Vidu Gunaratna was born on February 24, 1980 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In 1989, his family was forced to flee to Germany because of the civil war. In 1990, after the Velvet Revolution, they settled in The Czech Republic.

Vidu holds a Master’s degree in Cinematography from The Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts (FAMU) in Prague. He holds the Dean’s award for excellence in studies and meticulousness in the preparation of artistic projects. In 2010, he became a member of the Association of Czech Cinematographers (AČK).

He was the first Czech cinematography student to shoot a film, Non-Swimmers (directed by Jakub Šmíd) in DC4K. In Hospodářské noviny, Vidu was chosen as one of the most talented young Czech cinematographers by Academy Award winning cinematographer Jaromír Šofr AČK. Non-Swimmers won The Czech Lion – Magnesia Award, which is the highest Czech film award for best student picture. In 2012, he began teaching and mentoring international students at FAMU.

Vidu Gunaratna is fluent in Czech, English, German and conversational in Sinhala. He is vegetarian and a passionate fan of the rock band SCORPIONS. He is single and lives in Prague.