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Oren Soffer
אורן סופר
Born (1988-07-02) July 2, 1988 (age 38)
Haifa, Israel
EducationNew York University (BFA)
OccupationCinematographer
Years active2011–present
Websitehttp://orensoffer.com

Oren Soffer (Hebrew: אורן סופר; born July 2, 1988) is an Israeli-American cinematographer.[1][2][3]

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).[4][5][6][7]

In 2024, he was listed on Variety's "10 Cinematographers to Watch."[8] In 2025, he became a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[9]

Early life and education

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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.[10]

Career

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Soffer began his feature-film career with projects including No Letting Go (2015),[11] Little Miss Perfect (2016),[12] A Good Dream (2017), and Fail State (2017).[13] 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.[14]

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.[15][16]

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.[17] He also worked on Fixation, directed by Mercedes Bryce Morgan, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.[18]

The Creator

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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."[19] In a 2025 Variety article, Oren Soffer explained how the cinematography of Saving Private Ryan influenced the tank battle scene in The Creator (2023), including the use of handheld cameras, long lenses and shaky camera movements to create a sense of realism.[20]

Later work

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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.[8]

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.[21][22]

Teaching

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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.[23]

Awards and recognition

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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.[10]

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.[16]

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.[24][25]

Filmography

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Feature film

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Year Title Director Notes
2015 No Letting Go Jonathan D. Bucari Also camera operator
2016 Little Miss Perfect Marlee Roberts
2017 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

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Year Title Notes
2016 Fallout High TV short
2021 Action Royale 10 episodes

Music video

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Title Year Artist(s) Notes Ref(s)
"Lonely Together" 2017 Avicii featuring Rita Ora [26]
"God Bless Our Souls" 2019 Morgan Saint [27]
"Pink Pony Club" 2020 Chappell Roan [28]
"Gone" Saygrace [29]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2016 FilmQuest Best Cinematography Karkass Karts Nominated [30]
American Society of Cinematographers Heritage Awards Reservations Nominated [31]
Julien Dubuque International Film Festival Excellence In Cinematography No Letting Go Nominated [32]
2017 First Run Film Festival Craft Award - Cinematography Opera of Cruelty Won [33]
Nordic International Film Festival Best Cinematography Far from the Tree Nominated
IndieFEST Film Awards Award of Excellence - Best Cinematography Won
Reel East Texas Film Festival Best Cinematography - Short Nominated
Focus International Film Festival Jury Prize - Best Cinematography in a Short Film Nominated
Southampton International Film Festival Best Cinematography in a Short Film Won
Nordic International Film Festival Best Cinematography Nominated
Hollywood International Moving Pictures Film Festival HIMPFF Award of Recognition - Best Cinematography A Good Dream Won
International Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema, Berlin Best Cinematography in a Feature Film Won
International Independent Film Awards Platinum Award - Best Cinematography Won
2023 Seattle Film Critics Society Best Cinematography (Shared with Grieg Fraser) The Creator Nominated [24]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Allswell DP Oren Soffer on Taking Inspiration From Classic New York Movies and His Bond With Greig Fraser". btlnews.com. 29 August 2022. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  2. ↑ "Oren Soffer". nofilmschool.com. 4 September 2014. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  3. ↑ "Meet Oren Soffer - Cinematographer". shoutoutla.com. 6 June 2022. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  4. ↑ "'The Creator': Cast, Release Date, Plot, and Everything We Know So Far". collider.com. 6 May 2023. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  5. ↑ "ALLSWELL". tribecafilm.com. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  6. ↑ "FIXATION". pifff.fr. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  7. ↑ "Cinematographer Oren Soffer crafts a nuanced portrait of an intimate weekend for the short film See You Soon". panavision.com. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  8. 1 2 "'Alien Romulus,' 'The Creator,' 'Strange Darling' Helmers Among Variety's 2024 Cinematographers to Watch". Variety. 2014-10-17. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
  9. ↑ Jones, Marcus (26 June 2025). "The Academy Invites 534 New Members, Including 'Anora,' 'No Other Land,' and 'I Saw the TV Glow' Alum". IndieWire.
  10. 1 2 "American Society of Cinematographers Names Student Award Recipients". hollywoodreporter.com. 27 September 2015. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  11. ↑ Scheck, Frank (2016-03-25). "'No Letting Go': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  12. ↑ Staff, The Observer (2016-01-19). "'Perfecting' her craft in the movies". The Observer Online. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  13. ↑ "FAIL STATE". DOC NYC. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  14. ↑ "A Nightmare Wakes - Film Review". Eye For Film. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  15. ↑ "Awards Watch - Interview: Cinematographer Oren Soffer on Creating 'The Creator,' DVD Extras and Karaoke". Awards Watch. 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  16. 1 2 "First Run Festival. 2017 Undergraduate Craft Awards". tisch.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  17. ↑ "Allswell | 2022 Tribeca Festival". Tribeca. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  18. ↑ "Meet 'The Creator' Cinematographer Oren Soffer, The Most Exciting DP on the Rise in Hollywood". EBCOMS_MASTER. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  19. ↑ Graham, Jamie (16 July 2023). "Gareth Edwards says he used guerrilla filmmaking methods on The Creator". GamesRadar+.
  20. ↑ Tangcay, Jazz (August 12, 2025). "'Saving Private Ryan': How Steven Spielberg's Handheld Techniques, Low Angles and Blood Splatters Changed Hollywood Action Sequences". Variety. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  21. ↑ Raup, Jordan (2026-06-02). "Onslaught Trailer: Adria Arjona Takes on Super Soldiers in Adam Wingard's Action Horror". Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  22. ↑ Hazlewood, Kirsty (2026-08-13). "DP Oren Soffer shoots Onslaught". Cinematography World. Retrieved 2026-10-07.
  23. ↑ "OREN SOFFER". tisch.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  24. 1 2 Anderson, Erik (January 4, 2023). "Seattle Film Critics Society (SFCS) Nominations: 'Poor Things,' 'Killers of the Flower Moon' Lead". AwardsWatch. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Longlists, 2024 EE BAFTA Film Awards". Bafta. 5 January 2024.
  26. ↑ Bein, Kat (August 9, 2018). "Avicii's 'Lonely Together' Director Goes Behind the Scenes of the VMA-Nominated Video: Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  27. ↑ "Morgan Saint – "God Bless Our Souls"". Booooooom TV. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  28. ↑ "V Exclusive: Chappell Roan's 'Pink Pony Club' out NOW!". V. April 3, 2020. Retrieved October 28, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  29. ↑ "On A New EP, SayGrace Breaks Down Her 'Defining Moments'". WTVF. 2 February 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  30. ↑ "2016 FilmQuest – FilmQuest".
  31. ↑ "13 Students Nominated for 2015 ASC Gordon Willis Heritage Awards". theasc.com. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  32. ↑ "No Letting Go". imdb.com. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
  33. ↑ "FIRST RUN FESTIVAL. 2017 UNDERGRADUATE CRAFT AWARDS". tisch.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
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