AC Mar 2013

MARCH 2013
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CONGRATULATIONS
RODNEY CHARTERS
ON YOUR WELL-DESERVED
ASC CAREER ACHIEVEMENT IN TELEVISION AWARD
f o f d n a
e n h c S
r o l y g o l o n h c e f r e f l l l
w s r e h p a r g o f a m e n l c e h f
f l u l e f a r g s l s c l f p C r e d l e
A H T
f c l p n o l f o m l a f l g l d r l e h f r
d l e n h c S n e s o h c e v a h o h
l v e l e TTe l o y m e d a c A e h f o
. C Y K N A
s a r e m a c e r u f
D N R l m u n l f a l F ' s c l f p C r e
s e c n e l c S d n a s f r A n o l s l
.
D
0 8 5 1 7 3 - 7 - 8 1 8
r o l y g o l o n h c e f r e f l l l
f p o r e d l e n h c s 4 5 2 1 - 8 2 2 - 0 0
f c l p n o l f o m l a f l g l d r l e h f r
m o c . s c l f
. s a r e m a c e r u f
The International Journal of Motion Imaging
28 Trials by Fire
The cinematographers from Phil Spector, Californication and
Chicago Fire detail their work
40 Strong Foundations
Rodney Charters, ASC, CSC earns the Societys Career
Achievement in Television Award
50 Tech Savvy
Presidents Award recipient Curtis Clark, ASC, chairman
of the Societys Technology Committee, reflects on his
accomplishments
DEPARTMENTS
FEATURES
VISIT WWW.THEASC.COM
On Our Cover: Legendary music producer Phil Spector (Al Pacino) battles murder charges
with the help of attorney Linda Kenney Baden (Helen Mirren) during his 2007 trial in Phil
Spector, shot by Juan Ruiz-Anchia, ASC. (Photo by Philip V. Caruso, courtesy of HBO.)
10 Editors Note
12 Presidents Desk
14 Short Takes: Die Antwoords I Fink U Freeky
20 Production Slate: Lore
56 New Products & Services
65 International Marketplace
65 Classified Ads
66 Ad Index
69 In Memoriam: Charles Austin, ASC Alfred Taylor, ASC
72 ASC Membership Roster
74 Clubhouse News
76 ASC Close-Up: Russell Carpenter
M A R C H 2 0 1 3 V O L . 9 4 N O . 3
40
50
The International Journal of Motion Imaging
Profile of ASC International Award recipient
Robby Mller, NSC, BVK by John Bailey, ASC:
When I choose to work on a film, the most important
thing to me is that it is about human feelings. I try to work
with directors who want their films to touch the audience,
and make people discuss what the film was about long after
they have left the cinema.
Read more about Robby Mller and his remarkable career on
the blog Johns Bailiwick.
UPCOMING ASC PODCASTS
Photo by
Adam Zdunek
Russell Carpenter, ASC
and director Joshua Michael Stern will discuss their new
movie jOBS, an independent feature that stars Ashton
Kutcher as Steve Jobs, a college dropout who became the
co-founder, chairman and CEO of Apple, Inc. a
position that made him one of the 20th centurys most
influential and admired entrepreneurs.
John Toll, ASC
will analyze his work alongside fellow cinematographer
Frank Griebe on the sci-fi epic Cloud Atlas, directed by
Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski and Tom Tykwer.
M A R C H 2 0 1 3 V O L . 9 4 N O . 3
Many of our online readers cast their votes
for The Master (shot by Mihai Malaimare
Jr.), The Dark Knight Rises (shot by Wally
Pfister, ASC) or Argo (shot by Rodrigo
Prieto, ASC, AMC), but heres a sampling of
responses that include other titles:
Georg Weiss: Rust and Bone, shot by
Stphane Fontaine, AFC.
Adam Scarth: Killing Them Softly, shot by
Greig Fraser [ACS] for imaginative use of lens
optics, film texture and camera movement to
create a stunning visual narrative that support-
ed the story all the way.
Jose Alberto Hermosillo: The sixth nominee
should be Rodrigo Prieto [ASC, AMC] for Argo,
no doubt about it. Big mentions should also go
to Geir Hartly Andreassen for Kon-Tiki and
Sergio Armstrong for No.
Mitchell Wu: The Turin Horse, shot by Fred
Kelemen. It didnt open theatrically in the U.S.
until 2012, so I think its technically eligible.
Vincent Moreno: Surely Robert Yeoman
[ASC] for his camerawork in Moonrise King-
dom. I was a bit surprised he wasnt among the
five nominees.
Ali Sh: Danny Cohen [BSC] for Les Misrables,
which made great use of color, the [1:85:1]
frame and camera movement.
Clark Mayer: Greig Fraser [ACS] for Zero Dark
Thirty. The films doc-style shooting is a perfect
fit.
Fabio Pirovano: Dariusz Wolski [ASC] for
Prometheus, definitely. Stunning job!
Elliott Mclaughlin: Id say Steve Yedlin for
Looper.
ACs online questions and reader responses
can be found on our Facebook page:
www.facebook.com/AmericanCinemato
grapher
SEE AND HEAR
MORE CINEMATOGRAPHY COVERAGE ON
WWW.THEASC.COM
THIS MONTHS ONLINE QUESTION:
If there had been a sixth Academy Award
nominee for Best Cinematography,
which 2012 movie and cinematographer
would have earned your vote?
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PUBLISHER Martha Winterhalter
EDITORIAL
EXECUTIVE EDITOR Stephen Pizzello
SENIOR EDITOR Rachael K. Bosley
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Jon D. Witmer
TECHNICAL EDITOR Christopher Probst
PHOTO EDITOR Julie Sickel
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Benjamin B, Douglas Bankston, Robert S. Birchard,
John Calhoun, Michael Goldman, Simon Gray,
David Heuring, Jay Holben, Mark Hope-Jones, Noah Kadner,
Jean Oppenheimer, Jon Silberg, Iain Stasukevich,
Patricia Thomson
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CLASSIFIEDS/ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Diella Peru
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CIRCULATION, BOOKS & PRODUCTS

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ASC GENERAL MANAGER Brett Grauman

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OFFICERS - 2012/2013
Stephen Lighthill
President
Daryn Okada
Vice President
Richard Crudo
Vice President
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Vice President
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Treasurer
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Secretary
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MEMBERS OF THE
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Richard Crudo
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Michael O'Shea
Robert Primes
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American Society of Cine ma tog ra phers
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Television cinematographers no longer feel obligated to qual-
ify the scope of their work as small screen. With the avail-
ability of high-definition home screens and production values
at an all-time high, todays top TV projects are now commonly
hailed for their compelling visual style.
To prove the point, were showcasing three such
productions in this issue, starting with the HBO telefilm Phil
Spector. Juan Ruiz-Anchia, ASC renewed his ongoing collab-
oration with writer/director David Mamet to dramatize the
first trial of the notoriously reclusive music producer, who was
later convicted of second-degree murder for shooting actress
Lana Clarkson in his California mansion. Phil Spector was the
first time David and I worked together on a television project, and it was our first digital
collaboration as well, Ruiz-Anchia tells writer Michael Goldman (Trials by Fire, page 28).
It was a different challenge for us, and I think it marked an evolution in our understanding
of the craft.
Michael Weaver, ASC has already been celebrated for his work on the half-hour Show-
time dramedy Californication, winning a 2009 Emmy Award (for the episode In Utero) and
a 2011 ASC Award (for the episode Suicide Solution). His approach reflects the nature of
the shows aptly named protagonist, writer Hank Moody: I think of Californication as a
comedy, but the visuals are always cued by the dramatic aspects of David Duchovnys char-
acter, Weaver tells Jay Holben (page 31). Every episode really has its own look and style
based on what he is experiencing.
On Chicago Fire, cinematographer Lisa Wiegand takes her cues from the blazes
battled by the shows courageous firefighters. In her quest for authenticity, she has studied
various ways to make fire scenes read well onscreen. Propylene is really beautiful when you
burn it or make a fireball, Wiegand tells Patricia Thomson (page 33). Its got a lot of texture
and creates black smoke within the fireball itself, but its dirty. Propane is cleaner and burns
easier, so its safer, but when you expose it, [the highlights] tend to burn out a lot quicker
because it doesnt have those black elements.
Our coverage of this years ASC Award honorees continues this month with Douglas
Bankstons entertaining and informative profile of Rodney Charters, ASC, CSC (Strong
Foundations, page 40), who was feted last month with the Societys Career Achievement in
Television Award for his work on such shows as 24, Dallas and Nash Bridges. Im flabber-
gasted that people feel I have that kind of body of work, he says. Ive been lucky to get
some interesting projects.
Curtis Clark, ASC was saluted with the Presidents Award, which recognizes an indi-
vidual who advances the art of cinematography. As chairman of the Societys Technology
Committee, Clark has led the industry to significant technical advances, including the ASC
Color Decision List and the Academy Color Encoding System, both of which earned Emmy
Engineering Awards last year. AC has often turned to Curtis for technical guidance and coun-
sel, and were proud to spotlight his achievements (Tech Savvy, page 50).
Stephen Pizzello
Executive Editor
Editors Note
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The word heard less and less on motion-picture sets is, Cut. You know,
Action and Cut are the commands reserved for directors. Keep it
rolling is heard with increasing frequency, and we wonder where the produc-
ers are when it is said. Keep it rolling used to be reserved for those moments
when an actor needed protection from the interruption of a camera stop and
reset nudity or tears were usually involved but today, in the majority of
cases, there seems to be no acting or directing emergency prompting this
command.
We think producers should be alarmed, because keep it rolling is
an expensive expediency. We recently learned of a production on which the
time of recorded takes was doubled by the recorded moments of camera reset
and blather that should not have been recorded. It amounted to a terabyte of
data that the editor had to view in order to find and cull the real takes.
There are considerations apart from economic ones. The moments
between takes are most useful. Actors have time to recoup their energy and
focus their performances, and actually, that is true for everyone on set, includ-
ing the director. Stop the camera at the end of a take, think for a moment and
roll again. That is the discipline encouraged by film running through the
camera instead of ones and zeros.
Of course, the commands and other lingo used on set have been
bizarre from the beginning. For example, how silly is the command, Get me
400 feet of 35-millimeter film? Why mix two different standards of measure?
And today, filming is usually an inaccurate word, but we cant really substitute image capturing.
And what is an Abby, anyway? Why, its the second-to-last shot of the day, named after Abby Singer, the
legendary first assistant director and production manager.
A student from Europe recently complained to me that he was asked on a set to get a stinger and a Baby and put
it on that Cardellini. He had no clue what hed been asked to do.
Language can obscure or illuminate, but surely, we do not want to bring in a new technology and at the same time
throw out the solid procedures and craft we have all learned. Someone recently observed that film shoots were quieter and
more focused on the work than digital shoots. The luxury of digital cameras and recording with cheap media is not actu-
ally cheap, however. Data must be duplicated, moved into the post pipeline, sorted, catalogued, synced and protected.
And if on-set efficiency has really declined, how can that cost be quantified?
More importantly, how does it affect efficiency in the cutting room? A producer of television dramas recently told
me that his editorial staff had doubled because the amount of dailies had doubled. This was due in part to the keep-it-
rolling syndrome, but also to the fact that cheap media had encouraged more coverage of scenes, creating more footage
(goodbye to that quaint word). One-hour dramas are still one-hour dramas, but they now require more than one editor to
manage the volume of images.
More hands on the material do not necessarily make for improvements in storytelling. Send us your tales from the
cutting room or the set and help us propose suggestions for best practices in this new world.
Stephen Lighthill
ASC President
Presidents Desk
12 March 2013 American Cinematographer
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Die Antwoords Freek Show
By Iain Stasukevich
The jury for the Music Videos Competition at the 2012 Plus
Camerimage festival presented the Best Music Video award to Die
Antwoords I Fink U Freeky. Shot by cinematographer Melle Van
Essen, the video translates a number of American photographer
Roger Ballens still-life installations into dynamic moving images.
Van Essen has a lot of documentary credits to his name, but
they dont look like most documentaries. For instance, take Mama
Calle, a stylized doc from 1991 about the street children of Mexico
City. Some people think that once the cameras are rolling, youre a
fly on the wall, but I dont believe that, he says. I find it interesting
to give a documentary a signature look, and that all depends on how
you bond with the people youre filming.
In 2005, Van Essen collaborated with Ballen and Dutch direc-
tor Saskia Vredeveld on the narrative short Memento Mori, an exten-
sion of Ballens Shadow Chamber, a collection of black-and-white
photographs taken in an abandoned womens prison in South Africa.
Meanwhile, South African rave-rappers Ninja and Yo-Landi Visser of
Die Antwoord were using Ballens flash-blasted tableaux as inspira-
tion for the kitschy documentary fiction in their music, live perfor-
mances and music videos. Early last year, Die Antwoord asked Ballen
to co-direct (with Ninja) the video for I Fink U Freeky, and Ballen
asked Van Essen to shoot it.
On his previous films, Ballen had found himself working more
as an art director; he was happy to shoot stills with his Rolleiflex
6008 while Vredeveld directed and Van Essen lit and operated the
motion-picture camera. I was most concerned with the objects fill-
ing the screen and how they related to each other, recalls Ballen.
For I Fink U Freeky, Ninja focused on directing himself and the
other performers while Ballen focused on the animals rats,
ducks, bugs, all those things and their behavior.
Van Essen was tasked with translating Ballens work into
motion pictures: a pair of hands extending out of a bathtub, clutch-
ing a duck (Bathtub, 2011); a womans head in a cage with a white
snake curled around it (Caged, 2011); hooded bodies draped with
muddy newspaper (Retreat, 2009).
When Van Essen landed at Tambo International, he was
escorted to Marcias Studios, this weird warehouse in the suburbs
of JoBurg where some strange people were painting the walls and
making the sets, he recalls. I have to say, there was great energy.
Even I was painting things on the walls! Ballen and art director Ben
Crossman created a total of seven separate installations for the
shoot.
Van Essen hoped to shoot I Fink U Freeky on film or
with the Arri Alexa, but the projects budget led him to choose
a Canon EOS 5D Mark II. (He used Canon 16-35mm f2,
Short Takes
Cinematographer
Melle Van Essen
brought American
photographer
Roger Ballens still
photographs to
life for Die
Antwoords I
Fink U Freeky,
winner of Best
Music Video at
the 2012 Plus
Camerimage
festival.
I
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16-35mm f2.8 and 70-200mm f2.8 zoom
lenses and Zeiss ZE primes ranging from
21mm to 100mm.) Until then, Id actually
tried to avoid the 5D, he reveals. Its too
small, and my fingers are too thick to handle
it. Its not my cup of tea, so to speak.
Digital-imaging technician Jonathan
OConnell handled all of the 5Ds settings,
which included the creation of a mono-
chrome color profile and bracketing each
lighting setup over and under by a stop to
help determine exposure. I know whats
happening with the camera, but I prefer to
have someone take care of the technical
settings so I can be free to frame and light
you know, the things people expect you
to do as a director of photography! says
Van Essen. 1st AC Andrew Greenen
rounded out the camera department.
Much of Ballens early work was set
outdoors and/or naturally lit, but, he notes,
the light in South Africa is so hot! One day
I was out taking pictures, and I knocked on
somebodys door. Then I went inside physi-
cally and psychologically, and I never came
back outside again! Since then, the places
Ive worked in have always been very dark
and dingy, and I have to use a flash.
Because Roger uses a flash, says
Van Essen, I thought of using a single soft
key light, but with shadows. The cine-
matographer points to the wide locked-off
shot of Vsser sitting in a chair while people
dance next to her. During the shoot, we
discovered a key light was all we needed.
Gaffer Clint Stone blacked out the
warehouse and lit the sets entirely from the
inside. Van Essen favored a 2K Blonde with
a Chimera and a lot of flags. The lighting
package also included 800-watt Redheads,
4-bank Kino Flos and 150-watt Dedolights,
and Van Essen decided that breaking the
light with solids and negative fill was better
than bringing in more sources.
Some scenes called for additional
decoupage. The Dedos offered camera-side
eyelight and were used in the kitchen and
trophy den to add interest to the back-
grounds. The Redheads were bounced into
bead board for ambience. Kino Flos with
Lee 251 diffusion were brought in for close-
ups and specials. The moldy bathroom
scene was lit with a 4-bank Kino overhead
without diffusion or a grid.
