O C TO B E R 2 0 1 6

A M E R I C A N C I N E M ATO G R A P H E R O C TO B E R 2 0 1 6 E M P I R E D E E P WAT E R H O R I Z O N I N V I S I B L E T H E G E T D O W N A S C M A S T E R C L A S S VO L . 9 7 N O. 1 0
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An International Publication of the ASC

On Our Cover: Lyon family members (clockwise from top left) Lucious (Terrence
Howard), Cookie (Taraji P. Henson), Jamal ( Jussie Smollett), Hakeem (Bryshere Gray)
and Andre (Trai Byers) grapple for music-industry power in the series Empire, shot by
Paul M. Sommers. (Photo by James Dimmock, courtesy of Fox.)

FEATURES
30 Family Business
Paul M. Sommers draws on his music-video background
42
for the dynastic drama of Empire

42 Smoke on the Water

Enrique Chediak, ASC lights a massive blaze to re-create
the true events of Deepwater Horizon

54 Being There
Lewis Smithingham and John Engstrom collaborate on
the virtual-reality series Invisible 54

66 Student Perspectives
Participants detail the impact of the ASC Master Class

DEPARTMENTS
66
10 Editors Note
12 Presidents Desk
14 Short Takes: Sunday Night Football
20 Production Slate: Meridian The Get Down
76 New Products & Services
82 International Marketplace
83 Classified Ads
84 Ad Index
86 Clubhouse News
88 ASC Close-Up: Peter Anderson

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New digital outreach by American Cinematographer means more in-depth coverage for you.

ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: 50 YEARS OF STAR TREK

EXPLORE THE FINAL FRONTIER WITH AC
We dip into American Cinematographers vast archive to present a
selection of articles documenting five decades of production and
post on the seminal sci-fi franchise from the original 1960s TV
series, to its leap to the big screen in 1979 with Star Trek: The
Motion Picture, to the 1980s Next Generation continuation of cre-
ator Gene Roddenberrys brainchild. Among the subjects included
will be ASC members Linwood G. Dunn, Joseph Westheimer,
Gerald P. Finnerman, Richard H. Kline, Don Peterman, Marvin
Rush, Hiro Narita and Matthew F. Leonetti.

STAR TREK CONTINUES Get all this and much

more via theasc.com and our
Boldly go into the past with the crew of the starship Enterprise in this social-media platforms.
award-winning fan-made Web series, as cinematographer Matt Bucy pays
homage to the stylish photography of the 1960s sci-fi classic by ASC
members Gerald P. Finnerman, Al Francis and Ernest Haller.

www.theasc.com
 O c t o b e r 2 0 1 6 V o l . 9 7 , N o . 1 0
An International Publication of the ASC

Visit us online at www.theasc.com

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF and PUBLISHER

Stephen Pizzello

WEB DIRECTOR and ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER
David E. Williams

EDITORIAL
MANAGING EDITOR Jon D. Witmer
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Andrew Fish
TECHNICAL EDITOR Christopher Probst
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Benjamin B, Rachael K. Bosley, Mark Dillon, Michael Goldman, Simon Gray, Jay Holben, Noah Kadner,
Debra Kaufman, Iain Marcks, Matt Mulcahey, Jean Oppenheimer, Phil Rhodes, Patricia Thomson
PODCASTS
Jim Hemphill, Iain Stasukevich, Chase Yeremian
BLOGS
Benjamin B; John Bailey, ASC; David Heuring
WEB DEVELOPER Jon Stout

ART & DESIGN
CREATIVE DIRECTOR Marion Kramer
PHOTO EDITOR Kelly Brinker

ADVERTISING
ADVERTISING SALES DIRECTOR Angie Gollmann
323-936-3769 Fax 323-936-9188 e-mail: angiegollmann@gmail.com
ADVERTISING SALES DIRECTOR Sanja Pearce
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SUBSCRIPTIONS, BOOKS & PRODUCTS
CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Saul Molina
CIRCULATION MANAGER Alex Lopez
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ASC GENERAL MANAGER Brett Grauman
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American Cinematographer (ISSN 0002-7928), established 1920 and in its 96th year of publication, is published monthly in Hollywood by
ASC Holding Corp., 1782 N. Orange Dr., Hollywood, CA 90028, U.S.A.,
(800) 448-0145, (323) 969-4333, Fax (323) 876-4973, direct line for subscription inquiries (323) 969-4344.
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6
 American Society of Cinematographers
The ASC is not a labor union or a guild, but
an educational, cultural and professional
organization. Membership is by invitation
to those who are actively engaged as
directors of photography and have
demonstrated outstanding ability. ASC
membership has become one of the highest
honors that can be bestowed upon a
professional cinematographer a mark
of prestige and excellence.

