Idziak was born on 25 January 1945 in
Katowice,
Poland. He had made fourteen films with
Krzysztof Zanussi and early works from
Krzysztof Kieślowski, including his television, feature film and foreign debuts. Idziak has made films with directors such as
Hark Bohm,
Detlev Buck and
John Duigan, and has also written and directed two films himself. He worked on
Michael Winterbottom's film
I Want You, where he won an Honourable Mention at the
48th Berlin International Film Festival. He moved to more mainstream films including
Gattaca (1997),
Proof of Life (2000) and
Black Hawk Down (2001), which earned him a nomination for an
Academy Award and a
BAFTA for Best Cinematography. His last mainstream production was
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. He then worked on
Battle of Warsaw 1920, the first Polish-language feature film to be shot in 3D. Idziak teaches at film schools in
Berlin,
London and
Copenhagen, and also conducts seminars in cinematography in other countries. He is currently working on a Virtual Film Studio Web site called Film Spring Open which gives users an opportunity to present work to global audiences and to make films online. Participants can share ideas, exchange equipment or write scripts together. The aim is to create an international community of filmmakers who will support each other, make films together and will care about the advertising and distribution of their films. In 2012, he was awarded the
Order of Polonia Restituta for his "outstanding achievements for the Polish and world culture" and in 2014, he became the recipient of the Gold
Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis. ==Personal life==