The creative team worked within the
Top: Yo-Landi
Visser stands with
live rats crawling
on her shoulders
for a scene in the
video. Middle: A
photograph
entitled Caged
(2011) from
Ballens Asylum
series. Bottom,
from left: Melle
Van Essen, Visser,
Ninja and Ballen
on the set.
confines of the Roger Ballen aesthetic
while trying to honor concepts that are
unique to Die Antwoord. Every shot was a
lock-off, with lens changes between wides
and close-ups. An installation decorated
with newspapers, with Ninja and Vsser clad
in newsprint facsimiles of their signature
jumpers, is a parody of Ballens Retreat. With
a laugh, Van Essen recalls, At first, I lit that
set to be more shadowy on the sides, and
then Ninja came up and said he wanted it to
be Boom! I said, What do you mean,
Boom? He wanted a lot of lights and no
shadows at all.
Ballen shot stills with his own 5D
using Van Essens lighting. Melle has a
deep understanding of the lighting in my
images he understands my aesthetic,
notes Ballen.
Though Van Essen and Ballen were
accustomed to working with film negative,
they agree that using digital capture did not
affect their respective approaches. Ballen
usually shoots on Kodak and Ilford stock,
and he has used a Rolleiflex 6008 with Zeiss
and Schneider lenses almost exclusively
since 1982. The camera, the negative and
the chemistry have their own ways of trans-
lating reality, he observes. Its magic, and
thats why I love shooting with film.
Is it possible to make a distinction
between digital and analog cinematogra-
phy? Van Essen wonders. In the end, the
basics are the same. Whenever I shoot on
film, I dont even measure the light
anymore; after doing it for 25 to 30 years,
you just know what it looks like. The first
time I shot with a Red, I proceeded more or
less the same way I did with film, and it
worked out fine.
Overall, Van Essen is pleased with the
images he got from the 5D, though he
complains that we couldnt do any
[camera] moves tableaux only. Of the
Plus Camerimage honor, he observes, It all
comes back to the skills, but sometimes you
just end up on a project at the right
moment.
Top: Ballens
Bathtub (2011)
shows a pair of
hands reaching
out of a bathtub
and clutching a
duck. Middle: A
bathtub is used
in one of
the seven
installations at
Johannesburgs
Marcias Studios.
Bottom: To
capture the
lighting required
for Ballens
aesthetic, the
crew blacked
out the
warehouse and
lit the sets
entirely from
the inside.
A Teen View of Zealotry
By Jean Oppenheimer
History is written by the victors, proclaimed Winston
Churchill, but the Australian production Lore, set at the end of World
War II, is told from a very different perspective: that of a German
teenager, Lore (Saskia Rosendahl), whose family is committed to the
Nazi cause. Directed by Cate Shortland and shot by Adam Arkapaw,
the film was Australias submission for the 2012 Academy Award for
Best Foreign-Language Feature.
Lore begins in May 1945 as Lores parents, an SS officer and
his equally zealous wife, learn of Hitlers suicide. Knowing they will be
arrested, they direct Lore to gather her four younger siblings and take
a train to Hamburg, where their grandmother lives. But the trains
have stopped running, and the children must walk the 300 miles to
their destination. For part of their journey, they are joined by a myste-
rious young man (Kai Malina) who carries papers that identify him as
a Jew.
Lore was adapted from Rachel Seifferts book The Dark Room,
which was based on her grandmothers experiences during the war.
Arkapaw notes that the screenplay presented an interesting mixed
point of view. There is an emphasis on the childrens perspective, but
there is also an omnipresent one, that of an older person recalling a
traumatic period in her life. He and Shortland decided to shoot on
Super 16mm to give the images a kind of nostalgic feeling, he
adds.
Lore is filled with close-ups and extreme close-ups, usually of
the children or of nature: a part of a face, a bit of somebodys shoul-
der, a hand caressing a leaf. Other shots have an impressionistic,
dreamlike quality, as when Lores sister Liesel (Nele Trebs) is skipping
rope, or the twins, Gunter and Jurgen (Andre Frid and Mika Seidel),
are chasing one another through the woods. Filming in this
manner was our way of conveying the fragmentation of memory,
says Arkapaw.
By using Zeiss Ultra 16 lenses, which have a great minimum
focus, it was easy to get into very detailed work, he continues.
We liked the softness of the shallow focus; it was like how a
memory might not be crystal clear but, rather, seen through a thin
veil of time.
Arkapaw operated the main camera, an Arri 416. When a
second camera was needed, 1st AC Luke Thomas operated an Arri
16-SR3 Advanced. In addition to the prime lenses, Arkapaw used a
Canon 11:1 11.5-138mm zoom. He favored the primes, however,
especially the 25mm and 35mm. Those focal lengths are closest to
how the human eye sees the world, so we felt they would provide
a more human experience for the audience. The 25mm is also the
most versatile, allowing you to shoot wide shots and close-ups on
the same lens. Arkapaw was especially happy with the 416s new
eyepiece, which makes both lighting and finding focus a heap
easier than earlier models.
Although the story deals with one of humanitys darkest
hours, its focus is children, and Shortland didnt want the picture to
Production Slate
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The camera
maintains an
intimate
relationship with
14-year-old Lore
(played by
Saskia
Rosendahl)
throughout
much of Lore,
shot by Adam
Arkapaw and
directed by Cate
Shortland.
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feel overly dark and heavy. Nature provided
a way out. Arkapaw elaborates: Amongst
all the human angst and tragedy, nature has
an enduring quality. Its lushness, beauty and
survival instincts are a way of [suggesting]
the future, so we emphasized the childrens
fascination with the insects, flowers and
foliage they encountered on their journey.
We simply shot the details that caught our
eyes and tried to add a lyrical element to
them to convey a childs perspective; we
used split diopters, slow motion and shal-
low focus to achieve that.
Another important design element
was the use of tungsten-balanced negatives
(Kodak Vision3 200T 7217 and 500T 7219)
in daylight situations without correction.
Cate and I just really liked that look, says
Arkapaw. Rather than equating blue with
coldness, they associated it with youthful
innocence, he explains. It also takes the
warmth out of skin tones, giving flesh a kind
of purity. The idea was to have a cool palette
punctuated by warm yellows, oranges and
ambers. We used various warming filters
81EF, Antique Suede and Chocolate to
vary the shade of blue. We also occasionally
used [Kodak Vision2 50D] 7201 to break
up the otherwise blue look of all the day
exteriors.
The films few day interiors were lit
through windows whenever possible to give
the actors maximum freedom. Our general
approach was to use tungsten lighting for
practicals and other indoor lighting and
allow the daylight through the windows to
remain at 5,600K, says the cinematogra-
pher. I sometimes added an 81EF filter to
bring the tungsten stock to a 4,300K base,
thus allowing the interior lights to feel
warmer and the outside light cooler.
The first shot in Lore provides a good
example of this approach. The camera is
tight on Lore in the bathtub as she combs
her tangled hair. She goes to the window
and sees her father arriving home. Natural
daylight comes through the windows,
augmented by a couple of daylight-
balanced practicals gelled with Lee Rose
Pink. The scene, which includes an outdoor
high-speed shot of Liesel jumping rope, was
shot on 7217 and has a pronounced blue
tint. Then, there is a cut to a high-speed
Steadicam shot (filmed on 7219) of Lore
descending the stairs to greet her father.
Arkapaw added an 81EF to the lens to
warm the room, which included two practi-
cal lamps along the staircase and a chande-
lier at the base of the steps. Gaffer Michael
Adcock put a 1,000-watt globe in a
Chimera pancake above the ceiling lamp
and dimmed it down to produce an even
warmer ambience. The use of slow motion
in that shot was intended to create a kind of
magical but macabre feeling, notes Arka-
paw. There is something beautiful and
Top: As her
younger sister
(Nele Trebs)
looks on, Lore
examines the
remnants of a
bonfire her
father set to
burn evidence
of his Nazi
affiliation.
Bottom: Lore is
unsettled by
Thomas (Kai
Malina), a
young, silent
man who joins
her family on
its journey.
intriguing about it, but its also unsettling.
We wanted to ease the audience into the
nightmare they are about to undergo.
The 81EF stayed on the lens for the
next scene, which starts on a wide shot of
the foyer as Lore runs to her father. The
frame rate is back to normal, and the mixed
lighting combines simulated sunlight flood-
ing through giant windows and warm light
from interior fixtures. Although the scene
was shot during the day, Arkapaw decided
to tent the windows with Duvatyn and
create daylight with three 4K Pars bounced
into bead board. We did that so we could
shoot day and night scenes in quick succes-
sion, says Arkapaw, citing the tight shoot-
ing schedule.
That night, Lores father builds a
bonfire to burn evidence of the familys Nazi
allegiance. To create the illusion of bright
embers dancing skyward, Arkapaw
bounced two 12-globe Dinos off 4'x4' silver
reflectors. 4"-wide-by-4'-long strips of red
and yellow gel were mounted on a 4'x4'
knife frame to enhance the fire effect.
The next shot reveals Lore in the
center of the living room, confused and
frightened by her fathers actions. The room
is keyed by the bonfire. When I read the
script, one of the key images in my head
was Lore frozen in the room with only the
firelight from her familys burning sins play-
ing across her face, says Arkapaw. For this
part of the scene, the reflectors used with
the Dinos were mounted low on Turtles to
give the impression that the fire was below
and away from the house, says Adcock.
We played the effect through a dimmer-
control desk.
Almost all of Lore was shot hand-
held, which allowed the children to create
their own reality and allowed me to be in
the right place to find it, even if it was a
different place every time, reports Arka-
paw. The use of a B camera was especially
important for scenes that required the chil-
dren to be emotional. Night scenes in the
forest were shot day-for-night because of
the limited number of hours the young
actors could work.
The 40-day shoot moved across
Germany from Gorelitz to the Black Forest,
along the east coast, and then north to the
grandmothers house. Arkapaw brought his
key crewmembers from Australia and hired
the rest in Germany, and he and Adcock
have high praise for their German
colleagues.
Speaking of his Australian team,
Arkapaw notes, Luke is my favorite first
AC; he is extremely easygoing and a very
talented operator. Loader Melina Behle was
Top: Shortland
(third from right,
wearing blue
shirt), Arkapaw
(center, wearing
dark beret) and
their
collaborators
prepare to film
the children
bedding down
for the night.
Bottom:
Arkapaw and 1st
AC Luke Thomas
capture a close
shot of Malina.
an absolute angel and managed the work-
load of two second ACs. And I learned a
nice trick from Michael [Adcock] when the
sun came out while we were shooting an
exterior courtyard under an overcast sky.
Adcock covered the courtyard with 20'x20'
frames of Half Grid and placed black net
underneath them. It proved to be a perfect
match for the earlier overcast sky.
Arkapaw says he likes to soften his
light sources twice before they play on the
set. This is especially true when lighting
interiors from outside. Adcock elaborates:
If we used Pars, wed bounce them off
bead board or Ultrabounce and then push
the light through a frame of 251 or 252
diffusion. There was never any direct light
per se on any of the interiors, but more than
once, we had to [finesse] the direct light by
positioning exterior fixtures, usually 4K and
6K Pars, on goal posts at such a high, steep
angle that the light would bounce off the
interior floor. All bounced HMI light coming
through windows was put through or
CTB.
Arkapaw was unable to participate
in the DI process, which was done at EFilm
in Sydney, because he had to head to New
Zealand for his next project, Jane Campions
miniseries Top of the Lake. But he had
complete confidence in colorist Jamie Hedi-
ger, who had worked with him previously
on Animal Kingdom (AC Sept. 10).
Wonderful and unique is how
Arkapaw describes working with Lore direc-
tor Shortland. Cate is more concerned
with mood and emotion than narrative,
he says. One of my favorite quotes about
filmmaking is, A director is a person who
catches butterflies, and Cate embodies
that. Her eyes are always searching for the
butterflies in the scene.
TECHNICAL SPECS
1.85:1
Super 16mm
Arri 416, 16-SR3 Advanced
Zeiss Ultra 16, Canon
Kodak Vision3 200T 7217, 500T 7219;
Vision2 50D 7201
Digital Intermediate

Top: Shortland
and Arkapaw
strove to
counter the dark
core of the story
by emphasizing
the childrens
pastoral
surroundings.
Bottom: Thomas
(back to
camera),
Arkapaw and
key grip Glenn
Arrowsmith get
ready to shoot.
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Phil Spector (HBO)
Cinematographer: Juan Ruiz-Anchia, ASC
The professional relationship between Juan Ruiz-
Anchia, ASC and writer/director David Mamet goes back to
House of Games (1987), so the cinematographer well knows
what it takes to craft visuals to match Mamets writing style.
Their latest collaboration is the HBO movie Phil Spector,
which portrays events surrounding the first trial of Spector (Al
Pacino), in 2007, for the murder of Lana Clarkson, and
focuses primarily on his relationship with his attorney, Linda
Kenney Baden (Helen Mirren).
Their highly personal interactions, most of which take
place in Spectors exotic mansion, a mock courtroom on a
soundstage, and in an actual courtroom, had to be invented by
Mamet because attorney-client privilege prevents the pairs
real conversations from ever becoming public. One thing
about Davids writing, for a cinematographer, is that he is very
expressive, Ruiz-Anchia observes. His writing suggests many
different images to the cinematographer, who then has to make
a visual interpretation of the whole thing. I love that kind of
challenge, which is why I enjoy working with him.
For Phil Spector, Ruiz-Anchias challenges included the
needs to highlight close-up imagery of his two potent stars,
emphasize the flamboyant nature of Spectors home and
appearance, and visually contrast Spectors insular world with
that of his attorney.
The cinematographers first decision was to shoot with
Arri Alexa Plus cameras, recording to SxS cards at 23.98 PsF
(Progressive Segmented Frame) in 12-bit ProRes 4:4:4:4. Ruiz-
Anchia says he never considered another camera system
because experience had taught him the Alexa had the right
latitude and the right exposure at 800 ASA for this project. The
latitude compared nicely with [that of ] film, and I had estab-
Trials by Fire
Three hot shows
prove TV is still a
cool medium.
By Michael Goldman,
Jay Holben and
Patricia Thomson
|
www.theasc.com March 2013 29
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Opposite page (from left): Scenes from Phil Spector, Californication and Chicago Fire. This page,
top: Attorney Linda Kenney Baden (Helen Mirren) meets with client Phil Spector (Al Pacino) at
Spectors mansion. Middle: The set, built inside a mansion in Long Island, posed interesting
color and lighting challenges for cinematographer Juan Ruiz-Anchia, ASC. Bottom: Director
David Mamet on set with Pacino and Mirren.
lished a DIT process [for the Alexa]
that had worked well on another show.
That DIT process involved the
decision to have his digital-imaging
technician, Peter Symonowicz, help me
control quality of the light right there on
set. We recorded in Log C, but I wanted
to see while shooting how the camera
was responding to the lighting. So, for
this project, the DIT was very impor-
tant. We colored and made our inter-
pretation of lighting with contrast and
density and color on set, and that is
what [Technicolor New York] used to
make dailies with look-up tables we
developed. So when we projected
dailies, they were not Log C or Rec 709;
it was my interpretation of the look that
we made on set, and that was very
important.
Symonowicz performed on-set
color grading using Iridas SpeedGrade.
He points out that the graded image
was available live at his DIT cart on set
so that Ruiz-Anchia could review and
adjust lighting temperatures and match
pre-designed LUTs. However, while
reviewing dailies footage on a calibrated
46" plasma monitor provided by
Technicolor New York, the filmmakers
discovered that LUTs created directly
from the footage were more accurate
than LUTs created from the live camera
feed, and so they developed a process for
making sure the most accurate version
was saved for reference for the final
grade, which was done at FotoKem in
Burbank.
Communication with the lab
was crucial, says Symonowicz.
Because [Technicolor dailies colorist]
Tim Hedden was using [Blackmagic
Designs] DaVinci Resolve, we created
3-D LUTs at 33x33x33 so they could be
read properly. But we reviewed and
changed LUTs on a daily basis, and we
eventually realized LUTs derived from
the footage tracked more precisely.
