Fritz Spiess

Fritz Spiess (born 1925 in Germany) was a Canadian cinematographer.

Biography

Spiess studied photography in Germany and immigrated to Canada in 1951. Spiess initially worked as a still photographer until 1954 and then focused on cinematography from 1954 until his retirement in 1990. He also directed television commercials. He was a founding member of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers. Because of the many awards his commercials won and the awards that were created in his name, he became known as the "dean of Canadian cinematographers". Significant portions of his commercial cinematography legacy have been permanently archived at the University of Toronto.

Photography

Spiess' still photography featured works taken during post-war Germany and early 1950s Canada. His Canadian photos from the 1950s appeared in major publications such as Life and Mayfair. Many of these photographs are now featured at Toronto's Bulger Gallery. Eight photographs from his "Paris in Munich" 1948 photo shoot form part of the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of Ontario and were on display at the AGO in February 2012.