Eleonora Contessi (1996) is an Italian photographer and director of photography. Her practice moves between photography and cinema, with an ongoing research into light as a structural element of the image. She studied at ISFCI in Rome and graduated in Cinematography from the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in 2019. She mainly works in auteur and documentary cinema, collaborating on films presented and awarded at festivals such as Venice, Locarno, Turin, and Rome; in 2022, she received the Kinéo Award as Best Emerging Director of Photography. Alongside her film work, she develops personal photographic projects and has exhibited in contexts such as Appartenenze (Perimetro Club) and YOU/th – third edition. She is co-founder and editor of Eki Magazine, a printed magazine dedicated to the culture of light in the arts, and since 2023 she has been a member of the Chiaro Scuro Collective of Italian directors of photography.
CHIAROSCURO – www.collettivochiaroscuro.com
INSTAGRAM – @eleonora_contessi
EKI MAGAZINE – www.ekimagazine.com
MAIL – eleonora.contessi21@gmail.com
VIMEO – Vimeo
RESUME
FEATURE FILMS
The Miraculous Transformation of the Working Class Into Foreigners (2025), directed by Samir - second unit
Amen (2024), directed by Andrea Baroni - second unit
Regine di Quadri (2023), directed by Anna Testa
SHORT FILMS
Cospl/AI (2025), directed by Anna Coccoli
Quattorcidi (2025), directed by Maira Tersigni
Dente di Cinghiale (2025), directed by Rebecca Cervato
Ti amo Luna (2025), directed by Noemi Greco
La forma imperfetta dei ricordi (2024), directed by Elisa Faccioni
Humanity (2024), directed by Adalberto Lombardo
Chello N’Cuollo (2022), directed by Olga Torrico
Tria – del sentimento del tradire (2021), directed by Giulia Grandinetti
Forgive Us Our Trespasses (2021), directed by LorenzoMaria Chierici
Happily Ever After (2019), directed by Domenico Croce
Gas Station (2018), directed by Olga Torrico
Star (2018), directed by Stefano Clari
COMMERCIALS / MUSIC VIDEOS
Christine and the Queens – Stayin’ Alive (2023)
Casagit (2024), directed by Domenico Croce
Luiss University (2023), directed by Domenico Croce
Odio (2020) by Fasma, directed by Giorgio Caporali
Red Pulse – Campari (2019), directed by Marta Morandini
NOMINATIONS AND AWARDS
2026 — Cospl/AI (2025), directed by Anna Coccoli — winner of the UniCredit Contest, produced incollaboration with Anica Academy ETS
2025 — The Unfinished Form of Memories, directed by Elisa Faccioni — Official Selection, RIFF – Rome Independent Film Festival; Official Selection, LA Independent Women Film Awards
2024 — The Miraculous Transformation of the Working Class Into Foreigners, directed by Samir — second unit director of photography and camera operator; presented at the 77th Locarno Film Festival
2024 — Amen, directed by Andrea Baroni — second unit director of photography; presented Out of Competition at the 41st Turin Film Festival
2023 — Regine di Quadri, directed by Anna Testa — 41st Turin Film Festival, Portraits section, Out of Competition; Official Selection, 2024 Nastri d’Argento Documentaries
2023 — Chello N’Cuollo, directed by Olga Torrico — director of photography and camera operator; presented at Alice nella Città 2023, where it won the Rai Cinema Channel Award, and awarded at Visioni Italiane 2023 and the Next Generation Short Film Festival 2023
2023 — Incanto Short Film Festival — Award for Best Cinematography for Tria – delsentimento del tradire
2022 — Forgive Us Our Trespasses, directed by Lorenzo Maria Chierici — selected for the National Short Film Competition at the Rome Independent Film Festival
2022 — Kinéo Award, presented within the 78th Venice Film Festival — Best Emerging Director of Photography
2021 — Tria – Del sentimento del tradire, directed by Giulia Grandinetti — director of photography; in competition at Venice 79 – Orizzonti Short Films; winner of the Premio Pelliconi at Visioni Italiane 2022 and the Canal+ Award at CINEMED 2022
2019 — Happily Ever After, directed by Domenico Croce — presented at the 2021 Giffoni Film Festival
2018 — Gas Station, directed by Olga Torrico — selected for the 2020 Venice International Critics’ Week, where it won the award for Best Technical Contribution; shortlisted for the 2021 David di Donatello Awards
PRESS RELEASE