Regardless of whether it is 4:4:4 or 4:2:2
color space, the live camera feed comes
prior to ProRes compression. Tim also
noticed the slight difference, and thats
why it was important for us to [send]
screen grabs with each shuttle drive. If
Tim noticed LUTs tracking differently,
the stills with the graded image would
eliminate the guesswork.
Ruiz-Anchia worked carefully to
moderate skin tones, keeping them
around 30 IRE in Log C during
production. This was key given the inti-
mate relationship between the camera
lens and the faces of his two veteran
stars. Helen Mirren was very flexible,
but she needed softer lighting than Al,
so I used Chimeras to build soft light
around her, he says. Al can take a
harder light, but he was wearing the
kinds of wigs Spector wore, and they
had to be lit correctly. David and I were
concerned that the wigs might draw too
much attention away from the acting if
they were not framed and lit properly.
We had to be very careful about that.
For lenses, Ruiz-Anchia relied on
a package of Angenieux Optimo zooms
(15-40mm, 28-76mm and 24-290mm,
primarily) and a set of Cooke S4 primes
ranging from 21mm to 135mm. Each
of the three primary settings
Spectors mansion, Badens work envi-
ronment, and the mock courtroom
dictated different lens choices and
styles of camerawork. The mansion,
which was a set we built inside a
mansion on Long Island, presents
Spectors eccentric world, so camera
moves there were more deliberate and
calculated, says Ruiz-Anchia. We had
more colorations as we moved through
different rooms in the mansion. Spector
hated daylight and kept his curtains
shut, and his mansion was a maze of
corridors. In some cases, our interpreta-
tion of the mansion was faithful to real-
ity, like the room that has the portrait of
Lincoln in it, where Spector shot the
woman. His living room had desert
oasis furniture; another room had a
carousel in it; and another had a shrine
to Lawrence of Arabia. There was also a
room where he kept all his guns, and a
room where he kept his wigs. It was a
crazy challenge shooting all that.
A key sequence shows Spector
and Baden meeting for the first time in
the mansion. She follows him from
room to room while he delivers a series
of long speeches. The sequence was
accomplished with a mix of dollies,
Steadicam and cranes and posed signif-
icant lighting challenges. We had to
pre-light the whole area two floors,
big rooms with very high ceilings, says
Ruiz-Anchia. We rigged a combina-
tion of lights in the ceiling going from
2Ks down to 150-watt Fresnels, 2K and
1K soft lights and 4K space lights, and
then we had to work fast to do correc-
tions along the way with the dimmer
board. We used a lot of colors on the
lights because the rooms are so strange,
and that coloration helped me make
decisions.
By contrast, the offices set up by
Badens law firm look sterile. There the
camera is more free, and that is a point
of balance in the story, Ruiz-Anchia
explains. We go for a more monochro-
matic palette and move away from the
rigid [visual] structure we used in the
mansion. This is the world of Helens
character.
But it is the mock courtroom
where the most dramatic moment in
the piece takes place. In the scene,
Baden stages a mock cross examination
of Spector to prepare him for possible
testimony in the real trial. At a particu-
lar moment, she shows him videotaped
testimony by his ex-wife that sends him
into a rage. The courtroom set was
built in a small studio, and I decided to
include some of our movie lights in the
frame, sometimes flaring the lens, says
Ruiz-Anchia. I also used handheld a lot,
especially at the climax of the sequence.
The scene starts out very formal in style,
then it starts breaking rules as things get
more dramatic, and finally, it ends in a
surreal style.
For the final grade at FotoKem,
Ruiz-Anchia worked with colorist John
Daro, and he made an unusual request.
Daro recalls, Because the target deliver-
able was a broadcast master, we started
working off the plasma monitor, but
then Juan asked if that would match a
digital-cinema projection. I explained
that for a DCP, we work at 14 foot-
lamberts, and the plasma display was
pumping out 30 foot-lamberts. Juan
asked us to make them match. By
running the bulb close to 100 percent
and scaling the screen size a little bit, I
was able to achieve 28.5 foot-lamberts
on our NEC 800c projector. After cali-
brating the primaries, the plasma and the
projector matched closely.
Daro adds that the manipulation
of the images with shapes and keys under
Ruiz-Anchias direction was, in his view,
crucial. Including the base grade, most
shots had at least three layers of color or
beauty work, he notes. On a few occa-
sions, I wasnt sure how the final result
was going to look, but after a few shapes
and a lot of shadow, I was always very
impressed by the images we turned out.
One example is a shot of Baden inside
Spectors house. Helen was frontlit, and
there was a cooler fill. We took a very
hard edge shape and knocked half of her
face into shadow. This gave the feeling
she was hiding, one of the few to witness
Spectors eccentricities.
Phil Spector was the first time
David and I worked together on a televi-
sion project, and it was our first digital
collaboration as well, says Ruiz-Anchia,
who last teamed with Mamet on Spartan
(2004). It was a different challenge for
us, and I think it marked an evolution in
our understanding of the craft.
Michael Goldman
Trials by Fire
Ruiz-Anchia discusses a shot inside the courthouse
with gaffer Nina Kuhn.
Californication (Showtime)
Cinematographer:
Michael Weaver, ASC
...[Im] never really all that inter-
ested, but I find myself telling her how
beautiful she is anyway cause its true
all women are in one way or another.
You know, theres always something
about every damn one of you. Theres a
smile, a curve, a secret. You ladies really
are the most amazing creatures. My
lifes work. But then theres the morning
after, the hangover, and the realization
that Im not quite as available as I
thought I was the night before. And
then shes gone, and Im haunted by yet
another road not taken.
The half-hour dramedy
Californication, which recently kicked
off its sixth season on Showtime, might
be subtitled The Tao of Hank Moody
thanks to its emphasis on its main char-
acters state of mind. Created by Tom
Kapinos, the show stars David
Duchovny as Moody,
a best-selling author
who plunges into the
depths of writers
block and escapes
into womanizing,
alcohol and drugs. As
he stumbles from one
sexual encounter to the next, he tries,
with sporadic success, to maintain good
relations with a significant ex, Karen
(Natascha McElhone), and their sullen
daughter, Becca (Madeleine Martin).
Michael Weaver, ASC, who won
an ASC Award last year for his work on
Californication, has been the series
director of photography from the
beginning. (Peter Levy, ASC shot the
pilot.) Weaver started in the industry in
an unusual way: as a paid intern for
aerospace giant Lockheed Martin.
The options were to go into the news
station and work as a runner, or go
someplace like Lockheed and jump
right into shooting, recalls Weaver.
After I spent a summer interning, they
hired me as a full-time cinematogra-
pher, and I was constantly out shooting.
It was great, really. I had a whole studio
and lab at my disposal, and I could go in
and test anything. It was a phenomenal
education. I did that for a few years and
then came to Los Angeles in hopes of
being a cameraman. I was hired as a
gaffer and ended up working as a gaffer
for 14 years. But all the while, I was
shooting low-budget films and
commercials and doing second-unit
cinematography when I could.
While gaffing for Levie Isaacks,
ASC on Malcolm in the Middle, Weaver
got the opportunity to step up to
cinematographer when Isaacks offered
him the chance. Subsequently,
producer/director Barry Sonnenfeld
saw an episode Weaver shot and hired
him to shoot the ABC series Notes from
the Underbelly. Sonnenfeld then
brought Weaver onto Pushing Daisies.
When the unit production manager on
that show, Lou Fusaro, moved over to
Showtime to produce a new series
called Californication, he wanted to
bring Weaver along. Showtime was a
bit hesitant because I was a pretty big
unknown at the time, but Lou fought
for me, and I got the gig, says Weaver.
I think of Californication as a
comedy, but the visuals are always cued
by the dramatic aspects of Davids char-
acter, Weaver continues. Its about
what Moody is going through. If his
mood is light and funny, thats the
direction we go visually; if his mood is
dark and lonely, thats what sets the
overall look. Every episode really has its
Left: In this seasons Californication premiere, Hank recalls his first encounter with
Karen (Natascha McElhone) in New York City. Above: B-camera/Steadicam operator
Tim Bellen (left) and A-camera operator Andy Graham prepare to capture the
action as Hank goes toe to toe with his daughter, Becca (Madeleine Martin).
own look and style based on what he is
experiencing.
Each episode is shot in five days
mainly on location in and around Los
Angeles. (The current season also
involved work in New York.) Were a
location-heavy show were usually
out two or three days a week, says
Weaver. We have a standing set or two,
but thats it. We have a warehouse stage,
not like a big studio, so we have to deal
with limited ceiling heights. We dont
have perms in there, so basically were
rigging right to the roof and theres not
a lot of room to work with. We have
specially-made space lights that are
shorter than normal so we can fit them
in there. We really use the sets a lot more
like practical locations with hard ceilings
and lighting with a lot of practical
fixtures it forces me to approach our
stage work pretty much the same as
location work, mostly from the floor.
Over the course of six seasons, the
production has run the gamut of digital
capture, starting with the Sony HDW-
F900 and then moving on to the Sony
F23, the Panavision Genesis, the Sony
F35 and the Arri Alexa, which has been
the main camera for the past three
seasons. HD cameras have certainly
evolved, and Ive been able to play with
a lot of them, says Weaver. That first
year of HD was really frustrating. The
F900 was top-of-the-line at that time,
but it had significant contrast issues, and
we spent a good deal of that season
shooting in a glass house! The contrast
problems got better with the Genesis
and the F35, but the Alexa has brought
us so much closer to [the capabilities] of
film. We can look out a window and
know that the highlights out there are
going to carry we dont have to bring
up the interior 3 stops to match! The
Alexa is also a big improvement in
terms of handheld and Steadicam oper-
ating. Its really the closest thing Ive
seen to a film camera in the digital
world.
Alexa footage is captured to SxS
cards in ProRes 4:4:4. We dont use any
look-up tables, notes Weaver. We just
shoot it the way it is and send it off to
[colorist] Tom Overton at Keep Me
Posted. Tom has been our colorist from
the beginning, and he has a great feel for
what I like to do. The production also
shoots some 16mm (with a Bolex) for
the shows interstitials, dream
sequences, fantasies and flashbacks,
which are a lot of fun to shoot, adds
Weaver.
Were pretty light on lenses, he
continues. We rely on Angenieux
Lightweight Optimo zooms most of
the time because at least half of every
episode involves handheld or
Steadicam. Apart from that, we carry a
few Cooke S4 primes: 75mm, 100mm
and 150mm. We use 12:1 [24-290mm]
Optimos when were in studio mode.
Thats about it. I tend to migrate to the
long end of the zoom for the more inti-
mate moments compressing the fore-
ground to background, and for the more
comedic moments, I go wider and put
the camera closer to the action. But we
dont hold too fast to those rules. I try to
avoid being formulaic and really just
reach for what best represents Hanks
mood at that moment.
Top: Key players in the sixth season include Atticus Fetch (Tim Minchin, left), a musician
collaborating with Hank on a rock opera, and Faith (Maggie Grace), a groupie who serves as
Hanks muse. Bottom: While directing the first episode of season six, Duchovny confers with
cinematographer Michael Weaver, ASC (seated on dolly) on location in New York.
Trials by Fire
His lighting for Californication
doesnt involve a lot of gags or elaborate
setups. I try to keep it simple. We use a
lot of Kino Flos, especially Image 80s,
and we use a lot of 18Ks or 20Ks
through windows. We have a lot of very
beautiful people on the show, which
makes that part of the job a lot easier.
Natascha McElhone is probably the
only one I take a different approach to,
and thats because Moody keeps Karen
high on a pedestal. To accentuate that,
we try to treat her with a little more old-
school glamour lighting, something
square between the eyes. David is a real
movie star and can take any type of
lighting; bounce a light off the floor, and
he looks great.
Weaver has collaborated with his
key crew on Californication, including
A-camera operator Andy Graham, B-
camera operator Tim Bellen and key
grip Vidal Cohen, for many years. He
adds, I worked with gaffer David
Morton for the first five seasons of the
show, until he retired, and Frank
Jacobellis joined me for season six. Were
a pretty tight-knit crew.
Last seasons ASC Award-
winning episode, Suicide Solution,
was directed by Duchovny. David and I
work well together we finish each
others sentences like an old married
couple, says Weaver. He is a very visual
director, and he comes in with a great
game plan. Theres a dream sequence in
that episode where Moody is writing a
letter to his daughter, and we mixed
16mm, HD, black-and-white and color
to create it. We mounted a Canon
[EOS] 7D to Davids body to get that
kind of surreal feeling. It was a lot of
fun.
Weaver has also taken his own
turn in the directors chair, so far for four
episodes. I cant say that directing is a
career transition for me, because I really
love being a cinematographer. Directing
means putting on a different creative
cap and approaching storytelling from a
different direction, and I think that
strengthens me as a cinematographer.
Jay Holben
Chicago Fire (NBC)
Cinematographer: Lisa Wiegand
Im a real believer that the best
fire effect is fire itself, says Lisa
Wiegand, director of photography on
Chicago Fire, a series about the firefight-
ers and rescue personnel of Chicago
Firehouse 51. Created by Dick Wolf,
the NBC series places a high premium
on authenticity, and this is reflected in
its locations, its vrit-inflected camera-
work and its conflagrations, which are
ignited on a burn stage at Cinespace
Chicago Film Studios.
I have to say, this is the most
challenging show Ive ever done, says
Wiegand, who had just finished shoot-
ing in a fierce December blizzard when
she spoke to AC. (That was brutal, but
its important for people to realize were
not shooting San Bernardino for
Chicago, she notes.) She was brought
aboard Chicago Fire by pilot director
Jeffrey Nachmanoff, with whom she
had worked on the series Detroit 1-8-7
(AC March 11), and she has shot all
episodes of the series so far.
Wolf issued several command-
ments to the creative team. The first:
Make the city a character. The second:
Never get ahead of your characters. Its
easy for a director whos new to the
show to suggest we place the cameras in
one location and have all the trucks
drive up [to it], says Wiegand. I have
to remind them that we have to be in
the trucks with the guys instead. Thats
not easy; it takes more time to arrive
with the characters. But it ups the
dramatic stakes, because these guys
never know what theyre in for when
they arrive at a scene.
To enhance her own understand-
ing of what firefighters encounter and
how fires behave, Wiegand obsessively
watches videos of fires. Some are
provided by the productions technical
adviser, Steve Chikerotis, a battalion
chief on Chicagos South Side. Others
she finds on YouTube, recorded by fire-
fighters wearing helmet cameras who
use them as learning tools.
The first lesson they provided,
she says, is that fire produces a lot of
thick, black smoke that makes visibility
nil. Thats not good for television, where
audiences need to see the actors faces.
Since the shows inception, the produc-
tion team has been on a quest to perfect
ways of making the fire scenes credible
while keeping the acting legible. They
tested fire, smoke and fuel. Propylene is
really beautiful when you burn it or
make a fireball, Wiegand says. Its got
a lot of texture and creates black smoke
within the fireball itself, but its dirty.
Propane is cleaner and burns easier, so
A firefighter has a close call in Chicago Fire.
its safer, but when you expose it, [the
highlights] tend to burn out a lot
quicker because it doesnt have those
black elements.
Fortunately, the Arri Alexa has
the latitude to capture fire detail, even in
the most intense fireballs. (Thats not
the case with the Canon EOS 5D and
7D DSLRs, which are used only for
stunts that dont involve fire and for car
mounts.) The production typically
shoots with two Alexas and carries a
third for explosions and Technocrane
days. Footage is captured in ProRes
4:4:4 to SxS cards and transferred to
three hard drives; two serve as backup,
and one is sent to Universal Digital
Services in Los Angeles, where online
post is done. Offline is done at Wolf
Studios on the Universal lot utilizing a
FotoKem NextLab Mobile system.
Wiegand estimates that 90
percent of the series is shot handheld
either on foot or using a Creeper Butt
Dolly made by Carlos Boiles, a dolly
grip she worked with while doing
second-unit work on the series 24. Its a
padded seat connected with variable-
sized rods to an ultra-smooth, multi-
skate-wheeled base, she explains. The
unique feature is how smoothly the
wheels can change from one direction to
another.
Her workhorse lenses on Chicago
Fire are Angenieux Lightweight
Optimo zooms, which we use as zoom
lenses, not as variable primes. We are
constantly zooming within the frame.
