AC Apr 2012

APRI L 2012
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M E M B E R P O R T R A I T
David Darby, ASC
W W W . T H E A S C . C O M
TO SUBSCRIBE BY PHONE:
Call (800) 448-0145 (U.S. only)
(323) 969-4333 or visit the ASC website
hen I started out in
documentaries, I found
myself a long way from
home. Sometimes I felt like I was
working alone on an asteroid. One
day, American Cinematographer
appeared like a beacon from my
home galaxy. It was both
educational and hugely
encouraging. The wonderful
cinematographers interviewed
were clearly human beings with
struggles like those we all have,
and they were happy to share
their opinions and solutions.
I still read every issue
from cover to cover. ACs beacon
is probably made of LEDs now,
but the people and their purpose
havent changed, and I doubt they
ever will. In todays world, that
is progress.
David Darby, ASC
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The International Journal of Motion Imaging
32 Vice at the Vatican
Paul Sarossy, BSC, CSC brings painterly textures
to The Borgias
44 Back to School
Christopher Probst offers a first-person account of his
work on the energetic indie Detention
64 Sundance Standouts
Beasts of the Southern Wild, My Brother the Devil and
5 Broken Cameras earn honors
DEPARTMENTS
FEATURES
VISIT WWW.THEASC.COM TO ENJOY THESE WEB EXCLUSIVES
Johns Bailiwick by John Bailey, ASC
DVD Playback: Scarlet Street The Moon in the Gutter Unforgiven
On Our Cover: After assuming control of the Vatican as Pope Alexander VI, the scheming
Rodrigo Borgia (Jeremy Irons) uses his power for corrupt purposes in The Borgias. (Photo
by Jonathan Hession, courtesy of Showtime.)
8 Editors Note
10 Presidents Desk
12 Short Takes: Polaris campaign
18 Production Slate: Footnote 4:44 Last Day on Earth
82 Filmmakers Forum: Haskell Wexler, ASC
88 New Products & Services
102 International Marketplace
103 Classified Ads
104 Ad Index
106 Clubhouse News
108 ASC Close-Up: Alar Kivilo
A P R I L 2 0 1 2 V O L . 9 3 N O . 4
44
64
A p r i l 2 0 1 2 V o l . 9 3 , N o . 4
T h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o u r n a l o f M o t i o n I m a g i n g
Visit us online at
www.theasc.com

PUBLISHER Martha Winterhalter
EDITORIAL
EXECUTIVE EDITOR Stephen Pizzello
SENIOR EDITOR Rachael K. Bosley
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Jon D. Witmer
TECHNICAL EDITOR Christopher Probst
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Stephanie Argy, Benjamin B, Douglas Bankston, Robert S. Birchard,
John Calhoun, Michael Goldman, Simon Gray, Jim Hemphill,
David Heuring, Jay Holben, Mark Hope-Jones, Noah Kadner,
Jean Oppenheimer, Jon Silberg, Iain Stasukevich,
Kenneth Sweeney, Patricia Thomson
ART DEPARTMENT
CREATIVE DIRECTOR Marion Gore
ADVERTISING
ADVERTISING SALES DIRECTOR Angie Gollmann
323-936-3769 FAX 323-936-9188
e-mail: gollmann@pacbell.net
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e-mail: sanja@ascmag.com
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e-mail: sburnell@earthlink.net
CLASSIFIEDS/ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Diella Nepomuceno
323-952-2124 FAX 323-876-4973
e-mail: diella@ascmag.com
CIRCULATION, BOOKS & PRODUCTS

CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Saul Molina
CIRCULATION MANAGER Alex Lopez
SHIPPING MANAGER Miguel Madrigal
ASC GENERAL MANAGER Brett Grauman

ASC EVENTS COORDINATOR Patricia Armacost
ASC PRESIDENTS ASSISTANT Delphine Figueras
ASC ACCOUNTING MANAGER Mila Basely
ASC ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE Corey Clark
American Cinematographer (ISSN 0002-7928), established 1920 and in its 92nd year of publication, is published
monthly in Hollywood by ASC Holding Corp., 1782 N. Orange Dr., Hollywood, CA 90028, U.S.A.,
(800) 448-0145, (323) 969-4333, Fax (323) 876-4973, direct line for subscription inquiries (323) 969-4344.
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Copyright 2012 ASC Holding Corp. (All rights reserved.) Periodicals postage paid at Los Angeles, CA
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POSTMASTER: Send address change to American Cinematographer, P.O. Box 2230, Hollywood, CA 90078.