OFFICERS - 2016/2017
Kees van Oostrum
President
Bill Bennett
Vice President
Lowell Peterson
Vice President
Dean Cundey
Vice President
Levie Isaacks
Treasurer
Frederic Goodich
Secretary
Roberto Schaefer
Sergeant-at-Arms

MEMBERS OF THE
BOARD
John Bailey
Bill Bennett
Curtis Clark
Richard Crudo
Fred Elmes
Michael Goi
Victor J. Kemper
Stephen Lighthill
Daryn Okada
Woody Omens
Robert Primes
Cynthia Pusheck
Owen Roizman
John Simmons
Kees van Oostrum

ALTERNATES
Roberto Schaefer
Mandy Walker
Karl Walter Lindenlaub
Oliver Bokelberg
Dean Cundey

MUSEUM CURATOR
Steve Gainer
8
 Editors Note Lighting is the core topic of this months issue, and the
cinematographers we spoke with faced some daunting
creative challenges.
On the hit television series Empire, Paul M. Sommers
is tasked not only with lighting the shows dramatic
scenes, but providing dynamic looks for its signature
musical-performance sequences, which appear in
almost every episode. Part of the assignment, as
Sommers tells David Heuring (Family Business, page
30), is giving each musical number its own distinctive
look, and the cinematographer notes that LED units
have assumed a key role on the Chicago-based produc-
tion. Well be in a theater in Joliet, and weve got to put
in a rig that can look completely different for three differ-
ent acts, he says. The ability to have a wash light that
can be any color of the rainbow at the drop of a hat is a huge advantage.
On the feature Deepwater Horizon, Enrique Chediak, ASC faced the epic job of re-
creating the 2010 collapse of the titular oil rig, which was destroyed by an explosion that
killed 11 workers and led to a massive environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. In staging
the apocalyptic inferno that engulfed the rig, Chediak and his crew designed an ingenious
approach: projecting footage of actual oil fires, captured as reference plates for effects house
ILM, on large LED walls. At the beginning, it was a little complicated to convince production
because of the price, Chediak concedes while discussing the show with Patricia Thomson
(Smoke on the Water, page 42), but the solution ultimately proved to be a shrewd choice
not only creatively, but economically and practically as well.
Entirely different lighting philosophies were required on the immersive action thriller
Invisible, a 360-degree stereoscopic experience viewed with the aid of a virtual-reality headset.
Created by filmmaker Doug Limans production company 30 Ninjas in partnership with
Cond Nast Entertainment and Samsung, the production redefined some traditional crew
roles. Lewis Smithingham served as the shows VR director of photography, in collaboration
with lighting director of photography John Engstrom, who adopted many of the duties a
gaffer would normally handle. The camera sees out of every window and down every hall-
way, Engstrom tells Noah Kadner (Being There, page 54). Its always been like this in our
business, but with VR youre really seeing the whole world. Its a million times harder to hide
fixtures, and you need more time.
Smithingham observes that lighting is just one of the disciplines that demand new
approaches in the VR format, where just starting a take is complex.
Lighting lessons are just one facet of the curricula designed for ASC Master Classes,
which continue to attract students from around the world. Debra Kaufmans latest piece on
the program (Student Perspectives, page 66) offers enthusiastic testimonials from both
student participants and their Society instructors. We dont just teach technology, but the
Photo by Owen Roizman, ASC.

art and content matter of being a cinematographer, says ASC President Kees van Oostrum.
Its an educational platform to show cinematographers how to go about finding their talent
and being respected.

Stephen Pizzello
Editor-in-Chief and Publisher
10
 Presidents Desk
Shutter Island

Fade In:

Ext. Ferry On Water Morning

The fog TWISTS over the water, a thick and almost impenetrable CURTAIN that suddenly PARTS, to reveal:

A FERRY, older, banged-up and square-edged, plowing through the water of the Outer Harbor, headed towards the
islands.

