Mario Montero was born in Los Angeles, and at the age of 14 he went to live in Costa Rica and worked in the family photo studio. This lead to a passion for photography and cinematography and to become a camera assistant for the first time in the film “El Dorado” (Carlos Saura).
He worked as a focus puller and later as camera operator, mainly as the right hand of José Luís Alcaine, with such prestigious directors as George Lucas, Bryan Gibson, Carlos Saura, Fernando Trueba, Vicente Aranda or Bigas Luna.
This lead to him becoming a well known cinematographer in Europe and the United States.
Currently working as director of photography in advertising and film, working with directors such as Jaume Balagueró, Julio Medem, Manuel Huerga, José Corbacho, Silvia Munt, Ventura Pons or Maria Ripoll.
He splits his time between Barcelona and New York.