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OFFICERS - 2011/2012
Michael Goi
President
Richard Crudo
Vice President
Owen Roizman
Vice President
John C. Flinn III
Vice President
Victor J. Kemper
Treasurer
Frederic Goodich
Secretary
Stephen Lighthill
Sergeant At Arms
MEMBERS OF THE
BOARD
John Bailey
Stephen H. Burum
Richard Crudo
George Spiro Dibie
Richard Edlund
Fred Elmes
Michael Goi
Victor J. Kemper
Francis Kenny
Isidore Mankofsky
Robert Primes
Owen Roizman
Kees Van Oostrum
Haskell Wexler
Vilmos Zsigmond
ALTERNATES
Michael D. OShea
Rodney Taylor
Ron Garcia
Sol Negrin
Kenneth Zunder
MUSEUM CURATOR
Steve Gainer
American Society of Cine ma tog ra phers
The ASC is not a labor union or a guild, but
an educational, cultural and pro fes sion al
or ga ni za tion. Membership is by invitation
to those who are actively en gaged as
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6
Those of you who miss the Machiavellian mob intrigue of
The Sopranos may want to travel back in time with Show-
times The Borgias, which dramatizes the misdeeds of
Rodrigo Borgia, who assumed divine power as Pope
Alexander VI. Portrayed with silky malice by Jeremy Irons,
Borgia earned his reputation as one of the most evil
people of the 15thcentury, sinning freely while exploiting
the papacys perks. The show offers a luxe period look
fashioned by Paul Sarossy, BSC, CSC, who serves as
consigliere to series creator Neil Jordan. Sarossy tells AC
correspondent Mark Hope-Jones that he enjoys Jordans
cinematic approach to the drama, which is captured digi-
tally with the Arri Alexa. Neils method was to shoot with
prime lenses, as though he was shooting a movie, Sarossy notes (Vice at the Vatican,
page 32). On TV projects, many directors love the idea of shooting with zoom lenses and
adjusting the frame between takes. My ideal way of working is the way Neil does it, where
were constantly making very committed choices for the scene.
AC technical editor Christopher Probst, an award-winning cinematographer, expresses
similar enthusiasm in a first-person piece about his first feature, Detention, which he describes
as a schizophrenic mash-up of dissimilar genres, including slasher films, comedies and
science fiction (Back to School, page 44). Probst and director Joseph Kahn have worked
together for more than 15 years on music videos and commercials, and they went for broke
on the frenetically paced feature. When I decided to do this film, I said, Im going to bet
the farm on this movie, but I dont want to repeat what we have done before. I want to push
the limits of everything we know! Kahn declares. The pair shot the movie in 2.40:1 anamor-
phic with Red One MX cameras.
Digital capture was also employed on two of the three Sundance Film Festival projects
detailed in our coverage of this years festival (Sundance Standouts, page 64). Cinematog-
rapher David Raedeker shot My Brother the Devil with the Alexa in order to exploit the
cameras latitude with a minimal lighting package. On 5 Broken Cameras, self-taught cine-
matographer Emad Burnat inspired his movies title by going through five digital-video
cameras a JVC GR-D54E, a Sony DCR-PC110 and DSR-PDX10P, and a Panasonic
NV-GS140 and AG-HVX200 while documenting protests in the West Bank village of Bilin,
where Israeli settlers were encroaching upon land long cultivated by Palestinian farmers. Ben
Richardson shot our third spotlighted Sundance project, Beasts of the Southern Wild , on
Super 16mm. I definitely wanted to shoot film because I wanted to be pull-processing and
underexposing, and digging down into the shadows without stressing about pattern noise,
he explains.
Another Red-camera project, 4:44 Last Day on Earth (Production Slate, page 24),
required Ken Kelsch, ASC to convince director Abel Ferrara, a proponent of film, that digital
capture was the best option in light of the projects indie budget. You do what you have to
do to get a movie done, Kelsch says. We had other options, but moneywise the Red was
the best option.
Stephen Pizzello
Executive Editor
Editors Note
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Among my friends, Im known for having an almost encyclopedic knowledge of movies.
I have terrible short-term memory, but if I bump into an actor, I can recall him from a
two-minute scene in a movie made 20 years ago. Friends are always calling me with a
question about some movie, be it a Western that starred Kelly LeBrock and Matt McCoy
(Hard Bounty) or a 1950s sci-fi flick about a fungus creature that lives in a cave and kills
people (The Unknown Terror). I once encountered actress Kathryn Witt on the street
and amazed her by recounting almost everything shed appeared in, from Demon of
Paradise to Flying High. She probably thought I was a stalker.
I love movies at times, even bad ones. You can see the filmmakers were trying
so hard to make a good movie, but that they just didnt have the talent or resources to
pull it off. Take, for example, They Saved Hitlers Brain , which has the distinction of
being photographed by Stanley Cortez, ASC. Made in the 1950s as The Madmen of
Mandoras, the film features the talking head of Hitler in a jar. When it was sold for TV
broadcast in the 1960s, the movie was lengthened to better fit a two-hour time slot:
new scenes were shot with entirely different actors playing characters who all die in the
first half hour. Watching the jarring juxtaposition of elegantly photographed images
with sloppily shot handheld filler which alternates between day and night in the
same scene is truly a hypnotic experience.
My love of movies accelerated when I was 10, when I was diagnosed with some
form of progressive blindness. The doctor said I would be completely blind by the age of 30. I subsequently spent every
moment that I wasnt in school watching movies at the Parkway Theater in Chicago. For 50 cents, I could see three double
features a week of any films they could buy for $50. I watched Italian Neorealist films, documentaries, horror movies, Don
Knotts comedies anything. I wanted to have the entire visual vocabulary of world cinema in my mind before I lost my
sight. That mental library of images became my inspiration and my passion as I matured and entered the industry.
For those of us who make the creation of visual stories our profession, having a comprehensive knowledge of past
movies is a valuable source of emotional inspiration. The combined efforts of the cinematographer, art director, actor, sound
mixer, wardrobe and makeup artists, screenwriter and director, producers, electricians and grips, props and locations, music
and post processes all come together to create an emotional moment. That moment is planned yet spontaneous, some-
thing arrived at by accident and endeavor.
In the documentary Winged Migration, that moment came for me when the camera flew next to the birds for the
first time. It transported me to where they were and made me feel like I could fly with them. In the Japanese animated film
Spirited Away, that moment came when two characters talk on a balcony at dusk as the house lights are turned off and
the moon grows in brightness, outlining a train skimming along a track covered by shallow water below. In the original
Godzilla, it came when I saw the titular creature appear for the first time behind the mountain with hundreds of villagers
running in terror. In Lavventura, it came when Monica Vitti opened the window of the island shack to reveal a cold sunrise.
When I recently saw Bela Tarrs masterful film The Turin Horse, the magical moment arrived with the very first shot, a stun-
ning, eight-minute view of a world-weary horse pulling a ragged cart across windswept plains.
Those moments and many more form the core reason I wanted to be a cinematographer. I didnt end up losing my
sight, but the happiness those images give me, even in my dreams when I close my eyes, makes my imagination soar.
Michael Goi, ASC
President
Presidents Desk
10 April 2012 American Cinematographer
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Secret Sleds
By Iain Stasukevich
Selling high-end snowmobiles professionally known as sleds
is serious business. So serious, in fact, that whenever snowmobile
manufacturer Polaris conducts test runs and promo shoots for its latest
models, it does so in under a veil of secrecy. Cinematographer Jeffrey
Cunningham isnt even allowed to say where these shoots take place.
Somewhere in the Rocky Mountains, he teases. One would need a
fanatical enthusiasm for sleds and a high tolerance for frostbite to seek
out the locations, anyway the slopes and trails are miles off the
beaten path, away from prying eyes.
In early 2011, Cunningham shot the promo for the Polaris 2012
Terrain Domination campaign, and recently he was happy to return
for a run with the 2013 models. For the earlier shoot, he used two Red
Ones mounted with 16mm-format lenses and recorded in 2K, the
maximum resolution possible for 120-fps capture with the camera.
Everything was upgraded for the next shoot. Our director, Adam
Brummond, wanted to shoot everything in 4K or 5K, and he wanted
the best glass we could get our hands on, says Cunningham.
The cinematographer decided to shoot primarily with Red Epic
cameras, a set of Primo Primes and two Panavision zoom lenses: a 19-
90mm T2.8 Primo Compact Zoom, and a 70-200mm T3.1 Spherical
Telephoto Zoom. The zooms gave me the range, weight and sharp-
ness I couldnt find with any other lenses, notes the cinematogra-
pher, who worked with Bob Foertsch at Panavision Woodland Hills to
assemble the package.
For a bit of dazzle, the filmmakers experimented with anamor-
phic flares and streaking. They used a special lens attachment
(designed and built by Panavisions Dan Sasaki) in front of the lens that
warped lens flares while retaining the spherical image. (The promo
spot was finished in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio.) An Optefex Blue Streak
filter was also used to create flares from the sleds headlamps.
To photograph the new sled, Brummond and Cunningham
decided to riff on the bullet-time effect popularized in The Matrix (AC
April 99). In this case, the effect required the simultaneous firing of 24
Canon EOS 7D HDSLRs fitted with Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8L lenses;
the 24 cameras were mounted to Bogen adjustable heads along a 90-
degree section of curved speed rail. (The rig was designed by digital-
imaging technician Dan Skinner and constructed on location.) When
pro rider Chris Burandt took the 800 Pro RMK airborne, the 7Ds
captured the stunt in 5184x3456-resolution stills. Meanwhile, two
Epics with Primo 17.5mm lenses were mounted to an adjustable
aluminum cheeseplate on both ends of the rail to capture the sled on
its approach and landing.
We used the effect to show off a bit, but in a very organic way
we transition around the sled and show the viewer details he would
not otherwise be able to appreciate, says Cunningham. In the
finished promo, he explains, CG graphics pop up to explain some of
the internal mechanisms.
A small HDSLR test was performed in Los Angeles before the
crew went on location, but at the time of the test, most of the gear
was either unavailable or hadnt been built. It was a real leap of faith
that this would work, says Cunningham. The crews faith was further
tested when the specialized equipment arrived at base camp a day
late. We were hoping all of our gear would arrive a day ahead of us,
Cunningham recalls, but it didnt arrive till 5 p.m. on our first day of
shooting, and it was supposed to go [into the field] the next day.
Short Takes
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A shoot for
snowmobile
manufacturer
Polaris 2013
campaign took
cinematographer
Jeffrey
Cunningham and
director Adam
Brummond off
the beaten path
and into the
Rocky
Mountains,
where they shot
primarily with
Red Epic
cameras.
I
with 4k on the horizon and wide open
lenses, pulling focus becomes even more
demanding. Easyfocus is the answer in a
challenging environment
being an eager cinematographer himself,
tech wiz Fritz Gabriel Bauer AAC has always
been looking for practical solutions in his
camera and accessories design, e.g. the
Moviecam Compact, the Moviecam SL
and the Arricams. The Easyfocus follows
that tradition
remote camera positions, challenging
long lens shots, camera car operations,
Easyfocus takes the challenge out of the
equation
INVENTED BY
3 TIME ACADEMY SCIENTIFIC AND EGINEERING
AWARD WINNER FRITZ GABRIEL BAUER AAC
FOCUS MODE
RAMPING MODE
MANUAL MODE
TRACKING MODE
MAP SCAN
www.easyfocus.at
Because of the delay, the crew ended
up pulling an all-nighter, cutting, welding and
assembling the rig and syncing 7D menus
and firmware until 2 a.m. There were no
commercially available camera controllers for
that many HDSLRs, says Cunningham, so
that was another thing happening in the
middle of the night: Dan Skinner soldering 24
of our 7D connectors to a single trigger.
Everything was ready to travel by the 6
a.m. call time, and then began the hour-plus
backcountry approach to the location. The
crew then had to assemble the rail system,
hoist the rig onto combo stands and mount
the cameras. The cameras were aligned to a
C-stand in the hero position, with socks tied
to the top and bottom of the stand for upper
and lower frame-line reference. We got the
best movement around the sled when it was
in the exact center of the circles radius,
Cunningham recalls. The rigs diameter was
approximately 23', making the hero position
11.5' from the rail. (Cunningham sometimes
trained the cameras as far as 14' out when it
wasnt certain the stunt rider could make the
maneuver that close to the camera array.)
The final step was moving the rig up
the hill to find fresh snow. It took eight
crewmembers, including the stunt driver, to
hike the fully assembled rig up a steep slope
for the shot, which took five hours to set up.
By the last setup, Skinner and his team were
able to have us ready to shoot in two hours,
recalls Cunningham.
A working stop of T2.8 was main-
tained for continuity. Weneeded the depth-
of-field and frame to match seamlessly as we
Top left, left to right:
Mitch Brummond, Tate
Johnson, 1st AC Justin
Watson, Cunningham
and Adam Brummond set
up a shot. Top right: The
crew moves 24 Canon
EOS 7D DSLRs mounted
to a piece of curved
speed rail into position
to create a bullet-time
effect. Middle: Digital-
imaging technician Dan
Skinner checks the Red
Epic mounted at the end
of the speed-rail rig.
Bottom: Skinner keeps an
eye on the cameras as
pro rider Chris Burandt
takes the sled airborne.
s
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transitioned from the Epics to the still
cameras, says Cunningham. Additional
image sharpening was achieved by setting
the Epics to 96 fps at 5K with an 800 ASA
and narrowing the shutter down to as little
as 22 degrees. The 7Ds were set with an
even narrower shutter of
1
2500.
The bullet-time shots worked four
times on the 10-day shoot. The rest of the
schedule was devoted to capturing shots of
the sleds dominating the snowy terrain with
a mix of wide and long lenses and POV
shots. For the latter, Polaris sent an 800 Pro-
RMK to Burbank, Calif., where the hood
was customized by Brummond and Skinner
to accept an adjustable aluminum cheese-
plate on a mount buffered with steel springs
and foam. Next, the mailbox, an
aluminum pipe modified to accept the Epic
and 17.5mm Primo that had Plexiglas on
both ends, was mounted to the cheese-
plate. (The adjustable head allowed for
some x-axis and y-axis movement, but once
it was locked into place there was no way
to operate the camera other than changing
the direction of the sled.)
An SDI connection ran to a Pelican
case containing a 7" Marshall LCD monitor
mounted in front of the driver Brum-
mond, usually, for the non-stunt sequences
The filmmakers employed a mailbox rig, which fixed an Epic fitted with a 17.5mm Primo onto an adjustable aluminum cheeseplate buffered
with steel springs and foam, to capture POV shots from the sled.
16
though it was difficult to monitor the
takes while steering. We had to pick and
choose our moments afterwards, says
Cunningham. Once [the sled] started
weaving around trees, the image bobbled a
little bit, but over powder the shots were
quite smooth.
The cinematographer gives high
marks to the Epics for their performance
under adverse conditions. Although the
extreme cold occasionally affected the
cameras back focus, requiring some minor
flange adjustments, we didnt have any
major gear issues at all, he says. Lenses
were kept as close to the outside tempera-
ture as possible to avoid fogging. I think
our tripod suffered more abuse than any of
the cameras, he adds.
Cunningham notes that 1st AC
Justin Watson was tireless. The gear was
always clean, prepped and ready for the
extreme conditions. And props for pulling
focus on a 200mm lens with a sled coming
at us at 60 mph!
Because of the locations remote-
ness, finding success meant coming
prepared with plenty of extra recording
media (eight RedMag SSD 128GB cards and
dozens of 4GB CF cards), batteries (there
was no generator power), and hand- and
foot-warmers, not to mention a strong
sense of ones surroundings. We gather
more experience every time we do this,
Cunningham observes. Were learning
how to ride the sleds better and getting a
better sense of when and where to be.
Because we were comfortable in the envi-
ronment, we were able to get the kind of
shots Polaris expects.
Cunningham also expects a lot.
Every year weve managed to top
ourselves, he says. Theres been some
talk about what were going to do next
year, but there are other sled companies
that are closely watching what were doing,
so youll just have to stay tuned!
Sled rider Brian
Harmon awaits
the next take as
Cunningham
(background
right) adjusts a
camera.
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Generation Gap
By Jean Oppenheimer
A comedy that slowly devolves into tragedy, the Israeli film
Footnote is set in the world of academia, where ambition, jealousy
and political infighting qualify as intramural sports. The film concerns
a father (Shlomo Bar-Aba) and son (Lior Ashkenazi), both professors
of Talmudic Studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem. They are in
the same field, but they occupy very different worlds, says director
of photography Yaron Scharf. The heart of the film is a kind of
battlefield between these two worlds.
The father, Eliezer, represents the old world, the analog
world, and he sees the world through details, Scharf continues,
speaking to AC from his home in Tel Aviv. His son, Uriel, is more
connected to the contemporary world, the digital world. He is more
concerned with the big picture.
Their different outlooks are reflected in the way they are
presented onscreen. Obsessed with subtleties and nuances, Eliezer is
repeatedly shown in close-up, followed by tight shots of the minutia
that catches his eye: a pen in somebodys hand, a button on a tape
recorder. Uriel is typically shot from a distance, frequently framed
through doorways or other structures. When the plot takes a
dramatic turn late in the film, he starts appearing in close-up.
Each world is also color specific. Eliezers home and office are
filled with warm light (dimmed-down tungsten practicals), suggest-
ing both his link to tradition and the intense jealousy he feels
towards his son, who has become the darling of the establishment.
Shunned by the academic elites, Eliezer has become a bitter, hateful
man. Uriel, along with anything connected to the establishment, is
bathed in cool light (Kino Flos and other fluorescent fixtures).
Eliezer and Uriel first appear together in the film in a six-
minute medium shot of the two sitting side-by-side. Eliezer is scowl-
ing, and Uriel looks slightly uncomfortable. Several rows of people
are seated behind them, slightly out of focus. It was crucial to be
really close to both men but still have a two-shot, says Scharf.
Before deciding on an aspect ratio, [director] Joseph Cedar and I
took the actors into a studio and conducted extensive tests on this
one shot. We tried various aspect ratios and light levels, experi-
mented with the length of the shot, and checked how out-of-focus
the people in the background would be at different f-stops.
They settled on 4-perf Super 35mm and an aspect ratio of
2.40:1. Our main argument for shooting in [widescreen] was that
shot, acknowledges Cedar. The shot continues as Uriel stands and
exits the frame to receive an award. The camera, mounted with a
32mm Ultra Prime, doesnt move. When the audience stands and
applauds, Eliezer reluctantly follows suit, and the frame remains at
chair level, so torsos and clapping hands fill the screen. The camera
slowly dollies into Eliezers face when he and everyone else sit down,
Production Slate
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In the Israeli
film Footnote,
a father and
son compete
for recognition
in the world of
academia. This
scene shows a
fellow scholar
(Micah
Lewesohn)
working
intently in his
study.
I
and when everyone stands to applaud
again, Eliezers clapping hands fill the frame.
The scene then cuts away, ending the shot.
The aspect ratio also proved ideal for
a scene in which a number of people are
crowded around a table in a small room.
(This was the only sequence in the film shot
in a studio.) A group of academics is trying
to persuade Uriel to accept a major prize
that Eliezer thinks he has won. The scene is
both comic and tense, and the filmmakers
wanted it to feel claustrophobic. Even
though we had wild walls and ceiling, we
used very wide lenses, sticking with 16mm,
20mm and 24mm primes, recalls Scharf.
The characters are so close to one another
their faces almost touch. When we had a
close-up of somebody, we made sure one
or two other characters were out-of-focus
in the foreground [or background, depend-
ing upon the shot].
Born and raised in Jerusalem, Scharf
graduated from Tel Aviv University Film
School and the School of Visual Arts in New
York, where he studied photography. He
won his first Ophir (Israels national film
prize) for the feature 7 Days (2008), and he
recently won another for Footnote, which
was also nominated for the Academy
Award for Best Foreign-Language Feature.
The lighting concept for Footnote
was one of high contrast, with characters
and their immediate surroundings well lit
while everything else quickly falls off into
darkness. [Essentially it was] a spotlight,
but we didnt want it to look like it was a
spotlight, says Scharf. My gaffer, Shuki
Paz, and I tried to make it feel as if the light
was coming from one main source. For
night interiors, that meant [whatever practi-
cal was in the room].
In one scene, Eliezer is in his office,
and theres a practical lamp on his desk, he
continues. I added some small LED lights
and a tiny bit of fill, but that one practical,
which held two 60-watt household bulbs,
was pretty much lighting the entire room.I
used flags and gobos to cut the light from
everywhere but his face and let the back-
ground fall into darkness. Sometimes I put
black cloth on the floor so we didnt get any
bounce from there. In the digital grade, we
took the effect a bit further with a vignette.
As the story progresses and the
father-son conflict deepens, the colors
Top: Eliezer
(Shlomo Bar-Aba)
studies the
Talmud. Middle:
Eliezer and his
son, Uriel (Lior
Ashkenazi), share
the frame in an
uncomfortable
shot that lasts six
minutes. Bottom:
Cinematographer
Yaron Scharf
checks the light
in the set.
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become more and more saturated, and the
DI was a [big help] with that, he adds.
The picture was graded at Magyar
Film Laboratory in Budapest, which also
handled the negative processing, scanning
and filmout. (Three film stocks were
employed: Kodak Vision3 500T 5219 and
50D 5203, and Vision2 200T 5217.) There
are no film laboratories or post houses in
Israel that can handle high-end stuff
anymore, he notes sadly.
Movie Mobile Israel in Tel Aviv
provided the production with an Arri 535B
and an Arri 235, a set of Arri/Zeiss Ultra
Primes and a Canon (T2.8) 300mm lens.
Scharf, who did his own operating, also
carried Proxar filters to reduce the minimum
focus of the lens and a T5.6 CMI Cinewand
Borescope 10-100mm lens for extreme
close-ups.
The Proxar filters and the Borescope
system proved their worth when Scharf
needed to zero in on a printed page and
have only a single word or letter in focus.
Joseph and I decided that in the war
between Uriel and Eliezer, words and letters
were like soldiers on the battlefield. The
Borescope enabled me to travel and actually
get between the letters. The Proxars were
also used primarily for these extreme close-
ups of letters and words.
Depth-of-field was critical, and I
achieved this by working with a very open
f-stop, which is a big reason I wanted to work
with the Ultra Primes they are very crisp
and sharp. My focus puller, Yuval Shachar, has
been with me almost 20 years. He is amazing,
but I think even he was terrified!
The film contains two short segments
that Scharf refers to as footnotes because
they provide supplemental information about
the characters. In the Talmud, the main text
is in the center of the page and the footnotes
are on the sides, he says, explaining the film-
makers inspiration. Each segment consists of
an individual frame, inside of which scenes
play out. The frames movebackward and
forward across the screen.
To again differentiate between father
and son, Eliezers segment appears to run
through an old-fashioned microfilm display
device, while Uriels looks as though it moves
through a more modern slide projector. To
achieve the effect, Scharf explains, we shot
a piece of microfiche with nothing on it, to
get hair and dirt on it, [and then] we shot an
empty frame of light to give us the black
borders. Several artists worked for a year
compositing all of this under the direction of
Right:
Percussionists
rehearse a
number that
will be
performed
during a
ceremony at
which Eliezer
will be
honored.
Below: Scharf
(left) and
director Joseph
Cedar line up
a shot.
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a very talented visual-effects supervisor,
Michal Wolff. During the DI, we simply
inserted the material, which had been
scanned at 4K. (Everything else was
scanned at 2K.) With a laugh, Scharf notes,
Joseph and I had to deal with so many
details on this film, we began to feel a bit
like Eliezer!
The final sequence in the film finds
Eliezer and his wife entering a convention
center where he will finally receive an
important prize. They walk through a
passage that production designer Arad
Sawat made out of heavy, white silk. We
lit everything with quartz lights positioned
behind the silk, says Scharf. We probably
had 50 800-watt bulbs.
Eliezer then enters a large audito-
rium, which is bathed in cold light. The
stage seems to be backed by a blue wall,
which turns out to be a huge LED screen
that is showing out-of-focus images. The
LED lights produced enough ambient light
that I only needed to add a few Kino Flos or
cut the light a bit, observes Scharf.
As Eliezer waits backstage, 2x2 Kino
Flos with tungsten tubesoverhead give him
a bright backlight, while a small mist
machine creates a bit of atmospheric haze.
We had to turn off the huge LED wall [for
that shot] because it was casting blue light
backstage that we didnt want, says
Scharf. We did a slow dolly into Eliezers
face, during which we dimmed the fluores-
cents so that everything went dark. When
we reached the end of the move and were
looking into Eliezers face, we turned on the
LED lights, bathing his face in blue. We see
that the honor is more important to him
than the truth. He has been searching for
the truth his whole life, but in the end he
doesnt live the truth.
TECHNICAL SPECS
2.40:1
4-perf Super 35mm
Arri 535B, 235
Arri/Zeiss Ultra Primes, Canon,
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Kodak Vision2 200T 5217; Vision3 50D 5203,
500T 5219
Digital Intermediate
Last Rites
By Iain Stasukevich
Photographed by Ken Kelsch, ASC,
Abel Ferraras 4:44 Last Day on Earth takes
place almost entirely in a spacious Lower
Manhattan loft, where aging actor Cisco
(Willem Dafoe) and his painter girlfriend,
Skye (Shanyn Leigh), spend their final hours
engaged in meditation, painting, lovemak-
ing and panicking on the day before the
Earth is incinerated by a giant hole in the
ozone layer. The end will come the next day
at exactly 4:44 a.m.
Kelsch, who first collaborated with
Ferrara on the 1979 grindhouse classic The
Driller Killer, muses that the directors films
tend to project a gutters-eye view of the
world. 4:44 is their 16th feature together.
Abels strength and this is why I love
working with him is that he always has a
point of view, Kelsch adds.
Redemption is a theme in many of
the stories Ferrara chooses to tell, and in
4:44, Cisco struggles with regret as well as
addictions. Yes, this is a film about addic-
tion, and its also about sobriety, says the
director. But this is not a documentary. This
is an episode of TheTwilight Zone .
Kelsch shot 4:44 in 4K with a Red
One upgraded with a Mysterium-X sensor.
Although Ferrara has used digital capture on
a number of projects, including the docu-
mentaries Chelsea on the Rocks and
Mulberry St., he observes, I dont dig it. Ive
spent my whole life shooting film, and these
newer HD cameras come close to the
texture, to the shadows, but Im just not
going to turn around and know how to
shoot digitally. Kelsch, on the other hand,
felt confident enough about digital acquisi-
tion to recommend it for 4:44. You do
what you have to do to get a movie done,
and Offhollywood gave us a great deal on
posting a Red project, he reasons.Maybe
digital wasnt the all-around best choice,
but if wed had to shoot on a [Canon EOS]
5D, I would have. What else can you do but
work with the medium you can afford?
Abel had had a very bad previous
experience with the Red One, but I think its
difficult for a director to judge the intrinsic
value of an imaging device with someone
else at the controls, Kelsch continues.
This was my fifth project in a row with the
camera. We had other options, but money-
wise the Red was the best option.
Kelsch chose Cooke S4 prime lenses
because he believed they would render the
most flattering digital image. Photograph-
ing actors over the age of 30 digitally terri-
fies me, he says. I dont want to see every
wrinkle on the actors face. The S4s are a lot
more forgiving than the [Arri/Zeiss] Master
Primes.
Ferraras films are known for possess-
ing at least a certain amount of grit, and
although Kelsch doesnt consider himself a
heavy filter guy, he tried to slip a Tiffen Pro-
Mist in front of the lens for some of Leighs
close-ups. That was quickly nixed by Il
Duce, he quips. Abel doesnt like beauty
Cisco (Willem Dafoe) and Skye (Shanyn Leigh) await the end of the world in 4:44 Last Day on
Earth, photographed by Ken Kelsch, ASC and directed by Abel Ferrara.
I
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shots, but half of the cinematographers job
is taking care of the actress. I want to make
women beautiful when theyre supposed to
be beautiful, and when theyre not
supposed to be beautiful, I want to have
control over making them look less attrac-
tive.
The loft that served as the produc-
tions primary location proved to be just as
important to the story as Cisco and Skye.
When asked if it was difficult to pull off a
feature film with so little real estate, Ferrara
replies: You know what Hitchcock said
about shooting in a telephone booth, right?
Its great! There are so many things you can
cut to! The filmmakers turned to televi-
sion, iPads and even Skype to offer glimpses
of the outside world. I was directing actors
in other countries over the telephone,
Ferrara recalls, referring to a scene in which
a Vietnamese delivery boy (Trung Nguyen)
video-chats with his family in Vietnam.
What am I going to do, build a room and
cast those people? [Nguyen] had a family
sitting right there!
At one point, Cisco leaves the loft to
walk to a friends apartment in another part
of the East Village. For the exterior shots,
Kelsch relied mostly on ambient streetlight,
sometimes using a single Nine-lightMaxi-
Brute to enhance the exposure. The Reds
ASA was set to 640 or 800, depending on
the shot, with the aperture wide open and
hopin, says Kelsch.
In the loft, Kelsch worked with
Ferrara to lay down some concrete visual
guidelines. They saw the last day on Earth
unfolding over a series of chapters, each
with its own look. On set, digital-imaging
technician Charlie Anderson created look-
up tables to complement the different light-
ing schemes.
The morning look has light coming
in through the windows where Skye is paint-
ing, Kelsch explains. We were very
restricted in terms of placing lights outside;
we had no cranes or Muscos to bring up the
exposure inside. Instead, he and gaffer Dan
Gartner used 4x4 Kino Flos and an Arri 6K
Par to raise the interior exposure, sometimes
adding ND.6 or ND1.2 to the windows to
match exterior light levels. When Cisco steps
onto the patio, a series of nets helped
reduce the exposure outside, allowing
Kelsch to move from interior to exterior
without an iris pull.
In the late afternoon, Cisco awakes
from a nap in a panic and runs back onto
the patio just as the sun sets. Magic hour
descends, and after watching a neighbor
jump to his death from a nearby fire escape,
Cisco contemplates his own suicide. We
shot that scene over four different magic
hours, with incredible variations in the day
and night sky, recalls Kelsch. That sort of
light exists at the ideal conditions for maybe
20 minutes.
But Ferrara pushed Kelsch to roll the
camera even before the sun started to set.
You wouldnt believe the mismatched
exposures, Kelsch continues. In post at
Offhollywood, it took us all day [to match
the shots] in Scratch with windows and
mattes. It was a slow and difficult process,
but we shot raw and had a really dedicated
colorist, Milan Boncich, so we were able to
pull it off.
Top: Skye talks
Cisco down from
the couples
patio ledge in a
scene shot at
magic hour over
four days.
Bottom: Ferrara
(center) studies
the scene as
the productions
Red One,
upgraded with
a Mysterium-X
sensor, is put
into place.
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Technology
Knowledge
When night falls, Cisco and Skye
walk around in the dark, wading through
shallow pools of light cast by the overhead
Kinos and gravitating toward dim computer
and TV screens like moths. Abel is the orig-
inal Turn that light off guy! remarks
Kelsch.
In the darkness is the imagination,
observes Ferrara. If you hold up a film
negative, theres black between the frames.
In a two-hour movie, the audience is literally
sitting in the dark half the time. I think thats
where the film is made.
The run-and-gun nature of the
production a 15-day schedule with a six-
person grip-and-electric team and a three-
person camera crew was further compli-
cated by Ferraras freestyle approach, which
required Kelsch, Gartner and key grip Bryan
Landes to keep their equipment out of the
actors paths. With Abel, you cant put a
light on a stand, because as soon as you do,
youre going to be shooting in that direc-
tion, the cinematographer says. He there-
fore backlit most of the night interiors with
the ceiling-mounted Kinos and used a
Litepanels Ringlite Mini to add a small
amount of fill.
At first, Abel was horrified by the
Ringlite he thought I was going to front-
light Willem and Shanyn, Kelsch recalls.
But when he realized I could use it for just a
tiny bit of eyelight, he loved it.
Once the set was lit, Kelsch found
himself operating the camera (assisted by 1st
AC Franziska Schirmer Lewis) and trying to
keep up with the actors. I love it when
Kenny operates the camera, says Ferrara.
Its a grind on him because hes lighting, too,
but its great for me because I can have one
conversation with the camera department.
Ive suffered holding the camera for
hours on end, but I like to operate, says
Kelsch. You develop close relationships with
the actors.
Theres little to suggest that even if he
Cisco and Skye
seek solace in
one anothers
company inside
the loft that
served as the
productions
primary
location.
28
didnt like operating, Kelsch would refuse
his directors request. Sure, sometimes we
argue, but I want his image to be perfect,
he says.
Ferrara expresses a deep admiration
for Kelschs contributions, despite their
occasional disagreements. Kens a giving
person, and hes got an attitude about film
thats different than mine. But anyone
whos part of my set affects the film. You
gotta believe, and I know Kenny believes
even when were not seeing eye to eye.
Because weve had a relationship for so
long, we have a funny way of expressing
that.
In the DI, Kelsch recalls, Abel would
choose a frame with a particular look he
liked, and then Milan and I would match
the entire scene to it. By the time theyd
finished, it seemed Ferrara might be warm-
ing to the idea of digital acquisition. Abel
turned to me at one point and said, Kenny,
I cant believe you made that Red camera
look great!
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Left: Ferrara and
Kelsch (left)
discuss a setup.
Right: 1st AC
Franziska
Schirmer Lewis
and Kelsch train
the camera
on Leigh.
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S
ex, murder, bribery, simony and theft: not the usual
pastimes of a pope, but Rodrigo Borgia, also known as
Pope Alexander VI, was head of a family whose lust for
power inspired Machiavellis The Prince and Mario Puzos
The Godfather. Emerging at the height of the Renaissance, the
Borgias rose to become one of the most prominent and noto-
rious families in Europe, with Rodrigos occupancy of the
papal office between 1492 and 1503 representing a high-water
mark of Vatican corruption and greed.
Director/writer Neil Jordan spent a decade developing
The Borgias as a feature film, but he eventually decided its
scope and complexity would better suit a series format, so he
struck a deal with DreamWorks Television. He then
approached director of photography Paul Sarossy, BSC, CSC,
whose work with director Atom Egoyan he greatly admired.
Vice
at the
Vatican
Vice
at the
Vatican
Neil Jordan and
Paul Sarossy, BSC, CSC
use digital capture to achieve
Renaissance textures for
Showtimes The Borgias.
By Mark Hope-Jones
|
w ww.theasc.com April 2012 33
Sarossy earned an Emmy nomination
for his work on the first season of The
Borgias, which saw Rodrigo (Jeremy
Irons) come to power and establish his
iron rule, and the cinematographer has
returned for the second season as well.
Jordan directed the first two
episodes of both seasons, setting the
tone for the rest of the narrative. It was
my job to provide a visual guideline for
all the directors who would come after-
wards by establishing a style with Paul
and then leaving it in his hands to main-
tain through the whole thing, says
Jordan. The style basically demanded
that directors commit to the dramatic
dynamic of a shot and make that work,
rather than gather loads of coverage.
Jordans decisive approach suited
Sarossy perfectly. Neils method was to
shoot with prime lenses, as though he
was shooting a movie wed set up a
shot with the viewfinder, and thats
what wed shoot, says the cinematogra-
pher. On TV projects, many directors
love the idea of shooting with zoom
lenses and adjusting the frame between
takes. My ideal way of working is the
way Neil does it, where were constantly
making very committed choices for the
scene.
Set during an era famed for
extraordinary artistic achievements, The
Borgias could not help but be influenced
by Renaissance art. We made as much
reference as we could to the paintings of
the period, says Jordan. If you look at
a lot of Renaissance compositions, you
notice these serried arrangements of
heads, generally of angels and saints, so
I tried to stack compositions with just
the heads and the cardinals birettas
when I was shooting things like the
cardinals in conclave. In paintings of
that time, you also often see peoples
feet; you see people in long shot rather
than chopped off at the knees, so when
we were photographing Rodrigo and
various cardinals walking down those
magnificent corridors, I made sure we
could see their feet and their costumes
trailing behind them.
Another aspect of incorporating
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Opposite: Rodrigo
Borgia (Jeremy
Irons) ascends to
the papacy and
takes the name
Pope Alexander VI
in the series The
Borgias. This page,
top: Rodrigo sets
aside his spiritual
concerns to indulge
his corporeal
desires. Left:
Director of
photography Paul
Sarossy, BSC, CSC.
Renaissance paintings and frescoes into
the look of the show was recognizing
the differences made by the passage of
time. There was a scene in a church
that we tried to light entirely with
candles, Sarossy recalls. As we were
shooting, it was getting progressively
darker. I wondered if there was some-
thing wrong with the camera or genera-
tor, but it became clear that it was
actually the smoke given off by the
candles. It made me realize how much
pollution must have been in the air at
the time, and how our collective impres-
sion of Renaissance artwork is affected
by the aging of those artworks. There
are so many instances of paintings being
restored and shocking people with how
colorful and bright they originally were.
So in terms of a look, we had to decide
between colorful and bright or the
grime of centuries. Ultimately, we tried
to strike a happy balance between the
two.
Smoke was an effective tool for
achieving that balance: it was histori-
cally appropriate, it could be adjusted
for each scene, and it helped obscure
some details in the sets. Sarossy
explains, A lot of the Vatican apart-
ments had frescoes, which we had to re-
create with photo murals in the
background. Neil was worried about
whether they would work, so he was
eager to use smoke in order to help
mitigate the clarity of the [image]. As it
turned out, they actually read quite well,
but smoke became established as an
ever-present factor. We used it to soften
things and prevent too much examina-
tion of elements like the frescoes. You
can control the amount of visibility and
contrast by the degree to which you
Vice at the Vatican

