'J. Edgar' and 'Glee' Take Top Awards from the SOC

Stephen Campanelli, SOC and Andrew Mitchell, SOC claimed top honors in the two competitive categories at the 2012 Society of Camera Operators (SOC) Annual Lifetime Achievement Awards celebration in the Leonard H. Goldenson Theater at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Campanelli won Feature Film Camera Operator of the Year for J. Edgar and Mitchell won Television Camera Operator of the Year for his work on Glee.

Campanelli was previously nominated for Hereafter in 2011 and The Changeling in 2009. The other nominees in the feature film category were Will Arnot, SOC (The Help), Mitch Dubin, SOC (War Horse), Peter Rosenfeld, SOC (Cowboys and Aliens), and P. Scott Sakamoto, SOC (The Defendants).

Mitchell’s win for Glee marked his first nomination in the category. The other nominees in the Television category were Grayson Austin, SOC (Memphis Beat), Greg Collier, SOC (Bones), Simon Jayes, SOC (True Blood), and Chris Tufty, SOC (The Closer).

Earlier in the night, Campanelli presented the SOC Board of Governors Award to 4-time Academy Award winner Clint Eastwood in recognition of his contribution to the art and craft of filmmaking, his vast body of work and his respect for the many contributions that a camera operator brings to every production. Eastwood and Campanelli have worked together on every Eastwood film from Bridges of Madison County to J. Edgar -- a collaboration lasting over 18 years.

The SOC Lifetime Achievement Award for Camera Operating was given to Paul Babin, SOC. Known for working with top directors such as Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Barry Levinson and James Cameron, Babin added his technical and artistic contributions to an array of films including The Abyss, Always, Fearless, True Lies, The Rainmaker and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.

The SOC’s celebration of the camera operator’s vital role on the set now begins at the college level. With its first College Camera Operator of the Year award, the SOC took the lead in honoring student productions that utilize a full time camera operator. The SOC was proud to honor Petr Cikhart (American Film Institute) for his work on The Skull Cap.

Philanthropy is a cornerstone of the SOC. The fundraising efforts of the Lifetime Achievement Awards are just a part of the way the SOC supports the Vision Center of the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles.

The SOC-produced a short film last year that helped persuade the Board at Children’s Hospital to increase the budget for the Vision Center by thousands of dollars. The members of the SOC hope this year’s film, “Know the Glow”, has an even greater impact.