Oren Soffer (; born July 2, 1988) is an Israeli-American cinematographer.
He is best known for his work on the science fiction film The Creator (2023), as well as Allswell in New York (2022), Fixation (2022), A Nightmare Wakes (2020), and Opera of Cruelty (2017).
In 2024, he was listed on Varietys "10 Cinematographers to Watch." In 2025, he became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Early life and education Soffer was born in 1988 and studied at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. During his studies, he was nominated for the American Society of Cinematographers Gordon Willis Student Heritage Award in 2015 and was a finalist for the ARRI Volker Bahnemann Award for Cinematography. He has cited the work of director Steven Spielberg and cinematographer Janusz Kamiński as his strongest influences In interviews, he has also discussed the influence of cinematographer Janusz Kamiński and the visual style of films he watched while growing up.
Career Soffer began his feature-film career with projects including No Letting Go (2015), Little Miss Perfect (2016), A Good Dream (2017), and Fail State (2017). He later served as cinematographer on Nora Unkel's A Nightmare Wakes, a psychological thriller inspired by Mary Shelley's writing of Frankenstein. The film premiered on Shudder in 2021.
In 2017, Soffer was the cinematographer of Opera of Cruelty, an experimental short film directed by Max Fedore. The film won the Alternative category at the Student Academy Awards. It also received awards at the NYU Wasserman Awards, including recognition for cinematography.
In 2022, Soffer served as cinematographer on two feature films that premiered at major film festivals. He was director of photography on Allswell in New York, directed by Ben Snyder, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. He also worked on Fixation, directed by Mercedes Bryce Morgan, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The Creator Soffer served as one of the cinematographers on Gareth Edwards's science fiction film The Creator (2023), working alongside Greig Fraser. Fraser was involved in the film's visual development and pre-production before his work on Dune: Part Two required him to take a more remote role. Soffer subsequently worked on the principal photography of the film. The production was filmed in Thailand and other locations in 2022. Edwards praised the talent and expertise Soffer brought to the film's production, calling him a "real future rising star in the DoP world. He’s super-smart. He’s got a great eye."
Later work In 2024, Soffer was named among Variety's "10 Cinematographers to Watch." The program recognized ten cinematographers during the Newport Beach Film Festival's cinematographer celebration.
Soffer subsequently served as director of photography for Onslaught, an action horror film directed by Adam Wingard and produced for A24. The film stars Adria Arjona, Dan Stevens, Rebecca Hall, Michael Biehn, Alex Pereira, Drew Starkey, and Reginald VelJohnson. Soffer shot the film in Albuquerque, New Mexico, during its 2025 production. The film was released theatrically in 2026.
Teaching Soffer has also worked in academia as an adjunct professor at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, where he has taught cinematography and related aspects of filmmaking.
Awards and recognition Soffer's early work received recognition during his studies at NYU. He was nominated for the American Society of Cinematographers Gordon Willis Student Heritage Award and was a finalist for the ARRI Volker Bahnemann Award for Cinematography.
His short film Opera of Cruelty won the Alternative category at the Student Academy Awards and received several NYU Wasserman Awards, including recognition for cinematography.
Soffer and Fraser were nominated for Best Cinematography at the 2023 Seattle Film Critics Society Awards and longlisted in the Best Cinematography category at the 77th British Academy Film Awards.
Filmography Feature film Year Title Director Notes 2015 No Letting Go Jonathan D. Bucari Also camera operator 2016 Little Miss Perfect Marlee Roberts2017 A Good Dream Mahum Jamal Fail State Alexander Shebanow Shared credit with Joel Kingsbury, Alexander J. Hufschmid,Alexander Shebanow and Michael Swaigen 2020 A Nightmare Wakes Nora Unkel 2022 Allswell in New York Ben Snyder Fixation Mercedes Bryce Morgan 2023 The Creator Gareth Edwards Shared credit with Greig Fraser 2026 Onslaught Adam Wingard Cinematographer
Television Year Title Notes 2016 Fallout High TV short 2021 Action Royale 10 episodes
Music video Title Year Artist(s) Notes "Lonely Together" 2017 Avicii featuring Rita Ora "God Bless Our Souls" 2019 Morgan Saint "Pink Pony Club" 2020 Chappell Roan "Gone" Saygrace
Awards and nominations YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRef.2016FilmQuestBest CinematographyKarkass Karts NominatedAmerican Society of CinematographersHeritage AwardsReservations NominatedJulien Dubuque International Film FestivalExcellence In CinematographyNo Letting Go Nominated2017First Run Film FestivalCraft Award - CinematographyOpera of Cruelty WonNordic International Film FestivalBest CinematographyFar from the Tree NominatedIndieFEST Film AwardsAward of Excellence - Best Cinematography WonReel East Texas Film FestivalBest Cinematography - Short NominatedFocus International Film FestivalJury Prize - Best Cinematography in a Short Film NominatedSouthampton International Film FestivalBest Cinematography in a Short Film WonNordic International Film FestivalBest Cinematography NominatedHollywood International Moving Pictures Film FestivalHIMPFF Award of Recognition - Best CinematographyA Good Dream WonInternational Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema, BerlinBest Cinematography in a Feature Film WonInternational Independent Film AwardsPlatinum Award - Best Cinematography Won2023Seattle Film Critics SocietyBest Cinematography (Shared with Grieg Fraser)The Creator Nominated
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