Right: Rodrigos
mistress, Giulia
Farnese (Lotte
Verbeek), tries to
mask her
emotions in the
second seasons
first episode.
Below: Cesare
Borgia (Franois
Arnaud, right)
grows increasingly
jealous of his
older brother Juan
(David Oakes),
who enjoys
his status as
their fathers
favorite son.
backlight the smoke.
Much of the Vatican was rebuilt
just after Rodrigo Borgias death, most
notably St. Peters Basilica. To create the
locations as they would have appeared
during Borgias reign, the production
built sets at Korda Studios in Hungary.
The budget precluded the construction
of each individual location, however, so
an innovative, modular solution was
devised. Jonathan McKinstry, who
served as supervising art director on the
first season and assumed Franois
Sguins duties as production designer
on the second, explains, There were
some sets that were fairly fixed because
they were so distinctive, but for St.
Peters we designed the modules in such
a way that they could become grand
corridors, libraries or other spaces within
the Vatican. We also had two other
stages with modular sets where the
rooms could be reconfigured, walls could
be moved around, and decorations could
be applied or removed to create different
locations.
With sets continually being
moved around, it was necessary to put
most of the lights and cabling up on a
lighting grid, with everything wired to a
dimmer board. The most important
thing was flexibility in terms of lighting
direction and intensity, says Hungarian
gaffer Balzs Vkr. Essentially, we put
up enough lights to cover every type of
shot so we could quickly change
between them. Day by day, wed check
with the art department about which
walls they intended to move, and then
wed make the necessary adjustments.
We sent lighting diagrams to all the
electricians, and when we needed to
switch from one setup to another, I
could speak to them over the walkie-
talkie from the dimmer board and tell
them which drawing to reference.
For Jordan, the modular sets had
one significant downside. The big
problem with The Borgias is that youve
got these absolutely magnificent sets, but
there are very few ceilings because the
lighting rigs have to be in place all the
time, he says. Even though I absolutely
love the wealth of detail that weve accu-
Left: Sarossy
confers with
A-camera
operator Mark
Willis. Below:
Willis and A-
camera 1st AC
Brad Larner frame
up a shot with
the Arri Alexa
inside the Roman
catacombs set.
mulated in the sets and costumes, I do
long for a ceiling, because a lot of the
detail and beauty of Renaissance archi-
tecture was in the ceilings.
Though they are largely unseen,
the fact that most of these ceilings
would have been toweringly high
played into Sarossys hands, as it gave
him greater scope to invent sources for
the light coming from above. We
always had to remind ourselves that
although our set ended at a certain
point, the [ceiling] might actually be
two or three times as high in reality,
says the cinematographer. The conun-
drum is always that you dont want to
take more advantage of the absence of
ceilings than would be natural, but the
realities of the architecture meant we
could use a lot of clerestory lighting.
You might have a solid wall in the back-
ground, but it was reasonable, and very
useful, to assume that a high window
was letting light in.
Using simulated clerestory light-
ing necessitated a great deal of thought
about the positioning of imaginary
windows, though this was aided by
Jordans predilection for historical accu-
racy and extensive research. Sarossy
notes, We did a fair amount of study on
the original architecture of Old St.
Peters Basilica, which helped a lot in
terms of determining the direction of
the light. For the interior, there was
always a base lighting situation for day
and for night, and most of those fixtures
were hung from the grid. We had
Molebeams coming through the side
windows to produce a sun effect. Inside
we had 10Ks preset to create various
hits of sunshine and a big array of over-
head spacelights reproducing the
clerestory lighting.
In general, Sarossy worked with
tungsten lighting wherever possible.
From a philosophical point of view, I
try to work with tungsten lights because
you can dim them and use them at
different levels. But also, in the smaller
situations, I find that tungsten lighting
is far more articulate, with more choice
in terms of small fixtures. I only go to
HMI when theres an obligation to do
Vice at the Vatican

Top: Sarossy holds
court inside the
set for the
original St. Peters
Basilica, which
was ringed with
greenscreen to
accommodate CG
extensions.
Middle: Director,
writer and show
creator Neil
Jordan (right, in
white shirt) works
with Willis to set
up a shot inside
the set. Bottom:
Floor units are
bounced into silks
to augment the
ambience created
by overhead
space lights in the
St. Peters set. The
modular set could
be rearranged to
create the Vatican
library, war room,
ledger room and
more, and the
lighting had to be
organized to
consider all these
different
configurations,
says Sarossy.
Opposite page:
A lighting plot
for the set
illustrates
Sarossys
approach.
so when were outside or on loca-
tion.
Although most lighting was
done from the grid, Sarossy took advan-
tage of any opportunity to light from
the floor. He notes, Whenever we
could afford to have lighting nearer to
the situation, wed have lights on the
floor or on towers that could be moved
around. We had a handful of different
approaches depending on the scene or
situation.
The smaller fixtures in Sarossys
lighting package allowed him to react
swiftly to those situations. Vkr recalls,
Paul would come in and say he wanted
a little floor bounce here or there, so
wed use a 300-watt or 650-watt fixture
with white muslin that could be set up
and then taken away very quickly.
The windows running down the
side of the St. Peters set were made up
of small, opaque panes of glass in leaded
frames. It was fairly early days for glass
technology at that time, so a lot of the
windows would have been made of
hand-blown glass, notes McKinstry.
We used real glass for a few close-ups,
but we couldnt afford to do that
throughout the set. Weight was also a
factor, so we had them made out of
resin or clear acetate.
These types of windows were
prevalent in many of the sets, and they
presented certain photographic chal-
lenges during the first season, which
Sarossy shot with Sonys F35 digital
camera. Very often we couldnt use the
windows as a source if they were in
shot, because they would be too bright
to look at, he recalls. Wed have to dim
them down, and the irony was that we
were then adding another light some-
where off screen to [simulate] the
window.
But in season two, weve bene-
fited greatly from using the Arri Alexa,
Vice at the Vatican

The production
transformed
Korda Studios
backlot into
Rome and
Vatican City
exteriors.
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he continues. Its dynamic range is far
closer to that of film, so we can have a
window in shot that is actually lighting
the characters. What started as a prob-
lem in terms of design and historical
accuracy became something we could
embrace.
It was really interesting how the
technology changed between the first
sensitivity of EI 800, the Alexa has also
made a significant difference in low-
light situations. When we had charac-
ters carrying lanterns through scenes in
the first season, the lanterns had to be
electrified, says Sarossy. This year, we
discovered through testing that a real
candle provided enough light to not just
be seen, but also to light the actor. Its
really a watershed moment for cine-
matography. The increased sensitivity
opens up all sorts of possibilities, partic-
ularly for a story whose palette is limited
to flame-based sources and natural
light. We found there were situations
where we could shoot with a minimum
of lighting intruding on the scene and
the performances.
However, the cameras added
sensitivity meant that more thought had
to be given to achieving true blacks.
We have a story that involves clandes-
tine conversations and secret plots, so
what you dont see is as important as
what you do see, says Sarossy. We
were almost obliged to find new ways of
making people disappear in the dark
because the Alexa sees so far into the
shadows!
You have to retrain your eye, he
and second seasons, adds Jordan.
With the Sony camera, it was almost
like working with a film stock from 10
or 15 years ago, in that a lot of light was
needed just to get a basic exposure for
certain scenes. The Alexa is quite extra-
ordinary; the sensitivity and tolerance of
what I was seeing was just amazing.
Because of its recommended base
Vice at the Vatican

Right: The pope
visits a ravaged
battlefield in the
second seasons
fourth episode.
Below:
Steadicam/
B-camera
operator Marton
Ragalyi guides
the camera
through the
carnage.
continues. Very often youll think there
cant possibly be enough light for an
exposure, when in fact its more than
enough. So do you accept the light thats
there, or find ways of improving it? Its
the difference between illumination and
lighting. With the increased sensitivity,
lighting becomes like finding the sculp-
ture in the stone: youre reducing rather
than adding.
The cameras recorded ProRes
4:4:4files to SxS Pro cards, which were
then dispatched to Colorfront, a digital
lab in Budapest. Sarossy kept look-up
tables to a minimum, combining in-
camera color tweaking with tools such
as 85 filters and polarizers. Colorfront
was absolutely amazing in terms of
giving us immediate access to the
images and the color work, says
Sarossy. They provide the cinematog-
rapher with an iPad that has been cali-
brated to the lab, so first thing in the
morning I was seeing graded images
from each setup the day before. I could
even change the grade on the iPad and
send it back to them, which allowed
them to incorporate that new informa-
tion.
Because of the tight schedule,
Vice at the Vatican

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42
Left: Sarossy
extends his
blessings over
the production.
Right, left to
right: Willis,
Ragalyi and
Sarossy take a
ride in the cart-
mounted cage
intended for
Rodrigos
nemesis,
Girolamo
Savonarola.
two cameras were often run simultane-
ously, and for action sequences still more
were employed, sometimes capturing in
different formats. We had a wonderful
sequence in season two where we re-
created a Palio horserace on the back lot,
and we generated a lot of different
angles with the Alexas and Canon 5D
and 7D DSLRs, says Sarossy. One
thing that was particularly surprising
and wonderful was that the stuntman
supervising the horse wrangling did a lot
of rehearsals using a tiny Drift HD
video camera. That camera is typically
used for extreme sports, and we used it
to get some great shots for the sequence.
We put it on a boom pole, and while the
horses are racing the camera is right in
there among them, pretty much at belly
level. Those are shots we couldnt have
done any other way. The mix of formats
also included 35mm film, which was
used in an Arri 435 housed in a splash
bag for a few underwater situations.
Postproduction for The Borgias
was based in Toronto, where Sarossy
worked with colorist Ross Cole at
Technicolor. I did as much in-camera
as I could, notes the cinematographer.
Were now in an age where you can do
all your flagging and netting in the DI
suite, but I prefer to do it there and then
[on set] and then just tweak the look [in
post]. Cole had access to DVD copies
of the offline edit, but he worked from
the cameras original ProRes files for his
grade. He notes, Having previously
finished all four seasons of The Tudors,
Id witnessed the cinematographers
challenge to use and/or emulate
completely natural light sources for a
period piece. For The Borgias, I strove to
render a color balance that yielded the
best look from Pauls remarkable
photography.
Sarossy and Jordan agree that
their firmly established style, the addi-
tional sets and the Alexas performance
have added scope and texture to the
storytelling this season. I think the
second season is superior to the first in
all respects, Sarossy maintains. On one
level, we were trying to maintain consis-
tency with the look that had been estab-
lished, but we were far subtler. We were
able to exploit the successes of the first
season and avoid the failings. Within
that mix, the Alexa has allowed us to do
so much more. We could revisit [certain
aspects of the story], and the camera just
brought them to life in a way that was
quite wonderful and unexpected.
TECHNICAL SPECS
1.78:1
Digital Capture and 35mm
Arri Alexa, 435; Canon EOS
5D Mark II, 7D;
Drift HD
Cooke S4, Angenieux Optimo
Kodak Vision3 500T 5219
43
W
hen I first read the script for Detention, I wasnt quite
sure what to make of it. Co-written by Joseph Kahn
(who also directed) and Mark Palermo, the story is a
schizophrenic mash-up of dissimilar genres, including
slasher films, comedies and science fiction, and its full of self-
aware film and pop-culture references. The plot is so bizarre
that its difficult to summarize, but we eventually settled for a
mix of Scream and The Breakfast Club, coupled with a little bit
of Back to the Future. Aiming mainly for the media-saturated
Twitter generation, it also unapologetically moves at a break-
neck pace.
Joseph and I have worked together for more than 15
years on hundreds of music videos and commercials, and I
also contributed second-unit cinematography on his feature
Torque. After making Torque within the studio system, Joseph
decided he wanted to have more creative autonomy on his
next feature, so he funded Detention himself. This meant we
would be making a feature for a budget that wasnt much
larger than what wed worked with on some commercial and
music-video shoots.
When I decided to do this film, I said, Im going to
bet the farm on this movie, but I dont want to repeat what we
have done before. I want to push the limits of everything we
know! says Kahn. Thats a very unsafe thing to do when
youre paying for something yourself and youre used to
making million-dollar commercials.
Adding to the challenge was the fact that there were
just six weeks between Josephs decision to make Detention
and the start of principal photography. Preproduction
commenced immediately in the form of casting and location
scouting with producers Richard Weager and MaryAnn
Tanedo, and at the same time, we tried to cram in as many
paying jobs as possible so Joseph could raise additional money
for the production.
One project we shot during this time was the video for
Eminems Love the Way You Lie. Captured in anamorphic
Cinematographer
Christopher Probst and director
Joseph Kahn detail their approach to
the indie genre mash-up Detention.
By Christopher Probst
|
Back to School
with Red One MX cameras, the hand-
held photography features mixed color
temperatures and has a lot of hot
sources in frame creating stylish lens
flares. We used a lot of color in the
video, but those colors were then desat-
urated to create subtle contrasts in the
highlights and shadows. This actually
became the starting point for the look of
Detention, but we needed to make the
movies look more narrative-based and
filmic.
Joseph is a true student of
cinema, and he ingests and analyzes a
staggering amount of visual material.
He has also worked to deconstruct
cinema techniques and theories, and has
developed some unique ideas about
cinematography and, especially, editing.
I believe in something I call geometric
editing, which goes beyond the basic
montage idea of cutting from a wide to
a close-up, he explains. Instead, I see
images and compositions as shapes
cross-cutting with each other. Triangle
compositions cross-cutting against
other triangles means something, even
on a subconscious level. Furthermore,
the positionof a compositional triangle
where the tip is in relation to the
screen, and how your eye tracks from
left-to-right before cutting to the
reverse shot, and how your eye then
tracks back from right-to-left where
that [corresponding] triangle is
creates different tensions in the frame
U
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.

