Boris Kaufman

Borís Kaufman (Białystok, in present-day Poland, August 24, 1906-New York, June 24, 1980) was a director of photography of Russian origin, who worked in France and in USA. He was the brother of the Soviet filmmakers Dziga Vertov and Mikhail Kaufman.

He left Russia in 1917. After traveling through several European countries, in 1927 he settled in Paris, where he studied at the Sorbonne University. In France he met Jean Vigo, and participated in all of his films. Between 1939 and 1941 he served in the French armed forces. After being discharged, he emigrated to North America where he began filming shorts for the National Film Board of Canada and propaganda documentaries in the United States. In the mid-1950s he participated in several Hollywood films, to which he gave a certain neorealist style. He collaborated primarily with Elia Kazan and Sidney Lumet. He won an Oscar for On the Waterfront, 1954, directed by Kazan. He retired from film in 1970.

Select filmography

• À propos de Nice (Jean Vigo, 1930)
• Zéro de conduite (Jean Vigo, 1933)
• L'Atalante (Jean Vigo, 1934)
• Lucrecia Borgia (Lucrèce Borgia, Abel Gance, 1935)
• The Law of Silence (On the WaterfrontElia Kazan, 1954)
• Baby Doll (Elia Kazan, 1956)
• Twelve men without mercy (12 Angry MenSidney Lumet, 1957)
• Splendor in the grass (Splendor in the GrassElia Kazan, 1961)
• Long day towards the night (Long Day's Journey Into NightSidney Lumet, 1962)
• The lender (The PawnbrokerSidney Lumet, 1965)

Prizes and distinctions

Oscar Awards