They carry two 15-40mm, 28-76mm
and 45-120mm Optimos, plus two 24-
290mm for work in studio mode. In
addition, they carry 12mm, 14mm,
135mm and 150mm Cooke S4 primes.
Inside the burn stage, Wiegand
needs a fairly deep f-stop. I try to keep
it to 200 or 400 ASA when doing these
interior fires because I want to hold the
detail in the flames. I usually shoot
between T5.6 to T8, so any light
coming through those windows and
smoke has to be pretty intense. These
units range from 1,600-watt Jokers to
18Ks.
To augment the fire and flame
bars provided by special-effects supervi-
sor John Milinac, gaffer Tony Lullo
often utilizes Nine-light Maxi-Brutes
for bigger lighting effects. For more
detailed work, the team uses a covered
dragon, a type of covered wagon.
Wiegand explains, Its high-intensity
bulbs screwed into a board wrapped
with chicken wire, which is then
wrapped with intense orange gels. We
use 1
1
2 Full CTS to simulate the color
of the flames. Those lights are on their
own flicker generators.
Reza Tabrizi operates the A
camera, and William Eichler is on B
camera and Steadicam. Their division of
labor often does not follow the tradi-
tional wide-and-tight scheme, especially
when smoke is involved. If you add
smoke until youre happy with it on the
wide angle, theres just too much when
you go at it with the telephoto, and the
Trials by Fire
Top: Chicago Fires Lt. Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney, left) and Lt. Matthew Casey
(Jesse Spencer) find themselves pitted against each other after the death of a fellow firefighter.
Bottom: Cinematographer Lisa Wiegand checks the light.
shots look like they dont match, says
Wiegand. So we either find ways of
doing things at similar focal lengths on
both cameras or, if were on a wider lens
close to the actors faces, well have the
other camera on the longer lens getting
shots like silhouettes in the smoke.
We use lots and lots of white
smoke on set because its safer to work
in than black smoke, she adds. Were
conservative about black smoke on set
and add whats needed in post.
Occasionally, a complex scene
involves bracketing and composites. For
instance, in a dramatic moment in the
pilot, a floor collapses in a burning
building and two firefighters fall
through it. Using a locked-off camera,
the filmmakers ran separate passes,
sometimes at multiple exposures, for the
falling stuntmen, flaming beams and
falling debris. We used a slightly wider
lens than we needed for the final shot so
we could push in and put a little hand-
held motion on it, says Nachmanoff.
Then, we composited them all
together and balanced out the exposure
so it looked right.
Most often, however, Wiegand
controls the exposure as the scene
unfolds in a double-fisted maneuver on
remote iris controls. I have my own
setup where I work off two 25
1
2-inch
monitors and a dual waveform system,
says the cinematographer, who does not
use a digital-imaging technician on the
show. In my hands I have both iris
controls. We have this aesthetic of
following the characters, and sometimes
it involves following them from outside
to inside, or from inside the fire truck to
a sunny exterior. Im often doing a five-
stop iris rack in one shot, and because
we have characters with different skin
tones, Ill often have to ride the iris just
to make sure I get enough detail on
everyones faces.
Despite the complexity of the
action, sometimes the best solutions are
low-tech. For the episode Rear View
Mirror, the team was stymied by one
scene that felt dramatically flat. In it, Lt.
Matthew Casey ( Jesse Spencer) and
two residents are trapped in an eighth-
Trials by Fire
Fire and
rescue
personnel from
Chicago
Firehouse 51
respond to
a call.
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floor apartment while fire rages in the
hallway. As firemen outside maneuver a
ladder to the window, Casey leans
against the apartment door as flames
lick through its cracks and its inset
window explodes from the heat. The
first couple of times we rolled on that, it
was just boring, says Wiegand. It was
supposed to feel like the fire is beating
on the door, like it was hard for him to
keep that door closed. After several
takes, Tabrizi asked if he could try
something. Reza went back in there
and just went nuts with the zoom and
handheld moves, continues Wiegand.
Afterward, everyone applauded
because it finally felt like there was a
monster behind that door. It made a
huge difference. It told that story.
The sequence also included an
element that is becoming one of the
shows signatures: a high rescue. For
scenes like this, Wiegand typically taps
a 50' Technocrane. That allows us to
do some great following-firemen-up-
the-ladder-type shots, she says. The
problem, she notes, is the smoothness
of the motorized heads: It feels a little
too graceful. Its hard to keep the energy
when youre on the crane and the zoom
isnt in your hand. As an alternative,
she sometimes puts a camera operator
in the air. In one scene involving a
Trials by Fire
38
From left: Mouch (Christian Stolte), Severide, Jose Vargas (Mo Gallini), Capp (Randy Flagler)
and Gabriella Dawson (Monica Raymund) arrive at the scene.
rescue at a church, there was a guy
hanging off the roof, and we put Reza
up in a 120-foot Condor just cresting
the roof doing handheld. That helped a
lot. Zooming on the barrel with your
hand can feel a lot more organic and
immediate.
Another signature of the show is
the fire-engine mounts. Fire trucks are
dream vehicles to mount [cameras] on
because theres stuff all over them, says
Nachmanoff. The poor guys who do
car commercials have gleaming
Porsches where do you stick some-
thing? Fire trucks have handles every-
where! During prep for the series, key
grip Mike Lewis walked around the
trucks with Wiegand to identify likely
spots. Mike is hardcore he likes to
build out of wood so he can screw stuff
all over it and modify it quickly, says
Wiegand.
A mount inside the cab is also in
frequent use. Wiegand explains, Mike
puts a 3-foot slider in there and locks it
down, and we put an OConnor 100
[fluid head] on it and get Reza in there
to ride it. We have one of the skinniest
and best first ACs in the business,
Lewis Fowler, who just shoves himself
between two of the seats. I have to pull
iris, so Im in there with a little monitor.
Theres often just a ton of us in that
truck, and when we land, we swarm out
to capture the firefighters running out of
it.
Patricia Thomson
Wiegand and
director Jeffery
Nachmanoff
confer on
the set.
I
n a way, calculus and theoretical physics led Rodney
Charters, ASC, CSC to receive the ASC Career
Achievement in Television Award, mostly because his
grades were so low in that class at the University of
Auckland. I went there to study architecture. It was my
preliminary year, and the only compulsory subject was calcu-
lus, but I just got stumbled by the raw math, he explains. If
I had been able to graduate with proper marks in math, I
would have gone to architecture school, and my life would
have been very different. On my way to school, Id pass about
Strong
Foundations
Rodney Charters, ASC, CSC
receives the ASC Career
Achievement in Television Award.
By Douglas Bankston
|
eight cinemas, and over time, I ended
up going to four movies a day and
skipping class. That was my film
education.
Charters comes from a family
with a rich photographic history in
New Plymouth, a small town on the
Tasman Sea side of New Zealands
North Island. His father ran a photog-
raphy studio, and his grandfather was a
photographer and was in charge of
printing the local newspaper. Rodney
was swept up rather quickly into the
photography business, carrying bags to
wedding shoots on Saturdays and doing
black-and-white portrait touchups with
pencils directly on the negatives.
His father, Roy, had a Bell &
Howell projector, as well as a Bolex and
a nice fluid head, and when the New
Plymouth Film Society got the notion
to make a film of its own, Roy got the
call. They made a movie called The
White Goat, Charters recalls. They
needed an actor, and suddenly, I was in
it! Not coincidentally, he actually had a
white goat for a pet. It was the typical
boy-loses-goat, boy-searches-for-goat,
boy-gets-foot-stuck-on-the-railway-
viaduct-with-a-train-approaching-and-
is-rescued-at-the-very-last-moment
type of narrative. Thats what I grew up
around, so it was only natural that I
started asking my dad to borrow the
Bolex, he says.
When he was stumped by the
math at the University of Auckland, his
art-history professor advised him to
enroll in the art school and look into
film studies. At the same time, Charters
thought he would give the National
Film Board in Wellington a try. They
asked me if I wanted to be an editor, a
cinematographer or a sound person. I
said I actually wanted to do all of those,
and they said that wasnt the place for
me. They suggested I go back to the
university!
So, with his pride somewhat
Top: Charters
and his father,
Roy, take a break
between
weddings in
1956. Bottom:
Charters stands
over the Orinoco
River with an
Eclair ACL for a
documentary
about people of
the Bahai faith
in 1976.
wounded, Charters returned to
Auckland and became the first person
to graduate from the photography
department as a filmmaker.
A short film Charters made in
school about two people on a Yamaha
motorcyle did well at a film festival in
Sydney, and he subsequently sold it to
Yamaha. I could mount the 16mm
Bolex and a 10mm lens all over the bike
and handhold it while sitting on the
seat, he says. My dear friend Bob
Harvey had a Fiat 500 with a canvas
roof, and we took the door off so I
could sit in the back and shoot out from
ground level. It was a great tracking
vehicle.
The short also got him into the
Royal College of Art in London, which
he attended from 1968-1971. The
filmmaking department was housed at
the Royal Natural History Museum. It
was a giant studio that had been used
for dissecting whales so bizarrely
British! he recalls. I was exposed to
some real equipment for the first time.
Charters landed several sound-record-
ing jobs while he was studying in
London, and after he graduated, he
continued to work in that field in Great
Britain. His gigs included commercials
for Ridley and Tony Scott, including
the very first spot Tony directed.
During a visit to the United
States in 1972, he had a chance
encounter with a Canadian film crew
Strong Foundations
Top: Charters
wields an Arri
16BL while
shooting a
student film
for Richard
Loncraine in
1969. Bottom:
Charters stands
over a group of
villagers in
Suriname for the
documentary
The Green Light
Expedition.
I ended up going
to four movies a
day and skipping
class. That was my
film education.
16mm, it ended up looking pretty
good.
In 1987, he began shooting the
series Friday the 13th. These were the
early days of TV drama in Toronto, and
the production was allowed to experi-
ment and push boundaries without
much corporate interference until
that suggested he look for work in
Toronto. There, he was promptly hired
by CTV as part of a two-man sound
crew, and was sent to Northern Ireland
one week after Bloody Sunday to cover
the fallout in Newry, a hotbed of Irish
Republican Army activity.
The producer scored an interview
with the IRAs second in command for
that region. The crew was loaded into a
cab, blindfolded and driven in circles for
40 minutes before being whisked into
the back room of a pub to meet the
man. Charters recalls, He had a turtle-
neck sweater pulled up over his face,
and we did an interview with him while
two armed men stood behind him. The
next day, we were filming the march,
and I locked eyes with a guy in the
crowd that I recognized to be the one
we interviewed he was a wanted
man, standing out in broad daylight. He
knew I knew who he was, so we had to
get the hell out of there!
Charters was stationed in CTVs
London bureau, which covered events
in England, Africa and the Middle
East. He worked with famed Canadian
broadcaster Michael MacLear. I real-
ized that to be taken seriously as a
shooter, I had to buy a camera, so I
bought an clair ACL and spent six
months in the Amazon jungle shooting
a documentary about members of the
Bahai faith living there, he says. When
he returned to CTV, he transitioned to
cameraman, bought an Arri 16SR, and
shot documentary and news footage
for the next decade. He became a
member of the Canadian Society of
Cinematographers in 1978.
In 1986, out of the blue, cine-
matographer and future ASC member
Mark Irwin, CSC offered Charters the
B-camera position on a hockey film
called Youngblood. Irwin needed some-
one who could follow the puck. I
hadnt shot 35mm before, Charters
says. I shot 90 fps most of the time on
a 300mm lens on the ice during games.
In dailies, we watched everything go
slowly out of focus. It was a total night-
mare for my focus puller, but we got
through it.
When Irwin decided to move to
America for work, he asked Charters to
take over for him as cinematographer on
the TV series Adderly. That show was
derring-do and spy-type stuff, says
Charters. I used my SR. I bought a
little 30-60mm T1.3 zoom, and wed
shoot the whole thing wide open. On
Top: Charters uses a dolly he built and shipped to Hafai to use in the Bahai Gardens and Shrines in 1980.
Bottom: Charters and fellow crewmembers stand behind John Huston following the shooting of
American Caesar, a documentary about Gen. Douglas MacArthur.
they shot a scene depicting a throat-slit-
ting blood sacrifice in a church. The
show came under fire from a religious
group in Texas. They labeled us the
most un-Christian show on television,
and they went after our advertisers,
Charters recalls. We withered on the
vine after that, and the show died.
Next, Charters shot the 1990
telefilm Psycho IV: The Beginning and a
short-lived anthology series created by
Wes Craven called Nightmare Cafe. The
director of Psycho IV, Mick Garris, then
brought Charters aboard the 1992
supernatural thriller Sleepwalkers. Two
collaborations with producer Stephen J.
Cannell followed, the series The Hat
Squad and Traps. During that time, I
had an amazing opportunity to hang
with Connie Hall [ASC] for three days
while he was shooting Jennifer 8,
Charters recalls. Those were some of
the most influential days of my life as a
cinematographer.
When Charters shot TekWar and
TekWar: TekLords, telefilms that experi-
mented with 3-D imagery, he realized
right away that 3-D was a whole new
world to cinematographers. He earned
a Canadian Gemini Award nomination
for TekWar.
He took darkness to new depths
on Cannells production Profit (1996), a
series with enough double-dealing,
manipulation and revenge to feel right
at home among the current crop of TV
dramas. Coming from documentaries,
I was never afraid to mix color temper-
atures, he notes. Id crosslight tungsten
and HMI, and 35mm had a habit of
making it quite aggressive with the
contrast at 400 ASA.
John Nicolella came to Canada to
direct an episode of Charters next
series, M.A.N.T.I.S., and when
Nicolella began prepping a pilot called
Strong Foundations
Top: On the set
of Stephen
Kings
Sleepwalkers.
Bottom: Charters
stands with
crewmembers
on the set of
Kull the
Conqueror in
1996.
I had an amazing
opportunity to hang
with Connie Hall
[ASC] for three days
while he was
shooting Jennifer 8.
Nash Bridges, he asked Charters to
come to San Francisco to shoot it. Says
Charters, I went to San Francisco
with director Rob Cohen to shoot an
outrageously expensive promo for the
show I think it was $4.5 million for
10 minutes! The network picked it up,
and I never went back to Canada.
Nash Bridges gave Charters a
healthy budget with which to work.
For example, Nashs apartment set was
built 18' off the ground in an old
flying-boat hangar on Treasure Island,
which allowed Charters to shoot from
the apartment balcony down into the
day or night TransLites. The
TransLites cost upwards of $290,000,
he recalls. Id never had that much
money to spend before, even on a
feature!
After shooting 13 episodes of
the series, Charters handed the cine-
matography duties over to Stephen
Lighthill, ASC, and joined Nicolella in
Bratislava to shoot the feature Kull the
Conqueror (1997). Several telefilms
followed, including Blind Faith,
directed by Ernest Dickerson, ASC.
Charters subsequently got back
into series work, shooting episodes for
20th Century Foxs The Pretender and
Roswell, and in 2001, the network
approach him about a new series called
24 (AC Feb. 04). I watched the pilot
[shot by Peter Levy, ASC, ACS] and
thought, Wow, this is good! I cant
believe Im being offered this!
Strong Foundations
Top: A day after
the Chicago
blizzard in 2012,
Charters stands
with crewmembers
on Shameless.
Middle: Gaffer
David St. Onge
joins Charters at
Melody Ranch for
the shooting of
They Die by Dawn.
Bottom: Charters
acts as director in
Mexico City for the
24 Internet spinoff
The Rookie.
I watched the
pilot for 24 and
thought, Wow, this
is good!
Charters met with pilot/episodic direc-
tor Stephen Hopkins. He notes,
Stephen liked my style and pushed me
like crazy to unmake myself, because its
easy to get into a tele-formula after
years of shooting.
Charters shot all eight seasons of
24, earning two Emmy nominations in
the process, and the shows signature
handheld, voyeuristic, snap-zoom
camerawork became an oft-imitated
style. I really have to thank my
remarkable operators, he emphasizes.
Guy Skinner was handheld on A
camera the whole time, and Jay
Herron, who was on B camera, devel-
oped an uncanny knack for the 3:1
zoom in interiors at T2.8 at 420mm,
whip-panning on a fluid head across
the set to find faces. My gaffer, David
St. Onge, and I pushed the film, effec-
tively giving us the ability to shoot L.A.
at night with a minimal package, but
we maxed out at about 1,000 ASA.
