a mockumentary-style World War II film about life in the United Kingdom, following a hypothetical Axis victory in World War II. The film was shot on handheld, 16mm film in order to give it a gritty, realistic look inspired by wartime newsreels. Due to the film's independent nature and unusual subject matter, its production lasted a total of eight years.
In 1975, Suschitzky shot The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a comedy musical film that, while initially unsuccessful, has since become a massive cult film, with regular midnight screenings attended by dedicated, cosplaying fans. He shot the 1977 biopic Valentino for director Ken Russell, for which he received a nomination for a BAFTA Film Award for Best Cinematography. Three years later, he would lens the second entry in the long-running Star Wars film series, The Empire Strikes Back, widely considered to be the best in the series.
Suschitzky replaced Mark Irwin as David Cronenberg's regular director of photography after Irwin left Dead Ringers during pre-production. Their collaboration lasted until 2014, with Maps to the Stars, with Douglas Koch replacing Suschitzky as Cronenberg's regular in 2022.
Filmography
Feature film Year Title Director Notes 1964 It Happened Here Kevin BrownlowAndrew Mollo With Kevin Brownlow 1966 The Christmas Tree Jim Clark1967 Privilege Peter Watkins Charlie Bubbles Albert Finney 1968 A Midsummer Night's Dream Peter Hall1969 Lock Up Your Daughters! Peter Coe The Gladiators Peter Watkins A Touch of Love Waris Hussein1970 Leo the Last John Boorman Figures in a Landscape Joseph Losey With Henri Alekan and Guy Tabary 1971 Melody Waris Hussein1972 The Pied Piper Jacques Demy Henry VIII and his Six Wives Waris Hussein 1973 That'll Be the DayClaude Whatham1975 All Creatures Great and Small The Rocky Horror Picture Show Jim Sharman LisztomaniaKen Russell 1977 Valentino 1980 The Empire Strikes Back Irvin Kershner 1983 Krull Peter Yates 1984 Falling in Love Ulu Grosbard1988 In Extremis Olivier Lorsac Dead Ringers David Cronenberg 1st collaboration with Cronenberg 1990 Where the Heart Is John Boorman1991 Un homme et deux femmes Valérie Stroh Naked Lunch David Cronenberg 1992 The Public Eye Howard Franklin1993 The Vanishing George Sluizer M. Butterfly David Cronenberg 1994 Immortal Beloved Bernard Rose1996 Mars Attacks! Tim Burton Crash David Cronenberg 1998 The Man in the Iron Mask Randall Wallace 1999 eXistenZ David Cronenberg 2000 Red Planet Antony Hoffman 2002 SpiderDavid Cronenberg2005 A History of Violence Shopgirl Anand Tucker 2006 The Stone Council Guillaume Nicloux 2007 Eastern PromisesDavid Cronenberg 2011 A Dangerous Method 2012 Cosmopolis 2013 After Earth M. Night Shyamalan 2014 Maps to the Stars David Cronenberg 2015 Tale of Tales Matteo Garrone
Television Year Title Director Notes 1961 Mächte des Glaubens Peter von Zahn Episode "Das Judentum" 1993 Fallen Angels Tom HanksTom Cruise Episodes "I'll Be Waiting" and "The Frightening Frammis"
TV movies Year Title Director Notes1966 The War Game Peter Watkins Uncredited Francis Bacon Fragments of a Portrait Michael Gill Documentary film
Awards and recognition Year Award Category Title Result 1977 BAFTA Awards Best Cinematography Valentino 1988Canadian Screen AwardsBest Cinematography Dead Ringers 1991 Naked Lunch 1996 Crash 2007 Eastern Promises 2015 Accademia del Cinema Italiano Best Cinematography Tale of Tales
Suschitzky is also featured in the book Conversations with Cinematographers, published by Scarecrow Press.
In 2015 he was selected to be a member of the jury for the Critics' Week section of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.
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