Cathal Watters

Academy Member

Born in Dublin and raised in Meath, Cathal has travelled the world working on a variety of projects including news, documentaries and film and television. Cathal's older brother (a press photographer for local newspapers), peaked Cathal's interest in the trade in their homemade photography dark room: a garden shed in County Meath.

After having studied Drama in Trinity College Dublin, Cathal began working for news channels and shooting documentaries. In the subsequent years, Cathal worked on a number of documentaries and shorts including Che and Toy Soldiers, as well as shooting music videos for musicians such as Sinead O'Connor.

In recent times, Cathal has turned his eye towards film and television drama. In the last three years particularly, his work as the D.O.P on hit BBC drama series Peaky Blinders has received widespread praise, as well as earning Cathal an IFTA nomination for 'Best Cinematography.' Other notable IFTA Award achievements include his win for Viva in 2015, as well as nominations for the TG4 series An Klondike.

In 2020, he was the Director of Photography for 6 episodes of The Alienist and continued working on Irish comedy series Finding Joy. He received an IFTA nomination for Best Cinematography for his work on the thriller series Smother in 2021.

Video

Awards & Recognition

Handsome Devil
  • IFTA Winner, Best Cinematography (2017)
Viva
  • IFTA Winner, Best Cinematography (2016)
A Dark Song
  • Monster Fest Winner, Best Cinematography in a Feature Film (2016)
Rolla Saor
  • Cork International Film Festival Winner, Best Irish Language Short (2007)

Key Credits

  • Foundation (2021)
  • Smother (2021)
  • Finding Joy (2018-2020)
  • The Alienist (2020)
  • Papi Chulo (2018)
  • Rosie (2018)
  • Peaky Blinders (2017)
  • An Klondike (2017)
  • The Flag (2016)
  • Handsome Devil (2016)
  • A Dark Song (2016)
  • Viva (2015)
  • Dialanna on gCogadh Mor (2014)
  • One Million Dubliners (2014)
  • Toy Soldiers (2012)
  • Che (2009)