Sebastian Klinger | |
|---|---|
 Klinger in 2024 | |
| Born | October 28, 1993 (age 32) Zürich, Switzerland |
| Occupation(s) | Cinematographer, Producer |
| Years active | 2016–present |
| Website | sebklinger |
Sebastian Klinger (born October 28, 1993) is a Swiss cinematographer and producer. His critically acclaimed feature film Sew Torn premiered at South by Southwest Film Festival and screened on the Piazza Grande at Locarno Film Festival and Camerimage in 2024. [1] [2] [3]
After graduating from high school, Klinger completed his education at the University of Applied Sciences of the Grisons with the feature film Zoe under the guidance of Emmy winner Heiner Gatzemeier and Oscar-nominated cinematographer Peter Indergand, SCS. [4] Since then, Klinger has worked internationally as a freelance cinematographer. With the winner of the Student Academy Award, Freddy Macdonald, he shot the feature Sew Torn , which premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival 2024, then headlined the Piazza Grande at the Locarno Film Festival and was selected at Camerimage. [1] [2] [3] The feature film had a theatrical release in May 2025, and became available to stream on Netflix in December 2025. [5] [6] [7]
The film is based on a 2019 short film of the same name, also shot by Klinger, which was acquired by Searchlight Pictures and qualified for an Academy Award. [8] [9]
Klinger enjoys a long-standing collaboration with Macdonald that has spanned numerous projects, including the award-winning short film The Father of Art and three music videos for three-time Grammy winner Fantastic Negrito. [10] Klinger's work has been recognized with the White Dolphin at the Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards [11] and earned him a place in the American Society of Cinematographers' ASC Vision Mentorship Program. [12] In addition to his work as a cinematographer, Klinger also works as a producer and regularly collaborates with the Swiss production company ORISONO, among others. [13] [14]
| Year | Title | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | The Father of Art (short film) | Freddy Macdonald | |
| 2018 | Zoe (feature film) | Johannes Thüring | first feature |
| 2019 | Sew Torn (short film) | Freddy Macdonald | executive produced by Peter Spears |
| 2020 | Maiensäss (short film) | Sven Schnyder | also as producer |
| 2021 | Paxmal (short film) | Sven Schnyder | also as producer |
| 2024 | Sew Torn (feature film) | Freddy Macdonald | also as producer |
| Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Beverly Hills Film Festival | Best Student Film | The Father of Art | Won | [15] |
| 2021 | Jaipur International Film Festival | Best Political Film | Maiensäss | Won | [16] |
| 2021 | Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival | LGBTQ | Paxmal | Nominated | [17] |
| 2024 | South By Southwest Film Festival | Visions | Sew Torn | Nominated | [1] |
| 2024 | Locarno Film Festival | Piazza Grande | Sew Torn | Nominated | [2] |
| 2024 | Camerimage | Contemporary World Cinema | Sew Torn | Nominated | [3] |