24 was an international hit. I
didnt have a profile at all before 24,
notes Charters. I once traveled to
Tokyo and ended up doing nine inter-
views in one day about 24, and I was just
the cinematographer! To be a part of
that show was such an extraordinary
experience.
24 also was the last show on
which Charters shot film. His next
series, Showtimes Shameless, was
captured with the Red One. For the
second season, we switched to the Arri
Alexa for its better black levels, and
David [St. Onge] and I reduced the
big lights from 20Ks to 1K Pars!
Charters next shot the pilot for
the Charlies Angels reboot in Miami. In
a remarkable coincidence, the gaffer,
Danny Eccleston, had been the gaffer
on Tony Scotts first commercial. We
didnt know each other when we were
both [working with the Scotts], says
Charters. With Charlies Angels, Danny
and I finally did a job together after
knowing about each other for years. We
Strong Foundations
48
Charters shooting in Landsberg, Germany, for the
2012 documentary Mosaic of Life, the story of
Holocaust survivor Jack Brauns.
immediately bonded over our love for
the remarkable low-light capabilities of
the Alexa chip, and we strove to work at
lower and lower light levels.
The next stop was TNTs reboot
of Dallas (AC July 12), which Charters
is also shooting on the Alexa. Coming
from documentaries, I tend to find the
light and augment it, he explains.
With digital capture, LEDs have
transformed how I can infinitely adjust
the light levels, and Im having a ball
doing it! I shot in a bar the other
night and was using the 3:1 zoom at
420mm and a 1,600 ISO, and the only
light we added was a string of LEDs
along the bar behind the bottles. Its
tremendously exciting to be a cine-
matographer at this time of technologi-
cal innovation.
After wrapping the first season of
Dallas, Charters shot the pilot for
Nashville, and when that was picked up,
he had his choice between the two
cities/shows. He opted to return to
Dallas because the production offered
him the opportunity to direct again.
Unfortunately, Larry Hagman passed
away, and the episode I directed became
the last one to feature J.R., he notes.
Charters became a member of
the ASC in 2004. He confesses he was
taken aback when he was informed of
2012 Emmy Awards Red Carpet (CBS)
2012 Olympics (NBC, BBC)
20/20 (ABC)
Academy Awards (ABC)
American Idol (Fox)
America's Got Talent (NBC)
Chopped (Food Network)
Good Morning America (ABC)
Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
MLB Network
Nashville (ABC)
Peoples Choice Awards (CBS)
The League (FX)
The Newsroom (HBO)
Squawk on the Street (CNBC)
Stargazing LIVE (BBC)
X-Factor (Fox)
. . . as seen on TV!
www.trucolorlighting.com
Pioneering Remote Phosphor lighting
the Societys decision to honor his career
achievements this year. I thought, Is it
over?! Im not done yet! he says with a
laugh. Im flabbergasted that people
feel I have that kind of body of work.
Ive been lucky to get some interesting
projects.
49
Charters at
work in North
Korea in 2008.
L
ast month the ASC recognized the indefatigable efforts of
Technology Committee Chairman Curtis Clark, ASC by
presenting him with its Presidents Award. Under Clarks
leadership, the committee has had a strong impact on the
development of new technologies, thus protecting the prerog-
atives of the cinematographer and fulfilling the Societys
stated purpose: to advance the art of cinematography
through artistry and technological progress, to exchange ideas
and to cement a closer relationship among cinematographers.
Clark was born in Oak Ridge, Tenn., in 1947. He
majored in theater directing at the Art Institute of Chicagos
Goodman School of Drama, and studied cinematography at
the London Film School. His professional career began in
Great Britain, where he photographed and directed short
films. His first feature credit as a cinematographer, Peter
Greenaways The Draughtsmans Contract (1982), was an indi-
cation of things to come. Clark and Greenaway met because
of a mutual interest in Super 16mm, a then-new format
invented by Swedish cameraman Rune Ericson. Clark worked
with Paul Collard and Kay Laboratories to test ways to maxi-
mize the quality of the format, making it a robust option for
independent filmmakers. Clark recalls that new Zeiss high-
speed lenses were an important part of the equation. I imme-
diately realized [the lenses] were an enabling technology
because I could work at lower light levels and with greater
depth-of-field. The Draughtsmans Contract was the most
expensive film the BFI had ever produced and the first film
Channel 4 had produced, and Peter and I knew we were
pioneering in a way that was very brave.
Collard supervised lab adaptations that included opti-
Curtis Clark, ASC, chairman of the
Societys Technology Committee, is
honored with the Presidents Award for
advancing the art of cinematography.
By David Heuring
|
Tech
Savvy
P
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s

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t
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cal-printer modifications and a unique
color-reversal internegative process.
Previously, no single lab had the capabil-
ity of handling a Super 16 project from
beginning to end.
The Draughtsmans Contract was
Clarks baptism by fire, and its success
taught him lessons about the intersec-
tion of technological breakthroughs and
artistic imagination. Super 16 became a
standard production tool throughout
Europe, and Clarks career gained
momentum. He shot Alamo Bay for
director Louis Malle, Extremities and
Dominick and Eugene for Robert M.
Young, and the IDA Award-winning
documentary Thy Kingdom Come Thy
Will Be Done for Antony Thomas. With
David Hockney and Philip Haas, Clark
made another unique documentary, A
Day on the Grand Canal with the
Emperor of China or: Surface Is Illusion
But So Is Depth, and he followed that
with two more films for Young, Triumph
of the Spirit and Talent for the Game.
Clark became a member of the
ASC in 1991 after being proposed by
Society fellows Stephen Burum, Allen
Daviau and Steven Poster. As his career
progressed, he began to focus more on
commercials, where his deft handling of
cutting-edge technologies in the service
of eye-catching looks came in handy.
In 1999, he founded NeTune
Communications, which provided inte-
grated broadband services for the
motion-picture industry by utilizing
digital satellite, terrestrial wireless and
fiber networking. That endeavor taught
him volumes about how high technol-
ogy is developed and adopted on both
personal and corporate levels.
In 2002, Poster, in his capacity as
ASC president, asked Clark to help him
revitalize the Societys Technology
Committee. At that time, the digital
revolution was embodied by the digital-
intermediate process, which simultane-
ously presented new creative freedoms
and a threat to the cinematographers
control of the image. Clark drafted a
detailed mission statement for the
committee that listed an array of digital
Opposite page: Curtis
Clark, ASC directs a
scene for his short
Eldorado (2012), a
demo for Sonys F65
camera. This page, top:
Director Louis Malle
(with cap), Clark (with
camera) and gaffer
Mike Banor (with light)
orchestrate a shot
while filming Alamo
Bay (1985). Bottom:
Clark is ready to roll
while filming the World
War II drama Triumph
of the Spirit (1989).
Tech Savvy
technologies and called for cinematog-
raphers to understand and influence
how these rapidly evolving tools
affected their role. The list encompassed
technologies used in preproduction,
production, postproduction, theatrical
delivery and exhibition, and home
delivery and exhibition. Clark wrote
that without such understanding and
influence, our creative contributions,
which have been the cornerstone of
filmmaking since its inception, could
be marginalized.
Clark outlined objectives for
the Technology Committee. These
included making the ASCs opinions
and influence felt in the production
community and in standards-setting
organizations, furthering the education
of cinematography students, and creat-
ing greater awareness of the contribu-
tions cinematographers make. Soon,
the committee embarked on its first
major initiative: a collaboration with
Digital Cinema Initiatives, a consor-
tium of the major studios, on the
creation of standard test images to allow
for an apples-to-apples comparison
of DCI-compliant digital cinema
projectors.
Around that time, high-defini-
tion-video cameras were starting to be
used on theatrical features. The first
Camera Assessment Series, conducted
by the ASC and the Producers Guild of
America in January 2009, was a mile-
stone. The tests put a range of digital
cameras through their paces and
compared the results to 35mm nega-
tive. This huge undertaking involved
dozens of ASC members, equipment
manufacturers, rental houses and post
facilities. The collaboration with the
PGA was a breakthrough, says Clark.
It came about through shared interests
and concerns. The new camera tech-
nology was no longer a sideshow, and
we all needed to know if these cameras
were ready for theatrical production.
That was followed by the shift to
file-based imaging, which took digital
Clockwise from top: Clark arrives in Venezuela for a World Wildlife Fund PSA; takes a break with his son,
Jonathan, while shooting the sports drama Talent for the Game (1991); composes a frame for the same
film; and rides a crane while shooting Triumph of the Spirit (1989) at the Auschwitz-Birkenau
concentration camp in Poland.
image capture beyond the constraints of
Rec 709 color space. Meanwhile, a
strike by the Screen Actors Guild accel-
erated the adoption of digital cameras in
television production. By the time the
Technology Committee and the PGA
partnered on the Image Control
Assessment Series in 2012, the world
had changed dramatically. But partly
because of the ASCs efforts, cine-
matographers were now seen as crucial
to successfully integrating the new tools
and workflows.
Another important aspect of that
mindset shift was the Academy Color
Encoding System, a workflow and
encoding architecture that helps achieve
a more accurate and precise color
pipeline regardless of which camera or
resolution is used. An Academy of
Motion Picture Arts & Sciences initia-
tive that depended in part on expertise
from the ASC Technology Committee,
ACES provides a set of encoding specs,
transforms and recommended practices,
all designed to expand the creative
palette. In early 2011, the television
series Justified became the first
Hollywood production to use ACES in
its workflow (AC March 11). Today the
system is in widespread use.
The Technology Committee has
also developed a groundbreaking cross-
platform data exchange for primary
RGB digital color grading, the ASC
Color Decision List. The ASC CDL
enables primary color-correction data to
be passed from the set to dailies and
Tech Savvy
Clark frames up
over Paul
McCartneys
shoulder while
shooting a
music video.
54
editorial post, and among different
color-correction systems and applica-
tions. The bottom line is that the film-
makers creative intent is more likely to
survive through to the viewer. Both
ACES and the ASC CDL were
honored with Emmy Engineering
Awards last year.
The aforementioned are just a
few of the time-intensive projects the
Technology Committee has taken
on under Clarks leadership. The
committee has also hatched a number
of subcommittees, including those
studying Advanced Imaging, Camera,
Digital Display, Digital Intermediate,
Preservation/Archiving and Virtual
Production.
Of the ASC Presidents Award,
Clark says, Its a monumental honor to
get this kind of recognition. Ive always
been fascinated by the technology
underpinning our art form and the
impact it has on creative intent. What
this is all about is understanding the
limitations and maximizing the poten-
tial of what can be achieved creatively
with that knowledge. Without under-
standing digital-imaging technology,
you cannot influence its development
and, as a result, can be dealt a pretty
restrictive hand.
In 1919, the founders of the
ASC came together in no small part to
collaborate on solving the technical
challenges they faced, he adds. What
we have tried to do with the Technology
Committee, in the most volatile of
times, is in that same spirit.
ino Flos new Celeb
200 DMX delivers the inspired

performance youve come to expect from Kino Flo:
K
www.kinoo.com
2840 North Hollywood Way, Burbank, CA USA Voice + 1 818 767 6528 Fax + 1 818 767 7517
soft, even True Match

light quality (CRI 95). The Celeb 200
features dial-in white light from 2700 to 5500 Kelvin and
presets with programmable settings. Light levels do not change
when selecting Kelvin settings. The Celeb also includes full range
dimming without color shift. Its low energy prole, Universal
100-240VAC input and 24VDC operation make the Celeb a
welcome addition to Kino Flos line of lighting instruments for
any professional lighting application on location or in the studio.
55
Clark frames
Farrah Fawcett
while shooting
the acclaimed
telefilm
Extremities
(1986).
Panasonic Gives AF100 an A
Panasonic has released the AG-AF100A large-imager HD
cinema camcorder.
The AF100A features 10-bit 4:2:2 output for better grada-
tion of tonal areas when recording onto external devices, such as a
P2 HD recorder. The HD-SDI signal also carries a sync signal for
recording start/stop with the AF100A trigger. Additionally, the
AF100A is equipped with the popular expanded focus-assist func-
tion, which enlarges the center of the displayed image, and a 2.39:1
safety-zone marker.
In addition to offering the high-quality PH recording mode,
the AF100A complies with the AVCHD version 2.0 standard with its
new PS mode for recording, playing and outputting Full-HD progres-
sive images. The PS/PH modes support uncompressed 16-bit LPCM
2-channel audio recording. The AF100A also features two-channel
XLR audio input terminals for full-uncompressed audio recording
and many other functions to meet professional needs.
The AF100A builds on the legacy of the AF100 and contin-
ues to boast film-like, shallow depth-of-field and the wider field-of-
view of a large imager, with the flexibility and cost advantages of an
expansive line of professional micro
4
3" lenses, filters and adapters.
The AF100A incorporates a
4
3" 16:9 MOS imager that features fast
image scanning to minimize skew and an optical low-pass filter for
elimination of aliasing and moir.
Weighing 3.5 pounds without lens or battery, the AF100A
also features Dynamic Range Stretch in all modes and frame rates;
six built-in, customizable scene files that are exchangeable for quick
and easy matching between multiple cameras; seven built-in
gamma curves with four selectable color matrices; a built-in optical
ND filter; adjustable shutter speed and Synchro-scan function; and
New Products & Services
SUBMISSION INFORMATION
Please e-mail New Products/Services releases to:
newproducts@ascmag.com and include full contact
information and product images. Photos must be
TIFF or JPEG files of at least 300dpi.
a high-resolution, variable-angle color LCD monitor and tiltable
viewfinder.
Additional standard professional interfaces include uncom-
pressed HDMI out and USB 2.0. The AF100A records SMPTE time
code, is able to perform time-code synchronization, and has an
internal down-converter facilitating output of SD signals.
The AG-AF100A is available at a suggested list price of
$4,595. The camcorder is packaged with a copy of AF100 Book,
written by Barry Green. Panasonic supports the AF100A with a
three-year limited warranty upon registration of the camera with the
PASS customer-support program.
For additional information, visit www.panasonic.com/
broadcast.
Fujifilm Expands Cabrio Zoom Range
Fujifilm has introduced the PL 85-300mm Cabrio zoom
(model ZK3.5x85). Joining the Premier PL digital cinematography
family, the PL 85-300 capitalizes on the popularity and success of the
PL 19-90mm Cabrio (Model ZK4.7x19).
While the PL 85-300 is similar in size and weight to the PL 19-
90, its longer lens makes it ideal for shooting documentaries, car
commercials, and nature and wildlife, among other production
scenarios. The PL 85-300 offers a focal length of 85-220mm at T2.9
and up to 300mm at T4, with 200-degree focus rotation.
Designed using the latest optical simulation technology, the
PL 85-300 Cabrio offers exceptional optical performance not only in
the center of the image, but also in the corners of the frame. Like
the PL 19-90 Cabrio, the PL 85-300 is equipped with such features
as flange-focal-distance adjustment, a MOD of 1.2m and a macro
function for objects as close as 97mm (3.8"). Additionally, the zoom
lens covers a 31.5mm diagonal sensor size.
The digital servos 16-bit encoding assures operators that all
lens-data output such as the position of the zoom, iris and focus
is accurate; the lens also supports Lens Data System (LDS) and /i
metadata formats. Like the PL 19-90 Cabrio, the PL 85-300 features
a detachable servo drive unit, making it suitable for use as a stan-
dard PL lens or as an ENG-style lens. The PL
85-300 can be controlled using industry-
standard wireless controllers as well as exist-
ing Fujinon wired and wireless units. Other
available Premier PL Mount Series lenses
include the 14.5-45mm T2.0, 18-85mm
T2.0, 24-180mm T2.6, and 75-400 mm
T2.8-T3.8 zooms.
We designed the new PL 85-300,
and the entire Premier PL zoom-lens family,
to give professional cinematographers and
videographers the utmost in features and
versatility, says Thom Calabro, director of
marketing and product development, Fuji-
film North America Corp., Optical Devices
Division. We believe that a wide array of
choices help them match the right lens with
the unique demands of their high-end
productions. Versatility means that videogra-
phers accustomed to shooting ENG-style will
be right at home with a servo attached to
the lens, while cinematographers who shoot
projects like feature films and commercials
can opt to shoot without it. Cinematogra-
phers will also like that this lens accepts
industry-standard cine motors and matte
boxes.
