Sir Roger Deakins, cinematographer

Sir Roger Deakins, cinematographer

From Desert Island Discs by BBC Radio 4

August 23, 2026 · 51 min

About this episode

Sir Roger Deakins discusses his illustrious career as a cinematographer and his artistic influences.

Sir Roger Deakins is an acclaimed cinematographer who is known for his visual artistry on films including The Shawshank Redemption, 1917, Fargo, Skyfall and Blade Runner 2049. His talents have been acknowledged with a knighthood, five BAFTAs and two Oscars. Roger was born in Torquay, Devon in 1949. In 1968 he attended the Bath Academy of Art where he was inspired by one of his tutors, the street photographer Roger Mayne, to go out with his camera and capture what he saw. Roger Deakins followed this advice and spent his weekends shooting people and places in British seaside towns. In 1975 Roger graduated from the National Film School in Beaconsfield and started work as a cameraman – making documentaries and music videos. His first feature film was Cruel Passion which came out in 1977. In 1984 he worked on Michael Radford’s film adaptation of George Orwell’s novel 1984, starring Richard Burton and John Hurt. The first of Roger’s collaborations with filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen started in 1991 with the film Barton Fink. The three of them went on to make 12 films together including O Brother, Where Art Thou? Fargo and The Big Lebowski. In 2018 Roger won his first Academy Award for…

People in this episode

Host: BBC Radio 4

Guest: Sir Roger Deakins

Topics covered

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: National Film School

Books & works: The Shawshank Redemption, 1917, Fargo, Skyfall, Blade Runner 2049, Cruel Passion, 1984, Barton Fink, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Big Lebowski

Places: Torquay, Devon, California

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