- Born
- Died
- Birth nameFrancis David Watkin
- Nickname
- Wendy
- David Watkin was born on March 23rd 1925 to a middle class family in Kent, England. Being fond of classical music, he originally wanted to become a pianist despite the lack of support from his religious father.
Watkin served shortly in World War II before finally beginning his career in cinema. His break into the film world arrived when he shot the memorable title sequence for the film 'Goldfinger', in 1964. Being an innovator in cinematography, he was known as having an artistic technique- almost picturesque. His most famous works are 'Jesus of Nazareth', 'Moonstruck', 'Out of Africa', and many other known titles.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Karina Licursi
- SpouseNick Hand(? - February 19, 2008) (his death)
- Pioneer in cinematography with soft and bounced light
- He devised the Wendy Light, a lighting rig consisting of a grid of many lights on a gantry suspended in the air, which is now the standard technique for lighting exterior night-time scenes. "Wendy" was the nickname that he was given by the electricians who worked for him.
- Lives in Brighton, England.
- He has contributed with the cinematography of four films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: Chariots of Fire (1981), Out of Africa (1985) and Moonstruck (1987). Chariots of Fire (1981) and Out of Africa (1985) are winners in the category.
- [on being asked about his well-known habit of sleeping on the set] "Well, it's the one thing you can do on a movie set that doesn't make you more tired!"
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