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o
s

a
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.
Opposite: School bully Billy Nolan (Parker Bagley) stalks his prey. Day scenes in the school corridors
used mixed color temps, low full-CTO sunlight sources as backlight, and keylights cut off at
the actors waists. This page, top: Billy corners his rival, Clapton Davis (Josh Hutcherson).
Middle: Toshiba (Jonathan Park, left) and Sander (Aaron David Johnson) discuss Toshibas science
experiment. Bottom: Director Joseph Kahn blocks a nighttime hallway shot of Clapton and
Riley (Shanley Caswell) as cinematographer Christopher Probst looks on.
and the edit. So when Im framing a
shot, I like anticipating what its
intended perspective is, where the
weight of the composition on the screen
is, and where the eyes of the audience
will be from edit to edit.
His theories go even deeper, and
fortunately, Ive been working with him
since they first began to take shape. The
clear set of definitions he has estab-
lished for these ideas has helped our
collaboration and communication on
set. With years of this shared experience
in hand, we set out to construct one of
our most labyrinthine visual strategies
yet for Detention.
First and foremost was the actor-
camera blocking. As I was writing the
movie, I wasnt entirely sure how I
wanted to stage it, says Kahn. I
considered using a more locked-off,
traditional style because that seems to
work well with comedy. Many
commercials do their comedy in single
shots and lockoffs and then create
comedy in the edits between shots
for example, emphasizing the prosce-
nium framing of a tiny person in a big
frame.
My inclination, however, is to be
more cinematic and go for a rhythmic,
Spielbergian style of in-camera block-
ing, he continues. That doesnt neces-
sarily work as well for comedy, however,
because it can take away editing options
to play off reactions. I initially shied
Back to School
Top: Principal Verge
(Dane Cook) tries to
keep his school in
order. Middle: A
classroom set was
re-created for a
pickup shot of Riley
on the last day of
the shoot. Below: A
scaled-down
version of the
classroom lighting
shows a 4'x8' bead
board for overhead
bounce, a hot slash
of daylight on the
chalkboard, and
some low bounced
keylights for
modeling.
B
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group, framing a medium close-up of
her and two students next to her in a
tight three-shot composition. Then, as
one of Rileys supporters, Toby T
(Marque Richardson), begins to doubt
her, the camera pans with him as he
moves to join the other leader. The shot
ends in a medium four-shot of the
opposing side. Riley is being ostracized
by the rest of the group, and Toby Ts
crossing frame creates a perfect compo-
away from this style, but as I started
piecing the film together in my head, I
decided to just go for it.
We didnt approach a single
scene in Detention with any conven-
tional coverage. Once Joseph rehearsed
with the actors, wed break down the
action into visual beats. Rarely would a
shot comprise just one narrative/visual
beat; Joseph and I prefer to link several
visual ideas into a single shot and have
a shot evolve, revealing new informa-
tion without the need for cuts and sepa-
rate setups. We shot almost exclusively
with a single camera and played out the
specific beats for that specific camera
placement, even for the fight
sequences, says Kahn. Music videos
and commercials involve such short
periods of screen time that you wind up
editing for seconds and are therefore
forced into a very condensed visual
vocabulary. On this movie, I wanted to
open up my film language but still bring
the precise timing and interlocking of
shots that Ive developed in my
commercial work. I love the way
Spielberg blocks his camera; I wanted
to take a crack at that sort of intricate
camera-actor choreography, but do it in
my own style.
A good example of this choreog-
raphy occurs in a scene in which the
main character, Riley Jones (Shanley
Caswell), must convince several other
students to go after a fellow student.
(They suspect him of donning the mask
of a horror-movie slasher and killing off
their fellow classmates.) The shot starts
out wide at an intersection of the
schools hallways as about six characters
enter the frame. The camera then
pushes into a center two-shot profile as
the group divides, trying to make a
decision. As Riley asserts her position,
the camera pans to her half of the
We didnt
approach a
single scene in
Detention with
any conventional
coverage.
sition of all of the other characters
aligned against her, says Kahn. Even
though its a complex camera move, its
all rooted in Rileys struggle. You can
literally feel all the characters moving
away from her.
When such a move is driven by
the narrative and done well, it disguises
itself, and the audience barely notices its
complexity. It all just feels right for the
scene. Its really about bringing forth
the drama of the scene in a way thats
not overly dramatic, says the director.
Its a very thin tightrope to walk on,
and a tricky way of achieving comedy.
Its very hard to edit around an intricate
move like that, so those laughs have to
work in-camera as blocked. But I felt it
was an interesting way to give the
comedy a tone that we havent seen in a
long time.
We elected to shoot Detention in
the Reds 4K anamorphic mode (which
crops the sensor to 2816x2304 pixels)
and use Redcode 42 compression, the
least amount of compression available
on Red Ones. Our camera package
came from Camtec of Burbank, Calif.,
and also included Hawk V-series and
vintage Kowa anamorphic prime lenses,
as well as anamorphosized Cooke 40-
120mm T4.5 and Angenieux HR 50-
500mm T5.6 zooms.
We had two A-camera first assis-
tants. Tony Martin covered the first half
of the shoot, and Jason Zakrzewski
stepped in when Tony had to leave
because of a prior commitment.
Detention was not an easy job for them
because Joseph and I were keen to shoot
everything as wide open as possible.
(The Hawks and the Kowas ranged
from T2.3-T3.) Dan Ming served as
camera operator and second-unit direc-
tor of photography until he, too, had to
depart. Darrin Nim then took up the
second-unit duties.
For most sequences, I began with
the Red set to its native color tempera-
ture of 5,000K. I then either balanced
my lighting to that temperature, or
added various strengths of CTB filters
to the lens to give as full a range of color
information as possible to all three RGB
Back to School
Top: Billy scorches
his hand in a fight
with Clapton.
Middle: Clapton
gazes at Rileys
house. Bottom:
Downey Studios
backlot provided
most of Grizzly
Lakes suburban
streets. This shot
shows Probsts
typical night-
lighting scenario:
large underexposed
half-light sources
and low uplight
keys on the actors.
channels. Failing to correct tungsten
light, for example, starves the blue chan-
nel of balanced color information and
can result in a noisier image.
Mixed color temperatures were
an integral element of the films visual
palette, as was the judicious use of lens
flares, especially on many of the flash-
back sequences. In fact, we used the
Kowa primes for all of the flashbacks
specifically because of their marvelous
lens-flare qualities.
The decision to shoot anamor-
phic proved to be a saving grace in terms
of devising a lighting scheme to suit the
flamboyantly roving camera. Though an
anamorphic composition tends to
include more width in the scene
driving any on-floor lighting fixtures
farther away it also features less field-
of-view both above and below the
frame. This allowed me to bring lighting
in from either above or below the frame
lines. And even if the camera panned
270 degrees, I could still add a half-light
key (set slightly under exposure) from
one side where the camera did not see,
and then add a secondary, hotter key
right on the floor below frame. This
hotter source was usually either a Kino
Flo Image 80 or 4' 4-bank that created a
hot skip-light feel from the same direc-
tion as the larger source. Some addi-
tional toplight, bounced off the ceiling
or a flown 12'x12' UltraBounce,
Its very hard to
edit around an
intricate move, so
those laughs have
to work in-camera
as blocked.
provided ambient fill and was always a
different color temperature than the
keylight.
We shot Detention mostly in
practical locations in and around Los
Angeles. Parts of several different
schools were combined to create the
fictitious Grizzly Lake High School,
and the new school year loomed large
over our schedule. We had just a small
window of time to use the schools, and
we had to shoot mostly on weekends,
which meant loading in and out repeat-
edly and re-creating lighting for a single
sequence several different times.
For day scenes set in the high
school, we used a
1
4 CTB filter on the
Red, which was set at 5,000K. We then
began lighting the corridors by swap-
ping out all of the fluorescent tubes in
the overhead practicals with Chroma
50s to create a base-level illumination.
Additional toplight was added with
Arri M18 HMIs gelled with
1
2 CTB,
which gave the ambience a slightly
cooler cast in the shadows. Low,
ripping-hot Arri T12s were gelled with
Full CTO to provide some directional
sunlight and backlight gleaming down
the hallways, contrasting with the cool
toplight, while uncorrected 5Ks on low
combos added some directional, frontal
sunlight that was flagged off the char-
acters at the waist. Finally, large, soft
sources, usually 8-by pushes of daylight
Image 80s, provided the half-light for
the actors key.
I wanted a certain vibrancy to
the image because this is a movie about
teenagers told from their perspective,
and I dont think teenagers view the
world as dark and dingy, notes Kahn. I
think they see things sharper and clearer
than those of us who are worn out and
have cataracts!
Detention opens with a sequence
that is narrated Ferris Bueller-style by
Grizzly Lakes snarky beauty queen,
Taylor Fisher (Alison Woods), who
addresses the camera directly. As she
rattles off her theories about teen life,
Back to School
Left: This strip shows the demise of Taylor Fisher (Alison Woods). The first shot shows her being thrown out the window. The ne xt three comprise a
single shot of her falling, her landing, and the cameras pullback to show the aftermath. A final wide closes the scene. Top ri ght: Probst lines up a shot.
Bottom right: For a shot of Clapton skateboarding through his neighborhood, Steadicam operator Wael Shukha mounted the rig to a golf cart
driven by key grip Eric Budlong.
the audience starts to settle into an
expectation of what the film will be, but
that expectation is shattered when
Taylor is suddenly brutally dispatched
by a masked killer. To maximize the
scenes shock value, Joseph wanted the
camera to follow Taylor in a single shot
as she is thrown out of her second-floor
bedroom and lands on the hood of a
waiting car, and then pull out to reveal a
wider view of the scene. If we were to
break that scene into a series of shots,
wed lose the element of surprise
weve seen that sort of staging and edit-
ing so many times that its become a
clich, says Kahn. I wanted to see her
fall, land and get bloodied all in one
shot. But weve even seen all that before,
so to add an extra layer to the shot, I
wanted to spin around above and then
pull out to reveal the wide shot of the
scene, all in the same move.
The trickiest aspect of this scene
was that the exterior was one of the first
scenes shot, whereas her dialogue and
murder was one of the last scenes on the
schedule. To execute Josephs vision of
Taylors fall, we started by shooting the
final birds-eye angle down on her
impact on the hood, using a remote
head on a crane. We then rotated the
camera before pulling out to reveal the
wide of the scene. Also shot during this
time were plate elements from Taylors
window perspective, which tilted down
and craned in toward the hood.
A second plate element was
achieved weeks later on the stage where
Taylors bedroom set was constructed.
We placed a greenscreen outside her
window, and a makeshift gobo-arm
battering-ram rig was attached to the
dolly and set to the height of the lens to
allow the camera to be dollied through
and shatter the window. The final ingre-
dient involved capturing the foreground
element of Taylor falling backward out
the window and making a landing
motion that would allow for a quick
morph with the live shot of her mimic-
king landing on the hood from the
birds-eye angle.
The great thing about Detention
was that we never backed away from
doing shots like that, even though we
didnt have much money, says Kahn.
In fact, I think our approach stemmed
from the fact that I was trying to find a
cheap way of doing that shot!
Santa Monica High Schools
auditorium was dressed to serve as the
interior of a movie theater for a scene in
which Riley tags along with the object
of her obsession, Clapton Davis (Josh
Hutcherson), and his date, Ione
(Spencer Locke), Rileys former best
friend, to see Cinderhella, a Saw-like
horror film that Detentions killer is
copying. Creating a realistic feel for
both the interactive lighting on the
characters faces and the projectors
beam of light in the background was of
paramount importance.
The location had light beige
walls, which I wanted to fall off into as
much shadow as possible without losing
Back to School
Top: The main
characters serve
time in detention.
Bottom: Kahn lines
up a shot in the set
with camera
operator Dan Ming
and dolly grip
Johnny Segal
(center, partially
visible behind
Kahn).
detail. I asked the art department to
place dark burgundy curtains and some
Art Deco sconces on the walls in the
backgrounds of our shots. We created a
general toplight ambience with two
scrimmed-down Arri T12s gelled with
1
2 CTB bouncing off the auditoriums
ceiling. For the projectors beam, we
mounted a 400-watt HMI Joker to a
19 Source Four Leko that was fitted
with a motorized gobo spinner holding
a slash-pattern gobo. The Joker was
sporadically dimmed up and down on
its ballast to provide fluctuation in the
beams intensity, and the gobo spinner
was set to barely create a rotational
movement in the broken-beam pattern.
Keylight on the actors was provided by
8'x8' Full Grid frames diffusing Image
80s gelled with 216 and CTB.
The movies look gets darker and
its tone more aggressive as the story
progresses, and all of the final scenes
take place at night. Lighting night exte-
riors for anamorphic on a low budget
presented its own set of challenges, but
I approached all of them in a similar
fashion. Setting the Red to EI 640 at
4,200K and using a CTB filter, I
began with a toppy moonlight ambi-
ence that would be several stops under
exposure. This source was mainly
achieved by bouncing 18K Arrimax
HMIs gelled with Plus Green into a
20'x20' Flyswatter UltraBounce
rigged from 80' or 120' Condors. Next,
a Condor carrying an 18K Fresnel HMI
was used as a backlight source to edge
out the scene and provide a more obvi-
ous moonlight feel. Then, some addi-
tional landscape lighting, glows in
windows, and practical streetlights were
placed in shot to add out-of-focus
points of interest to the frame. Finally,
12'x12' - or half-light sources (
CTB-gelled Image 80s) were used to
create slightly underexposed, wrapping
keylight on the characters. This night-
exterior look was utilized for several
sequences shot on the Downey Studios
backlot, which provided many of the
suburban neighborhoods for our night
scenes, and for a high-school football
game shot at Birmingham High in Van
Nuys.
For the football game, Joseph and
Back to School
Top: Catty
cheerleaders Ione
(Spencer Locke, left)
and Alexis (Lindsey
Morgan) align
against Riley during
the school football
game. Middle:
Relegated to team
mascot, Riley dons
the costume and
weathers the
ridicule. Bottom: In
the mens locker
room, Riley
confronts Billy
about his terrible
secret.
I selected angles toward one hero-angle
side of the field. Unfortunately, the
existing mercury-vapor stadium light-
ing at the location was in very short
supply. Also, I decided to selectively
turn off stadium lights behind camera
to avoid multiple camera shadows. In
order to raise the ambient level on the
field, I again brought in a 20'x20'
Flyswatter Condor toplight and
bounced two 18K HMIs gelled with
Plus Green into it. Edgelighting
implied by the background stadium
lights was enhanced by Plus Green-
gelled Arri M18 HMIs mounted to
Max Menace arms placed 20' from the
foreground talent in shot. Additional
in-shot practicals and some still-photo
flashes from the bleachers added out-
of-focus interest to the sparsely popu-
lated stands. Finally, 12'x20' pushes of
two 250-diffused 4K HMIs provided
the half-light key.
Detention takes a radical turn
toward the surreal about halfway
through the film, when school bully
Billy Nolan (Parker Bagley) reveals an
outlandish story from his past (told in a
flashback). It was this sequence that
gave me the most trouble when I read
the script, and its actually the one Im
proudest of now. Kahn observes, That
sequence is so out there that I made
sure Billy [ended with], And thats
exactly how I remember it! to cast
doubt on the validity of his memory.
We also made the sequence as dream-
like as possible without going over-
board. Its a forest exterior, and we gave
it a quasi-Tim Burton quality with
heavy fog on the ground, over-designed
art direction, and a sort of studio-lit
feel.
The sequence starts with a
younger Billy getting yelled at by his
father and then taking his dog for a walk
in the dark forest. We built the forest set
in a large warehouse in Canoga Park,
Calif. Production designer Marcelle
Gravel rented dozens of trees and
bushes and built up an uneven burlap
ground that she covered in dirt, twigs
and leaves. I asked key grip Eric
Budlong to black out two of the studio
walls with 20'x60' and 20'x30' solids to
make the background beyond the trees
fall off into blackness. Gaffer Russell
Griffith achieved overhead moonlight
by bouncing Arri T12s gelled with Full
CTB and Plus Green into a 20'x30'
UltraBounce hung from the ceiling. A
continuous strip of mixed-tube (half
daylight, half tungsten) 4' 4-bank Kino
Flos uplit the black Duvatyn backdrops
and created a subtle horizon-line glow
beyond the trees. Finally, Source Four
Lekos and 2K BJs gelled with
1
2 CTB
were placed sporadically and aimed
directly at camera to provide backlight
glows and shafts through the trees.
With this theatrical lighting in
place, on-set CO2 was used to fog the
floor, and a copious amount of atmos-
pheric haze added depth to the small
set. The final element in the scene is an
alien meteorite that crashes through the
Back to School
Top: In a flashback
scene, young Billy
Nolan suffers his
fathers disapproval.
Bottom: One of the
movies more
fantastic sequences
shows Billy
discovering a
smoldering
meteorite in a mist-
filled forest.
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forest and comes to rest right in front of
Billy. We created interactive lighting for
the meteor in flight by swinging a small
Z-boom stage crane overhead with a
red-gelled Image 80 pointing straight
down. The lighting effect that implies
the off-screen explosion was created
with a series of orange-gelled, red-gelled
and yellow-gelled 2Ks running through
Magic Gadgets flicker boxes and aimed
into 4'x4' silver bounces.
Another key set in the film is the
location where the central characters all
find themselves in detention on the day
of their prom: Grizzly Lake Highs
library. This was a practical location at
Santa Monica High, and it featured an
impressive ceiling grid of large, square
fluorescent fixtures fitted with Cool
White tubes. Although Cool Whites
exhibit a fair amount of green in their
output spectrum, they almost fit the
movies color scheme, which frequently
had me adding a cyan toplight fill.
Keeping the existing bulbs saved hours
of labor, but it also necessitated balanc-
ing any additional lighting to match a
certain degree of the green. I then
removed much of the green in the
image via color-temp and tint controls
on the Red camera.
To help create a color contrast in
the library, we added small practical
lamps with orange lampshades to desks
and countertops. These units were fitted
with standard candelabra tungsten bulbs
and not gelled to match the fluores-
cents. Consequently, when we pulled
the green out of the image, these sources
picked up a few points of magenta, but
we found the effect negligible in that
color range.
The detention scenes called for
several students to deliver long passages
of exposition while seated, presenting us
with a new blocking and editorial chal-
lenge. Those scenes are a good example
of the next level of my geometric-edit-
ing theory: using vectors, explains
Kahn. Vectors deal with movement
within the frame and movement of the
camera. If I move the camera from left-
to-right in one shot, and then move
from left-to-right again in the next shot,
Back to School
Top: In a nod to
torture-porn
horror movies,
garish lighting
and mixed color
temps were used
for the fictitious
Cinderhella
series. Bottom:
Frames from
Cinderhella. The
final image is a
greenscreen
composite
showing
Cinderhellas
victim having her
head detonated
by a weird
contraption as
the characters
watch in a movie
theater. A
locked-off
camera allowed
the actresss
head to be
replaced with a
watermelon
loaded with fake
blood for the
head burst.
that suggests a pattern. Thats a very
different relationship from moving the
camera left-to-right in one shot and
then right-to-left in the next shot.
When you do that, youre compressing
two ideas together. These choices tie in
with my geometric editing, and it all ties
into the characters motivations. Its
truly a macro theory of filmmaking.
To help add visual interest to the
detention scenes, Joseph devised several
camera-movement themes to help
differentiate between all the shots of
characters sitting in chairs arguing.
People dont really appreciate the
efforts of the dolly grip, and we were
extremely lucky we found Johnny Segal,
because he has an instinctual feel for the
movement of the camera, says Kahn.
We came up with some crazy moves
for him!
One such move is used to relate
the backstory of the mysterious Elliot
Fink (Walter Perez), who has appar-
ently been serving detention for 19
years. Elliots story is told through one
long, continuous dolly move that circles
around many years worth of students
sitting in detention. There are no cuts;
clever wipes and morphs seamlessly
blend shots that feature different
students, funny exaggerations of period
wardrobe, and subtle changes in the art
direction to suggest the passage of time.
Elliot sometimes appears in
different eras in the same shot, and a
move like this would typically require
hours of motion-control capture to
accurately blend the different elements
into one shot. That, unfortunately, was a
luxury we couldnt afford. I didnt even
know if that move would work! recalls
Kahn. We go from 2011 back to 1992
with a single, crazy dolly move that
Johnny had to keep doing at the exact
same pace. Several times we had to use
a body double so we could pivot off
Elliots back in one shot to reveal him
sitting across the room in the next time
period.
Playing with the spatial relation-
ships of elements in frame was another
strategy we used. For another scene in
the library, we start on a medium shot of
Elliot seated. Booming up past him, we
rack focus back to Riley for her reaction.
While the camera was still above Elliots
head, we quickly moved his chair
forward so that when we boomed back
down, he ended up in a tight close-up.
That tells the audience this character
has something important to say, says
Back to School
Top: The prom
scene was created
in a high-school
gym. Middle: Riley
and Clapton
survive their
detention sentence
only to confront
something far
scarier: prom.
Bottom: Clapton
channels his inner
Travolta.
Kahn. Almost every shot in the movie
has a cheat like that.
One sequence with many visual
layers shows the students using their
smart phones to look up a pirated
version of the not-yet-released
Cinderhella sequel in an attempt to
determine the killers next move. The
characters in the pirated film are also in
detention, and they are also looking up a
horror movie for the same reason. This
film-within-a-film motif continues
down several more layers, each getting
cheesier and featuring older and older
technology, until we finally end up with
a porno-film version of the same library
scene ripped from a grainy VHS tape!
Each level of characters is then progres-
sively killed off as we step back out to
the present-day scene, where our char-
acters are now certain an axe is about to
fall on them as well.
Detentions frenzied narrative
comes to a climax at the prom, which we
shot in the gymnasium at University
Back to School
62
Dolly track snakes around desks for Elliot Finks flashback sequence, which covers 19 years of
detention. Chairs were adjusted to camera to accommodate the multiple morphs, blends and
wipes needed to combine several eras in one continuous shot. Image 80 backlights can be seen armed
in from Max Menace stands.
P
h
o
t
o

b
y

C
h
r
i
s
t
o
p
h
e
r

P
r
o
b
s
t
.
High in Santa Monica. The location
featured white walls and little produc-
tion value, so our challenge became
creating a prom look that would add
scope to the location yet also feel like a
credible high-school function. I began
by breaking the lighting requirements
into layers.
First, I envisioned some sort of
toplight ambience that could modulate
in color temperature and lend an under-
exposed dynamic to the scene. For this
we aimed two 18K HMIs into the ceil-
ing and had three different-colored gels
Medium Orange/Red, Primary
Green and Deep Blue randomly
swung into place to alter the bounces
color. I then needed to create some
interactive lighting for the dance floor
and stage, where a band would be play-
ing. We began by hanging a large mirror
ball from the ceiling and aiming several
Joker-mounted Source Four Lekos into
it to cast shards of moving light on the
students. To add to the settings rock n
roll quality, we hung four Mac 5000
moving lights from trusses dropped
down at the four corners of the dance
floor; these would provide interesting
light patterns and other colored beams.
Finally, racks of Par cans gelled in
different colors were placed on truss
towers at the sides of the stage and
immediately behind the band.
With the proms general environ-
mental lighting established, I turned to
lighting the foreground action. Using a
double-keylight strategy, I brought in a
12'x12' Full Grid frame and directed a
5K gelled with CTB to create an
underexposed wrap light. In keeping
with the uplight motif necessitated by
our camera moves, a brighter-level 4'
4-bank Kino was laid on the floor from
the same lighting angle.
Because of its ambition,
Detention is probably the most difficult
project Ive worked on in the last 17
years. With Joseph at the helm,
however, we all knew we were getting
something special and unique, and Im
very happy with what we were able to
pull off. Detention certainly doesnt look
like the amount of money we had, but
good photography comes down to taste,
composition, production design and
how you move the camera. Telling a
story well doesnt necessarily require a
lot of money; it just takes creativity.
Detention premiered at last years
South by Southwest Film Festival and will
be released by Samuel Goldwyn Films on
April 13.
63
TECHNICAL SPECS
2.40:1
Digital Capture
Red One MX
Hawk V-Series, Kowa, Cooke,
Angenieux
T
he three films we selected for coverage at Sundance this
year offer magical realism in a Louisiana bayou commu-
nity (Beasts of the Southern Wild ), a portrait of fraternal
love in a London housing project (My Brother the Devil),
and a perspective on the Palestinian plight in the West Bank
that could only have been captured by a local cameraman ( 5
Broken Cameras). All of these very different films were recog-
nized at the festivals closing-night awards ceremony.
Sundance
Standouts
Beasts of the Southern Wild,
My Brother the Devil and
5 Broken Cameras are among
the visual stunners at the
2012 Sundance Film Festival.
By Patricia Thomson
and Rachael K. Bosley
|
Beasts cinematographer Ben Richardson, an English
transplant based in New York City, won the cinematography
prize in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, which was judged
by Amy Vincent, ASC; directors Lynn Shelton and Justin
Lin; actor Anthony Mackie, and composer Cliff Martinez.
My Brother the Devil cinematographer David
Raedeker, a German transplant based in London, won the
cinematography prize in the World CinemaDramatic
Competition, which was judged by filmmaker Alexei
Popogrebsky, actress Julia Ormond and film-festival
programmer Richard Pea.
5 Broken Cameras directors Emad Burnat and Guy
Davidi shared the directing award in the World Cinema
Documentary Competition, which was judged by filmmaker
Jean-Marie Teno, editor Nick Fraser and fine-art curator
Clara Kim. Burnat, a Palestinian farmer who took up a
camera less than a decade ago, also shot the picture.
AC also screened several films we plan to cover in the
coming months, when they are theatrically released. The
first of these articles, about Andrea Arnolds Wuthering
Heights, shot by Robbie Ryan, BSC, will appear next month.
Left: Beasts of the Southern Wild. Middle: My