This is the opening scene of Shutter Island [AC March 10], the 2010 American neo-noir mystery/psychological thriller directed by
Martin Scorsese and based on Dennis Lehanes 2003 novel of the same name. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as U.S. Marshal Edward Teddy
Daniels, who is investigating a psychiatric facility on the titular island after one of the patients goes missing. Notably, this was also the last
Scorsese movie to have been shot entirely on film in this case, by Robert Richardson, ASC.
The mental institutions island setting resembles the real-life location of perhaps the ultimate movie theater a beautiful auditorium
and projection facility that far surpasses the quotidian multiplex, a facility equipped with the latest 70mm film projection and state-of-the-
art surround sound. And yes, this theater is indeed situated on an island that moviegoers reach via ferry.
When this theater showed the 70mm roadshow film print of The Hateful Eight [AC Dec. 15], directed by Quentin Tarantino and
photographed on 65mm film in the Ultra Panavision 70 format by Shutter Islands own Robert Richardson, something unforeseen and,
some might say, magical happened. In the movies first month at this particular venue, some 23,000 people came to see it, and the theater
recorded the highest worldwide single-screen gross for either digital or film projection of the movie.
Some have dismissed Tarantino and Richardsons effort to follow in the footsteps of the classic Ben-Hur (1959) by reviving the Ultra
Panavision 70 format as little more than nostalgia, but there is an undeniable difference between The Hateful Eights digital and 70mm
presentations. In the latter, the shadows show more black detail and the sunlight feels brighter. This stronger contrast, in turn, provides more
apparent resolution: snow-covered landscapes, fur coats, wood, skin and hair all showed more nuance and detail. Add to this the formats
2.76:1 aspect ratio, which makes the viewing experience all the more immersive.
When Christopher Nolan and Hoyte van Hoytema, ASC, FSF, NSC visited the ASC Clubhouse this past spring to talk about their
ongoing work with large-format motion-picture film, they stressed the special event status of large-format-originated film projection and
the beauty inherent in an organic film image. They also made it clear that there is no point to comparing economics or listening to almost
as good as arguments. To them, large-format film is an artistic expression that, in turn, will be enjoyed and appreciated by an audience
willing to go the extra mile to see large-format projection.
When that theater on the island finally doused the light in its 70mm projector, close to 40,000 people had endured rains, winter
storms and howling winds while riding the ferry in order to see The Hateful Eight. Where exactly is this theater? In Amsterdam, at the Eye
Film Institute.
Its no secret that Tarantino has a special bond with Amsterdam and the Netherlands. His incidental onscreen jokes of how they
drown their French fries in mayonnaise are a testament to this affection. Years ago, around the time of The Usual Suspects theatrical
release, Tarantino was in Amsterdam and saw a city bus with an advertisement for the movie on its side; the ad featured a picture of each
of the films leads, the last one being Kevin Spacey. And around Spaceys picture, someone had drawn a crude circle with a magic marker
Photo by Jacek Laskus, ASC, PSC.

and scribbled the words, He did it.

Since then the Dutch have built the modern Eye Film Institute, and they have more than compensated for their lack of Hitchcockian
understanding when it came to The Usual Suspects big twist by screening Tarantino and Richardsons The Hateful Eight in the manner the
filmmakers intended albeit on an island where they sell French fries drowned in mayonnaise during the intermission.

Kees van Oostrum

ASC President

12 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 Short Takes
Steadicam
operator
Andrew
Mitchell
captures
singer Carrie
Underwoods
performance
for the
opening
sequence of
NBCs Sunday
Night
Football.

I Game On
By Andrew Fish
If your Sunday nights are reserved for the gridiron, youre well
acquainted with the work of Chuck Ozeas. This year marks the cine-
intro was shot in ProRes 4:4:4 at 3.2K resolution and framed for a
1.78:1 aspect ratio. The cameras, which shot at 800 ISO and at
approximately a T2.8/4 split throughout, were rented from CamTec
in Burbank. Kavon Elhami and Scott Travers at CamTec have always
been very supportive of my work and each new project, Says Ozeas.

