One of the most celebrated cinematographers of his generation, Laszlo Kovacs was a gifted and strikingly versatile cameraman whose work embraced the visionary realism of the '60s and '70s (Easy Rider, The Last Movie, Five Easy Pieces) as well as the more glamorous look of Hollywood's past (New York, New York, Paper Moon). Laszlo Kovacs was born in Cece, a rural community not far from Budapest, Hungary, in 1933. Kovacs became fascinated by movies as a child, attending weekly screenings at a schoolhouse that became a makeshift neighborhood movie theater on weekends. Wanting greater opportunities for their son, his parents sent him to Budapest to attend secondary school, but while he was obviously bright, left to his own devices Kovacs preferred to go to the movies rather than attend class, favoring European New Wave filmmaking over the Russian and Hungarian films that were staples in local movie houses.

Despite Kovacs's weak grades, his enthusiasm for cinema won him admission at the Hungarian Academy of Drama and Film Art, where he studied under filmmaker George Illes. In 1956, during his final year in film school, a revolt spread through Budapest which threatened to overthrow the Communist leadership that ruled the country; Kovacs…  » Read more