Bob Elfstrom Resume
Bob Elfstrom’s signature as a documentary cameraman is unmistakable. His vision is defined by a confident,
clear ability to focus on the essence of any given situation. He has an intuitive sense of story, a feature film feel
for lighting, and an athletic agility with a handheld camera. His work commands attention with its visceral beauty,
fluid grace and basic human compassion. Among the best in his field, Elfstrom has earned awards not only for
himself as Director of Photography, but also for countless productions he’s worked on over the years. The following resume is a brief synopisis of his most recent work and includes highlights from his decades-long career.
PBS
“Art 21” - (21st Century artists: Sally Mann, Richard Serra, Robert Ryman & others)
“Keeping Score” (Michael Tilson Thomas & The S.F. Symphony)
“Outsider, The Life and Art of Judith Scott” (Portrait of an outsider artist)
“Freedom Machines” (Challenges notions of disabilities)
“Life Beyond Earth” - ( With Timothy Ferris and based on his book)
“Bill Moyers on Addiction” & “The Wisdom of Faith” (with Huston Smith)
“Christmas at Starcross” - (Aired on The Aids Quarterly - Award winning, A monastic community adopts children
with Aids. Produced, directed and photographed)
“Arabs and Israelis Series” - (Award winning - Stories from both sides of the conflict)
“Til Tomorrow” (MTV percursor: Don McLean and his music. Produced, directed and photographed)
“The Thirteenth Guest” - (Dinner party debate following Nixon’s bombing of Cambodia. Produced, directed and
photographed.)
“Last Reflections of a War” - (Shot on location in Vietnam during the war)
“Lay My Burden Down” - (The Civil Rights movement in Selma, Alabama)
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER
“Vietnam: Pictures From The Other SIde” - (North Vietnamese photographers from the Vietnam War)
“The Shape of Life Series” - (Exploring the origins of life on the planet Earth)
“The Lost Ships of Guadalcanal” - (Expedition to sunken WW II ships lost in the battle of Guadalcanal)
“When the Earth Shakes” - (Earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area)
“Sheer Courage” - (Rock climber Hugh Herr and how he perseveres with prosthetic legs. Produced,
directed and photographed)
“Voices in an Ancient Forest” - (Examines the potential loss of the Tongas National Forest)
NOVA
“Origins Series” - (Origin of the Universe & Life on the Planet Earth)
“Microflyers” (A study of small surveillance airplanes)
“Wright Brothers: The 100th Anniversary” - (Anniversary of Kitty Hawk flight)
“Evolution Series: What About God?” - (Christian Fundamentalists vs. Darwinism)
“Building BIg Series” - (Award winning - 3 shows: Bridges, Tunnels and Dams)
“Special Effects - Titanic and Beyond - (Behind the scenes look at special effects for feature films)
“The Race for the Superconductor” - (Emmy award winner - shot in Japan and USA)
FRONTLINE
“Inside the Teenage Brain” (Revelations of neuroscience research)
“Merchants of Cool” - (Advertising and teenage values)
“The Lost Children of Rockdale County” - (Award Winner - Teenage syphilis epidemic near Atlanta)
“The High Price of Health” - (An investigative look at HMOs.)
AMERICAN MASTERS
“Walter Kronkite: Witness to History”
“Finding Lucy” - (Portrait of Lucille Ball. Emmy, for Best Documentary)
NBC PRIME TIME SPECIALS
“Crime and Punishment Series-year one” (High Definition documentary version of “Law and Order”)
“Bill Gates” (Tom Brokow Special)
“Lifeline Series” (Emmy award (Classic series about real-life surgeons. Precursor to fictional ER)
“My Father the Circus King” (NBC Peacock Series with Gunther Gabel Williams, animal trainer)
DISCOVERY CHANNEL
“Cathedrals of the Sky” (Astronomical telescopes)
“Citizen Carter” (Portrait of Jimmy Carter in Nicaragua and Alaska)
“Submarines: Sharks of Steel” (Nuclear Submarines)
“Tales of Wind and Water” (The tradition of wooden boat building in Maine)
“Sea Power Series “ (two, 1-hour specials following an oil tanker and container ship around the world)
TBS
“Portrait of America Series” (Award winning: Portraits of Idaho, Lousiana, Hawaii, California and
Nebraska - Produced, directed and photographed)
“World of Audubon Series” (Four specials on the Environment: “Galapagos: My Fragile World” (with
photographer, Tui deRoy; “Danger at the Beach” (with Ted Danson); “The Other Hawaii” (with Richard Chamberlain); and “Caribbean Cool” (with Lou Gossett Jr.)
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
“Moses Pendleton Presents Moses Pendleton” (Awardwinning portrait of the eccentric
Pilobolus/Momix choreographer/ dancer. Directed and photographed.
HBO
“Sport To Die For” - (Extreme Sports)
“Paul Rodriques Behind Bars” (Concert at San Quentin Prison)
“Violence in the Work Place” - (Death row muderers and their victims)
CBS PRIME TIME SPECIALS
“The Body Human Series” - (Emmy award - The miracle of life and the human body)
BBC
“Horizon Series” - (And many others)
CBC
“Lost in Las Vegas” - (Award winning - Blues Brothers impersonators try to make it big.)
CORPORATE & COMMERCIAL
Apple N.A.B. Show Real
Pine Sol Commercial
Alza/Johnson & Johnson Merger
“Yo Yo Ma” (Sony Classical Pictures)
Jenny Craig Weight Loss Commercial
AAA Commercial (Directed by Carroll Ballard)
“San Francisco Serenade” - (Produced, directed and photographed for the S.F. Tourist Bureau)
“America’s Cup: More than a Race” - (Produced, directed and photographed for Pacific Bell)
“The Magic Room” - (Produced, directed and photographed for Atari)
FEATURE DOCUMENTARIES
“Metallica: Some Kind of Monster” (Trials & tribulations of a heavy metal band)
“Gimme Shelter” - for Maysles Films (Awards, N.B. slow motion footage of Jagger singing “Love in Vain”)
“The Running Fence” and “The Wrapped Islands” - for Maysles Films (Awards, Christo and his art events)
“A Song and a Stone” (Pete Seeger and the Peace Movement)
“Other Voices” (Academy Award Nominee, verite film following the life of a schizophrenic teenager)
“Cash” (Award winning portrait of Johnny Cash. Directed and photographed)
“The Queen” (Award winning. Classic verite film about a transvestite Miss America contest in NYC)
FEATURE FILMS
“Gospel Road” (With Johnny Cash and his music in Israel)
“Sticky My Fingers, Fleet My Feet” (Academy Award Nominee:Best Short - Touch football in Central Park)
“Hi Mom” (Directed by Brian DePalma, starring Robert DeNiro)
IMAX
Dinosaurs Alive (Co-produced with Dave Clark)