Brother the Devil. Right: 5 Broken Cameras.
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Cinematographer:
Ben Richardson
Director: Benh Zeitlin
Beasts of the Southern Wild , the
most-buzzed-about film at Sundance
this year, won both the Grand Jury
Prize and the cinematography prize in
the Dramatic Competition. A grass-
roots production to its core, this Super
16mm project marks the feature debuts
of director Benh Zeitlin and cine-
matographer Ben Richardson.
The mythic tale centers on
Hushpuppy (Quvenzhan Wallis), a 6-
year-old girl living in the ramshackle
community of The Bathtub, beyond
the protective levee in southern
Louisiana. Having lost her mother, she
is being raised by her hooch-loving
father, Wink (Dwight Henry), who
begins to show signs of a mysterious
illness. Thats not her only challenge:
Melting glaciers have created a rising
sea that threatens to swallow The
Bathtub, and prehistoric creatures called
Aurochs, held captive by the ice for
centuries, are now speeding toward the
bayou.
Its about a little girl trying to
survive the death of her home and the
death of her father, says Zeitlin, who
co-wrote the script with Lucy Alibar.
This synopsis might sound downbeat,
but Beasts is anything but the char-
acters exhibit a strong can-do spirit that
is evidenced by their celebrations and
their scrappy homes, which are pieced
together from oil tanks and other flot-
sam. Everything in The Bathtub is
strapped together in this rickety way,
notes Zeitlin.
The filmmakers goal was to
create the movie using a similar ethos.
Zeitlin is a founding member of Court
13, a New Orleans-based filmmaking
collective that focuses on real people
on the margins and seeks to tell huge
stories out of small parts. He explains,
The Court 13 approach is to feel like
youre living inside the story youre
telling. You work with your friends, and
everything is DIY; its all held together
with rope and tape. Its trying to make
something big out of very small
resources. Its not a hardship; its the
adventure of the film.
Zeitlin and Richardson share a
background in stop-motion animation,
which Richardson calls a great training
ground, because its a world where
anything you can imagine is possible.
You can pull off these huge, fantastical
worlds by working alone in a little
room. You are nature; you can create an
overcast day, or you can create sunlight.
My lighting strategies have really been
shaped by working that way.
Born in England, Richardson
moved to the Czech Republic with a
University of London schoolmate,
Daniel Bird, when Bird landed a job in
Jan Svankmajers workshop in Prague.
There the pair co-directed the stop-
motion short Seed, which Richardson
photographed. It was a 605-day
shoot, Richardson says with a laugh.
Zeitlin, who had also followed a friend
to Prague, wound up building sets for
Seed.
After Richardson moved to New
York, Zeitlin asked him to come to
Louisiana to shoot a live-action short
titled Glory at Sea. Two years later, when
Zeitlin was ready to make Beasts, he
asked Richardson to shoot the minia-
tures and creature effects. Even though
nonprofessionals filled the ranks of both
cast and crew, the producers mandated
that several key crewmembers, includ-
ing the director of photography, should
have feature-film experience.
But Zeitlin found that experi-
enced cinematographers were reluctant
to sign on. He recalls, They looked at
the project, looked at our budget, and
said, Theres no way this can look good.
Some of them wanted to bring their
regular crew, and we couldnt afford
their wages. We were only going to have
a few lenses, and we could only afford
HMIs for a couple of days. Even
though we would be shooting on film,
all the money would go into processing
the neg. We didnt have the infrastruc-
ture behind the camera department that
most people would expect.
After two cinematographers
backed out, Richardson took action. He
went to the Hushpuppy compound
with his Canon Vixia HV20 and
followed a friend around as he inter-
acted with Zeitlins pet pig and chick-
ens. Using what he calls a gentle and
exploratory camera, Richardson shot
for an hour, and then he cut a reel,
labeled it Matt in the Bayou, and
made sure a copy found its way into the
hands of Zeitlin and the producers.
After viewing the reel, they decided to
roll the dice on Richardson.
Beasts logistics made shooting on
film almost a foregone conclusion. The
practical locations were in the middle of
nowhere, numerous scenes were set on
water in full sun, light would be difficult
to control, and power sources would be
limited. Richardson, who did his own
operating, used an Arri 416, which he
describes as the perfect camera a
little brick. He chose two Kodak nega-
tives, Vision3 500T 7219 and Vision2
200T 7217. I definitely wanted to
shoot film because I wanted to be pull-
processing and underexposing, and
digging down into the shadows without
stressing about pattern noise.
Sundance Standouts
He rated the 7219 at EI 800 and
the 7217 at EI 320, and then pull-
processed by 1-1
1
2 stops. The pull
process kept the grain under control,
and when we printed it printing it up
a little, but rarely and not much it
kept the images darker, softer and a little
flatter, he explains. (Alpha Cine Labs
in Seattle processed the negative and
also handled dailies and the DI.)
I was metering to keep shadows
down in the bottom range, continues
the cinematographer. If there were a
few bright things [in frame], theyd kick
all the way up into the highlights but
stay textural. Some of my favorite scenes
are like that.
One example is a nighttime storm
in which Wink hunkers down with
Hushpuppy in their hut, their dark skin
blending with shadows and wood.
When wet, the wood was really dark,
but it had specular highlights, and I
wanted to get those beautiful reflec-
tions, says Richardson.
Zeitlin generally favored images
on the darker, less saturated side.
Because of that, when we see bright
colors, like fireworks, they didnt have to
be super-bright and super-saturated to
read as this joyful pop, notes
Richardson.
To give the nonprofessional
actors maximum flexibility, Zeitlin
asked Richardson to light for 360-
degree shooting as much as possible.
Practical sources motivated all the light-
ing. In that storm scene, for example, a
chandelier made of flashlights served as
the source. That was a bunch of 12-volt
lamps producing almost no light, just a
nice spill on the floor, says Richardson.
I augmented that with one covered
wagon and a small China ball.
The observational camerawork
Richardson tried out during his self-
appointed audition was just right for
Beasts. We built these outrageous sets,
but I was very specific about not want-
ing to ever call attention to them with
the camera, says Zeitlin. We were
going to shoot this as a piece of realism.
The camera was always going to be
reactive as opposed to suggesting whats
cool in the frame. I just wanted to docu-
ment characters. (Documentary work,
specifically Les Blanks 1973 film Dry
Wood, about Creole life in Louisiana,
was the biggest inspiration for camera-
work and texture.)
A second guiding principle was
that the camera would be consistently
aligned with Hushpuppys perspective.
In this respect the filmmakers took their
cue from Jerrycan, a short film by Julius
Avery about five bored kids who decide
to blow something up. I think they only
had a 50mm lens on a 16mm camera,
and they were riding around on bikes
with it, says Zeitlin. I saw that and
thought, Thats how a kid experiences
the world. The focal plane is thin; youre
picking out details as opposed to seeing
the complete picture. Thats how I
remember childhood, as specific flashes
and tiny details.
Pity my poor first assistant, Jason
Knoll! adds Richardson. We shot the
whole movie almost entirely wide open.
I typically had six or seven stops of ND
on exteriors, even when we were shoot-
ing the 200-speed stock, because we
Above: Using a boat fashioned from a pickup truck, Hushpuppy (Quvenzhan Wallis) embarks on her
journey. Below: Executing a 25' dolly move on the water are (from left) cinematographer Ben
Richardson, 1st AC Jason Knoll (partially visible next to Richardson), director Benh Zeitlin and boat
captain Mike Arceneaux.
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CAMERAMANS ORIGINAL
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wanted that shallow depth-of-field.
The focus was designed to be as
exploratory as the camerawork. Benh
loves focus racks, and he edits around
them very effectively.
Shooting in the standard 1.85:1
aspect ratio, Richardson tapped four
Zeiss Super Speed 16mm lenses: a
12mm, 16mm, 25mm and 50mm.
Midway through the shoot, he added a
35mm Super Speed, but most of the
footage was captured with the 25mm or
50mm. Benh wanted to spend a lot of
time in close-ups and in the space of the
characters, and 50mm made the most
sense for that, says Richardson. The
25mm was comfortable for walking
behind characters; it could read enough
of the world without going super wide.
Master shots were avoided, even
on dramatic action such as Hushpuppy
setting her house on fire. We were so in
tune with focusing on her experience
that [going wide] literally never
occurred to us, says Richardson. In that
scene, the camera stays on Hushpuppys
face as she runs away, and the blazing
house is only glimpsed in the back-
ground. With no cart or dolly on hand,
Richardson ran backwards as fast as he
Sundance Standouts
Clockwise from top: Key grip Tim Curtin
spots Richardson as he captures a party in
The Bathtub; Richardson takes a break on set;
a setup for a scene showing Hushpuppy and
her father (Dwight Henry) at home.
could in front of the girl with his wrists
locked one of my favorite camera
moves to do, he says. Zeitlin notes,
We hoped to catch this thing burning
down behind her. That was the mental-
ity: whatever we catch, we catch.
One of Richardsons challenges
was keeping the camera close to
Hushpuppys 4'-tall eye level for the
entire film. Going handheld made the
camera feel too present for the film-
makers taste, and Steadicam was too
solid (and also unaffordable for more
than a day or two). His solution was an
EasyRig. It was designed to just take
the weight off the operators shoulder,
but I discovered it worked well at hip
height, too, he says. I didnt feel foot-
falls as heavily as I did when I went
handheld, and [the images] could be
very cinematic.
Shooting on open water also
required special strategies. One was
finding a boat captain who could pilot a
flat-bottomed jon boat like a dolly.
Richardson remembers one compli-
cated scene where Wink fishes by hand.
With only 15 minutes of daylight
remaining, Richardson explained to
boat captain Mike Arceneaux how he
wanted to slowly dolly in on the actor.
Mike spun the boat around, blasted
500 yards downriver, swung around,
came screaming back, killed the throttle
and just glided in. I was literally hanging
off the front of the boat with Jasons
hand on my belt. We glided for the
entire length of that shot a minute-
and-a-half and did it in one take. Its
absolutely beautiful.
Other moves entailed an under-
water pulley system engineered by the
boat captains with ropes and a Cajun
anchor, a 6' spear that could fasten into
mud. In shallower waters, Richardson
donned waders and jumped in. The
camera sat on his shoulder or floated on
the Titanic, a block of Styrofoam set
on a 2'x2' piece of plywood. When we
were in the water, we wanted to feel the
water, says Richardson.
Pulling focus in such situations
wasnt easy. The bayou waters are fast
moving, and the tides are strong, says
Richardson. Setting up shots, we were
always getting set for where wed be in
15 seconds. Knoll started out trying to
take measurements, but 80 percent of
the movie is him just skillfully eyeing it,
adds Richardson. He got really good.
Given that Beasts is his feature
debut, Richardson had his own
moments of doubt. I was giving myself
heart attacks daily because I knew how
far I wanted to push it, he says. I
decided the worst thing I could do
would be to change what I was doing
just to be a little safer. I decided I just
couldnt be afraid.
Fox Searchlight will release Beasts
of the Southern Wild in the U.S. on June
29.
Patricia Thomson
My Brother the Devil
Cinematographer:
David Raedeker
Director: Sally El Hosaini
Set in a public-housing project in
Londons East End, My Brother the
Devil follows siblings and second-
generation Egyptian immigrants Rash
(James Floyd) and Mo (Fady Elsayed)
as they navigate turning points in their
respective lives and in their relationship.
The street-smart Rash sells drugs for
the neighborhood gang but is losing his
taste for the criminal life, while the
younger Mo yearns for the respect Rash
appears to command. The murder of a
close friend leads both to take steps in
new directions.
In presenting David Raedeker
with the cinematography award in the
World Cinema Dramatic Competition
for his work on the picture, Sundance
juror Alexei Popogrebsky praised him
for bringing to vibrant, pulsing life a
searing drama from a little sector of
modern society. Stepping up to accept
the prize, Raedeker credited his close
collaboration with director Sally El
Hosaini and production designer
Stphane Collonge for making the
achievement possible. This film took us
on a journey, he added, and it was a
rollercoaster.
Indeed, El Hosaini, Raedeker
and Collonge formed a strong nucleus
that proved instrumental in the success
of the project, which encountered chal-
lenges that might be considered
remarkable even by indie-film stan-
dards. Their creative bond was facili-
tated by five weeks of prep, three of
which were spent dissecting every
detail of the script, says Raedeker. At
that point, I wasnt thinking about visu-
als at all. I wanted to understand the
story from the inside and let the visuals
come out of that.
El Hosaini, who was making her
feature-directing debut, knew she
wanted the camera to stay close to the
brothers and present the world from
their perspectives to be an insider
looking out, she says. To facilitate this,
the team arrived at four rules. El
Hosaini explains, The first rule was
that the visuals should be experience-
driven how is this scene experienced
by Mo or Rash? We wanted to use their
five senses to access the emotion of the
scene and then translate that visually.
The second rule was maintaining a 1.5
POV, with Mos POV being the 1 and
Rashs being the .5, so that the film
would be mostly from Mos POV, but
not entirely. Rule 3 was no master shots;
we wanted to always maintain a subjec-
tive style. Rule 4 was simplicity, because
its an art form, and its what were all
ultimately striving towards.
Gus Van Sants Paranoid Park
and Elephant, Terrence Malicks The
Tree of Life and David O. Russells The
Fighter figured into the discussions, and
El Hosaini found Magnum photogra-
pher Simon Wheatleys book Dont Call
Me Urban! a useful way to share with
her collaborators some of the details of
the world her film would depict. Its a
world Id spent years researching, and
Simons book helped me bring David
and Stphane up to speed on many
aspects of it, says the director.
El Hosaini and Raedeker decided
a 2.40:1 frame was essential to telling
the story, and comparison tests
convinced the rest of the team. Most
films that show council estates portray
Sundance Standouts
them as quite gray and horrible, and we
didnt want to do that, says Raedeker.
We just wanted to show how these
boys see the world. El Hosaini adds, It
wasnt that I set out to make a beautiful
movie. The choice was all about being
very subjective and close to the broth-
ers. Its their home, and to them it is
beautiful. I also think Scope made what
could be quite a mundane world an
adventure.
The format also enhanced the
cameras intimacy with Mo and Rash.
El Hosaini recalls, Shortly before film-
ing began, I was on the bus, and there
was a teenaged boy sitting in front of
me who had really bad skin. I remem-
ber thinking, Thats what this movie
needs: I want to be close enough to the
characters that you see their bad skin. I
wanted to see their sweat, their acne, the
meaty texture of their skins. Scope
really pushed us into all those close-
ups.
Staying close to the brothers also
meant a very mobile camera. There are
two heroes in the film, which is not
common, notes Raedeker. Sally
compared their relationship to a strand
of DNA; their lives spiral around each
other but are always connected. That
served as our visual blueprint, and I
developed a slightly different camera
style for each brother. I used a much
looser handheld camera with Mo and
tried to keep him off-center in the
frame, whereas Rash appears with more
compositional weight in the middle of
the frame and was often shot with a
Steadicam. When they shared a scene,
Id choose an angle close to one of their
perspectives, as one brother would
observe the other.
In prep, I mapped the whole
movie out in this fashion, an idea I got
from the American Cinematographer
article about 127 Hours [Dec. 10], he
continues. Anthony Dod Mantle
[ASC, BSC, DFF] mapped out the
dramatic structure of that movie in a
timeline, and I did something similar. It
helped me to understand and bring out
the interplay between the brothers
development; it was a great starting
point for thinking about camera style
and other visual ideas.
He estimates that about 80
percent of the picture was shot hand-
held, and when the camera wasnt on his
shoulder, it was on an EasyRig. Most
of the actors, including Fady, had never
acted before, and it was important for
me to operate because I needed to react
to what they were doing quite sponta-
neously, he notes.
The casting of a number of local
non-professionals was part of El
Hosainis quest for authenticity, and so
was the choice to shoot on location on a
council estate in Hackney. To everyones
surprise, shortly before filming began
last summer, the area erupted in fires
and rioting. (A police shooting on a
nearby council estate sparked the
unrest.) Fear of further riots led
London to pass a city-wide law
prohibiting the filming of youths with
guns and knives on the streets all
summer, says Raedeker. Sally had to
rewrite a few scenes at the last minute
to move them indoors, and that
changed the dynamic of things. We
couldnt recce [the new locations] prop-
erly because they were confirmed just
before we were scheduled to film in
them. We had to adapt quickly, and
Sally was fantastic at thinking on her
feet and coming up with solutions.
He notes that a shared back-
ground in documentaries his as a
cameraman, El Hosainis as a director
and assistant producer helped enor-
mously. Documentaries force you to
think on the spot, especially if you take
risks and do something visually inter-
esting, because you cant reshoot it, he
says. I think you learn an enormous
amount, and if you can bring that into
your practice in drama it can lead to
good results.
A lot of things changed during
production, and some of it was just the
Sundance Standouts
Rash (James
Floyd, left) and
his younger
brother, Mo
(Fady Elsayed),
share a
late-night
conversation
in My Brother
the Devil.
M
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nature of low-budget filmmaking, he
continues. Sometimes the Hackney
kids wed cast would turn up late or not
at all, and wed have to adjust. That
unpredictability is not always a negative
thing because it makes you think about
why youre doing what youre doing.
You have to determine whats impor-
tant now.
One last-minute rewrite actually
led to the productions biggest lighting
setup. The scene depicts a nighttime
fight involving Rash, his friend Izzi
(Anthony Welsh) and some rival gang
members, and it was originally to be
filmed on the streets of Hackney. We
had to move it to a street set on a studio
backlot, and the only street we could get
was a suburban street with a village
pub, recalls Raedeker. Stphane had
to transform that into a gritty Hackney
street overnight, which was not easy!
We shot a lot of the action up close, and
I think we just got away with it.
Because it was a studio backlot,
we had to light everything. We had a
tiny lighting package from Panalux, and
my gaffer, Max McGill, had to position
lights so we could be ready shoot in any
direction immediately. We positioned
some tungsten Fresnels and two 2.5K
HMIs gelled for sodium vapor in the
first-floor windows of the buildings at
both ends of the street, out of shot, to
backlight the scene from either angle.
The only lights on the floor were two
dimmed Parcans held by a spark [elec-
trician] to simulate car headlights.
Throughout the shoot, the tiny
lighting package sufficed thanks to
Raedekers choice of an Arri Alexa,
which he rated at ISO 800 most of the
time. (He used ISO 1,200 on some
night scenes.) He had used the Alexa
several times and chose it mainly for the
latitude of its Alev-III CMOS sensor.
I had to shoot a lot of available light on
this film, he says. The flat [where
Rash and Mo live] was high up, and we
didnt have the resources for cherry
pickers to light from outside. Also, it
was very hard to hide lights [inside]
because we shot so much handheld. I
needed a camera with a great contrast
range to capture the detail outside
because I wanted to give the image a lot
of depth I didnt want the windows
to burn out. I knew that apart from
shooting film, which we couldnt afford,
the Alexa was the only way we could
achieve this.
For day interiors, he typically
augmented available light with a few
single Kino Flo tubes. The council
estates sodium-vapor streetlamps
defined the night look, and Raedeker
carried these warm hues inside with a
few small practicals.
Though he prefers Cooke
Panchros for digital shoots, he chose
Cooke S4 primes this time. The
Panchros help take the digital edge off,
but because I was shooting so much
available light and had so much back-
light coming through the windows, I
was a bit concerned about soft lens
flares, he explains. The S4s were great.
I was often shooting wide open
[at T2] and just following the actors,
and my focus puller, Chris Kane, did
amazing work, he adds. I dont know
how he did it, but he did it.
London rental house Movietech
supplied the camera package, as well as
Sundance Standouts
Top:
Cinematographer
David Raedeker
consults with
director Sally El
Hosaini. Bottom:
Assisted by focus
puller Chris Kane,
Raedeker shoots
Elsayed on a
street set that the
filmmakers had to
prepare in a
hurry. An LED
Kisslite on the
camera casts a bit
of extra
illumination on
the actor.
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a few rigs that enabled Raedeker to
achieve elegant shots in tight quarters,
including the brothers tiny bedroom.
With those rigs I could position the
camera just below the ceiling or low on
the floor and still move it around, says
Raedeker. Once I used a high-quality
mirror in front of the lens to get into a
corner, and Movietech mounted that to
the camera with an Israeli arm. They
supported us in all kinds of ways, and I
owe them big-time.
The filmmakers recorded in
ProRes 4:4:4 using SxS cards.
Shooting raw was out of the question
financially, but we shot tests comparing
raw to ProRes because we needed to
show that ProRes would hold up, says
Raedeker, referring to the compression
inherent in the codec. It held up
absolutely fine as long as we didnt
zoom into the image.
He was unable to utilize look-up
tables during production because the
edit was done on an Avid. The Arri
Look Creator had just come out, but its
metadata could only be read by Final
Cut Pro at that time, he explains.
With the Avid, we wouldve had to
bake the look into the rushes, and that
wouldve made our workflow too
complicated for our fast turnover.
Our production office was
located next to our location, and we
began the assembly edit during the
shoot, adds El Hosaini. This allowed
for a direct dialogue with our editor, Iain
Kitching, and we were able to grab
pickups and make adjustments on set
that directly affected the edit.
Raedeker and El Hosaini spent a
week on the color timing at Technicolor
London, where they worked with
colorist Paul Ensby. After an initial
consultation, Paul spent about four days
pre-grading before we went in, says
Raedeker. We unified the look of the
exterior night-time practicals, and Paul
gave the images a great deal of depth.
He did a fantastic job. The movie was
projected digitally at Sundance, and
when the filmmakers spoke to AC, they
were readying a 35mm print for
Berlinale.
My Brother the Devil s premiere
at Sundance marked a homecoming of
sorts, in that El Hosaini had developed
the project in three different workshops
(two writing labs and a directing lab) at
Sundance Institute. Raedeker recalls his
excitement upon reading her script: It
wasnt what I expected. I was wary at
first because its based in an urban
ghetto, and it feels in the beginning like
a kind of gangster story, but it very clev-
erly breaks out of that genre to become
much more a relationship film about
two brothers. Its far from clich. When
I read it, I just knew it was my kind of
thing.
Rachael K. Bosley
5 Broken Cameras
Cinematographer: Emad Burnat
Directors: Burnat and
Guy Davidi
When the lights came up after a
screening of 5 Broken Cameras , docu-
mentary cinematographer Tom Hurwitz,
ASC stood up and told the filmmakers,
Ive been making films for 35 years, and
this is one of the most powerful Ive ever
seen. It was remarkable praise for self-
taught cameraman Emad Burnat, who
just eight years earlier had been a farmer
eking out a living in the West Bank
village of Bilin. The Sundance jury
shared Hurwitzs enthusiasm, bestowing
the directing award in the World
Cinema Documentary Competition on
Burnat and co-director Guy Davidi.
5 Broken Cameras boasts no tech-
nical novelties, but its a compelling
example of unwavering courage under
fire and the power of images to bear
witness. Over the course of seven turbu-
lent years, Burnat repeatedly came under
fire yet persisted in filming the events as
an Israeli settlement encroached on land
long cultivated by Bilins farmers.
Burnats life as a cameraman
began in 2005 with the arrival of his
youngest son, Gibreel. Burnat and his
wife received a Mini-DV camcorder, a
JVC GR-D54E, as a gift. He began
documenting Gibreels first steps, birth-
days and outings to the olive groves that
Sundance Standouts
Left: Kane takes a measurement as
Raedeker prepares to shoot the films final
scene. Right: Elsayed jokes with the camera
team during a break on set.
supported the family. Because he was
the only resident with a video camera,
he was soon called upon to document
festivals and other events in the village.
When the villagers learned that
Israel would be constructing a barrier
through their township and appropriat-
ing the agricultural land for a high-rise
settlement, they began staging nonvio-
lent demonstrations once a week.
Burnat filmed the protests, as well as the
clearing of the land. He also filmed a gas
canister rocketing toward his camera,
and kept filming as the camera fizzled.
This is one of five battered cameras he
lays out at the beginning of the film,
saying, Every camera has a story.
An Israeli cameraman gave
Burnat his second camera, a
Sony DCR-PC110. Foreign journalists
were ubiquitous after Bilins protests
attracted international attention, but
Burnat was the only cameraman living
in the village full time. Soon his footage
was appearing on Reuters, Al-Jazeera,
Israeli and Palestinian television, and on
YouTube. (It was also used in military
courts and in some independent docu-
mentaries.)
Davidi, an Israeli documentarian,
was among the filmmakers who visited
Bilin. He was shooting a documentary
about out-of-work villagers who took
construction jobs in the new settlement,
and he used some of Burnats footage in
another project, Interrupted Streams,
which addresses Israeli control over local
water sources.
An Israeli settler smashed
Burnats second camera during a fracas
involving one of Burnats friends, who
had climbed a crane to stop the uproot-
ing of olive trees. The settler strides
towards Burnat, orders him to stop
filming, and then punches the camera.
Burnat subsequently purchased a
Sony DSR-PDX10P. By then, Israeli
soldiers were conducting night raids on
Bilin and arresting children, so he
needed a camera with good nighttime
capabilities. Eventually, the soldiers
arrive at Burnats house, and when he
answers the door with the camera
rolling, he is told hes in a closed mili-
tary area and cannot film. He responds,
I am a journalist, and I am allowed to
film in my house. They arrest him on
charges of throwing stones and assaulting
a soldier charges that were later
dropped for lack of evidence.
When Burnat returns to the
demonstrations, a soldier fires a rubber
bullet at him at fairly close range, maybe
30 meters. It lodges in the camera,
which saves his life. I still dont know
why he shot directly at my face those
rubber bullets can kill you, says Burnat.
Theyre plastic on the outside but iron
inside. Many people have been killed by
them.
Burnat would often wear a fluores-
cent vest labeled Press. It helped him
obtain some freedom of movement, but it
was no guarantee of safety. Davidi
explains, No one is safe in these situa-
tions. More and more activists are using
cameras, and that creates a lot of confu-
sion for the army. If youre holding a
camera, you probably wont be the first
one targeted. The first will be the
activists, then the cameramen not [wear-
ing press vests], then sometimes people
who wear press clothes and have press
cards.
For his part, Davidi eschewed a
press vest. I cannot come in my press
clothing, film, then go back to the village
and drink tea with the people. Already I
Sundance Standouts
In a scene
from 5 Broken
Cameras, young
Palestinian
Gibreel Burnat
overlooks
an Israeli
settlement built
on Bilins
farmland. The
award-winning
documentary
was shot and
co-directed by
his father,
Emad.
You dont just have to
find the shot; you also
have to let go of your
own security.
5