Unit photography by Paul Drinkwater, courtesy of NBCUniversal Media, LLC.

matographers fifth time shooting NBCs Sunday Night Football open,
his fourth with country sensation Carrie Underwood, and his first with
a fully revamped format. The spot features a new theme song clos-
ing out the previous tunes decade-long run and gone is the
montage-style visual structure in favor of a behind-the-scenes football
fantasy sequence presented as a simulated single take.
When AC stepped onto the set at Universal Studios last
summer, Ozeas and NBC Sports Group vice president and creative
director Tripp Dixon the latter of whom was helming the produc-
tion were overseeing a shot of Underwood swaggering past an
NFL tour bus. An Arri Alexa Mini was mounted to a Pacific Motion
Control Gazelle crane, and an Arri Amira was tracking the singer via
Steadicam. Both cameras were recording to CFast 256GB cards. Four-
teen 960-watt MacTech LEDs with silk diffusion were serving as space
lights overhead. Lightning Strikes 8K Paparazzi strobes were flashing
under the supervision of Ozeas longtime gaffer Chris Conway, as
digital-imaging technician Dylan Johnson monitored the shoot in Rec
709 with Blackmagic Designs DaVinci Resolve.
Assisted in prep by an animatic and in post by prolific visual
effects both provided by Soho VFX the Sunday Night Football
Im always confident that the gear they provide will be in perfect
running order. The production employed Angenieuxs Optimo 17-
80mm (T2.2) zoom on the motion-control rigs, 15-40mm (T2.6) for
Steadicam and 28-76mm (T2.6) for the opening shot.
During ACs set visit, we rubbed shoulders with NFL stars
Russell Wilson, Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas III of the Seattle
Seahawks; Tyrann Mathieu and Patrick Peterson of the Arizona
Cardinals; Antonio Brown of the Pittsburgh Steelers; Clay Matthews
III of the Green Bay Packers; and Khalil Mack of the Oakland Raiders.
Other prominent players featured in the finished spot include Odell
Beckham Jr. of the New York Giants, Dez Bryant of the Dallas
Cowboys, and DeMarcus Ware of the Denver Broncos.
Far from immune to the rush of working with the sports top
talent, Ozeas reveals in his chat with AC both his techniques and his
zeal for the job.
American Cinematographer : What shooting philoso-
phies did you have in mind when you first began this project?
Chuck Ozeas: Ive done this open for five years, and every
year I have the same mantra: Keep it as real as possible. Because we

14 October 2016 American Cinematographer

shot so much blue- and greenscreen this
year in particular, but even in years past
and were working on such tight time
schedules with the players, if youre not care-
ful everything is going to end up feeling very
digital and post-heavy. So every year, no
matter what the concept is, its always my
personal challenge to keep it as real as possi-
ble, and thats one of the things I think we
achieved this year.
What equipment was helpful in
achieving that realism?
Ozeas: Arris SkyPanel has been one
of my favorite lights for the last six months.
Its such a versatile unit. On one set, Carrie is
walking up to the concourse where the
greenscreen will be replaced with the whole
stadium preparing for Sunday Night Football
toward a studio that Al Michaels and Cris
Collinsworth are in. For this sequence, we
created three huge soft boxes that we hung
from the perms, creating a large, open, soft
skylight for an interior late-day stadium. They
were 30 feet long by about 10 feet high, and
we put five SkyPanels in each. I added
golden hues to seven of the 15 SkyPanels
scattering them randomly throughout the
three boxes and wed then dissolve back
and forth between the regular skylight that
was 4,000K and this golden hue to give the
feeling of late-day sun and moving clouds.
The second place we used the
SkyPanels was outside of the stadium when
Carrie walks out beneath the fireworks.
Lighting-console programmer Gideon
Markham fed footage of a fireworks show
into our High End Systems Full Boar 4 board,
and it automatically created the colors and
the decay that you would see at a real fire-
works show. I was amazed at how realistic it Top: Players from
felt just standing there looking at the light on different NFL
your hands. I loved it. teams hit their
marks while
What kind of planning was Underwood
involved in shooting each scene such performs the
that they would stitch together for the opening song.
Middle: Soho VFX
appearance of a single take? created a full
Ozeas: The timing really became the animatic of the
main issue making sure that the transi- spot to show how
much ground
tions from one scene to the next would be Underwood had to
exactly timed out to the song and thats cover within each
where the animatic from Soho VFX came in shot. Bottom:
Cinematographer
handy. Because the song is created before Chuck Ozeas
we shoot, if we extend one scene too long, monitors a scene.
were kind of stuck. In years past, you could
change the narrative of the edit after we shot

