Łukasz Żal (; born 24 June 1981) is a Polish cinematographer, best known for his work on the films Ida (2014), Loving Vincent (2017), Cold War (2018) and The Zone of Interest (2023).
Life and career Żal has said that he "fell in love" with cinema at the age of 16, when he attended a course on filmmaking held at a local gymnasium in his home town of Koszalin, Poland. His interest in photography was sparked by a friend, who asked to use him as a subject and also showed him how to use a camera. He went on to study photography at the Leon Schiller National Film, Television and Theatre School in Łódź, from which he graduated in 2007. Whilst there, he watched many films and decided to pursue a career as a cinematographer because of the "stronger emotional content" he observed in movies.
When preparing to work on a film, Żal has stated that he reads though the script and tries "to find part of [him]self in the movie".
In 2019 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the British Royal Photographic Society, from which he also received the annual Lumière Award.
He has been named as the recipient of the Variety Artisan Award at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.Jeremy Kay, "TIFF adds Carolina Markowicz, Lukasz Zal, Andy Lau to tribute line-up". Screen Daily, August 22, 2023.
Filmography Feature film Year Title Director Notes 2013 Ida Paweł Pawlikowski With Ryszard Lenczewski 2015 The Here After Magnus von Horn 2016 Na granicyWojciech Kasperski Ikona Documentary film 2017 Loving Vincent Dorota KobielaHugh Welchman With Tristan Oliver 2018 Dovlatov Aleksei Alekseivich German Cold War Paweł Pawlikowski 2020 I'm Thinking of Ending Things Charlie Kaufman 2023 The Zone of Interest Jonathan Glazer 2025 Hamnet Chloé Zhao 2026 Fatherland Paweł Pawlikowski
Short film Year Title Director Notes2015 The DragonTomasz BagińskiSegments of Polish Legends Twardowsky 2023 Til Further Notice Valdimar Jóhannsson Segment of Circus Maximus
Documentary short Year Title Director 2011 Papparazzi Piotr Bernas2013 Joanna Aneta Kopacz Arena Piotr Bernas Lewa połowa twarzy Marcin Bortkiewicz
Awards and nominations Major awards Year Category Nominated work Result Academy Awards 2014Best CinematographyIda 2018Cold War British Academy Film Awards 2014Best Cinematography Ida 2018 Cold War 2024The Zone of Interest American Society of Cinematographers Awards 2014 Spotlight Award Ida 2018 Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases Cold War
Critics awards Year Award Category Nominated work Result 2013 National Polish Film Festival Best CinematographyIda Warsaw Jewish Film Festival Best Cinematographer 20th ListapadBest Photography Camerimage International Film Festival Golden Frog 2014 Polish Society of Cinematographers AwardsPSC Award Polish Academy Film Awards Best Cinematography Mediaş Central European Film Festival Best Cinematography Award Manaki Brothers Film Festival Silver Camera European Film Awards Best Cinematographer San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards Best Cinematography Online Film Critics Society Awards Best Cinematography Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Cinematography 2015 Polish Independent Cinema Awards Best Cinematography Joanna 2016 Kraków Film Festival Best Cinematography - Short Subject Ikona 2018 Manaki Brothers Film Festival Brown CameraCold War Camerimage International Film Festival Silver Frog Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Cinematography Boston Society of Film Critics Awards Best Cinematography Florida Film Critics Circle Awards Best Cinematography 2019 Online Film Critics Society Awards Best Cinematography North Carolina Film Critics Association Awards Best Cinematography Satellite Awards Best Cinematography
See also Cinema of Poland List of Polish Academy Award winners and nominees List of Poles
References
External links Łukasz Żal at FilmPolski.pl Łukasz Żal at Filmweb.pl