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have the camera, so Im isolating myself.
I dont want to isolate myself more with
the clothes of a journalist.
Undeterred by his close call,
Burnat purchased another camera, a
Panasonic NV-GS140. This was
destroyed in an auto accident that
severely injured him, necessitating
medical treatment in Tel Aviv.
By the time Burnat acquires his
fifth camera, a Panasonic AG-
HVX200, Israel is attacking the Gaza
Strip and politicians are pouring into
Bilin. During one protest, a gas canister
hits Burnats close friend Phil, one of
the villages most active protesters, and
Phil collapses and dies on camera.
Burnats wife begs him to stop filming,
and soon Israeli soldiers destroy his fifth
camera while dishing out a beating. His
next camera, a JVC HD camcorder,
survived the rest of the shoot.
Phils death shook Burnat deeply,
and thats when he decided to create a
film he wanted to pay tribute to his
friend. He reached out to Davidi, who
was initially skeptical. Numerous films
had already been made about Bilin, and
he didnt like the focus on Phil. I dont
like the idealization of death, he
explains.
He proposed a personal documen-
tary instead. When I looked at what
Emad passed through [over] the years, I
thought his story was very strong, and
[that] he should share everything that
happened. What I didnt know was
whether the footage would allow it.
Davidi began looking through
Burnats footage, which totaled about 500
hours. In the first session, he spotted an
old, anguished man climbing atop an
army jeep in the village, and asked Burnat
who it was. Emad said, Thats my father.
Hes blocking the jeep from taking my
brother to jail. Davidi had his answer. I
felt that if everything thats happened in
Bilin could be connected to Emad
personally, the result would be strong.
Personal documentary was not
Burnats inclination, however. He felt
such an approach seemed too self-
absorbed, and Davidi understood why.
At this point everybody has worked for
years to create a Palestinian state, says
Davidi, and everything thats not aimed
Sundance Standouts
80
Co-director and cinematographer Emad Burnat.
at that target is looked at suspiciously.
But Burnat was eventually
persuaded, in part because he had seen so
many foreigners tell Bilins story. This is
my life. I am there, and I am filming. I
decided I had to make this film, not
people who come from outside. He also
realized he had been compulsively film-
ing his family life for years, as though
subconsciously preparing for this possi-
bility. Davidi observes, I think my
suggestion that he make a personal film
was a relief to him, in a way.
The two filmmakers brought the
project to Greenhouse Film Center.
During his pitch, Burnat laid out the
five broken cameras and told his story.
It was such a powerful metaphor for his
life experience, recalls Claire Aguilar,
vice president of programming at
Independent Television Service, which
provided seed money for the project. In
the documentarys embryonic state, she
notes, the storytelling was rough, the
footage was all over the place and the
formats were mixed, but it had an
incredible premise.
The final film also incorporates
footage shot by Davidi, Yisrael
Puterman, Jonathan Massey, Alexandre
Goetschmann and Shay Carmeli
Pollack, as well as archival footage shot
by Heitham Abu-Rahme, Bassam
Hamad, David Reeb and Islam Amira.
Most of the picture is 1.33:1, presented
pillarboxed within the 1.78:1 frame.
Now Burnat doesnt hesitate to
call himself a cameraman. At the
beginning, I was not professional, but by
filming day and night, I gained experi-
ence. Nobody taught me. When youre
on the ground filming every day, you
learn how to take pictures.
You can really see Emads
progress between cameras, Davidi
observes. The shots become steadier
and more calculated, and you see more
close-ups, for example.
These are very difficult, violent
situations to be filming in, he adds.
You dont just have to find the shot; you
also have to let go of your own security.
Youre risking your life, yet when you
shoot, you dont move.
Kino Lorber will release 5 Broken
Cameras in the U.S. later this year.
Patricia Thomson
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Co-director Guy Davidi, an Israeli documentarian.
Documenting the International
Cinematography Summit Conference
By Haskell Wexler, ASC
The ASC hosted a four-day conference in Los Angeles last
May for prominent cinematographers representing other national
societies from around the world. There were more than 60 atten-
dees, including 19 ASC members and 42 cinematographers from 24
societies. A number of filmmakers even made the trip from smaller
countries such as Estonia, Finland, Serbia and Korea. This ambitious
undertaking was suggested by ASC President Michael Goi and the
ASC International Committee, and then chaired by my friend Vilmos
Zsigmond, ASC. (The Committees current chairman, ASC member
Fred Goodich, has continued its goodwill efforts.)
The summit proved to be a fantastic experience thanks in
large part to the ASCs staff, which did an incredible job organizing
the program. Several individuals deserve mention for their tireless
efforts: events coordinator Patty Armacost, presidents assistant
Delphine Figueras, circulation manager Alex Lopez, and American
Cinematographer publisher Martha Winterhalter.
Realizing the importance of this unique occasion, I offered to
record it for posterity. I initially envisioned myself hovering around
the ASC Clubhouse with my Sony high-def video camera, basking
in the camaraderie while compiling a little highlight reel we could all
enjoy later. I quickly abandoned that lazy, nave notion on the first
day of the conference while capturing my very first image: a shot of
Vilmos standing on the Clubhouse steps and announcing the official
start of the summit. He made me rethink my entire game plan by
emphasizing the significance of the gathering and noting that our
guests had a lot on their minds.
Our three-hour documentary tentatively titled Haskells
Notes: International Cinematography Summit Conference 2011
covers 3
1
2 days that are presented in chronologically arranged chap-
ters addressing key topics. This might sound like a pretty boring
Filmmakers Forum
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Haskell Wexler, ASC assembled a documentary team to help him chronicle the International Cinematography Summit Conference
hosted by the ASC last May.
recording of cinematographers sitting
around a conference table and talking, but
fortunately, the ASC prepared a dynamic
program packed with enlightening activi-
ties, which included discussions at the
Clubhouse and field trips to sites such as
Panavision, Mole Richardson, Sonys 3-D
Technology Center, Universals Virtual
Stage, and the Academy of Motion Picture
Arts & Sciences Pickford Center.
During our visit to Sonys 3-D facility,
we were treated to a comprehensive semi-
nar on 3-D cinematography; our trip to
Universals Virtual Stage allowed us to see
how virtual cinematography works, and to
understand how this technology can be
applied on modestly budgeted produc-
tions; and the program at the Pickford
Center included presentations on solid-
state lighting, an assessment of the spectral
sensitivity of various digital cameras, and a
seminar on the preservation of digital
motion pictures.
A particularly interesting presenta-
tion at Pickford concerned the IIF-ACES
workflow, which was explained by two of
the key figures involved in its development:
Andy Maltz and Ray Feeney of the Acad-
emys Science and Technology Council. This
new color-management system offers
some tremendous advantages in various
areas of our work. Old-timers who are not
acquainted with a new technology can be
slow to embrace it, but I think IIF-ACES will
encourage cinematographers to be more
daring, because we will risk less.
At the Clubhouse, all of our discus-
sions eventually circled back to the concern
we share about the cinematographers role
in image making. We never reached a
definitive answer on how to ensure that
were involved in the crucial phases of prep
and post, but we did agree that establish-
ing a projects look is not exclusively
aesthetic or technical. Who, ultimately,
controls the final look of a film? My ASC
colleague Vittorio Storaro steadfastly main-
tains that cinematographers are the true
authors of the image, but he also
cautions that our status as such has always
been in jeopardy. Some concluded that we
should have no illusions about our evolving
role: we are not the gods we once were, or
at least thought we were. (Months later, at
Camerimage in Poland, Stephen Goldblatt,
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ASC, BSC put some positive spin on this
vexing issue by emphasizing how important
it is for all of us to be actively involved: It
doesnt have to be a bleak future. We can
also influence it. But you must speak up or
expire.)
All of the summit presentations and
discussions helped us to create truly infor-
mative chapters for our documentary,
which stands as a valuable resource for
anyone who wants to know more about
the crucial issues facing todays cinematog-
raphers. Examples of these chapters include
3-D and the Cinematographer, The
Next Generation of Cinematographers,
Virtual Production and Virtual Cinematog-
raphy, The Role of the Cinematographer
in New Technologies, Digital Workflows
and The Role of the Cinematographer in
Image Creation.
Recording all of this was a very
rewarding experience, but I found that the
most enjoyable moments were the personal
connections I experienced while looking
through my camera: chatting with Elen
Lotman, ESC, a young filmmaker from Esto-
nia; meeting a couple of Greek cinematog-
raphers, Yiannis Daskalothanassis, GSC and
Angelos Viskadourakis, GSC, who knew
director Nikos Koundouros back when I was
shooting with him in Greece; and discussing F
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.
During the
summit, Wexler
and his crew
captured footage
at various
locations,
including the
ASC Clubhouse.
cinematographers problems with Finnish
filmmaker Jouko Seppl, FSC, while also
learning what he likes for breakfast. We
talked while en route to the seminars; we
talked in between our visits to locations;
and we had great discussions when we
werent sitting around the big table. It was
an inspiring experience facilitated by our
cinema vrit approach.
When I realized this project would be
more complicated than I originally thought,
I asked a friend, digital-imaging techni-
cian/editor Stephen Latty, to take charge.
His crew included documentarians Tamara
Goldsworthy (who worked on my docu-
mentary Who Needs Sleep?) and Michelle
Crenshaw; sound recordist Zach Wrobel;
data managers Mariscela Mendez and
Nadege Traore; and production coordinator
Ella Martin.
Stephen also took on the editing of
the project, which totaled 1,700 clips shot
on three different formats: Sony HDV, Sony
XDCam EX and Panasonic AG-HVX200 P2.
Ordinarily you would choose one format,
but all of our cameras were loaned to us, so
we worked with what we had. Time code
was not synced.
Our documentary team followed
the conference everywhere it traveled.
The Sony cameras captured most of the
discussions and action, while the Pana-
sonic, mounted with a .75 Century Optics
wide-angle adapter, was used primarily
Its now our
collective
responsibility to
advance the
summits
progressive and
truly international
agenda.
86
for establishing and exterior shots. The
conference included a good number of
video and slide presentations. Without
any additional lighting, the high perfor-
mance of the Sony cameras in low-light
situations proved particularly helpful.
In preparation for editing, ASC
assistant editor Kinga Dobos assembled
an extraordinarily detailed clip summary,
as well as a crucial Photoshop document
identifying all of the 59 participants.
Assistant editor Cori Rubino transcoded
all of the footage to a common format,
ProRes 4:2:2 HQ, 1080p, using Final Cut
Pro to capture the HDV tape footage and
transcode the P2 footage, and using the
Sony XDCam Clip Browser to transcode
the EX footage. Cinema Tools reverse
telecine was used to remove interlacing
from the P2 footage and bring the
footage to a common 23.98 frame rate.
Because time code was not synced across
the cameras, Singular Softwares Plural
Eyes was used to line up audio across
multi-angle clips. Finally, the footage was
organized into highly detailed Final Cut
bins based on the clip summary.
Ill let Stephen explain the rest:
For documentaries, I like the simplicity of
online editing from the beginning with
full-resolution dailies in one common
format. It takes a little longer to prepare
the footage for editing, but you can really
see what youve got right away, and you
have an archive of all of the footage
encoded with a single codec. Also, this
Wexler captures footage during a hands-on demo presented by Panavision at
the companys Woodland Hills facility.
www.transvIdeo.eu
&LQH0RQLWRU+'
ALEXA's
8est CompanIon
87
was a historic gathering, so we wanted to
make it as easy as we could to go back
and work with this material again in the
future. We worked in Final Cut Pro 7 on
a 2008 17" 2.6Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo Mac
Laptop with 4GB RAM. I used Haskells
Sony HDV camera footage as the struc-
tural backbone for the edit, cross-cutting
with the other cameras as needed.
Haskell has a way of turning his camera
on and off precisely at the right time. In
nearly every clip, he catches something
crucial. I let that guide my edit.
We faced the difficulty of editing
large roundtable conversations, Stephen
adds. So while we tended to follow the
overall structure of the conference, we
often edited down and rearranged indi-
vidual discussions to clarify the continuity
of ideas. The film makes an effort to
preserve all the great variety of ideas that
were floated not just in the meetings, but
also in some on-camera interviews.
The motto of the International
Cinematography Summit Conference
was Making connections for a brighter
future, and we certainly feel we
achieved that goal. Its now our collective
responsibility to advance the summits
progressive and truly international
agenda.
For details on how to see Haskells
Notes, visit www.theasc.com.
Wexler leads a group of cinematographers to a presentation on the Sony Pictures lot.
Lowel Primes LED Lighting System
Lowel-Light has released the first two models in the
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able to both studio and field applications. Lighting technicians can
easily attach the fixture to a studio lighting grid, lightweight stands
or to scenery on location with standard grip equipment. Cool-
running Sola LED Fresnel fixtures generate very little heat, which
makes handling easier still.
Sola 4 requires only 30 watts of power and produces a lumi-
nance output equivalent to a 125-watt Fresnel. The fixture can be
powered from AC (120-240 volt) or DC (via XLR). Optional acces-
sories include four-leaf barn doors and a gel-filter set.
For additional information, visit www.litepanels.com.
PRG Introduces TruColor
HS Soft Light
Production Resource Group has
introduced the TruColor HS soft-light
fixture. By harnessing Remote Phosphor
Technology, the TruColor HS exceeds the
output of traditional 2K incandescent soft
light while using less than 400 watts of AC
power. Operating temperatures are also
significantly reduced, producing virtually no
heat in the illuminated area.
Rather than incorporate traditional
diffusion to soften the light source, the
TruColor HS emits light from the RPT panels
on the front of the fixture, providing light-
ing that radiates equally across a 160-
degree radius, wrapping the subject with
soft, edgeless shadows.
PRG has partnered with a leading
innovator of phosphor technology to
develop special formulations that deliver
3,200K with a high CRI of 96. When
daylight is required, the interchangeable
phosphor panels allow the same fixture to
output 5,200K with a CRI of 90. Additional
color temperatures are being developed to
match other light conditions. The color
temperature of the TruColor HS is extremely
consistent from fixture to fixture, and will
not change over time.
Like all PRG products, the TruColor
HS is extremely durable, built to last with
anodized alloy construction, flexible poly-
carbonate panels and field-serviceable
components. The fixture ballast includes
both local and DMX control, and connects
to the lamp head with a ruggedized multi-
core cable.
The TruColor HS is flicker-free and
passively cooled, making it ideal for any film
or television project, in the studio or on
location.
For additional information, visit
www.prg.com.
SUPPORT
- The camera is held in its
exact position
- Suitable for 15mm rods
- Hirth rosettes for the
attachment of handles
- Suitable height for any
equipment like
DENZ Follow Focus Mini
CODE 190.0233
DENZ Modular System
for Canon EOS C300
www.denz-deniz.com
Denz Products are Premium Products
SUPERSTRUCTURE
- The Superstructure completes the
Canon EOS C300 Support, made
out of Konstruktal
- For attaching accessories like a
monitor, batteries, recorders
- On each side of the support two
screws provide a force-fit bonding
- Included in delivery: Two clamps
for rods of 15mm
- A special handle provides additional
mounting options
CODE 301.0385
Aadyn Collaborates for
Eco-Conscious Eco Punch 5600
Aadyn Technology has introduced
the Eco Punch 5600 LED luminaire, which
boasts a powerful output of more than
3,193 foot candles at 10', with an even
spread and no spotting, while using mini-
mal power of less than 6 amps.
The self-contained Eco Punch 5600
incorporates a universal power supply, so
no head cables are needed. The fixture is
capable of strobe effects and is dimmable
with no color shift. Quick-change lenses
allow users to vary the fixture from spot to
flood, while maintaining an even field with
high output. Additionally, the fixture runs
cool to the touch.
The Eco Punch 5600 incorporates
LED developer Cree, Inc.s XLamp XM-L and
XM-L EasyWhite technology. Aadyn Tech-
nology also worked with Sturdy Corpora-
tion for the design and manufacture of the
Eco Punch fixture.
www.aadyntech.com, www.cree.com and
www.sturdycorp.com.
90
JVC Announces
ProHD Portable
Monitor Series
JVC Professional Products
Company has announced the DT-
X71 Series of portable ProHD
LCD monitors. Ideal for field and
studio applications, the 7"
AC/DC monitors offer 1024x600
resolution with a 160-degree
viewing angle and can display
480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i and
1080p video signals at a variety
of frame rates.
The DT-X71 Series comprises three
models with scaled I/O options and features
for specific needs. The basic DT-X71C model
offers one HDMI and one composite video
input, while the DT-X71H adds two HD/SD-
SDI inputs and an HD/SD-SDI look-through
output. The DT-X71F includes an additional
HD/SD-SDI loop-through output and one
HDMI converted to SDI output. All three
models include stereo audio input.
Other features include an adjustable
16:9/4:3 display, dual three-color tally lights,
underscan and overscan, image flip,
customer editable video title, Canon DSLR
scale zoom-in and safe-mark display. The DT-
X71F, the most feature-rich model in the
series, also includes a waveform, vector
scope, RGB histogram, red/blue peaking
focus assist, zebra, false color, blue only,
internal color bars, image rotation and
16-channel SDI (two-channel HDMI) audio
meter.
Each monitor is powered via a four-
pin XLR 12-volt DC connector with included
AC adapter or an optional snap-on JVC BN-
VF823USP 7.2-volt battery. DT-X71 Series
monitors also ship with a cold-shoe mount-
ing adapter and hood.
Along with the HZ-HM150VZR
ProHD remote lens control, the DT-X71
Series is part of JVCs ProHD Compact Studio
system, which configures the GY-HM150
ProHD camcorder for studio environments.
When mounted to the GY-HM150, the DT-
X71 serves as a full-size studio-camera
monitor.
The DT-X71C, DT-X71H and DT-X71F
have suggested list prices of $595, $1,095
and $1,695, respectively. For more informa-
tion, visit http://pro.jvc.com.
Rose Brand Offers Scrim Mirror
Rose Brand has introduced Scrim
Mirror, a glassless mirror that functions as
both a mirror and a rear-projection
screen. The lightweight, shatterproof
Scrim Mirror boasts phenomenal reflec-
tivity and easy installation.
Scrim Mirror is only available in
custom sizes. For more information, visit
www.rosebrand.com.
Lensbaby Focuses on Edge
Lensbaby has introduced the
80mm Edge 80 Optic, the latest addition
to the companys Optic Swap System.
The Edge 80 Optic is compatible with the
Lensbaby Composer Pro, Composer,
Muse, Scout and Control Freak, and will
transform any of those bending lens
bodies into a tilt lens that delivers a selec-
tive slice of sharp focus through an
image. Like the Lensbaby Sweet 35
Optic, the Edge 80 features an internal
12-blade adjustable aperture.
The Edge 80 provides a flat field of
focus that, when pointed straight ahead,
takes photos that are sharp from edge to
edge. Tilting the Edge 80 allows photog-
raphers to create vertical, horizontal and
diagonal slices of focus through the
image. Objects in both the foreground
and the background can be in focus
within that slice. Photographers can
control the size of the slice of focus by
changing the 12-blade aperture; for
example, f2.8 will produce a thin slice of
focus with abundant blur, whereas f22
will produce a very wide slice of focus
with just a small amount of blur.
The Edge 80 allows photogra-
phers to quickly and seamlessly change
the 12-blade aperture from f2.8 through
f22, by rotating the dial on the front of
the optic. An incredibly versatile portrait
lens, the Edge 80 can also be used to
great effect in any situation that lends
itself to selective focus. Additional
features include a minimum focusing
distance of 17", five multi-coated glass
elements in four groups and 46mm front
threads.
The Lensbaby Edge 80 Optic is
available for $300. For more information,
visit www.lensbaby.com.
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Birns & Sawyer Rolls Out