www.theasc.com October 2016 15

 it was kind of up for grabs whereas
this year we could have probably edited our
dailies together on set and basically seen a
first cut. I have to give a shout-out to our
Steadicam operator, Andrew Mitchell. I dont
know if I could have done it without him. He
has impeccable musical timing, and was
amazing during our long choreographed
takes.
Production designer Evan Rohde
created an artistic rendering of the sets as
well during preproduction, which helped
with lighting and camerawork. We worked
closely together to problem-solve and come
up with creative solutions to enhance each
shot.
How did the use of prepro-
grammed motion-control cranes help
you on this production?
Ozeas: One of Tripps edicts is that
we dont want to make characters out of
the extras. Because it was motion control
Top: Ozeas worked closely with production designer Evan Rohde to devise a plan for fitting nine sets
and the camera is always in exactly the same
into two stages. Bottom: Many sets included significant visual-effects extensions, such as this locker position during each pass, we were able to
room set where Underwood did multiple takes with different players from different teams so the shoot Carrie first with her hero light
sequence could be traded out week to week as the season progresses.
which was a Briese Focus 180 [mounted to

16 October 2016 American Cinematographer


Above: For the
extended
choreographed
takes, five
electrics and
two grips had
their hands
full as they
kept things
running
smoothly.
Right: Ozeas
measures the
light on set.
the underside of the basket on a 65-foot
articulating arm] and then turn that key
light off and use the SkyPanels from above
to toplight the crowd with the fireworks
effect. And because we tiled the audience,
there were about eight to 10 takes of the
crowd in different positions so visual effects
could clone them and make it a much
deeper scene.
In addition, the NFL players sched-
ules are pretty unpredictable, so I knew the
motion control would come in handy in
order to return and shoot players by them-
selves and place them in later. We used tape
marks on the ground and each player had
his own lane to follow so they wouldnt over-
lap each other and the whole shot would
work together as one. [In addition to the
Gazelle crane, the production employed
Pacific Motion Controls Graphlite crane.]
What other lights did you use on
this production?
Ozeas: [Gaffer] Chris Conway
designed an 8-foot-by-4-foot soft box called
18 October 2016
a Monster Box, and I used two as backlights
and one as a hero light for Carrie as she
walks down the stadium stairs. The unit
contains 32 500-watt nook lights and is
heavily diffused with 129 [Heavy Frost], so
that its an incredibly soft, contained light
that doesnt have to be bounced and is really
easy to move around. A large percentage of
the lights on the production were rented
from [Conways] Monster Lighting.
All four of the cameras had ring lights
on them to serve as beauty lights; the two
motion controls had the larger 19-inch
LitePanels Cinema-series ring lights and the
Steadicam had a regular LitePanels ring light
onboard. We were able to dim all of these
remotely, adjusting on the fly during the
takes. Another unit was the Briese Focus 77
that we followed Carrie around with during
the bus and locker-room scenes and parts of
the field scene. One of our electrics, J.P.
Brennan, carried the Briese on a pole all day
and he did an amazing job. The 77 was
pretty heavy, but Chris came up with the
American Cinematographer
idea of using a fishing-pole holder that went
around J.P.s waist.
At one point, J.P. led Carrie with the
77 into the 180 Briese hero spot [at a simu-
lated loading dock] in front of the L.A. Rams
cheerleaders. We had two semi-trucks on
which we replaced the headlights with
Philips SL Nitro 510C LEDs. Carrie did a little
dance move with Antonio Brown, and we
cycled through the NBC peacock colors in
the background with the Nitros as if they
were coming from the headlights of the
truck. Im a lifelong Steelers fan, so being
able to give Antonio Brown a little extra love
was nice.
Tell us about the final grade.
Although its a bit of a sticking point
for me, the grade was handled in concert
with the effects work. Working this way I
find that I am not able to finesse the shots
and add the final touches that I would in a
traditional color session, which make
