Personal details
- Birth Location: Lima, Peru
- Professions: Cinematographer, Camera and Electrical Department, Producer
Checco Varese, ASC, is one of those guys you see in the credits and immediately know you’re in for some killer visuals. He just wrapped up shooting It: Chapter Two with Andy Muschietti, following up last year’s monster hit. He’s also the one behind the lens for the first season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan on Amazon—yeah, that’s John Krasinski running around being a spy, and Checco’s the one making it look so slick. He’s got a knack for pilots, too. Seriously, the guy’s got almost two dozen under his belt, and most of them get picked up. Stuff like FX’s The Strain, A&E’s The Returned, ABC Family’s The Fosters, Melrose Place for the CW, The Defenders for CBS, and, oh, True Blood’s pilot? That one ran for seven seasons, if you forgot. Checco’s been around the block, shooting everything from Patricia Riggen’s Miracles From Heaven and The 33 (that insane Chilean miner rescue story) to Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim (second unit, but still—that’s giant robots). He’s worked with Keanu Reeves on Replicas and shot hundreds of music videos back in the 90s, including legends like Prince and Dave Matthews Band. The man even snagged a VMA nom for Best Cinematography in 2006. Born in Peru, he cut his teeth shooting in some of the world’s wildest conflict zones—Latin America, the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, Africa—you name it, he’s probably filmed there. These days, he’s based in LA, speaks six languages, and is repped by DDA.
referencennSince 2010, this person’s been rocking the ASC badge—yeah, that’s the American Society of Cinematographers. That’s not just some honorary club, either. You’ve gotta have serious chops behind the camera to get in. Think about the movies you love, the ones where the lighting just hits different or the camera moves make your heart race—yeah, odds are, someone in the ASC had their hands all over that. These folks basically set the gold standard for what cinematography should look like. So, anybody who’s been a member for over a decade? They’re more than just good with a lens—they’re borderline legends in the field. Their work probably pops up in those films everyone’s still talking about years later. If you care about how movies look and feel, pay attention to ASC members. They’re shaping what you see, even if you don’t realize it.
Konidela Ram Charan
Lima, Peru