For additional information, visit
www.fujinon.com.
Canon Builds Cine, EF Families
Canon U.S.A., Inc. has announced
two new cinema prime lenses and two
professional EF lenses.
The Cinema prime series introduces
the CN-E14mm T3.1 L F and CN-E135mm
T2.2 L F single-focal-length lenses for large-
format single-sensor cameras employing
Super 35mm or full-frame 35mm imagers.
These two lenses join with Canons CN-
E24mm T1.5 L F, CN-E50mm T1.3 L F and
CN-E85mm T1.3 L F primes to provide a line
of precision-matched EF-mount Cinema
prime lenses that provide high optical perfor-
mance levels and a choice of versatile focal
lengths. All five Canon Cinema prime
lenses are part of the Canon Cinema EOS
system of professional cinematography
products.
All Canon Cinema EOS lenses inte-
grate advanced materials and coatings to
meet high optical performance levels,
including 4K (4096x2160) production stan-
dards. Each lens is equipped with an odd-
numbered 11-blade aperture diaphragm,
which is ideally suited to achieve creative
depth-of-field manipulation and pleasing
bokeh effects. Canons line of Cinema
prime lenses is precision-matched for
consistent and solid optical performance
that minimizes focus-induced changes in
the angle of view. All feature a full-frame
image circle in a lightweight, compact
design, and they incorporate proven Canon
lens elements designed to fulfill contempo-
rary 4K production standards. All five
primes also deliver color tone and balance
that matches Canons top-end Cinema
zooms and compact Cinema zooms. Canon
Cinema prime lenses are also water-resistant
for severe shooting conditions and deliver
the operation and reliability required in
professional film-style shooting environ-
ments.
Since our introduction to the film
and television production industry in
November 2011, we have brought to
market five Cinema prime lenses, two top-
end Cinema zoom lenses, two compact
Cinema zoom lenses, and four professional
digital cinematography cameras all within
18 months, said Yuichi Ishizuka, executive
vice president and general manager, Imag-
ing Technologies & Communications Group,
Canon U.S.A. This is a testament to the
companys dedication to the needs of the
growing and diverse universe of profession-
als creating 4K, 2K and HD moving-image
content for theatrical, television and other
markets.
The CN-E14mm T3.1 and CN-
E135mm T2.2 Cinema primes are fully
compatible with the Canon EOS C500,
C300, C100 and EOS-1D C digital cinema
cameras. The EF-mount design of all five
Canon Cinema prime lenses provides
communication with these cameras for such
handy features as display of the f-stop in the
electronic viewfinder, recording of
focus/zoom position and f-stop, and Periph-
eral Light Compensation for pleasing effects
shots.
Additionally, Canon has introduced
the EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM and EF 35mm
f/2 IS USM lenses, which feature unique opti-
cal attributes for a variety of situations.
Showcasing dynamic L-series optical
performance in a compact, lightweight and
durable design, the new EF 24-70mm f/4L IS
USM lens is suited for all levels of advanced
photography on the go. The ideal compan-
ion to Canons full-frame Digital SLR
cameras, the lens features a constant maxi-
mum aperture of f/4 throughout the entire
zoom range with 15 lens elements in 12
groups including two aspherical and two UD
lens elements and a 9-blade circular aperture
diaphragm. It includes a macro feature at the
telephoto end with a 0.2m/7.9" minimum
focusing distance and Canons Hybrid IS
system (with up to four stops of stabiliza-
tion). In addition, the lens features inner
focusing and a ring-type Ultrasonic Motor
(USM) for quiet, fast autofocus, and has full-
time mechanical manual focus thats
enabled even during AF operation. Compact
at only 93mm in length, with excellent dust
and water resistance, the EF 24-70mm f/4L
IS USM lens has a fluorine coating on the
front and rear elements for easy mainte-
nance and cleaning. It is supplied with a lens
pouch and reversible lens hood.
The successor to Canons EF 35mm
f/2, the EF 35mm f/2 IS USM lens is a
compact and lightweight wide-angle prime
lens that provides a high level of image qual-
ity and functionality. The optics and mechan-
ical workings are designed to improve image
quality in the lenss periphery and provide
faster and quieter AF than its predecessor, as
well as Optical IS and optional full-time
manual focus, all in a durable lens body with
a high-grade design. Featuring a circular
aperture diaphragm and lens coatings opti-
mized for minimal ghosting and flare, the
EF 35mm f/2 IS USM lens achieves beauti-
ful, soft backgrounds and excellent image
quality.
www.usa.canon.com.
Schneider Offers Compact ND Kit
Schneider Optics has introduced the
Schneider Compact ND Kit for 114mm-
diameter lenses. The neutral-density filter
kit provides a low-profile clamp-on locking
ring adapter designed to mount the 4"
filters included in the kit onto camera lenses
such as Zeiss CP.2 and Canon Cinema EOS
primes.
The Compact ND Kit answers the
specific need of cinematographers working
with 114mm-diameter lenses with no front
threads, or struggling with situations where
using a regular mattebox to mount filters
would take too long to mount or would
create too much weight or wind drag.
Schneiders Low Profile Clamp-on 114mm
Sunshade (not included with this kit) can be
mounted on the Compact ND Kit assembly
to minimize stray light from causing
unwanted lens flares.
Available now for a suggested price
of $925, the Compact ND Kit includes three
genuine Schneider Neutral Density filters in
strengths of 0.6, 0.9 and 1.2.
www.schneideroptics.com.
LockCircle Introduces K-Circle
LockCircle has introduced the
K-Circle wireless USB camera controller,
designed to enhance professional applica-
tions in most Canon EOS HDSLR cameras.
With the K-Circle, camera functions such as
focus, iris, shutter speed, start/stop and ISO
can be controlled wirelessly over distances
of up to 300'. A proprietary algorithm
enables the K-Circle to control focus in
three speeds.
The K-Circle system incorporates
two modules: the Base Module and the
Remote Module. The Base Module
connects to the camera with a Lemo/USB
cable, and can be used as a wired controller
within 50' if remote control is not needed;
the Base Module also features a built-in
wireless receiver to communicate with the
wireless Remote Module, which incorpo-
rates the same functions as the Base
Module. To help distinguish the two
modules, the Base and Remote Modules
sport a gunmetal and a titanium finish,
respectively. Both modules are manufac-
tured from CNC machined aluminum for
heavy-duty use.
LockCircle plans to release a Nikon-
compatible K-Circle this year.
www.lockcircle.com.
Davis & Sanford Provides
Pro Support
The Tiffen Co. is shipping the Davis
& Sanford Pro Elite Tripod and Head models
5075-15 and 5100-25.
The Davis & Sanford Pro Elite Series
two-in-one spreader feature includes snap-
in center support brace with boots for
uneven ground plus an adjustable ground
spreader for maximum rigidity, providing
shooters with a system that performs well
on flat and uneven surfaces. The ergonom-
ically designed lever offers shooters incredi-
bly smooth pan, scan and tilt with counter-
balance control capabilities that support a
wide range of camera weights. The variable
quick release lets
users easily fine-
tune the camera balance.
Features of both the
PE 5075-15 and PE 5100-
25 include aluminum
tripod legs, canopy and
head structure; two-
stage quick-lock leg-
clamping system;
rapid-action trans-
port clips; and
spike feet or rubber feet option. The 515
head has selectable four-position pan and
tilt drag, selectable five-position plus zero
counterbalance system and an 80mm slid-
ing-camera-plate range and bubble level.
The 3-15 head has selectable four-position
pan and tilt drag, selectable three-position
counterbalance system, and mini Euro
quick-release plate and bubble level. A
heavy-duty ballistic nylon tripod bag is also
included with both models.
The Davis & Sanford Pro Elite tripods
are available through the Tiffen Dealer
Network for $699.99 (for the PE 5075-15
model) and $1,099.99 (for the PE 5100-25
model).
www.tiffen.com.
Environmental Lights Up
DMX Control
EnvironmentalLights.com, a provider
of high-quality LED lighting, recently added
a 24-channel DMX Decoder to its Studio
Series of DMX controllers and decoders. This
new addition allows for greater design flex-
ibility and higher load capacities, and
includes the newest scrambled pulse-width-
modulation technology.
It takes the DMX output from any
standard DMX console or controller, and
decodes the signal so you can drive 4-wire
LED RGB lights such as LED wall washers,
LED strip lights or LED Modules, says Alicia
Cheng, director of product development for
EnvironmentalLights.
Each of the 24 channels can sustain
up to 3 amps of current at 5, 12 or 24-volt
DC. Channels 1-12 and 13-24 are powered
by separate voltage inputs, allowing strands
of two different voltages to be addressed
simultaneously. Contrary to traditional
decoders, which apply the same voltage to
all loads, with the 24 Channel DMX
Decoder, not all LED strip lights have to have
the same input voltages.
With a high PWM frequency of
2,000 hertz, the appearance of flicker that
can be seen by studio equipment is signifi-
cantly reduced. The 24-channel DMX
Decoder also contains S-PWM patented
technology, which increases the visual
refresh rate and supports a 16-bit grayscale
control on the output channels. Simply put,
this decoder allows for higher color resolu-
tion and enables high-speed cameras to
seamlessly capture video in real time, with-
out flicker.
For addition information, visit
www.environmentallights.com.
Oxygen Monitors Field
Production
Oxygen DCT has launched the 7.67"
Evolution Pro P3 organic light-emitting
diode (OLED) field production monitor for
studio, outside broadcast, satellite news,
engineering and field production. Picture
quality derived from the proprietary color-
management-technology engine gives rich
colors and deep black detail.
The Evolution Pro P3 monitor
features luminance exposure checking,
video range check, peaking for focus assist,
waveform and vector display in addition to
histogram and multiple zoom functions
with pixel-to-pixel native HD signal display
for checking back focus. There are 6 record-
ing and playback modes for Sony, Canon
and Nikon DSLR cameras and a unique,
integrated HDMI to SDI converter, allowing
a DSLR to be viewed on larger picture moni-
tors. The automatic luminance control
adjusts the brightness of the monitors
display according to the locations light
levels and a proximity sensor aids shot fram-
ing. Additional features include a V-lock
battery mount, a battery level indicator and
horizontal and vertical flip modes.
Part of the companys highly
successful Evolution Pro P3 production
monitor series, this latest addition boasts
the largest OLED screen, the highest resolu-
tion display (1,280x800 pixels) and the
widest color gamut (110 percent).
www.oxygendct.com.
Red Plays Back 4K with RedRay
Red Digital Cinema has released the
RedRay ultra-high-definition 4K playback
device.
Features of the plug-and-play
RedRay include 4K playback and upscaling
from lower resolutions, 12-bit 4:2:2 color
precision, data rates less than 2.5 MB/s, and
4K TV or projector connectivity via HDMI.
The RedRay interface can be controlled with
the included IR Remote or through its iPad
app. One RedRay supports up to 4 HD
panels for digital signage, and its 4K 3-D
playback system supports frame rates up to
60 fps.
www.red.com.
SpectraCal, X-Rite Partner
for Colorimeter
SpectraCal, Inc., a developer of
video calibration software and training, and
X-Rite Inc., a developer and manufacturer
of color-measurement instrumentation and
software, have collaborated to introduce
the SpectraCal C3 colorimeter for home
users.
There are lots of people consuming
video content at home who would like to
have a better picture, but who havent been
able to justify the cost of doing anything
about it, says Joshua Quain, SpectraCals
director of marketing. The C3 removes the
price obstacle while maintaining a high level
of performance.
In conjunction with the release of
the SpectraCal C3, SpectraCal is also intro-
ducing an easier-to-use version of its award-
winning video-optimization software,
CalMan 5. The SpectraCal C3 will be sold
with the new software in the CalMan 5
Home Theater Tutorial bundle.
www.spectracal.com.
Arri Moves Canadian Office
Arri has relocated its Canadian office
just west of the greater Toronto area in
Mississauga. Conveniently located near
Torontos Pearson International Airport, the
new site offers a more pleasant, efficient
space for service and sales. The office
features a dedicated customer showroom
for testing and demonstrations of the Arri
suite of motion-picture equipment.
Arri is pleased to extend its
commitment to the Canadian market, and
our new office is designed to better support
our local sales, demonstration, training and
service functions, says ASC associate
Glenn Kennel, president of Arri Inc. The
move coincides with an improved shipping
pipeline that provides direct access to
deeper inventory and support staff in the
U.S.
Arri Canada, 1200 Aerowood Dr.,
Unit 29, Mississauga, ON L4W 2S7,
Canada. For more information, visit
www.arri.com.
Light Iron Opens Doors in NYC
Light Iron, a post facility specializing
in on-site dailies, digital intermediate,
archival and data services for projects origi-
nated on file-based motion-picture-camera
systems, has expanded into the New York
market, where the company has acquired
all of the post resources of OffHollywood in
Soho.
OffHollywood is known in New
York in the same way that Light Iron is
known in Los Angeles: as a leader in emerg-
Backstage Equipment, nc. 8052 Lankershim Bl. North Hollywood, CA 91605 (818) 504-6026 Fax (818) 504-6180 backstaged@aol.com www.backstageweb.com
Come visit our showroom or call for our latest Magliner product catalog
We are the largest retailer specializing in Magliner customized products and accessories for the Film and Television Industry in the world
New York Showroom C.W..H. 364 W. 36th St. New York, NY 10018 (877)-Mr-CASTER (877-672-2783) backstage@cwih.com www.cwih.com
e are the largest retailer specializing in Magline WWe
e are the largest retailer specializing in Magliner customized products and accessories for the Film and T
elevision Industry in the world m and TTe
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ing technologies and expert workflows that
are changing everything about motion
pictures, says Michael Cioni, Light Iron
CEO. [OffHollywoods] founders, Mark
Pederson and Aldey Sanchez, have built an
impressive company that fully comprehends
and embraces file-based workflow across
production and post. As Light Iron absorbs
OffHollywoods post operations, we will
push capabilities even further by bringing
new talent and new technologies that the
New York market hasnt yet experienced.
With the acquisition of OffHolly-
woods facility on the eighth floor of 580
Broadway, Light Iron NY is now open for
business, offering a DI grading theater, DI
grading suites, a digital lab and an archive
center. Cioni has moved to New York to
oversee the new operations.
OffHollywood will continue as a
production service company, expanding its
camera-rental and support operations on
the fourth floor of the same building. In
addition, OffHollywood will be the New
York regions exclusive provider of Light
Irons award-winning Outpost Mobile
Systems.
www.lightiron.com and www.offholly
woodny.com.
Colorflow Posts in Bay Area
Colorflow, a full-service post
company specializing in color grading for
independent films, documentaries, long-
form television and similar projects, has
opened a state-of-the-art facility in the
historic Saul Zaentz Media Center in Berke-
ley, Calif. The 7,500-square-foot facility
features three color-grading and finishing
suites and a DCI-compliant grading theater.
Colorflow has recently provided
color-grading and finishing services for a
number of films, including A River Changes
Course, a documentary that premiered at
the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.
Founded in 2009, Colorflow blends
a boutique-style environment with talented
colorists and next-generation technology.
We needed a larger facility with a more
robust infrastructure and a theater environ-
ment in order to properly service the type
and number of projects we are attracting,
says Alexander Black, Colorflows managing
director.
DI supervisor Alexander MacLean
adds, We have done a careful job in
balancing the creative and the technical in
the new facility. Every infrastructure decision
was made in service of the creative process
for our artists and clients.
The centerpiece of the new facility is
its DI grading theater, which includes seat-
ing for 20, a Christie 2K digital cinema
projector, a 20' screen and a latest-genera-
tion Autodesk Lustre color-grading system.
Three HD color and finishing suites feature
Assimilate Scratch, Autodesk Smoke and
Blackmagic Designs DaVinci Resolve. All of
the companys resources are linked via a
high-speed fiber-optic network that allows
seamless access to HD, 2K and 4K media in
any suite. Its infrastructure is fully file based
and can accommodate raw media from all
digital cinema cameras, including Red Epic
and Scarlet, Arri Alexa, Canon C300 and
C500, and Vision Research Phantom.
Our theater mixes the best of all
Ive seen over the years at post facilities
around the globe, says Kent Pritchett, the
companys lead colorist. I cant imagine a
better working environment, and I am
thrilled to offer this environment to clients.
www.colorflow.com.