projects look as good as they can. Its a bit
frustrating, but with everyone having access
to color correctors these days, this workflow
has become more prevalent.
What do you most enjoy about
your work in general and about this
project in particular?
Shooting spots and short-format
projects provides an exciting opportunity to
create something new with each successive
job. A couple of days before Sunday Night
Football, I was shooting a spot for Ghost-
busters scary green lighting and all. How
different can you get? I work with different
directors every week, so I find one of the
most important first steps is listening closely
to what that directors goals are and specifi-
cally where they need my support.
I really enjoy developing the Sunday
Night Football concept with Tripp each year.
For several months, we go over what the
concept is and how to develop it visually and
make it interesting. On most of my other
jobs Im brought in a couple of days before
the shoot; on this project I have much more
responsibility regarding scheduling and the
overall logistics. This is my favorite shoot of
the year. Its complex and high profile. Having
grown up in Pittsburgh, Im also a huge foot-
ball fan, so getting to shoot something that
Im going to watch every Sunday night is an
added bonus!
 Production Slate
Detectives
Mack Foster
(Kevin Kilner,
left) and Jake
Sullivan (Reid
Scott) set out
to investigate
a string of
mysterious
disappearances
in the
metaphysical
short Meridian.
I Questioning Reality
By Michael Goldman
Los Angeles, 1947. People have been disappearing three,
to be exact, and all on the same stretch of road along the Malibu
coast. A witness saw the last guy literally vanish during a freak light-
ning storm, and LAPD detective Mack Foster [Kevin Kilner] has a feel-
ing theres more at play than mob hits or cliff jumpers. The hard-
boiled cop sends his street-wise protg, Jake Sullivan (Reid Scott), to
check it out, and this time we get a glimpse of the particulars. A light-
ning storm, a mysterious woman (Elyse Levesque) in Sullivans rear-
view mirror, then hes gone too. Foster himself steps in to investigate,
venturing through an ominous opening in a rock formation not far
from Sullivans abandoned car, and soon finds himself in a place
where the rules of conventional time and space do not apply.
Meridian is a noir, short-form, suspense-driven and enigmatic
science-fiction project directed and co-written by ASC Technology
Committee chairman Curtis Clark and shot by Markus Frderer, BVK.
The endeavor was spawned at a meeting as Clark was discussing
developments in high dynamic range with Chris Fetner now an
ASC associate and other Netflix executives. Clark recalls, They
proposed that I make a short film for them a project specifically
designed to illustrate how the convergence of 4K, HDR, wide color
gamut, and other high-end image acquisition advancements might
enhance the viewer experience for the Web-based streaming service.
Later, we were asked to work at 60 fps, Clark says. And
we also decided it should be an ACES-compliant workflow. Those
were the kinds of key issues that needed to be taken into account.
20 October 2016 American Cinematographer
The idea was that I would write the story with my writing partner
[James Harmon Brown], and see how those [attributes] could
provide expanded creative freedom to the filmmaker.
The majority of Meridian was shot on Sonys CineAlta F65,
recording in the Sony Raw format at 3:1 compression to 256GB
SRMemory cards. For one sequence, however, the production used
Reds Weapon 6K system, recording in Redcode Raw format at 6:1
compression to 512GB Red Mini-Mags. On set, footage was
ingested using Pomfort Silverstack, and an LMT and RRT/1,000-nit
ODT combination were created within the ACES system and applied
with Fujifilms IS-Mini LUT box and IS-Manager software. The
production primarily employed Leica Summilux-C lenses mainly
21mm, 29mm, 35mm and 40mm but for one key sequence they
switched to 24mm and 32mm Cooke Speed Panchro lenses. The
filmmakers shot the entire movie at 60 fps and monitored on-set
with a Sony BVM-X300 high-dynamic-range monitor. The project
was framed for a 1.78:1 aspect ratio.
Meridian images courtesy of the filmmakers.
Clark had previously shot and directed a couple of short films
in partnership with Sony to assess the 4K F65 digital-cinema camera
system. This time, however, Clark in partnership with Netflix
