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Cliff Charles

Cinematographer

Primetime Emmy nominee · 1 other major award body

Works as
Cinematographer
Titles
23 on MovieCove · 33 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 64 days to Oct 27Down 22% in 30 days

What are Cliff Charles' films like?

Across their 18 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Self.

Genres

Documentary7 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 67th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies
Comedy4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 53rd percentile
: browse their Comedy movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
35%
Self
19%
Bonds
12%
Ideas
11%
Power
9%
Morality
8%
Survival
6%
Community5 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice6 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age3 titles, browse their movies with this themeLegacy4 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity5 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeTruth3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSurvival3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 13 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 8 · Serious 1 · Dark 4

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 12 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 7 · Charged 2 · Intense 4

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 7 · Shifting 5 · Whiplash 1

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 4 · Funny 4

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

A split, not a type: Slow burn 7 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 1

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 9 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 11 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Hopeful
10
Tense
6
Contemplative
7
Joyful
4
Melancholic
5
Other
14

How their films linger

Hopeful9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteInfuriating2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy3
  • Bittersweet7
  • Ambiguous6
  • Cyclical1
  • Other1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Cliff Charles' films?

As of October 24, 2026, 18 of their 23 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on HBO Max (5).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Cliff Charles' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

33 credits, 23 with a MovieCove page.

  • Steal This Story, Please!(2025)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films

  • Becoming Thurgood: America's Social Architect(2025)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Katrina: Come Hell and High Water(2025)

    Show Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 53rd percentile of all shows

  • Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television(2025)

    Show Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 8th percentile of all shows

  • Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told(2024)

    Additional Director of Photography

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Holy Marvels with Dennis Quaid(2024)

    Show Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all shows

  • The Crossover(2023)

    Show Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all shows

  • First Kill(2022)

    Show Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 59th percentile of all shows

  • Swagger(2021)

    Show 10 episodes · Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows

  • The Slow Hustle(2021)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • Flatbush Misdemeanors (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Show 10 episodes · Cinematographer

  • Baltimore Rising(2017)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all films

  • Hannibal Buress: Comedy Camisado(2016)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • Brent Morin: I'm Brent Morin(2015)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • NBA 2K16’s Livin’ Da Dream: A Spike Lee Joint (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Cinematographer

  • Heart Of The Shore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Director

  • Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo(2015)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films

  • The Final Shot: A Farewell to Boardwalk Empire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Cinematographer

  • Finding the Funk(2013)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 83rd percentile of all films

  • Red Hook Summer(2012)

    Camera Operator

    Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films

  • Venus and Serena(2012)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 61st percentile of all films

  • One Night in Vegas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2010)

    Cinematographer

  • If God Is Willing and da Creek Don't Rise(2010)

    Show 2 episodes · Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all shows

  • Good Hair(2009)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Belly 2: Millionaire Boyz Club(2008)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 8th percentile of all films

  • All the Invisible Children(2005)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Jellysmoke (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Cinematographer · Producer

  • Miracle's Boys (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Show 5 episodes · Cinematographer

  • Men Without Jobs (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Cinematographer · Producer

  • Shottas(2002)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • 30 Years to Life(2001)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Grand Theft Auto 2: The Movie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Electrician

  • Love Goggles (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Cinematographer

Career shape

A full career of 25 titles, 24 of them dated from 1999 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Good Hair (2009)

$4.2M worldwide

Highest rated

Steal This Story, Please! (2025)

Midcredits 98th

Most popular right now

First Kill (2022)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing1 of 25: 1 only directing, 0 with another roleProducing2 of 25: 0 only producing, 2 with another roleCinematography22 of 25: 20 only cinematography, 2 with another role · typical Midcredits score65thOther crew2 of 25: 2 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1990s1 · crew2000s7 · crew2010s10 · crew2020s6 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

3 major nominations and no wins, 2006–2011.

  1. 2011
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Cinematography for Nonfiction Programming
  2. 2007
    • Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Cinematography for Nonfiction Programming
  3. 2006
    • Independent Spirit Award, nominated

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do Cliff Charles' films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 63rd percentile, the median of all 16; across their 13 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 66th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

66thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Approval · how many liked their films

62ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Reach · how many have seen their films

51stpercentile
Typical film, the median of 13

Midcredits score across 23 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up5
  • 50th to 74th10
  • 25th to 49th4
  • Below 25th4

Shape of the crowd

10 of their 23 titles are Mixed.

  • Divisive2
  • Cult Classic3
  • Crowd Pleaser7
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed10

Most divisive · cinematographer

Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo (2015)

92nd percentile spread · 47% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · cinematographer

Steal This Story, Please! (2025)

Midcredits 98th · 86% liked

Reviewers score the cinematography 57/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles; fans 62, detractors 40. The element that speaks to their work as a cinematographer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Cliff Charles work with?

People who share at least 2 of Cliff Charles' MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Nancy Abraham shares the most, 3.

Directors

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers

Mixed roles