Production-Ready Vans
Birns & Sawyer has introduced
custom, pre-loaded production vans, which
provide filmmakers with a compact and
convenient means to service their produc-
tions.
The 14' Indie Truck and 18' Turbo
Truck are ideal for commercials, indepen-
dent features and documentaries. Corpo-
rate video producers, EFP, promo and B-unit
customers will find the Sprinter Van
provides big-time production value with a
modest footprint. Additionally, for enter-
tainment news crews and network special
projects, the 1-ton Ford Econoline Red
Carpet package is invaluable.
Each truck and van is outfitted with
American C-Stands and lighting instru-
ments from manufacturers such as Arri,
Litepanels and Kino Flo.
The Red Carpet Van can be rented
for $200 per day, the Sprinter Van for $300
per day, the Indie Truck for $400 per day,
and the Turbo Truck for $475 per day. For
more information, visit www.birnsand
sawyer.com.
MSE Controls Motion
on DC-Slider
Matthews Studio Equipment has
introduced the Motion Control System,
specially designed for use with Floatcams
DC-Slider. The system allows for manual
and programmed movements that can be
recorded and stored for later use.
The MCS features a wide range of
speed settings. Each movement can be
repeated up to 999 times. Due to the preci-
sion counter-balance system on the DC-
Slider family, only one motor is required for
all functions of the motor control.
Floatcams unique, precision,
counter balanced, multi-function, variable-
angled DC-Slider camera platform can
create a wide variety of camera movement
and can take any camera up to 22 pounds.
Director/cinematographer Rick
Gomez (pictured below) recently tested the
Motion Control System. A motor is critical
to my work for a variety of reasons, he
says. The controller on this system allows
me to make quick changes in timing with-
out having to re-record the move. I can
speed up or slow down the move easily
until I am content with the speed.
I can shoot sound [with the MCS],
Gomez adds. Its that quiet. The power of
the motor allows for smoothness and a
nice, easy ramping. And its so easy to
program. It took less than 30 minutes to get
comfortable with it.
www.msegrip.com.
OConnor Offers O-Focus
OConnor, a Vitec Group brand, has
announced the O-Focus Dual Mini, a
compact, double-sided, direct-drive follow-
focus unit optimized for both still and cine-
style camera lenses.
There are two versions of the O-
Focus DM, the Photo Set and the Cine Set,
each with its own unique transmission ratio.
The difference is accomplished by the use of
two different types of handwheels that
interface with the main bridge to generate
optimized transmission output. Changing
the transmission ratio is as easy as changing
the lens; without requiring tools, the hand-
wheels can be easily swapped out.
seattle 206-467-8666
toll free 877-467-8666
marty@oppcam.com
www.oppenheimercameraproducts.com
Film & Digital
SPECIALTY
PRODUCTS