recruited Frderer, who was fresh off his Independence Day: Resur-
gence shoot (AC July 16). The production then brought on Bill
Taylor, ASC to handle about a dozen visual-effects shots mostly
composites of live-action background elements and greenscreen
foreground actors. Adding clouds sweetened with lightning anima-
tion to clear skies was accomplished by Nuke artist Nathan Strong.
I thought it was really interesting when I heard it was a
period film set in the 1940s and that Curtis had a vision of shooting
it with the highest-quality imaging
systems, Frderer says. That sounds
contradictory for a period film, but it was
an opportunity to create something new,
and to see how you could make something
look period without using all the clichs.
Integral to Meridians period nature
was the projects LUT or, in ACES
vernacular, a look-modification transform
(LMT) which was developed in partner-
ship with FotoKem for the purpose of
providing a Kodachrome-print emulation
to the images, Clark explains. The LMT
concept evolved out of Clarks decision to
open the movie with genuine vintage
Kodachrome imagery from 1947 Holly-
wood, which he located in the archives of
the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences. As FotoKem principal color scien-
tist and close collaborator Joseph Slomka
opines, Clarks team had thus discovered a
look that achieved a combination of
historical accuracy and artistic need.
Curtis had the real Kodachrome
footage scanned at FotoKem at 4K, [and it
was] used as a reference to create the look-
up table, Frderer elaborates. The LUT
mimics the characteristics of Kodachrome,
but it is modified to use full dynamic range
to allow us to get really bright highlights
and deep blacks. So in that sense, it is a
hybrid of what Kodachrome really looked Top: Director/co-writer Curtis Clark, ASC works with Kilner on location in Malibu, Calif.
like, but in an HDR space. We can use the Bottom: Cinematographer Markus Frderer, BVK lines up a shot on a police-station set dressed
deepest blacks that HDR can give us and for the projects 1940s period.
still lend them a film-like look. And that
means that going into the digital interme- Daro. The master, which the numerous work in Adobe After Effects, his preferred
diate we will have the creative control to deliverables will all be struck from, will be a platform.
go really deep for certain shots and 16-bit EXR sequence using ACES ACES is not formally fully
moments. primaries. supported by After Effects yet, so there are
Also participating in the develop- Slomka adds, As for delivery, we a variety of approaches in this area, Taylor
ment of the LMT was FotoKem colorist are doing both a 1,000-nit, 60 fps, 4K Sony explains. He recalls that Ash Beck After
John Daro, who explains that once the BVM-X300 grade as well as a Dolby Vision Effects expert and an informal advisor
LMT built with SGO Mistika was Pulsar grade. I expect there to be other suggested that I utilize 16-bit OpenEXR for
finalized, it was converted to a series of deliverables as well, such as a 24-fps tradi- this show. The OpenEXR color space is
transforms that were available to on-set tional DCP. A standard-dynamic-range bigger than that available from either
production as well as to the dailies and deliverable is also planned. camera we were using, so that protected us
visual-effects processes. The final result was Working at such a high resolution by making sure there would be no compro-
left fully open for edits and changes during and frame rate meant that rendering visual- mise in quality. Ultimately, the composites
the DI within the ACES universe. Daro effects shots would take longer than usual. were executed in 32-bit floating-point EXR.
would go on to perform the final color And since Meridian is an ACES show and Color scientist Joseph Slomka and digital-
grade at FotoKem, also with Mistika. At Taylor was personally performing some of intermediate producer Jason Pelham, both
press time, the grade had not yet begun. the composites which included combin- of FotoKem, were also most helpful in
We will be monitoring 4K, but my ing multiple elements to produce ominous working out the details.
final renders will be 6K to preserve all of skies and storm fronts an initial task was Meridian was meticulously designed
the original pixels for the Weapon, says deciding which file format to employ for his around storyboard images created by Clark,

