Mutz Greenbaum Explained

Mutz Greenbaum
Birth Date:3 February 1896
Birth Place:Berlin, German Empire
Occupation:Cinematographer, film director
Othername:Max Greene
Parents:Jules Greenbaum

Mutz Greenbaum (3 February 1896 – 5 July 1968), sometimes credited as Max Greene or Max Greenbaum, was a German film cinematographer.[1]

He was the son of the pioneering film producer Jules Greenbaum who had founded Deutsche Bioscope. He began as a cameraman in 1915 working on German silent movies, especially in association with directors Urban Gad, Max Mack, and Franz Hofer. Most of the time he worked for his father's company Greenbaum-Film GmbH in Berlin, even directing some detective films around 1920.

His career continued into the sound era and he moved to England working on such films as The Stars Look Down (1940), Hatter's Castle (1942), Thunder Rock (1942), So Evil My Love (1948), Night and the City (1950) and I'm All Right Jack (1959), usually credited as Max Greene.

Mutz Greenbaum left Germany in the early 30's, signing with Gaumont-British as director of photography. During the succeeding decades, he worked on many classic films by leading producers Michael Balcon, Alexander Korda and the Boulting Brothers. He was one of the pioneers in British film industry in the use of low-key lighting, and was one of the most sought-after cinematographers of the 1930s. His first solo credit for a British film was Hindle Wakes (1931 directed by Victor Saville).

Selected filmography

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Max Greene. https://web.archive.org/web/20120804020613/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b9f659e75. dead. 2012-08-04. British Film Institute.