Alfredo Betrò was born in Torre del Greco (Naples) on June 30, 1964. His father Lorenzo, a Commander of the Italian Merchant Navy, instilled in him a love for art in all its forms. He attended Classical High School and then studied Political Science at the Federico II University of Naples. In 1988, he won a scholarship for the Cinematography course at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia – National School of Cinema. His teachers included Giuseppe Rotunno AIC ASC and Giovanni Fiore Coltellacci, who was then one of the most well-known international camera operators.
After graduating in 1990, he attended the First European Seminar for Director of Photography Students, held by Vilmos Zsigmond ASC and Haskell Wexler ASC, at the Academy of Drama, Film, and Television in Budapest. In 1992, he joined Vittorio Storaro’s crew as a B camera clapper-loader for Little Buddha, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci. Vittorio Storaro gave him the opportunity to grow within the crew, and in 1999, he made his debut as a first camera operator for the Illy Caffè commercial directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Just a few months earlier, he had had the fortune to meet and assist Laszlo Kovacs ASC for the Italian shots of Return to Me, directed by Bonnie Hunt.
In 2002, he attended the Steadicam Masterclass in Westchester, Philadelphia, led by Garrett Brown, whom he had met during the filming of La Traviata à Paris, directed by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi. As a first camera operator, he also worked on Dune, directed by John Harrison, Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist, directed by Paul Schrader, Zapata: El sueño del héroe, directed by Alfonso Arau, and Exorcist: The Beginning, directed by Renny Harlin.
He collaborated with director Eros Puglielli and was the director of photography for three of his feature films: Nevermind, Copperman, and Gli idoli delle donne. He worked on the feature films L’Arminuta, directed by Giuseppe Bonito, and Credimi!, directed by Luna Gualano. In December 2021, he completed shooting Boris 4 – produced by Fremantle – The Apartment – Disney. He worked with Davide Marengo and Giuseppe Bonito on Brennero, a Rai 1/Cross Productions project. He also shot L’estate più calda with Matteo Pilati, an Amazon Originals-Notorious Pictures production. Additionally, he collaborated again with Giuseppe Bonito on Gerri, a Rai 1/Cattleya production.
