Must-See Movies Photographers Will Love

Did you know that in the past 10 years, film production has doubled, going from 4,584 movies produced in 2005, to a whopping 9,387 in 2015? (Source) With so many movies out there, it can be overwhelming to narrow them down to the ones that you ‘must see’.

Today we’ve gone a step further, however, and chosen to list some of the must-see movies that photographers will love. While there was an incredibly long list of films to choose from, we chose to write about the photography-related movies which contained the most interesting story lines and focused on the world of photography in a more in-depth way.

From antagonists who are passionate photographers, to the unlikely photography hero – these movies are sure to not only capture your imagination, but to also provide you with the inspiration and motivation you may be seeking for your own photography career.

Let’s dive into these movies below!

Funny Face (1957)

Starring the stunning Audrey Hepburn and charismatic Fred Astaire, this movie is a classic in its own right. Astaire plays famous fashion photographer Dick Avery who is looking for a model who can “think as well as they look.” A photo shoot leads him to the bookstore that Jo Stockton (Hepburn) works at, and he soon discovers that Jo isn’t only incredibly smart, she’s also intriguingly photogenic. Soon, Maggie Prescott (a fashion magazine editor), Dick, and Jo are off to Paris to prepare for a major fashion event, but drama (and a love story) unfolds once they arrive.

Find out more about this movie here.

Proof (1991)

This Australian, award-winning comedy-drama stars a much younger Hugo Weaving and Russell Crowe. Martin (Weaving) is a blind photographer who has become distrustful of everyone around him after suspecting his mother of always lying to him about his surroundings as a child. He spends his days taking some photographs of the world around him, then having various people describe them. Martin soon encounters Andy (Crowe), and is happy with the depth and detail with which Andy describes his photos. The two soon become close friends, but their friendship is not without drama and controversy when a female love interest becomes involved.

Find out more about this movie here.

Pecker (1998)

Starring Edward Furlong and Christina Ricci, this quirky and off-beat movie is about a talented young photographer (Furlong), who enjoys snapping photos of his satirical, perverted Baltimore neighborhood and his wacky family. He soon gets dragged into a world of pretentious artists from New York City, but goes on to reach dizzying new heights of fame for his unusual work.

Find out more about this movie here.

Gentleman’s Relish (2001)

Kingdom Swann is a talented but naive Scottish artist who lives in Edwardiam London and enjoys painting nudes. Soon enough, there is no longer a demand for his work, so his housekeeper Violet buys him a camera to experiment with instead. Two younger sisters want him to take “artistic photographs” of themselves in the nude and Swann’s new but dishonest assistant Cromwell Marsh convinces Swann to begin a producing photographic versions of famous nude paintings, using local prostitutes as his models. Marsh then secretly uses these projects in a corrupt manner, before all hell breaks loose – much to Swann’s dismay.

Find out more about this movie here.

Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Impassioned Eye (2003)

Although this film is more of a documentary, it really is a must-see for photographers and photography lovers. Henri Cartier-Bresson is one of the most influential figures in photography history, and this film sees him talk about becoming and being a photographer, composition, and some of his secrets to capturing the moment. He also talks about his travels, including Mexico in the 1930s, imprisonment during World War II, being with Gandhi moments before his assassination, while others (such as Isabelle Huppert, Arthur Miller, and Josef Koudelka) also discuss the famous photographer.

Find out more about this documentary here.

Everlasting Moments (2008)

This Swedish drama is based on the true story of Maria Larsson, a Swedish working class woman in the early 20th century who wins a camera in a wartime raffle and goes on to become a photographer. Her initial fascination with photography becomes something that she struggles with at first, however her love of the medium and decision to keep her camera ultimately changes her life.

Find out more about this movie here.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

This comedy adventure film tells the tale of Walter Mitty, a negative assets manager at Life magazine who daydreams of adventures. Mitty works with highly regarded photojournalist Sean O’Connell who tells Mitty that he wants negative #25 to be used for the cover of the magazine’s final print issue. There’s just one problem though: the negative is missing and Mitty must journey across the world with the hopes of locating O’Connell, and therefore, the negative too.

Find out more about this movie here.

There you have it – some of our recommended ‘must-see’ movies that photographers will love! We hope these films will inspire and motivate you with your own photography career.