Chris Menges (1940-) b. Kingston, Hertfordshire, England.

Menges was part of ITV’s ‘World In Action’ team in the early 1960s and became a journalist and cameraman for several important documentaries about South Africa. He also began a fruitful collaboration with Ken Loach, first of all as camera operator on Poor Cow (1967) and then as cinematographer on Kes (1969). As cinematographer, he worked on Gumshoe (1971), Local Hero (1983), and won best cinematography Academy Awards for The Killing Fields (1984) and The Mission (1986). Menges directorial debut, A World Apart (1988), was a passionate account of apartheid in 1960s South Africa. His follow-up, CrissCross (1992), failed to gain similar praise. Second Best (1994), in which William Hurt portrayed an introverted Welsh postman who adopts a troubled young boy marked Menges’ return to form. The Lost Son (1999), tackled many uncomfortable subjects including child abuse and prostitution, and while it is uneasy viewing it’s nonetheless compelling.