Assimilate Rents Scratch
Through its online Assimilate Store,
DI and dailies software provider Assimilate
now provides professionals the option to
rent the companys Scratch and Scratch Lab
software for as little as a day or as a long as
three months. These new rental options
allow artists to pay for Scratch and Scratch
Lab only when they need it.
Scratch Lab drove innovation into
the production dailies world because it was
the first product that delivered all the power
and flexibility of a world-class dailies system
at a price on-set professionals could afford,
says Steve Bannerman, vice president of
marketing at Assimilate. And today, were
raising the bar yet again. Scratch Lab is the
first production dailies product to offer true
pay-as-you-use rental options that are avail-
able online anytime, anywhere. It cant just
be about product speeds and feeds
anymore. It has to be about fitting the new
way on-set professionals work, making
them more productive and helping them
make money.
Artists can activate their Scratch or
Scratch Lab license for one day (for $150 or
$50, respectively), one week ($800 or
$250), one month ($2,100 or $650) or
three months ($6,000 or $1,800). (Pricing
includes maintenance and support during
the activation period.)
www.assimilateinc.com.
International Marketplace
Optimo Carry Handles
CLASSIFIED AD RATES
All classifications are $4.50 per word. Words set in bold
face or all capitals are $5.00 per word. First word of ad
and advertisers name can be set in capitals without extra
charge. No agency commission or discounts on clas si fied
advertising.PAYMENT MUST AC COM PA NY ORDER. VISA,
Mastercard, AmEx and Discover card are ac cept ed. Send
ad to Clas si fied Ad ver tis ing, Amer i can Cin e ma tog -
ra pher, P.O. Box 2230, Hol ly wood, CA 90078. Or FAX
(323) 876-4973. Dead line for payment and copy must be in
the office by 15th of second month preceding pub li ca tion.
Sub ject mat ter is lim it ed to items and ser vic es per tain ing
to film mak ing and vid eo pro duc tion. Words used are sub -
ject to mag a zine style ab bre vi a tion. Min i mum amount
per ad: $45
CLASSIFIEDS ON-LINE
Ads may now also be placed in the on-line Classifieds
at the ASC web site.
Internet ads are seen around the world at the
same great rate as in print, or for slightly more you
can appear both online and in print.
For more information please visit
www.theasc.com/advertiser, or e-mail: classi-
fieds@theasc.com.
Classifieds
EQUIPMENT FOR SALE
4X5 85 Glass Filters, Diffusion, Polas etc. A Good
Box Rental 818-763-8547
14,000+ USED EQUIPMENT ITEMS. PRO VIDEO &
FILM EQUIPMENT COMPANY. 50 YEARS EXPERI-
ENCE. New: iLLUMiFLEX LIGHTS & FluidFlex
T R I P O D S .
www.UsedEquipmentNewsletter.com AND
w w w . P r o V i d e o F i l m . c o m
EMAIL: ProVidFilm@aol.com
CALL BILL 972 869 9990, 888 869 9998.
Worlds SUPERMARKET of USED MOTION
PICTURE EQUIPMENT! Buy, Sell, Trade. CAMERAS,
LENSES, SUPPORT, AKS & MORE! Visual Products,
Inc. www.visualproducts.com Call 440.647.4999
SERVICES AVAILABLE
VIDEO PRODUCTION - EDITING - SOUND EDITING-
GRAPHIC DESIGN CASTING
http://www.nycaudiovideopost.net/
STUCK? BLOCKED?
Give me 30 minutes (at no cost to you):
212.560.2333. www.laurienadel.com
STEADICAM ARM QUALITY SERVICE OVERHAUL
AND UPDATES. QUICK TURNAROUND. ROBERT
LUNA (323) 938-5659.
Advertisers Index
16x9, Inc. 59
AC 59, 65, 69
Adorama 5, 47
AJA Video Systems, Inc. 19
Arri 7
ASC 1
AZGrip 64
Backstage Equipment, Inc.
61
Barger-Lite 8, 65
Birns & Sawyer 64
Blackmagic Design, Inc. 37
Brain Emo 64
Cavision Enterprises 45
Chapman/Leonard Studio
Equipment Inc. 21
Chemical Wedding 68
Cine Gear Expo 67
Cinematography
Electronics 59
Cinekinetic 64
Codex Digital Ltd. 17
Cooke Optics 9
Deluxe C2
Eastman Kodak C4
Filmotechnic USA 48
Filmtools 69
Glidecam Industries 15
Kino Flo 55
Koerner Camera Systems 61
K-Tek 6
Lights! Action! Co. 64
Maccam 64
Manios Optical 64
Matthews Studio Equipment
64
M. M. Mukhi & Sons 65
Movie Tech AG 64, 65
NAB 70
NBC Universal 57
Nevada Film Commission 38
New York Film Academy 35
Oppenheimer Camera Prod.
64
Outsight 27
Panavision, Inc. 25
Panther Gmbh 39
Pille Film Gmbh 64
Pro8mm 64
Production Resource Group
49
Schneider Optics 2,
Sim Digital 23
South Carolina Film
Commission C3
Super16 Inc. 65
Thales Angenieux 13
Tiffen Company 11
v2 Lighting Group 49
VF Gadgets, Inc. 65
Vimeo 53
Visionary Forces 6
Willys Widgets 65
www.theasc.com 4, 8, 54
61, 63, 66, 71
66
Cinematographer Alfred Taylor, ASC
died Dec. 21 at the age of 88.
Taylor was born on Nov. 10, 1924, in
Newport Gwent, Wales,
in the United Kingdom.
His interest in photogra-
phy began at an early
age, and when he was
only 8, he developed his
first roll of black-and-
white film. The years
1942-46 found Taylor
serving as a pilot and
aircraft electrician in the
Fleet Air Arm of the
British Royal Navy, after
which he officially
began his still and
motion-picture photography career, work-
ing for the Rank Organization and Ealing
Studios, among others.
In 1952, Taylor moved across the
pond and settled in Hollywood, where he
found his footing shooting weddings,
actors headshots and documentaries. After
a few years in town, he purchased a 35mm
Arriflex camera, which helped him find an
increasingly steady flow of work shooting
everything from inserts to full-length
features. He also began shooting commer-
cials, through which he came to know ASC
members Karl Struss and Ernest Haller. Over
the years, Taylor notched more than 1,000
commercial credits for clients that included
Ford, Dodge, Chevrolet, Sears Tires, Miller,
Coors, Dole, Kelloggs, Sealy and Max
Factor.
In 1960, Taylor opened his own
studio with a 20'x40' insert stage on Seward
Street in Hollywood; he ran the business
until 1974. In addition to accumulating an
impressive camera and lighting package,
Taylor also used his studio to invent and
machine custom equipment. For example,
after a feature shoot on beaches near
Carmel and Big Sur, Calif., frustrations with
maneuvering the heavy studio equipment
across the sand led Taylor to devise his own
lightweight fiberglass blimp for his hand-
held 35mm Arri camera, a process he
described in detail in ACs May 1965
issue. He went on to use the blimp for a
number of projects, including the feature
Beach Ball, which he
photographed in the
2-perf Techniscope
widescreen format.
Taylors credits also
included the features
Spider Baby, Sofi, The
Teacher, Mutant (a.k.a.
Night Shadows), Fatal
Games and Killer
Klowns from Outer
Space; the series The
Paper Chase and
Shadow Chasers; addi-
tional photography for
the features The Man Who Loved Cat Danc-
ing and The Great Waltz and the series
Kojak, Adam 12 and M*A*S*H; and docu-
mentaries for the various branches of the
U.S. armed forces. From 1965-75, Taylor
served as a director of photography along
with Alan Stensvold, ASC for the Los Ange-
les Sheriffs Dept. Photo Reserve Unit. Addi-
tionally, he remained an active still photog-
rapher and contributed shots to catalogs
and other publications.
In 1966, Taylor was made an associ-
ate member of the Royal Photographic
Society in Great Britain. Three years later, he
was accepted into IATSE Local 659 as a
director of photography. In 1986, Taylor
was made an active member of the ASC
after being nominated by Society members
Richard Glouner, Gerald Perry Finnerman
and Donald Birnkrant.
Outside of work, Taylor enjoyed sail-
ing, and he noted on his rsum that he
knew both coastal and celestial navigation.
But it was his career that took him to such
far-flung locales as the Isle of Man, Iceland,
South Africa and Jamaica. In 1994, he
wrote to the ASCs Board of Governors to
request retired status.
Taylor is survived by his wife, Eliza-
beth.
Jon D. Witmer
Alfred Taylor, ASC, 1924-2012

In Memoriam
69
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Director of photography Charles Lee
Chuck Austin, ASC died Jan. 7 at his resi-
dence in the Actors Fund Home in Engle-
wood, N.J. He was 91.
Austin was
born on Nov. 7,
1921, in New York
City, and he grew
up in the Bronx,
where from an
early age he
demonstrated an
interest in and
knack for photog-
raphy. While in
high school,
Austin met Yvette Stern, and the two were
married in 1943, after Austin enlisted in the
U.S. Air Force and just prior to his deploy-
ment to the European Theater of Opera-
tions. He served as a combat photographer
with the 25th Bomb Group of the 8th Air
Force.
Following his discharge in 1945,
Austin completed the schooling he had
begun at City College and Columbia Univer-
sity, attending the Ozenfant School of Fine
Arts to study photography. He began his
civilian career with advertising and photo-
journalism assignments before finding work
as a consultant to advertising and indepen-
dent-filmmaking concerns in New York.
In 1950, Austin joined the Mitchell
Camera Corp. as a technical representative.
Although he was based in New York, he
traveled extensively around the globe, visit-
ing productions that were using Mitchell
equipment and liaising between the camera
technicians on those shows and Mitchells
engineers. In 1952, he joined IATSE Local
644 as a director of photography, but he
continued to serve as a consultant for
Mitchell, and in 1963, he temporarily relo-
cated to California to assist with a new
camera design.
Despite his brief stint in California,
Austins heart belonged on the East Coast,
and as a cinematographer based in New
York, he contributed second unit and addi-
tional photography to such films as The
Trouble with Harry, The Sweet Smell of
Success, The Manchurian Candidate (1962),
Seven Days in May, Plaza Suite and The
Way We Were. Over the years, he also
worked on such
series as Naked
City, The Defend-
ers and Banacek,
and he shot a
number of docu-
mentaries for CBS
in addition to
corporate and
industrial films.
W a l t e r
Strenge, ASC
recommended Austin for active member-
ship in the Society. In a letter to ASC Presi-
dent William Daniels, Austin wrote, If the
Board of Governors sees fit to bring me into
membership, I shall always strive to conduct
myself with the loyalty, dignity, honor and
creativity synonymous with [the] ASC.
Indeed the board did see fit, and the next
month Austins name was added to the
roster.
Austin was also a member of the Air
Force Association, the Society of Motion
Picture and Television Engineers, the Acad-
emy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences,
the Academy of Television Arts and
Sciences, the British Kinematograph Society
and the Society of Photographic Instrumen-
tation Engineers.
He was most active, though, with
Local 644, where he served many years on
the executive board and three terms as
president. Austin retired in 1985, but he
continued to inspire those around him with
his passion for image making while regaling
them with his tales of camera-wielding
derring-do.
Austin is survived by his wife, Yvette;
their sons, Robert and Rick; and three
grandchildren.
Jon D. Witmer
Charles Austin, ASC, 1921-2013

In Memoriam
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71
American Society of Cinematographers Roster
OFFICERS 2012-13
Stephen Lighthill,
President
Daryn Okada,
Vice President
Richard Crudo,
Vice President
Kees Van Oostrum,
Vice President
Victor J. Kemper,
Treasurer
Frederic Goodich,
Secretary
Steven Fierberg,
Sergeant-at-Arms
MEMBERS
OF THE BOARD
John Bailey
Stephen H. Burum
Curtis Clark
Richard Crudo
Dean Cundey
Fred Elmes
Michael Goi
Victor J. Kemper
Francis Kenny
Matthew Leonetti
Stephen Lighthill
Michael O'Shea
Robert Primes
Owen Roizman
Kees Van Oostrum
ALTERNATES
Ron Garcia
Julio Macat
Kenneth Zunder
Steven Fierberg
Jeff Cronenweth
Richard Crudo
Dean R. Cundey
Stefan Czapsky
David Darby
Allen Daviau
Roger Deakins
Jan DeBont
Thomas Del Ruth
Bruno Delbonnel
Peter Deming
Jim Denault
Caleb Deschanel
Ron Dexter
Craig Di Bona
George Spiro Dibie
Ernest Dickerson
Billy Dickson
Bill Dill
Anthony Dod Mantle
Stuart Dryburgh
Bert Dunk
Lex DuPont
John Dykstra
Richard Edlund
Eagle Egilsson
Frederick Elmes
Robert Elswit
Geoffrey Erb
Scott Farrar
Jon Fauer
Don E. FauntLeRoy
Gerald Feil
Cort Fey
Steven Fierberg
Mauro Fiore
John C. Flinn III
Anna Foerster
Larry Fong
Ron Fortunato
Jonathan Freeman
Tak Fujimoto
Alex Funke
Steve Gainer
Robert Gantz
Ron Garcia
David Geddes
Dejan Georgevich
Michael Goi
Stephen Goldblatt
Paul Goldsmith
Frederic Goodich
Victor Goss
Jack Green
Adam Greenberg
Robbie Greenberg
Xavier Grobet
Alexander Gruszynski
Changwei Gu
Rick Gunter
Rob Hahn
Constantine Makris
Denis Maloney
Isidore Mankofsky
Christopher Manley
Michael D. Margulies
Barry Markowitz
Steve Mason
Clark Mathis
Don McAlpine
Don McCuaig
Michael McDonough
Seamus McGarvey
Robert McLachlan
Geary McLeod
Greg McMurry
Steve McNutt
Terry K. Meade
Suki Medencevic
Chris Menges
Rexford Metz
Anastas Michos
David Miller
Douglas Milsome
Dan Mindel
Charles Minsky
Claudio Miranda
George Mooradian
Donald A. Morgan
Donald M. Morgan
Kramer Morgenthau
Peter Moss
M. David Mullen
Dennis Muren
Fred Murphy
Hiro Narita
Guillermo Navarro
Michael B. Negrin
Sol Negrin
Bill Neil
Alex Nepomniaschy
John Newby
Yuri Neyman
Sam Nicholson
Crescenzo Notarile
David B. Nowell
Rene Ohashi
Daryn Okada
Thomas Olgeirsson
Woody Omens
Miroslav Ondricek
Michael D. OShea
Vince Pace
Anthony Palmieri
Phedon Papamichael
Daniel Pearl
Edward J. Pei
James Pergola
Dave Perkal
Lowell Peterson
Wally Pfister
Bill Pope
Gerald Hirschfeld
Henner Hofmann
Adam Holender
Ernie Holzman
John C. Hora
Tom Houghton
Gil Hubbs
Shane Hurlbut
Tom Hurwitz
Judy Irola
Mark Irwin
Levie Isaacks
Peter James
Johnny E. Jensen
Jon Joffin
Frank Johnson
Shelly Johnson
Jeffrey Jur
Adam Kane
Stephen M. Katz
Ken Kelsch
Victor J. Kemper
Wayne Kennan
Francis Kenny
Glenn Kershaw
Darius Khondji
Gary Kibbe
Jan Kiesser
Jeffrey L. Kimball
Adam Kimmel
Alar Kivilo
David Klein
Richard Kline
George Koblasa
Fred J. Koenekamp
Lajos Koltai
Pete Kozachik
Neil Krepela
Willy Kurant
Ellen M. Kuras
George La Fountaine
Edward Lachman
Jacek Laskus
Denis Lenoir
John R. Leonetti
Matthew Leonetti
Andrew Lesnie
Peter Levy
Matthew Libatique
Charlie Lieberman
Stephen Lighthill
John Lindley
Robert F. Liu
Walt Lloyd
Bruce Logan
Gordon Lonsdale
Emmanuel Lubezki
Julio G. Macat
Glen MacPherson
Paul Maibaum
ACTIVE MEMBERS
Thomas Ackerman
Lance Acord
Marshall Adams
Javier Aguirresarobe
Lloyd Ahern II
Russ Alsobrook
Howard A. Anderson III
Howard A. Anderson Jr.
