Michael Franks, originally from New York City, is a Los Angeles based Director of Photography who has enjoyed an extensive career creating unique, bold looks for television & feature projects. His creative and collaborative approach, as well as his diverse knowledge of lighting, theatrical design, & photography has enabled him to work on many varied projects, from rock concerts to single camera narratives.

Growing up in Manhattan, Michael began his love of photography as a teenager. The works of Edward Steichen, and George Hurrell inspired him and he discovered photography was a profound way to express himself creatively, & emotionally. Later in college, he found the collaborative nature of filmmaking even more enjoyable, and this clarified his desire to make it his career. After graduating from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, where he gained a foundation in theatrical lighting design, Michael started his early career at NBC working on a number of projects. After a few years he landed Saturday Night Live, where he established his ability to work extremely quickly, while still creating first-class looks. After completing two seasons, he went on to begin his freelance career, and had the opportunity to lend his talents to projects such as The Ben Stiller Show, MTV's iconic Unplugged, and Kevin Kline's production of Hamlet.

Michael relocated to Los Angeles, and in the years since has since had the pleasure of working on projects that range from Hannah Montana to music videos for Bruce Springsteen. He has won 2 consecutive Emmy Awards for lighting ESPN's Summer and Winter X Games, & served as director, as well as cinematographer for Showtime's The Green Room with Paul Provenza. Michael's work as cinematographer provided a bold new look for Amazon and Krofft Pictures' reboot of Sigmund and The Sea Monsters.

Michael lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Audrey, and with whom he has co-directed and co-produced 3 children.