Biography

Matt Porwoll is an Emmy® and Sundance award-winning cinematographer based in New York. His work has screened theatrically, appeared on TV networks such as HBO, Showtime, Amazon, Netflix, Apple+, Discovery, CNN, A&E, and PBS, and has screened at film festivals worldwide.

Porwoll shot the film TIGERLAND, directed by Academy Award®-winner Ross Kauffman, that premiered in competition at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival and garnered a 2020 Cinema Eye Honors nomination for Best Broadcast Cinematography. Showtime's THE TRADE: SEASON 1, a 5-part documentary series about the opioid epidemic, was "beautifully shot" and "looks like carefully composed narrative cinema," says The Hollywood Reporter. The feature documentary CARTEL LAND, which Matt shot and co-produced, "allows us to care deeply about people while creating images that propel us through a landscape of nightmares." It won Best Cinematography Awards at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, 2016 Cinema Eye Honors and 2016 Primetime Emmys. The film was also nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Documentary Feature.

In addition to capturing intimate cinéma vérité, Porwoll also shot "dramatic recreations" for CNN's 4-part series LBJ: TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY and Showtime's CATCHING LIGHTNING with "reenactments that Errol Morris would approve of," says Rolling Stone.

Porwoll has served as an additional cinematographer on numerous other films including THE FIRST WAVE, CITY OF GHOSTS and ESCAPE FIRE: THE FIGHT TO RESCUE AMERICAN HEALTHCARE, directed by Academy Award®-nominated director Matthew Heineman, THE ME YOU CAN'T SEE, executive-produced by Oprah Winfrey and Prince Harry, HBO's Emmy®-nominated BY THE PEOPLE: THE ELECTION OF BARACK OBAMA, and HBO's CRISIS HOTLINE: VETERANS PRESS 1, which won the 2015 Academy Award® for Best Documentary Short.

In addition to working as a cinematographer, Matt enjoys sharing the technical side of the craft as well. Whether its discussing documentary cinematography on his YouTube channel or collaborating with manufacturers about working with their equipment, teaching and sharing his experiences has been a rewarding complement to his work.
- IMDb mini biography by: Porwoll, Matt