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Michael Chin

Cinematographer

Primetime Emmy nominee

Works as
Cinematographer
Titles
21 on MovieCove · 58 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 155 days to Oct 26Down 33% in 30 days

What are Michael Chin's films like?

Across their 15 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Survival.

Genres

Documentary9 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 84th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Documentary movies
Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 38th percentile
: browse their Drama movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
31%
Survival
16%
Power
13%
Self
12%
Bonds
10%
Ideas
10%
Morality
9%
Community6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity3 titles, browse their movies with this themeDisplacement3 titles, browse their movies with this themePrejudice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeGrief2 titles, browse their movies with this themeOppression2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRedemption2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 14 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 5 · Serious 3 · Dark 6

Grounded: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their grounded movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 13 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 6 · Charged 5 · Intense 3

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 10 · Shifting 4 · Whiplash 0

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 8 · Some laughs 6 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 9 · Even-paced 5 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 3 · Engaged 10 · Full focus 1

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 11 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Contemplative
10
Melancholic
8
Warm
6
Bittersweet
4
Hopeful
4
Other
8

How their films linger

Thought-provoking8 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet5 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy1
  • Bittersweet8
  • Ambiguous6

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Michael Chin's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 11 of their 21 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on HBO Max (5).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Michael Chin's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

58 credits, 21 with a MovieCove page.

  • Cade & Jade (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)

    Camera Operator

  • Free Chol Soo Lee(2022)

    Camera Operator

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • Simple as Water(2021)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all films

  • The Chinese Exclusion Act(2017)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Makers: Once and For All (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Cinematographer

  • Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2015)

    Cinematographer

  • Raça (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2013)

    Cinematographer

  • I Can Be President: A Kid's-Eye View(2011)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 35th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Egalite for All: Toussaint Louverture and the Haitian Revolution (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)

    Cinematographer

  • Patsy Mink: Ahead of the Majority (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Cinematographer

  • Gonzo(2008)

    Additional Photography

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Kit Carson (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Cinematographer

  • The Great Fever (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Director · Cinematographer

  • Jesse James (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Cinematographer

  • Read You Like a Book(2006)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all films

  • The Massie Affair (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Cinematographer

  • Last Letters Home: Voices of American Troops from the Battlefields of Iraq(2004)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • Final Cut: The Making and Unmaking of Heaven's Gate(2004)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Cinematographer

  • Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Show 3 episodes · Cinematographer

  • Citizen King (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

    Cinematographer

  • Peter and Paul and the Christian Revolution (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Director

  • The Transcontinental Railroad (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Director · Cinematographer

  • Chicago: City of the Century (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

    Show 3 episodes · Cinematographer

  • Jimmy Carter (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Camera Operator

  • Zoot Suit Riots (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2002)

    Cinematographer

  • Yesterday's Tomorrows (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Cinematographer

  • Sing Faster: The Stagehands' Ring Cycle (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

    Cinematographer

  • Life Tastes Good(1999)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films

  • Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl(1998)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 92nd percentile of all films

  • The Irish in America: Long Journey Home(1998)

    Show Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all shows (provisional, few ratings)

  • Cadillac Desert (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    Show 4 episodes · Cinematographer

  • The Battle Over Citizen Kane (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

    Cinematographer

  • Black Is… Black Ain’t (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Additional Photography

  • Skin Deep (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Cinematographer

  • America's War on Poverty (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Show 5 episodes · Cinematographer

  • A Litany for Survival: The Life and Work of Audre Lorde (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

    Cinematographer

  • Freedom on My Mind(1994)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • Malcolm X: Make It Plain (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

    Cinematographer

  • The Great Depression (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Show 7 episodes · Cinematographer

  • The Great Depression: A Job at Ford's (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Cinematographer

  • Earth and the American Dream(1992)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films

  • The Dream Machine (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Show 5 episodes · Cinematographer

  • Forbidden City, U.S.A.(1989)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Yosemite: The Fate of Heaven (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    Additional Photography

  • Haitian Corner (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    Cinematographer

  • Eyes on the Prize III: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest(2025)

    Show 8 episodes · Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all shows

  • Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam(1987)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • The Mighty Pawns(1987)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • Just Like Weather (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)

    Cinematographer

  • Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart(1985)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • National Geographic Explorer(1985)

    Show 1 episode · Additional Director of Photography

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all shows

  • Disposable Heroes: The Other Side of Football (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1985)

    Assistant Camera

  • The Great Spirit Within the Hole (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)

    Cinematographer

  • Chan Is Missing(1982)

    Cinematographer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • American Playhouse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    Show 1 episode · Cinematographer

  • The Day After Trinity(1980)

    Assistant Camera

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Clint (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Cinematographer

Career shape

A full career of 50 titles, 49 of them dated from 1980 to 2026.

Biggest box office

Freedom on My Mind (1994)

$71K worldwide

Highest rated

Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam (1987)

Midcredits 93rd

By role

only this rolewith another role
Directing3 of 50: 1 only directing, 2 with another roleCinematography41 of 50: 39 only cinematography, 2 with another role · typical Midcredits score85thOther crew8 of 50: 8 only other crew, 0 with another role

By decade

1980s12 · crew1990s14 · crew2000s17 · crew2010s3 · crew2020s3 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

Awards

Nominated for a Primetime Emmy in 2002, Outstanding Cinematography for Non-Fiction Programming (Single or Multi-Camera).

Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.

How do Michael Chin's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 85th percentile, the median of all 18; across their 14 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 78th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 14

Approval · how many liked their films

73rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 14

Reach · how many have seen their films

28thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 14

Midcredits score across 21 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up12
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th3
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

8 of their 21 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Loved with Detractors1
  • Divisive2
  • Cult Classic2
  • Crowd Pleaser8
  • Mixed4

Most divisive · cinematographer

I Can Be President: A Kid's-Eye View (2011)

95th percentile spread · 46% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · cinematographer

The Chinese Exclusion Act (2017)

Midcredits 96th · 84% liked

Reviewers score the cinematography 75/100 in their films, across 7 reviewed titles; fans 75, detractors 75. The element that speaks to their work as a cinematographer.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Michael Chin work with?

People who share at least 2 of Michael Chin's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Todd Boekelheide shares the most, 4.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers and cinematographers

Producers