James Anderson
Peter Anderson
Tony Askins
Christopher Baffa
James Bagdonas
King Baggot
John Bailey
Florian Ballhaus
Michael Ballhaus
Andrzej Bartkowiak
John Bartley
Bojan Bazelli
Frank Beascoechea
Affonso Beato
Mat Beck
Dion Beebe
Bill Bennett
Andres Berenguer
Carl Berger
Gabriel Beristain
Steven Bernstein
Ross Berryman
Josh Bleibtreu
Oliver Bokelberg
Michael Bonvillain
Richard Bowen
David Boyd
Russell Boyd
Jonathan Brown
Don Burgess
Stephen H. Burum
Bill Butler
Frank B. Byers
Bobby Byrne
Patrick Cady
Antonio Calvache
Paul Cameron
Russell P. Carpenter
James L. Carter
Alan Caso
Michael Chapman
Rodney Charters
Enrique Chediak
Christopher Chomyn
James A. Chressanthis
T.C. Christensen
Joan Churchill
Curtis Clark
Peter L. Collister
Jack Cooperman
Jack Couffer
Vincent G. Cox
Steven Poster
Tom Priestley Jr.
Rodrigo Prieto
Robert Primes
Frank Prinzi
Richard Quinlan
Declan Quinn
Earl Rath
Richard Rawlings Jr.
Frank Raymond
Tami Reiker
Robert Richardson
Anthony B. Richmond
Tom Richmond
Bill Roe
Owen Roizman
Pete Romano
Charles Rosher Jr.
Giuseppe Rotunno
Philippe Rousselot
Juan Ruiz-Anchia
Marvin Rush
Paul Ryan
Eric Saarinen
Alik Sakharov
Mikael Salomon
Roberto Schaefer
Tobias Schliessler
Aaron Schneider
Nancy Schreiber
Fred Schuler
John Schwartzman
John Seale
Christian Sebaldt
Dean Semler
Ben Seresin
Eduardo Serra
Steven Shaw
Lawrence Sher
Richard Shore
Newton Thomas Sigel
Steven V. Silver
John Simmons
Sandi Sissel
Santosh Sivan
Bradley B. Six
Michael Slovis
Dennis L. Smith
Roland Ozzie Smith
Reed Smoot
Bing Sokolsky
Peter Sova
Dante Spinotti
Terry Stacey
Eric Steelberg
Ueli Steiger
Peter Stein
Tom Stern
Robert M. Stevens
David Stockton
Rogier Stoffers
Vittorio Storaro
Harry Stradling Jr.
David Stump
Tim Suhrstedt
Peter Suschitzky
Jonathan Taylor
Rodney Taylor
William Taylor
Don Thorin Sr.
Romeo Tirone
John Toll
Mario Tosi
Salvatore Totino
Luciano Tovoli
Jost Vacano
Theo van de Sande
Eric van Haren Noman
Kees van Oostrum
Checco Varese
Ron Vargas
Mark Vargo
Amelia Vincent
William Wages
Roy H. Wagner
Mandy Walker
Michael Watkins
Michael Weaver
William Billy Webb
Jonathan West
Haskell Wexler
Jack Whitman
Gordon Willis
Dariusz Wolski
Ralph Woolsey
Peter Wunstorf
Robert Yeoman
Richard Yuricich
Jerzy Zielinski
Vilmos Zsigmond
Kenneth Zunder
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS
Alan Albert
Richard Aschman
Kay Baker
Joseph J. Ball
Amnon Band
Carly M. Barber
Craig Barron
Thomas M. Barron
Larry Barton
Wolfgang Baumler
Bob Beitcher
Mark Bender
Bruce Berke
Bob Bianco
Steven A. Blakely
Mitchell Bogdanowicz
Michael Bravin
Simon Broad
William Brodersen
Garrett Brown
Ronald D. Burdett
Reid Burns
Vincent Carabello
Jim Carter
Leonard Chapman
Mark Chiolis
Denny Clairmont
Adam Clark
Cary Clayton
Dave Cole
Michael Condon
Grover Crisp
Peter Crithary
Daniel Curry
Ross Danielson
Carlos D. DeMattos
Gary Demos
Mato Der Avanessian
Kevin Dillon
David Dodson
Judith Doherty
Cyril Drabinsky
Jesse Dylan
Jonathan Erland
Ray Feeney
William Feightner
Phil Feiner
Jimmy Fisher
Scott Fleischer
Thomas Fletcher
Salvatore Giarratano
Richard B. Glickman
John A. Gresch
Jim Hannafin
William Hansard
Bill Hansard Jr.
Richard Hart
Robert Harvey
Michael Hatzer
Josh Haynie
Charles Herzfeld
Larry Hezzelwood
Frieder Hochheim
Bob Hoffman
Vinny Hogan
Cliff Hsui
Robert C. Hummel
Roy Isaia
Jim Jannard
George Joblove
Joel Johnson
John Johnston
Mike Kanfer
Marker Karahadian
Frank Kay
Debbie Kennard
Glenn Kennel
Milton Keslow
Robert Keslow
Douglas Kirkland
Mark Kirkland
Timothy J. Knapp
Karl Kresser
Chet Kucinski
Chuck Lee
Doug Leighton
Lou Levinson
Suzanne Lezotte
Grant Loucks
Howard Lukk
Andy Maltz
Steven E. Manios Jr.
Steven E. Manios Sr.
Peter Martin
Robert Mastronardi
Joe Matza
Albert Mayer Jr.
Bill McDonald
Karen McHugh
Andy McIntyre
Stan Miller
Walter H. Mills
George Milton
Mike Mimaki
Michael Morelli
Dash Morrison
Nolan Murdock
Dan Muscarella
Iain A. Neil
Otto Nemenz
Ernst Nettmann
Tony Ngai
Mickel Niehenke
Jeff Okun
Marty Oppenheimer
Walt Ordway
Ahmad Ouri
Michael Parker
Dhanendra Patel
Kristin Petrovich
Ed Phillips
Nick Phillips
Joshua Pines
Carl Porcello
Howard Preston
Sarah Priestnall
David Pringle
Phil Radin
David Reisner
Christopher Reyna
Colin Ritchie
Eric G. Rodli
Domenic Rom
Andy Romanoff
Frederic Rose
Daniel Rosen
Dana Ross
Bill Russell
Kish Sadhvani
David Samuelson
Steve Schklair
M A R C H 2 0 1 3
Peter K. Schnitzler
Walter Schonfeld
Wayne Schulman
Juergen Schwinzer
Steven Scott
Alec Shapiro
Don Shapiro
Milton R. Shefter
Leon Silverman
Garrett Smith
Timothy E. Smith
Kimberly Snyder
Stefan Sonnenfeld
John L. Sprung
Joseph N. Tawil
Ira Tiffen
Steve Tiffen
Arthur Tostado
Jeffrey Treanor
Bill Turner
Stephan Ukas-Bradley
Mark Van Horne
Richard Vetter
Dedo Weigert
Evans Wetmore
Franz Wieser
Beverly Wood
Jan Yarbrough
Hoyt Yeatman
Irwin M. Young
Michael Zacharia
Bob Zahn
Nazir Zaidi
Michael Zakula
Les Zellan
HONORARY MEMBERS
Col. Edwin E. Al drin Jr.
Col. Michael Collins
Bob Fisher
David MacDonald
Cpt. Bruce McCandless II
Larry Parker
D. Brian Spruill
Society Welcomes 6 to
Active Membership
New active member Enrique
Chediak, ASC came to the United States
from Ecuador. He studied cinematography
at New York University under Sol Negrin,
ASC, and in 1996 he won cinematography
awards for three separate films at NYUs
First Run Film Festival.
Chediak also won the cinematogra-
phy award in the Dramatic category at the
1997 Sundance Film Festival for Hurricane
Streets. Since then, his feature credits have
included Desert Blue, Songcatcher, Down in
the Valley, The Good Girl, 28 Weeks Later
and 127 Hours (co-photographed with
Anthony Dod Mantle, ASC, BSC, DFF).
Cort Fey, ASC has been shooting
films for 24 years. He grew up in Seattle,
where his father was a freelance camera-
man and editor for commercials, documen-
taries and narrative projects. His on-set visits
and minor roles in his fathers productions
gave him a taste of behind-the-scenes
action.
Feys interest in filmmaking picked
up at the University of Pennsylvania, where
he co-founded the Penn Film and Video
Foundation while earning a bachelors
degree in American history. His work led
him to the University of Southern California
School of Cinema Arts, where he earned a
masters degree in film production.
He began his professional career as a
gaffer and a cinematographer in low-
budget independent films. He moved on to
shoot in the stunt and action unit for the
series Fastlane. Since then, hes worked on
primetime series such as Cold Case, Bones,
Lost, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and
Grimm.
Jon Joffin, ASC grew up in South
Africa. His familys 16mm projector served
as his gateway into the world of cinema,
allowing him to study rented film strips.
Joffin realized he wanted to become a cine-
matographer after watching Apocalypse
Now in a movie theater in Canada.
He studied film at York University,
where he shot low-budget music videos
before becoming a camera assistant to
future ASC member Tobias Schliessler, with
whom he also worked as a focus puller and
camera operator. His work with Schliessler
led him to the series The X-Files, where he
worked with John Bartley, ASC, CSC as an
insert-unit and second-unit cinematogra-
pher.
Joffin went on to participate in such
projects as the A&E miniseries The Androm-
eda Strain (a 2008 ASC Award nominee)
and the Hallmark miniseries Alice, which
won a Leo Award in 2010 for Best Cine-
matography in a Feature Length Drama. He
won his second Leo in 2012 for the feature
Daydream Nation. Most recently, he shot
the feature Haunter, directed by Vincenzo
Natali.
Michael McDonough, ASC began
his artistic career as a printmaker. The Glas-
gow native studied fine art at the Glasgow
School of Art and received a masters
degree at the Royal College of Art in
London. He won the Prix de Rome Scholar-
ship at the British School at Rome.
He shifted his focus to cinematogra-
phy at New York University, where he stud-
ied under Sol Negrin, ASC. He worked as a
director of photography on Bowling for
Columbine and went on to tackle produc-
tions such as Down to the Bone, Diggers
and 13. His work on the 2011 Oscar-nomi-
nated film Winters Bone earned him an
Independent Spirit Award nomination and
won him a Chlotrudis Award.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Romeo
Tirone, ASC began his career as a camera
and lens technician in the rental depart-
ment at General Camera in New York City.
As a freelance loader/second AC, he found
his way into the production of Aerosmith
and Run DMCs Walk This Way music
video.
After moving to Los Angeles, he
worked as director of photography on
music videos for L.A. Guns, Warrant, Cheap
Clubhouse News
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Top to bottom: New ASC members
Enrique Chediak, Cort Fey and
Jon Joffin.
Top to bottom: New ASC members
Michael McDonough, Romeo Tirone and
William Webb.
Trick, Bad English, Heart, Red Hot Chili
Peppers and Ozzy Osbourne. He then
shifted his focus from rock to rap with
artists such as Tu Pac, Ice Cube and Ice-T,
before moving back to New York in 1991 to
shoot commercials.
Tirones experience shooting L.I.E.,
which premiered at Sundance in 2001,
inspired him to elevate his work. In 2005, he
became the cinematographer for the Show-
time series Dexter (AC March 09), which
earned him an Emmy nomination in 2008.
While continuing to craft the world of a
serial killer, Tirone also works with vampires
and werewolves as cinematographer on the
HBO series True Blood.
Born in Santa Monica, William
Webb, ASC grew up around family
members involved in the film industry. His
father, Robert Webb, was an editor at Para-
mount Studios; his uncle, Alvin Sargent,
was a screenwriter; and his aunt, Joan
Camden, was an actress. After high school,
he took as many classes in film production
as he could at three separate colleges while
shooting documentaries and commercials.
He worked as a first and second AC before
attending the American Film Institute as a
cinematography fellow.
Between 1992 and 2002, Webb
worked as a camera operator on nine
feature films, 12 telefilms and more than 16
seasons of various episodic series using
the same Steadicam he bought in 1992 on
almost every project. His credits as a cine-
matographer include the feature Church
Ball and episodes of the television series
JAG and NCIS.
When you were a child, what film made the strongest impres-
sion on you?
Definitely Rodan (1956), a terrible Japanese movie about a flying
pterodactyl that decimates Tokyo. In my teens, I saw Bergmans
Persona (1966), and although I didnt understand it at all, my world
totally changed. I discovered poetry and mystery in imagery.
Which cinematographers, past or present, do
you most admire?
I learn from absolutely everyone. There is so much
fine work being done across the spectrum, but the
cinematographers who have probably influenced
me the most are Vittorio Storaro, ASC, AIC, for
redefining the way light and space speak to the
viewer; Owen Roizman, ASC, for his chameleonic
ability to adapt his work to the guts of a story; and
Conrad Hall, ASC and Caleb Deschanel, ASC, for
giving their lighting a sense of magic but embell-
ishing their frames with the natural grace notes of
accidental light we find in the real world.
What sparked your interest in photography?
In junior high, my friends and I made Super 8 films, pixelated two-
minute epics in which we would tape paper wings onto my sisters
lizards and fly them on threads in front of landscape paintings. Willis
OBrien it was not.
Where did you train and/or study?
I learned along the way through the kindness of others, especially at
KPBS-TV, a small public-television station in San Diego where I got to
shoot and make documentaries. I learned mightily from my mistakes.
Who were your early teachers or mentors?
Paul Marshall at KPBS gave me a major jumpstart as a documentary
cinematographer. Wayne Smith taught me the basics and had the
patience to let me learn by my failures. When I had down time,
which was often, I played VHS movies backwards and forwards,
trying to figure out why those cameramen made the decisions they
made. I learned a lot about lighting that way.
What are some of your key artistic influences?
I almost always have a camera with me, and I feel Im constantly
learning from reality with that.
How did you get your first break in the business?
Nothing happens in this business without the help of others, and I
mean nothing. All you can do is prepare and hope for a break in the
wall that seems to hold you from your dreams. I think my most
momentous break came when Jim Cameron decided to hire some-
one relatively unknown to shoot True Lies. When it opened, I
became an overnight name after 20 years of swimming upstream
in very obscure rivers. Im very grateful to Jim for that.
What has been your most satisfying moment on a project?
The shot that introduces Rose (Kate Winslet) as she gets out of a car
in Titanic. The camera moves down from above
her, you see a large purple hat, and then, in a My
Fair Lady moment, she looks up into the camera
for the first time, and I move a soft bounce in close
to her face and open up a little over a stop in
exposure. She just glows.
Have you made any memorable blunders?
Oh, Lord, what havent I done?!
What is the best professional advice youve
ever received?
Every producer, every lab, every equipment house
and every crewmember (from director to caterer)
is your family.
What recent books, films or artworks have inspired you?
Recently Ive been devouring the work of the great street photogra-
phers (Kertesz, Cartier-Bresson, Eggleston and Meyerowitz) because
its such a refreshing break from the calculated reality of most main-
stream cinematic work. On the more formal side, Robert
Mapplethorpe is a touchstone, and I loved his XYZ exhibition at the
L.A. County Museum of Art.
Do you have any favorite genres or genres you would like to
try?
Id die to do a musical in the vein of The Red Shoes.
If you werent a cinematographer, what might you be doing
instead?
Id live a life next door to cinematography, shooting fashion or trav-
eling the world as a National Geographic photographer.
Which ASC cinematographers recommended you for
membership?
Steven Poster, Isidore Mankofsky and Roy Wagner.
How has ASC membership impacted your life and career?
Ive discovered how influential the ASC is around the world and how
much of an educational impact we make on upcoming cinematog-
raphers. So many people in the ASC are devoted to imparting the
knowledge that keeps our marvelous art alive.
Russell Carpenter, ASC Close-up

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J U S T R I G H T.
&&For your next movie.
FilmSC.com
THE ACADEMY RECOGNIZES EXCELLENCE. SO DO WE.
Heres to this years OSCAR
nominees that brought their stories to life with the unmistakable look of lm. KODAK Film.
Kodak, 2013. Kodak is a trademark of Kodak.
Oscar is a registered trademark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
kodak.com/go/motion
@Kodak_ShootFilm
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AC Mar 2013

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