Mike Mickens has over 20 years' experience in the film and television industry. In the last 14 years working as a cinematographer, he has accumulated over 30 feature film credits and completed various television projects.

Mickens attended the renowned Newhouse School at Syracuse University, from which he graduated with a B.S. in television and film production. After college, Mickens began his career in New York City working for MTV as a production manager. He also gained experience in commercial production, working with talented director/cinematographers such as Phil Marco, who inspired Mickens to pursue the art of lighting and cinematography.

After spending a few years in New York working as an electrician, gaffer, and videographer, Mickens moved to Los Angeles to pursue feature film and television projects. He was gaffer and lighting designer for Kevin Costner’s “500 nations,” which aired on CBS. Mickens’ still photography from that project was included in the book based on the documentary. Mickens was also a lighting designer for director/cinematographer Tony Kaye, and their work on the music video, “What God Wants,” featuring Roger Waters, received a Grammy nomination for Best Music Video. Mickens’ other projects as lighting designer included working for Oscar-award-winning director Saul Bass on the opening credits for “A River Runs Through It,” and for director David Lynch on commercials for Sony Playstation.

Roger Corman gave Mickens his first opportunity to work as cinematographer, and he subsequently shot an array of 35mm features for Corman’s Concorde/New Horizons company. Mickens quickly gained a reputation as a cinematographer who could shoot great-looking movies despite time and budget pressures. Mickens has also worked on features, documentaries, PSAs’ and television projects for Gold Circle Films, Columbia Pictures, Destination Films, HBO, Showtime, Decade Pictures, Trimark Pictures, Nickelodeon Network, Orion Pictures, CBS, ABC and NBC Television.

Mickens’ recent films include “Greetings from the Shore” starring Paul Sorvino, which is set for release in August 2008, “Reeker,” and “No Man’s Land,” which was recently acquired by Sam Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures. These movies have been featured at various film festivals, including the Toronto Film Festival, South by Southwest, Cannes, and the Tribeca Film Festival.

Working on “Greetings from the Shore,” set in New Jersey, was familiar territory to Mickens. As a child he spent summers at his grandparents’ house in Belmar, New Jersey, one block from the ocean. “Belmar is a quintessential Jersey Shore town,” said Mickens. “I could identify with the characters in ‘Greetings from the Shore,’ and I wanted to capture the feeling of magic and possibility that the Shore in summertime represents for so many people.”