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  • Cinematographer
· French · 1924–2016

Raoul Coutard

French cinematographer associated above all with the New Wave and the handheld, available-light look of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless. He shot much of Godard’s and François Truffaut’s early films, and came to cinema from years as a war photographer in Indochina.

Details

Lived
1924–2016
Born
1924
Died
2016
Nationality
French
Roles
Cinematographer

In the credits

Works that credit Raoul.

Cinematography — Film

Contempt

Jean-Luc Godard

People Raoul Coutard Knew

Relationships with other people, with sources for each connection.

Illustrated portrait of François Truffaut

François Truffaut

  • Filmmaker
  • Critic
  • Actor

Collaborated with · 1960–1968

Coutard photographed Shoot the Piano Player (1960), Jules and Jim (1962), and The Bride Wore Black (1968) for Truffaut. The two disagreed sharply over the last of them.

— Rétrospective Raoul Coutard — programme et présentation; Sight and Sound — The departed: the filmmakers we lost in 2016 (2016); The Criterion Collection — Jules and Jim

Illustrated portrait of Jean-Luc Godard

Jean-Luc Godard

  • Filmmaker
  • Critic

Collaborated with · 1959–1983

Coutard shot nearly all of Godard's New Wave features, from Breathless in 1959 through Weekend in 1967, and the two worked together again on Passion (1982) and Prénom Carmen (1983). The handheld camera and available light of those films are largely his.

— Rétrospective Raoul Coutard — programme et présentation; Sight and Sound — The departed: the filmmakers we lost in 2016 (2016); Encyclopaedia Britannica — Breathless (film by Godard, 1960)

Connections and Sources

Raoul Coutard’s connections to people, places, and works, with the sources behind each one.

Collaborated with · 1960–1968

François Truffaut

Coutard photographed Shoot the Piano Player (1960), Jules and Jim (1962), and The Bride Wore Black (1968) for Truffaut. The two disagreed sharply over the last of them.

— Rétrospective Raoul Coutard — programme et présentation; Sight and Sound — The departed: the filmmakers we lost in 2016 (2016); The Criterion Collection — Jules and Jim

Collaborated with · 1959–1983

Jean-Luc Godard

Coutard shot nearly all of Godard's New Wave features, from Breathless in 1959 through Weekend in 1967, and the two worked together again on Passion (1982) and Prénom Carmen (1983). The handheld camera and available light of those films are largely his.

— Rétrospective Raoul Coutard — programme et présentation; Sight and Sound — The departed: the filmmakers we lost in 2016 (2016); Encyclopaedia Britannica — Breathless (film by Godard, 1960)

References

References

The sources below include biographies, scholarly essays, interviews, and primary materials that informed this page. They reflect both the historical record and ongoing critical conversations about Raoul Coutard and their work.

  1. 1Rétrospective Raoul Coutard — programme et présentation

    Website
    La Cinémathèque française
    Used for

    Web source consulted for documented facts and historical context presented on the Raoul Coutard page.

    View source

  2. 2Sight and Sound — The departed: the filmmakers we lost in 2016

    Website
    Used for

    Web source consulted for documented facts and historical context presented on the Raoul Coutard page.

    View source

  1. 3The Criterion Collection — Jules and Jim

    Website
    The Criterion Collection
    Used for

    Web source consulted for documented facts and historical context presented on the Raoul Coutard page.

    View source

  2. 4Encyclopaedia Britannica — Breathless (film by Godard, 1960)

    Website
    Used for

    Web source consulted for documented facts and historical context presented on the Raoul Coutard page.

    View source
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Why these sources are here

These references anchor the page in the documented record and in the scholarly conversations around Raoul Coutard. Every claim on this page traces back to one or more of the works listed here.

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