--- name: "Russ T. Alsobrook" canonical: "https://film.one/person/russ-t-alsobrook" fi1m_id: "russ-t-alsobrook" imdb_id: "nm0022540" tmdb_id: 22043 wikidata_id: "Q2176879" roles: ["Cinematographer","Director"] born: "2 September 1946" reviewed_on_fi1m: 4 average_fi1m_score: 69 average_over: 3 updated: "2026-09-25T01:44:48.694766+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." --- # Russ T. Alsobrook ## Identity Russ T. Alsobrook - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/russ-t-alsobrook - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** russ-t-alsobrook - **IMDb ID:** nm0022540 - **TMDB ID:** 22043 - **Wikidata ID:** Q2176879 - **Same entity:** https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2176879, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0022540/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/22043 Cinematographer and director. Born 2 September 1946 in Hollywood. ## Details - **Work:** Cinematographer, Director - **Born:** 2 September 1946, Hollywood - **Active:** 1999–2014 - **Also known as:** Russ Alsobrook - **Titles on Fi1m:** 4: 1 directing, 3 crew - **Frequently works with:** [Jake Kasdan](https://film.one/person/jake-kasdan.md), [Judd Apatow](https://film.one/person/judd-apatow.md), [Miguel Arteta](https://film.one/person/miguel-arteta.md) - **Fi1m score by decade:** 1990s 88 (1), 2000s 82 (1), 2010s 59 (2) - **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 0 at 60–79, 1 under 60 - **Genres:** Comedy 3, Drama 1 - **Screen time:** 4 hours of reviewed films - **Box office:** $271m across 2 films with figures - **Elsewhere:** https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2176879, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0022540/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/22043 ## Streaming the US now - **Paramount+:** [*Freaks and Geeks*](https://film.one/tv/freaks-and-geeks.md) (88) - **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Superbad*](https://film.one/film/superbad.md) (82) - **Disney+:** [*New Girl*](https://film.one/tv/new-girl.md) (80) For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country. ## Fi1m on Russ T. Alsobrook > Russ T. Alsobrook photographs comedy with respect for the people making fools of themselves. We admire his restraint: faces get the attention, and ordinary surroundings make the embarrassment harder to dismiss. In *Superbad* (2007), the boys’ embarrassed faces deserve more attention than the rooms around them, and Russ T. Alsobrook gives it to them. His cinematography leaves Jonah Hill and Michael Cera’s conversation in charge, while Chris L. Spellman’s suburban settings make their panic horribly plausible. We laughed and winced because those faces make the boys’ fear of social failure so recognisable. Greg Mottola’s film is a persuasive case for keeping the photography out of the joke’s way. The same patience serves *Freaks and Geeks* (1999), an earlier television credit in which Alsobrook shares cinematography duties with Bill Pope. Their framing allows an uncomfortable reaction to matter without making it another gag. Philip Messina and Jefferson Sage give the school the ordinary, slightly tiresome look of somewhere its pupils have to attend again tomorrow. The pace occasionally drags, but the camera’s attention to the young cast helps make the waiting worthwhile. The shift towards mainstream feature comedy in the 2000s also brought *Forgetting Sarah Marshall* (2008). Alsobrook lets the script determine the style rather than assuming every comedy needs the same polish. For *Tammy* (2014), he adjusted the lighting in practical locations to follow changes in character. Gaffer Curtiss Bradford has worked with him for more than 30 years. *New Girl* (2011) gave him a longer test: he served as director of photography for all 135 episodes and directed four. The programme becomes worth returning to when its friendships take precedence over Jess’s awkwardness, and its photographic consistency serves that ensemble. There are limits to what a cinematographer can repair: the overworked romantic plotting remains overworked. Nor can attentive framing in *Superbad* give the girls the attention the writing owes them. Start with *Freaks and Geeks* for the faces, then *Superbad* for what happens when the boys try to look confident. ## Biography Russ T. Alsobrook is an American cinematographer. He was born on 2 September 1946 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. He began working in the film industry after leaving college, initially in camera and electrical departments, before becoming a director of photography. His credits include the television series *Freaks and Geeks* (1999) and *New Girl* (2011–2018), on which he also directed episodes. Feature films as director of photography include *Superbad* (2007), *Forgetting Sarah Marshall* (2008), *Role Models* (2008), *Paul Blart: Mall Cop* (2009), *Tammy* (2014), *Blockers* (2018) and *All My Life* (2020). Alsobrook is a member of the American Society of Cinematographers. *Sources: imdb.com, britishcinematographer.co.uk, theasc.com, de.wikipedia.org.* ## On Fi1m (4) ### Directed (1) - *New Girl* (2011), Fi1m 80, Director — [page](https://film.one/tv/new-girl.md) ### Crew (3) — the average rests on these - *Tammy* (2014), Fi1m 38, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/film/tammy.md) - *Superbad* (2007), Fi1m 82, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/film/superbad.md) - *Freaks and Geeks* (1999), Fi1m 88, Director of Photography, Cinematography — [page](https://film.one/tv/freaks-and-geeks.md) ## Complete filmography (25) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *All My Life* (2020), Cinematography - *Blockers* (2018), Director of Photography - *Status Update* (2018), Director of Photography - *Black or White* (2015), Director of Photography - *Really* (2014), series, Director of Photography - *Tammy* (2014), Director of Photography — Fi1m 38, [page](https://film.one/film/tammy.md) - *New Girl* (2011), series, Director — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/new-girl.md) - *Friends with Benefits* (2011), series, Director of Photography - *You May Not Kiss the Bride* (2011), Director of Photography - *Paul Blart: Mall Cop* (2009), Director of Photography - *Role Models* (2008), Director of Photography - *Forgetting Sarah Marshall* (2008), Director of Photography - *Superbad* (2007), Director of Photography — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/superbad.md) - *Reign Over Me* (2007), Director of Photography - *Man About Town* (2006), Director of Photography - *Romy and Michele: In the Beginning* (2005), Director of Photography - *L.A. Dragnet* (2003), series, Director of Photography - *Freaks and Geeks* (1999), series, Director of Photography — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/tv/freaks-and-geeks.md) - *The Love Bug* (1997), Director of Photography - *Encino Woman* (1996), Director of Photography - *Freaky Friday* (1995), Director of Photography - *Escape to Witch Mountain* (1995), Director of Photography - *Mona Must Die* (1994), Director of Photography - *The Dark Side of the Moon* (1990), Director of Photography - *Three Without Fear* (1971), Additional Photography --- © 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/russ-t-alsobrook