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The Photo Set utilizes a Hard Stop
Handwheel with a transmission ratio of 1:1.
When coupled with the O-Focus Bridge, it
yields a 1:0.75 transmission ratio, so that
360 degrees of input results in 270 degrees
of gear-drive rotation, which translates to
longer, more exacting focus pulls when
using limited-barrel-rotation still lenses for
digital cinematography, and allows for
more precise lens control than has previ-
ously been available for these camera
configurations. In addition, the hard stops
enable the user to set minimum and maxi-
mum focus points for lenses with unlimited
rotation and to carry out hard-stop pulls. To
allow the focus puller to react to unex-
pected movements, the unique, single-
hand-operated hard-stop on/off switch
allows for instantaneous disengagement of
the end stops for critical adjustments even
during the shot.
The Cine Set utilizes OConnors
existing CFF-1 Studio Handwheel, which
features a transmission ratio of 1:1.8. When
coupled with the O-Focus Bridge, it yields a
1:1.4 output transmission ratio well suited
for cine lenses with an expanded focus
scale. The Studio Handwheel is offset,
meaning it has 360-degree rotation for
optimum placement and view of lens
witness marks, and allows the camera to be
set on the ground without the rig weight
resting on the handwheel.
Both versions of the O-Focus DM
feature extremely low profiles, which allows
for use with large-diameter lenses. The slid-
ing dovetail design provides adjustments
for various lens sizes, even those with very
large lens-barrel diameters. Additionally,
tapered flank couplings (pioneered with the
OConnor CFF-1) eliminate play between
the handwheel and bridge connection.
The O-Focus DM integrates seam-
lessly with existing follow-focus accessories,
including whips, cranks and gears. It also
shares many of the OConnor CFF-1 acces-
sories, including the Studio Handwheel and
Marking Discs, Handwheel Extension and
Studio 15/19mm Bridge. The new Toothless
Friction Driver, for use with still lenses, elim-
inates much of the need for additional
toothed gear rings.
www.ocon.com.
Zacuto Supports DSLRs
with Scorpion
Zacuto has introduced the Scorpion
rig for DSLR shoulder-mounted shooting
with an electronic viewfinder. It can be used
on the left or right shoulder.
At the center of the Scorpion is
Zacutos highly adjustable DSLR Baseplate,
which allows users to mount any DSLR to
the rig, and to mount the rig onto a tripod.
The Baseplate attaches to a tripod using
standard "-20 and
3
8"-16 tripod-plate
screws. Users can easily quick-release the
camera from the rig by turning the red knob
on the side of the Baseplate and pulling up
on the camera.
The Scorpion also features an all-
new, curved, form-fitting Akton Polymer
pad, which connects to the back of the
Baseplate via two 2" M/F rods. The rods
screw into the back of the Baseplate and
connect to the front of the shoulder pad via
15mm quick-release ports, making the
switch from shoulder mount to tripod quick
and easy. The Scorpion shoulder assembly
also features an innovative ball joint built
into the front of the shoulder pad; this
allows the entire shoulder-pad assembly to
articulate in multiple directions so the user
can angle it to fit his body for individual
93
comfort. The ball joint is released and
secured by the red top lever.
The Scorpion shoulder assembly also
has a built-in top handle for placing and
removing it from the users shoulder, for
low-mode shooting and for easy carrying.
The handle can be positioned up or set
down into the shoulder pad for storage
with the turn of a Zacuto quick-release lever.
Rounding out the Scorpion kit are a
7-pound Z-Lite counterbalance and Zgrips
V3 with 4.5" rods.
With the shoulder pad and counter-
balance weight coming directly off of the
back of the baseplate, the rig is perfectly in-
line with the camera and ready to be used
with one of Zacutos EVFs or an on-board
monitor. Users can mount the EVF or on-
board monitor to the side of the rig using
the included EVF mount. The kit is also
compatible with any 15mm lightweight
accessories.
www.zacuto.com.
CineBags Protects Cameras
with Skinny Jimmy
CineBags has introduced the CB33
Skinny Jimmy Camera Bag. Designed to
protect popular medium-sized cameras such
as the Sony HVR-A1U, Canon XA10, JVC
GY-HM100U, Red Scarlet or modular DSLR
rigs, the bag features a heavy-duty padded
main compartment that can be customized
with multiple removable dividers. Two small
side pouches, one large front pouch and
see-through mesh pockets keep accessories
such as cables, batteries, filters, media and
chargers organized.
The CB33 Skinny Jimmy features
oversized zippers allowing for easy access to
all compartments while the waterproof
fabric keeps gear well protected. A padded
side molding adds to the carrying comfort
when the bag is carried over the shoulder. A
CINEFLEX ELITE
HIGH PERFORMANCE IN A
COMPACT PACKAGE
Now Available with ARRI ALEXA M
Active Camera Systems Inc.
305.677.3046
cineexelite.com
says Shin Minowa, vice president of market-
ing and business development for
Anton/Bauer. The more accessories we can
power in addition to the camera, the
better. This Gold Mount was designed so
that users will not have to monitor multiple
batteries, therefore reducing downtime in
the field, as well as the number of chargers
[that need] to be transported.
The QRC-CA940 was designed to be
compatible with the companys mounting
bracket for 15mm or 19mm rod systems
and the Matrix Cheese Plate, or adapted to
third-party support systems.
www.antonbauer.com.
Dazmo Unveils Intelligent
Battery Pack
Dazmo Batteries has introduced the
C-LiFePo4 (lithium iron phosphate) Intelli-
gent Battery Pack. The result of three years
of research and testing, the battery pack
boasts 1,000 charge/recharge cycles, a fast
recharge time and the ability to maintain
strong power output until the end of the
charge.
The C-LiFePo4 also features a
motion detector that automatically switches
the battery on and shuts it off after five
minutes without motion. The battery has an
easy-to-read fuel gauge that indicates
actual charge time remaining. Equipped
with RFID transmitter technology, the
batteries can also wirelessly transfer infor-
mation (such as the number of cycles, serial
numbers and their complete database) to a
computer.
Made with totally recyclable materi-
als, the C-LiFePo4 batteries are 100-percent
serviceable and can be charged with any
power supply (14-15 volts, 9 amps and
less).
www.dazmobatteries.com.
heavy-duty shoulder strap with adjustable
shoulder pad and CineBags heavy-duty,
silver, brushed-metal hardware are also stan-
dard features.
The CB33 Skinny Jimmy is available
for a recommended price of $129. For more
information, visit www.cinebags.com.
Denz Accessorizes Canon C300
Denz has introduced a modular
Camera Plate Support and Superstructure
for Canons Cinema EOS C300 digital
camera.
Evolving from the construction of
supports for DSLRs, Sonys PMW-F3 and
Panasonics AG-AF100, the lightweight and
robust Camera Plate
Support is made of
highly strengthened
aluminum. The
C300 attaches
to the support
by means of a
centering pin,
an index pin
and a
3
8"
screw, and the
support accepts
15mm rods. The
supports underside can accept Denzs BP-
Multi bridge plate, as well as bridge plates
from other manufacturers.
The Camera Plate Support attaches
to the Superstructure by way of screws on
each side of the Support. Made from the
same material as the Camera Plate Support,
the Superstructure features " and
3
8"
threaded holes, which allow users to attach
a variety of accessories, and a handle
provides additional mounting options as
well as ergonomic handling of the camera.
www.denz-deniz.com.
Anton/Bauer Powers Canon C300
Anton/Bauer, part of the Vitec Group
company Vitec Videocom, has introduced
the QRC-CA940 Gold Mount power solu-
tion for the Canon Cinema EOS C300
camera. The 7/14 Gold Mount provides 7.2-
volt power to the C300 via DC connector.
While the QRC-CA940 operates
similarly to our other 7/14 Gold Mounts, this
particular mount will have three PowerTap
outputs where typically we only have one,
95
Cinedeck RX Expands
Mobile-Capture-System Family
Cinedeck LLC, a developer of mobile
capture systems for motion-picture and broad-
cast production, has begun shipping the
Cinedeck RX, the latest addition to the
Cinedeck product family. Cinedeck RX is a
rack-mountable, solid-state recording, moni-
toring and playback system that delivers tape-
less workflow to studios, post facilities and
broadcasters covering a wide range of produc-
tions in both 2-D and 3-D formats.
Cinedeck RX is the next generation of
the platform pioneered by Cinedeck EX, the
companys portable, multi-format, HD-SDI
recording system. Cinedeck RX offers unsur-
passed native capture and codec choice, flexi-
ble connectivity and editorial workflow
options, a small physical footprint, plus
groundbreaking versatility on 2-D, 3-D and
multi-camera shoots. Cinedeck RX uses the
same intuitive touch-screen interface as the
Cinedeck EX, reducing training time and
speeding deployment in the field.
Cinedeck RX captures from all leading
production formats, recording to cost-effective
SSD storage media, and can be used for single
input, dual-input two-camera or 3-D shoots.
Cinedeck is the first to offer simultaneous
native support for Avid and Apple standards,
supporting Avid DNxHD (wrapped as MXF OP-
Atom or QuickTime), JFIF for proxies and all
Apple ProRes codec formats, including 4444,
CineForm and uncompressed 444 (10-bit) or
422 (8- or 10-bit). Its unique Double Dual-
Stream feature delivers the flexibility to capture
two feeds at a time with the same codec, or to
capture one feed with two different compres-
sion formats while simultaneously creating
backup copies of each.
Cinedeck RX monitors video in real
time via a high-resolution 7" touch-screen
display. It provides users with a comprehensive
array of image-analysis tools, including edge
enhancement for focus assist, clipping, wave-
form, vector scope and histogram. Users can
also monitor audio via the headphone jack,
and toggle between audio inputs, while
simultaneously viewing the onscreen
recording-level display.
Cinedeck RX enables users to review
shots instantly in real time and in any order
via the built-in display or external HD-SDI or
HDMI monitors, allowing for instant QC
and giving users the assurance that they
have captured the shots they want.
www.cinedeck.com.
FFV SideKick HD Takes Video
Straight to Edit
Fast Forward Video has unveiled the
SideKick HD multi-format, straight-to-edit,
camera-mountable digital-video recorder.
Designed to streamline production work-
flows, the SideKick HD enables customers
to get the most out of their camcorders
without compromising quality.
With the SideKick HD, camera-to-
editing workflows have never been more
streamlined, says Paul DeKeyser, founder of FFV. Instead of using the cameras on-
board recording device, users can capture
video directly from any HD/SDI or HDMI
output and choose the final postproduction
codec without any additional transcoding,
saving valuable time and removing steps
that could degrade image quality.
The SideKick HD offers extremely
high image quality in a camera-mountable
recording solution, with the ability to record
at 220 megabits per second at only 7:1
compression. The DVR attaches to any HD
camcorder or HDSLR using a standard -20
mount. The system records to off-the-shelf,
hot-swappable 2.5" SSD drives in native
ProRes (for Apple Final Cut Pro) or DNxHD
(for Avid) NLE formats. Bringing files into
the NLE environment is a simple matter of
moving the disk from the SideKick HD to
the computer; no time-consuming ingest or
transcoding operations are required. Addi-
tionally, a 4.3" on-board confidence moni-
tor offers playback options including scrub
and jog capabilities.
To simplify power management, the
extremely lightweight SideKick HD is
powered from the cameras battery. FFV
offers power cables for direct connection to
Anton-Bauer and IDX camera batteries, as
well as approved OEM-compatible batteries
with a DC output for Sony, Panasonic,
Canon and JVC camcorders. In addition,
FFV offers a battery-pack option that
extends the full power of the SideKick HD
to users of smaller cameras that are not
equipped with full-sized batteries. On
remote-location shoots, these users now
have the ability to unplug a discharged
battery and replace it with a fully charged
one without interrupting a SideKick HD
recording session.
www.ffv.com.
9th International Trade Fair
for Cine Equipment and Technology
Munich M,O,C, 22 24 September 2012
www.cinec.de
AJA Upgrades Ki Pro,
Mini Firmware
AJA Video Systems has delivered
version 3.0 firmware for its Ki Pro and Ki Pro
Mini 10-bit 4:2:2 flash-disk recorders.
Packed with features that give users greater
flexibility and capabilities for filmmaking,
broadcasting and everything in between,
v3.0 firmware is available as a no-cost
download for current Ki Pro and Ki Pro Mini
customers.
With the v3.0 firmware, the Ki Pro
can now be configured for data transfer to
FireWire 800-equipped Apple computers,
for situations where the unit is not easily
accessible for physical data removal. Both
the Ki Pro and Ki Pro Mini can also now
transfer data via LAN connection, allowing
the transfer of files through a standard
Ethernet network.
Ki Pro and Ki Pro Mini can now burn
time code and transport state into the video
signal, providing at-a-glance status to users
monitoring output without having to check
the device itself. It is also convenient for
times when video is dubbed from the
recorder to another source to track time
code throughout post. A user-selectable
Super Out (window burn) option for SDI has
also been added to both Ki Pro and Ki Pro
Mini. The Ki Pro Mini now features HDMI
time-code support for Sony NEX-FS100 and
other Sony NXCam cameras. Additionally, Ki
Pro now supports ExpressCard/34 memory
cards.
A new playlist-creation feature for
the web UI adds flexibility in selecting clip
playback order for both Ki Pro and Ki Pro
Mini. An enabled FireWire 400 (1394a) port
provides Ki Pro support for camera
start/stop commands as well as time-code
values. Version 3.0 firmware also provides
additional RS-422 functionality for Ki Pro to
support use in postproduction applications,
as well as LANC support for the Ki Pro,
enabling camera operators to control shoot-
ing via LANC-based controllers and LANC-
enabled cameras.
For certain Canon camcorders, Ki Pro
and Ki Pro Mini now support 1080 variable
frame rate. Presets can now be created,
saved and recalled for easier interaction with
device settings in Ki Pro and Ki Pro Mini.
Additionally, v3.0 adds an option for contin-
ued recording upon video-input loss; Ki Pro
and Ki Pro Mini will generate a status-
change video frame, then pick up recording
automatically when a valid video signal is
returned.
www.aja.com.
Pro8mm Stabilizes 8mm Jitter
Pro8mm has added Steady
ImageMill stabilization to the companys
state-of-the-art Millennium II scanning
suite. Steady will offer significant improve-
ment for Super 8 film, which for decades
has been challenged by inherent movement
often referred to as Super 8 jitter.
The Steady ImageMill stabilization
system is capable of operating regular 8,
super 8, pro 8, max 8, 16mm and super
16mm film. It provides sub-pixel video and
data stabilization, whether working in stan-
dard definition, high definition or 2K.
Steady is a programmable function
within DaVinci 2K. The stability parameter
99
can be done with scene-to-scene color
correction, a variety of framing options and
various scan rates. It operates on a frame-by-
frame basis. Image instability, whether
caused by the film or in the camera, can be
stabilized in real time without loss of image
quality. No enhancements or artifacts are
added. The ImageMill will allow horizontal or
vertical correction to the natural jitter that is
apparent even when Super 8 film is intended
to be stable. Other features include a live
wipe control, allowing clients to see a split
screen of the corrected settings vs. the
natural setting.
Pro8mms Millennium 2K scanning
suite with DaVinci color correction already
offers a variety of output options when
transferring to digital files, including one-
light vs. scene-to-scene color correction, and
a variety of framing options, scan-rate
options and file-format options such as 444
10-bit uncompressed, ProRes and more. The
Steady ImageMill stabilization service will be
free to any clients who want to use it to
enhance the stability of their Super 8 images.
To see a sample of Pro8mms Steady
ImageMill stabilization as used on Ken Paul
Rosenthals film Crooked Beauty, visit
www.crookedbeauty.com and click on the
trailer. For additional information, visit
www.pro8mm.com.
Colorfront On-Set Dailies
Gets Real-Time 4K Display
Colorfront has released the Winter
2012 version of its On-Set Dailies system,
introducing real-time 4K display of dailies
for motion-picture productions using the
latest generation of high-end cameras for
the digital-cinematography market.
The Winter 2012 release enables
cinematographers to dispense with tradi-
tional HD monitoring and review, and
allows them to work with 3K, 4K and 5K
raw material in post-ready 4K quality to real-
ize their creative vision either on set, near
set or at the post facility while also
providing final, post-quality dailies instantly
to the production.
On-Set Dailies can now be integrated
with 4K projectors and 4K monitors to
provide full 4K workflow from the set and
into post. As feature filmmakers adopt
higher frame-rate capture, On-Set Dailies
also delivers raw, DPX and 16-bit TIFF file-
format support for 2-D and 3-D stereo-
scopic projects shooting at 48/60 fps.
There is now no reason why a DP
shooting with Red Epic, Arri Alexa or Sony
F65, for a 4K digital cinema release, should
have to manage with an HD image, says
Aron Jaszberenyi, managing director of
Colorfront. New generation digital cinema
cameras feature 3K/4K/5K/8K sensors and
capture way beyond HD, and also output
raw sensor data for external processing.
Combining On-Set Dailies in a 4K workflow
with 4K monitors or DLP projectors gives
cinematographers greater accuracy and
confidence as they are shooting. They can
see their rushes on set, on the day of the
shoot, in the best DI finishing quality, on a
4K projector or monitor.
Additional features of the Winter
2012 release include background rendering
and render-queue management, support
for multi-camera format projects, waveform
monitoring and histogram analysis tools,
100
plus an Enhancement Pack featuring
Vignette, Gradient, BlurMix, Tilt and Grain
tools.
Colorfront On-Set Dailies delivers an
all-embracing approach to digital dailies
workflow by integrating production-proven
tools for dailies work including playback
and sync, QC, color grading, audio and
metadata management with state-of-
the-art color and image science, and the
delivery of simultaneous faster-than-real-
time deliverables in all common file
formats.
www.colorfront.com.
Assimilate Scratches Stereo
Playback Itch
Assimilate, Inc has announced that
Scratch Lab version 6.1 now provides digi-
tal-imaging technicians, cinematographers
and directors with dailies playback and
review of raw stereo Red Epic streams,
direct from the camera, at a full 48 fps.
Additionally, Scratch 6.1 finishing systems
can now achieve the same 48 fps playback
rate of Epic stereo content even after
sophisticated color grades and visual-
effects have been applied.
Now filmmakers planning the next
generation of stereo features can have the
confidence of knowing they can maintain
the integrity of their shot from on-set QC
and review all the way through post while
eliminating the costly and time-consuming
step of transcoding.
Scratch and Scratch Lab have been
at the leading edge of digital moviemaking
since the original Red One camera, says
Jeff Edson, CEO of Assimilate. Assimilate is
dedicated to delivering the highest quality,
most consistent artist experience for file-
based content, from image acquisition all
the way through DI and post.
www.assimilateinc.com.
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Advertisers Index
16x9, Inc. 102
3ality Technica 7
Abel Cine Tech 27
AC 1
Active Camera Systems, Inc
94
Adorama 15, 61
Aja Video Systems, Inc. 23
Alan Gordon Enterprises 102
Astrodesign 73
AZGrip 103
Backstage Equipment, Inc.
4
Barger-Lite 85, 102
Blackmagic Design, Inc. 9
Burrell Enterprises, Inc. 102
Cammate Systems 96
Canon USA Video 5
Cavision Enterprises 53
Chapman/Leonard Studio
Equipment Inc. 75
Chemical Wedding 79
Chimera 25
Chrosziel Filmtechnik 2
Cinec/Albrecht 98
Cine Gear Expo 97
Cinematography
Electronics 6
Cinekinetic 102
Clairmont Film & Digital 57
Codex Digital Ltd., 51
Convergent Design 71
Cooke Optics 11
CTT Exp & Rentals 49
Dadco 85
Dazmo Batteries 91
Deluxe C2
Denecke 103
Dolby Laboratories, Inc 21
Easy Focus Gmbh 13
Eastman Kodak C4
Egripment BV 81
Film Gear 89
Filmtools 90
Fujifilm North America 39
Genus Limited 99
Glidecam Industries C3
Grip Factory Munich/GFM 94
Hive Lighting 28
Hollywood Rentals 86
Ikonoscop AB 55
Innovision 103
J.L. Fisher 62
K5600 19
Kino Flo 63, 77
Koerner Camera Systems 83
Lee Filters 29
Lights! Action! Co. 103
Lowel 47
Maine Media 6
Manios 102
Matthews Studio Equipment
102
Mole-Richardson 16
Movcam Tech 59
Movie Tech AG 102, 103
NBC/Universal 41
New York Film Academy 69
Nila Inc. 42
Oppenheimer Camera Prod.
92, 102
P+S Technik 83
Panther Gmbh 93, 95
PC&E 91
PED Denz 89
Pille Film Gmbh 103
Polecam Ltd 49
Powermills 103
Pro8mm 102
Production Resource Group
105
Regent University 80
Rosco Laboratories Inc. 101
Samys Camera 17
Scheimpflug Digital 43
Service Vision 100
Sunray 85
Super16 Inc. 102
Thales Angenieux 30-31
Tiffen 47
Transvideo/France 87
T-stop, Inc 67
VF Gadgets, Inc. 102
Video Assist 91
Visionary Forces 6
Visual Products 96
Welch Integrated 107
Willys Widgets 102
www.theasc.com 93,
95, 104
104
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BAFTA, SOC, Film Independent,
Academy Awards in Brief
The month of February featured an
abundance of industry-related awards cere-
monies, and several ASC members and their
collaborators were among those honored.
At BAFTAs Orange British Academy
Film Awards, handed out in London on Feb.
12, the cinematography nominees were
Jeff Cronenweth, ASC (The Girl with the
Dragon Tattoo); Robert Richardson, ASC
(Hugo); Hoyte van Hoytema, FSF, NSC
(Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy ); Janusz Kaminski
(War Horse); and Guillaume Schiffman, AFC
(The Artist). Schiffman won the award.
One week later, the Society of
Camera Operators presented awards to
Andrew Mitchell, SOC, for Glee (TV Camera
Operator of the Year); Stephen Campanelli,
SOC, for J. Edgar (Feature Film Camera
Operator of the Year); and Paul Babin, SOC
(Lifetime Achievement Award). Robert
Primes, ASC presented the groups inau-
gural College Camera Operator of the Year
Award to Petr Cikhart of the AFI, and
Rodney Charters, ASC, CSC presented a
Technical Achievement Award to Pierre
Andurand and Dominique Rouchon of
Thales Angenieux in recognition of the
companys Optimo lens series.
At the Film Independent Spirit
Awards on Feb. 25, Schiffman collected
another award for his work on The Artist.
Nominated alongside him were cinematog-
raphers Darius Khondji, ASC, AFC
(Midnight in Paris); Joel Hodge ( Bellflower);
Benjamin Kasulke ( The Off Hours ); and
Jeffrey Waldron (The Dynamiter).
Awards season culminated on Feb.
26 with the Academy Awards in Holly-
wood, where Richardson took home the
Oscar for Hugo. Also nominated were
Cronenweth, Kaminski, Schiffman and
Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC (The Tree
of Life).
A photo spread featuring highlights
from the ASC Awards for Outstanding
Achievement, held Feb. 12 in Hollywood,
will appear in next months issue.
Masters Share Their POV
The Film Training Co. recently
presented the Masters POV Cinematogra-
phy Conference, a two-day master class
whose guest speakers included Gabriel
Beristain, ASC, BSC; Allen Daviau, ASC;
Robbie Greenberg, ASC ; Karl Walter
Lindenlaub, ASC, BVK; and cameraman
and visual-effects artist Mark Sawicki.
Beristain led a workshop titled Hell
in Paradise, in which he explored lighting
for digital cameras; Lindenlaub led the
workshops Lighting on Stage for Day and
Night and From Previs to Shooting;
Greenberg discussed The Genesis of a
Project: Even Money; and Daviau led the
seminar The Future of the Art and Craft of
Cinematography.
HPA Hosts Annual Tech Retreat
The Hollywood Post Alliance recently
hosted its 11th annual Tech Retreat, a four-
day gathering of technical and creative
talent. Attendees had opportunities to hear
from industry leaders, network with peers,
see demonstrations and learn about the
latest technologies that impact an array of
industries.
HPA President and ASC associate
member Leon Silverman was on hand
throughout the retreat and moderated a
number of discussions, including Next
Generation Workflows: Warner Bros.
Connecting the Dots , which featured
David Stump, ASC as a panelist. ASC
associate Ron Burdett moderated Film
Restoration in the New Millennium, a
panel discussion that included fellow ASC
associates Lou Levinson, Joshua Pines,
Grover Crisp and Garrett Smith.
Other panel discussions included
4K Cameras and their Workflows, which
featured associate Stefan Ukas-Bradley;
The VFX Panel, which included associate
George Joblove; On-Set Workflows, in
which Steven Poster, ASC participated;
and Digital Preservation: An Ecosystem,
which included associate member Rob
Hummel. Additionally, ASC associate
Andy Maltz presented The Image Inter-
change Framework Demystified: What It Is
and Why It Matters.
Clubhouse News
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Top: Robert Richardson, ASC.
Bottom: Robert Primes, ASC (left) presents
the SOCs inaugural College Camera Operator
of the Year Award to Petr Cikhart.
Never Stop Learning. Never Stop Networking.
Come to meet us at NAB 2012 BOOTH #C10106
Guarantee your seat by Registering Online Now
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Sponsored by

When you were a child, what film made the strongest impres-
sion on you?
I played for hours in a sand pile, pretending it was the Sahara, after
seeing Lawrence of Arabia (1962). That masterpiece has never lost its
hold on me.
Which cinematographers, past or present, do you most
admire?
At the top of my list are Gordon Willis, ASC and Conrad Hall, ASC.
Willis taught me the importance of having a specific point of view
when telling a story, and how crucial it is to distill ideas and emotions
into simple, iconic images. When he shot an empty chair, it was not
just a chair; it was a story. Hall taught me the art of presiding over
happy accidents, the importance of trusting your visual instincts and
letting those guide your work.
What sparked your interest in
photography?
I was given a still camera at age 16.
Where did you train and/or study?
York University.
Who were your early teachers or
mentors?
Most of my teachers taught me indi-
rectly through the pages of this magazine. I would read an article, see
the movie, and then try the techniques whenever I had a chance to
roll film through a camera. Nicholas Allen-Wolfe, CSC was my first
mentor. He let me visit his sets, and I would sit in the corner and
observe. He kept a very detailed record of his lighting plots, and I
studied them diligently.
What are some of your key artistic influences?
Keith Carter, Vivian Maier, Sebastiao Salgado, Stephen Shore,
William Eggleston, Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, Arvo Prt, Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart, Johann Sebastian Bach, Edward Hopper,
Rembrandt van Rijn, Glenn Gould, Sergei Urusevsky, Ingmar
Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky, John Fante, Raymond Carver and John
Cheever.
How did you get your first break in the business?
After being recommended by Mark Irwin, ASC, CSC, I spent four
weeks on a seismic research ship traveling from Newfoundland to
Greenland. My assignment was to capture a storm at sea. The
weather turned out to be the calmest in 200 years, but with that
project I was officially a cinematographer.
What has been your most satisfying moment on a project?
Jessica Lange discovering Tom Wilkinson about to shoot himself in
Jane Andersons Normal. Quinton Aaron being told that his father is
dead in John Lee Hancocks The Blind Side. Zac Efron being told he
survived a rocket attack because of a picture of a woman in Scott
Hicks The Lucky One. In all three of these scenes, the director and I
found a poetic way of shooting that told the story in one simple shot
and put the audience right into the characters emotions. Also, the
standing ovation for Taking Chance at Sundance was amazing.
Have you made any memorable blunders?
I used a star filter on a wide-angle lens that was stopped down to
T22. Screen-door filter would have been a more apt description.
What is the best professional advice youve
ever received?
Dont try to be someone you are not.
What recent books, films or artworks have
inspired you?
Banksys Exit Through the Gift Shop ; Art in the
Streets at MOCA; Rivers and Tides, featuring the
nature sculptures of Andy Goldsworthy; a retro-
spective of Paterson Ewen and David Black-
wood; all the TED talks; An Audience of Chairs
by Joan Clark; The History of Love by Nicole
Krauss; and the Fogo Island artist studios designed by Todd Saunders.
Do you have any favorite genres, or genres you would like to
try?
As long as the story is strongly tied into the human condition, Id love
a crack at them all.
If you werent a cinematographer, what might you be doing
instead?
I would be a musician.
Which ASC cinematographers recommended you for member-
ship?
Steven Poster, Mark Irwin and Rob McLachlan.
How has ASC membership impacted your life and career?
The pages of this magazine, which have provided me with valuable
lessons, have now come to life in the form of my fellow members.
ASC membership is an endless and readily accessible source of infor-
mation and support. To be chosen as a peer by those whose work I
have most admired fills me with a great sense of accomplishment. It
gives me the confidence and the responsibility to go forth and do my
best work.
Alar Kivilo, ASC, CSC Close-up
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Film matters. Tell the world why
at www.kodak.com/go/filmmatters

Film. No Compromise.

AC Apr 2012

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