Hawkinson began his career as an
electrician,
lighting technician, and
gaffer at
Boss Film Studios, a prominent
visual effects company. He worked on numerous big-budget, effects-heavy films like
Alien 3, Species, and
Air Force One, and lower-budget
genre films like
Intruder and
Fist of the North Star. Starting in 1997, he became a highly prolific DP for music videos, with over 200 credits to his name. Hawkinson served as director of photography on the sitcom
Arrested Development for which he experimented with different
16 mm film cameras and
HD camcorders in order to achieve the look and visual styles desired by the series' creators
Joe and Anthony Russo. He worked on several subsequent television projects with the Russos, including
Carpoolers, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, and
Community. He shot the
horror film The Unborn and the
2007 remake of The Hitcher, both of which were produced by
Platinum Dunes. Starting in 2013, Hawkinson served as the series DP on
Hannibal, a
psychological thriller -drama series based on the novels by
Thomas Harris. His photography heavily utilizing angular lighting and
shallow focus to create a distinct, unnerving atmosphere. His work was a point of near-universal acclaim, many praising its dark, brooding,
art-house style and disturbing atmosphere, with many calling it the best-looking show on television. His work on the first season of the
dystopian science fiction series The Man in the High Castle earned him a
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series and a nomination for an
ASC Award. In 2025, Hawkinson was appointed as a member of the jury at the
78th Locarno Film Festival for First Feature Competition. == Filmography ==