---
name: "Eric Saarinen"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/eric-saarinen"
fi1m_id: "eric-saarinen"
imdb_id: "nm0754363"
tmdb_id: 73784
wikidata_id: "Q1351601"
roles: ["Cinematographer"]
born: "26 June 1942"
died: "21 December 2024"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 76
average_over: 3
updated: "2026-09-26T00:31:44.626283+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Eric Saarinen

## Identity

Eric Saarinen

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/eric-saarinen
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** eric-saarinen
- **IMDb ID:** nm0754363
- **TMDB ID:** 73784
- **Wikidata ID:** Q1351601
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Saarinen, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1351601, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0754363/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/73784

Cinematographer. Born 26 June 1942 in Detroit. Died 21 December 2024.

## Details

- **Work:** Cinematographer
- **Born:** 26 June 1942, Detroit
- **Died:** 21 December 2024
- **Active:** 1970–1979
- **Score spread:** 0 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Genres:** Comedy 1, Documentary 1, Horror 1, Music 1
- **Screen time:** 5 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $26m across 3 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Saarinen, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1351601, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0754363/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/73784

## Biography

Eric Saarinen (1942–2024) was an American cinematographer and film director. He served as director of photography on Wes Craven’s *The Hills Have Eyes* (1977) and Albert Brooks’s *Real Life* (1979), and later collaborated with Brooks on *Modern Romance* (1981) and *Lost in America* (1985).

Born in Detroit, Michigan, Saarinen was the son of architect Eero Saarinen and sculptor Lilian Swann Saarinen. He worked as a camera operator on the Rolling Stones documentary *Gimme Shelter* (1970) and was nominated for an Academy Award for the short documentary *Exploratorium* (1974). He also directed and produced a documentary about his father for the PBS series *American Masters*.

Saarinen shot and directed numerous television commercials, winning multiple Clio Awards and other honours. He became a member of the American Society of Cinematographers and was inducted for his work in commercials.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, theasc.com, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *Real Life* (1979), Fi1m 77, Cinematography, Director of Photography — [page](https://film.one/film/real-life.md)
- *The Hills Have Eyes* (1977), Fi1m 74, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/film/the-hills-have-eyes.md)
- *Gimme Shelter* (1970), Fi1m 78, Camera Operator — [page](https://film.one/film/gimme-shelter.md)

## Complete filmography (22)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future* (2016), Director of Photography
- *Jimi Plays Berkeley* (2003), Camera Operator
- *Lost in America* (1985), Director of Photography
- *The Golden Seal* (1983), Director of Photography
- *Symbiosis* (1982), Director of Photography
- *Modern Romance* (1981), Director of Photography
- *Joni Mitchell: Shadows and Light* (1980), Camera Operator
- *Headin' for Broadway* (1980), Director of Photography
- *Real Life* (1979), Director of Photography — Fi1m 77, [page](https://film.one/film/real-life.md)
- *Starhops* (1978), Director of Photography
- *You Light Up My Life* (1977), Director of Photography
- *The Hills Have Eyes* (1977), Director of Photography — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/the-hills-have-eyes.md)
- *Grizzly Adams* (1977), series, Director of Photography
- *Rooster: Spurs of Death!* (1977), Cinematography
- *Eat My Dust* (1976), Director of Photography
- *Juan, the Chamula* (1975), Director of Photography
- *Tidal Wave* (1975), Director of Photography
- *Summer School Teachers* (1974), Director of Photography
- *FTA* (1972), Director of Photography
- *Last Days at the Fillmore* (1972), Director of Photography
- *Gimme Shelter* (1970), Camera Operator — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/gimme-shelter.md)
- *Chicago* (1968), Camera Operator

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/eric-saarinen