8 Iconic Film Characters and the 35mm Cameras They Carried
La Dolce Vita (1960)
Lately, I’ve been researching 35mm film cameras — the kind that make a soft mechanical sigh when you advance the film, like turning the page of a well-worn novel. I’ve been reading, watching, imagining. Like someone flipping through a dusty book of postcards from places they’ve never been, I started to wonder: what cameras did the characters I once loved carry?
Not just props, but clues — tiny machines that held something of their inner world.
So I made a list. Not technical, not definitive, but stitched from memory, light, and a little bit of longing.
Here’s what I found:
1. Paparazzo, played by Walter Santesso in La Dolce Vita (1960)
• Director: Federico Fellini
• Camera: Leica IIIf (35mm rangefinder)
• Note: Fellini’s character Paparazzo — the very name that gave birth to the word — was inspired by real Roman photographer Tazio Secchiaroli. With his Leica, he moved through the night like a shadow, chasing truth, beauty, and a bit of scandal.
2. Irving Radovich, played by Eddie Albert in Roman Holiday (1953)
• Director: William Wyler
• Camera: Echo 8 (a miniature camera disguised as a cigarette lighter)
• Note: Irving’s Echo 8 captures the spontaneity and charm of Rome, allowing him to document fleeting moments without drawing attention. A spyglass for stolen time.
3. I’m Twenty (Мне 20 лет) — Directed by Marlen Khutsiev (1965)
• Camera: Most likely a Zorki 4 or FED 5 (Soviet rangefinders)
• Note: In this poignant exploration of youth and dreams, the Zorki or FED would be fitting — quiet Soviet machines reflecting the characters’ introspective journey through a rapidly changing world.
4. The Photojournalist, played by Dennis Hopper in Apocalypse Now (1979)
• Director: Francis Ford Coppola
• Camera: Multiple Nikon F bodies
• Note: With war collapsing all reason, he carries chaos around his neck — the Nikon F, not to record facts, but fever dreams.
5. Sabina, played by Lena Olin in The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)
• Director: Philip Kaufman
• Camera: Praktica LTL
• Note: Sabina’s camera mirrors her life — sharp, focused, yet elusive. In her hands, it’s both a witness and a companion on her path between freedom and restraint.
6. Auggie Wren, played by Harvey Keitel in Smoke (1995)
• Director: Wayne Wang
• Camera: Olympus Trip 35 (or Olympus XA)
• Note: Every morning at 8 a.m., Auggie stands outside his Brooklyn cigar shop and takes the same photo — same corner, same frame. His Olympus doesn’t chase stories; it waits for them. A quiet act of devotion, like keeping time with light.
7. Richie Tenenbaum, played by Luke Wilson in The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
• Director: Wes Anderson
• Camera: Rollei 35 S
• Note: Richie’s Rollei 35 S is more than a photographic tool; it’s a silent witness to his introspective world. The camera’s compact form mirrors his reserved nature, capturing moments of quiet reflection amidst the family’s chaos.
8. Claire, played by Isabelle Huppert in Claire’s Camera (2017)
• Director: Hong Sang-soo
• Camera: Fujifilm Instax Mini 70 (instant film, point-and-shoot)
• Note: Claire drifts through Cannes with her point-and-shoot, capturing moments without judgment. Her photos, like her presence, are quiet interventions — snapshots that shift perspectives just enough to change the story.
Guess what camera I chose?
None from this list.
If I had to name it, I’d say it’s an imaginary one — something that might’ve appeared in Lost in Translation. Small, quiet, a little lost. The kind that doesn’t demand attention but still catches the light just right.
Years ago, I sat in that Tokyo bar — yes, that one. Lost in my thoughts. That night, I knew: I was going to leave my glossy magazine job and move to New York to learn filmmaking.
It wasn’t dramatic. But the spotlight shifted. Just a little.
I didn’t take a picture.
But I remember the light.