www.theasc.com October 2016 21


Top: The crew prepares to shoot car interiors onstage at Red Studios Hollywood. Bottom: Elyse
Levesque awaits the call of action for a scene in which her mysterious characters countenance
suddenly appears in the rearview mirror of Sullivans car.
and primarily features carefully composed
shots with little or no camera movement, a
technique designed to convey the kind of
emotional impact I wanted, in order to
more empathetically engage the viewer
with the narrative, Clark says. In addition
to Frderer, Clark points to the work of
editor David Sconyers and production
designer Mari Lappalainen as being key to
ensuring that his visual agenda went
according to plan. Clark also makes special
mention of composer Alex Kovacs, whose
excellent original score further amplifies the
emotional resonance of the images
along with Dolby sound designer Erik
Foreman, at Dolby who did the final sound
mix using Dolby Atmos. Clark also compli-
ments the work of producer Malcolm
22 October 2016
Duncan, who efficiently managed the
production process.
The movie essentially centers around
three sequences. The first features a meet-
ing at police headquarters between Mack
and Jake, as the former tells the latter about
the disappearances. This scene is the most
evident example of the impactful film-noir
feel that we wanted, Frderer notes. And
as it immediately followed the opening
archival footage, I thought [the Leicas]
might result in too harsh a contrast, he
says, so I brought up the idea of using
Panchros for the office scene to [provide] a
smoother transition from older glass to
newer glass, and to digital cameras [shoot-
ing] 60 fps and high dynamic range.
The second sequence involves Jakes
American Cinematographer
car ride to the scene of the disappearances,
during which the sunny California weather
inexplicably transitions to a threatening
storm front as Jake suddenly sees the
woman in the rearview mirror of his vintage
1947 Ford. The vehicle, shot with the
Weapon on a greenscreen stage, was
flanked by Digital Sputnik DS 6 and Arri
SkyPanel S60 LED units one of each on
either side of the car. A DS 1 fixture was
placed in front of the car to serve as an
eyelight for Scott. Kino Flo 4' four-banks
fitted with green lamps were aimed at the
greenscreens from above and below.
The SkyPanel and DS 6 units were
operated through a dimmer board, allowing
the filmmakers to create a sunlight effect
with the SkyPanels and then dim them to an
overcast look on cue, and to provide a vari-
ety of lighting effects with the Digital Sput-
niks as the weather radically changes. The
Sputniks started off as a sun backlight and
then they faded off, Frderer relates. And
then, later in the sequence, they flashed at
a very cool temperature to mimic lightning
flashes. We were able to use the same
fixtures; we didnt need special-effects light-
ing instruments. That makes things efficient
and keeps the footprint small on set.
Levesque had her reflection shot in
close-up under low light for several takes, in
what Taylor calls a double-greenscreen
shot. Its an interesting shot because we are
looking at the rearview mirror, and in it we
see the mystery woman as well as the rear
window of the car, [behind which] is a
greenscreen. And because the rearview
mirror does not fill the frame, we are look-
ing out [the front window as well], onto
another greenscreen. One of the things we
discovered was that the mirror soaked up a
lot of light a [full] stop so even though
the two greenscreens were an exact match,
we had to beef up the screen behind the car
to ensure that the two greenscreens were
recorded at the same level. After that,
Markus lit the actress cleverly with a variety
of sources, mostly through the windows,
and then he had a [small custom LED eye
light] stuck to the backseat, which brought
just enough fill light into her face.
In the third sequence the movies
climax Mack enters the cave in which he
has reason to believe his colleague may be
located. Once inside, he sees strange
 images of himself, the mystery woman and
the chilling fate of all four missing people.
Shot on a dark, smoke-infused stage with
the F65, portions of the sequence were lit
exclusively through a single stained-glass
window, creating eerie shafts of light.
Frderer explains that the light through the
window was produced with 4K xenon
units, and represented the only significant
shots where he did not rely primarily on
LEDs. I realized in a test that we had to use
traditional xenon fixtures to get the most
parallel beams shining through the
window, he says.
The [cave set] is really a black box,
Frderer continues. With high dynamic
range you get so much more detail, and
because there is always some light bounc-
ing off the actor, you have to create a really
deep black background. I used extreme
backlight [with Arri M18s] so that I could
stop down and underexpose the black
duvetyne as much as possible. [We also
used] as little smoke as possible to protect
our blacks. You always have to be way
more precise with lighting and exposure
with higher dynamic range.
Im a big believer in high resolution
and enhanced depth of field, Clark
concludes. That helps with decisions
regarding image composition, and what is
needed to better facilitate an immediate
emotional impact that creates a sense of
allure, mystery or seduction. When the
images organically relate to each other, the
more options you have when expanding
dynamic range and color palette. These
things just add to the possibilities in creating
images for the maximum storytelling
impact. To me, the film must always be visu-
ally driven.
For further coverage of Meridian,
visit ACs October-issue articles at
theasc.com.
TECHNICAL SPECS
1.78:1
Digital Capture
Sony CineAlta F65, Red Weapon 6K
Leica Summilux-C, Cooke Speed Panchro
24 October 2016
Hip-hop overtakes discos position of prominence in the South Bronx of the late 1970s in
the Netflix original series The Get Down.
I Rhythm Revolution
By Jean Oppenheimer
Disco was king in the late 1970s,
when a revolutionary new musical art form
started taking root at street gatherings and
block parties across the South Bronx a
community mired in poverty, neglect and
crime that neither state nor federal officials
seemed interested in addressing. Hip-hop
incorporated new styles of artistic expres-
sion, most famously rap, graffiti, deejaying
and breakdancing. Part entertainment and
part protest, hip-hop spoke to the frustra-
tions and sense of exclusion felt by young,
urban African-Americans and Hispanics.
Almost overnight it transformed into a
cultural identity.
The demise of disco and the rise of
hip-hop is chronicled in The Get Down, a
Netflix original series that streamed six
episodes in August and will soon follow
with another six. Baz Luhrmann, the
projects mastermind, presents the story
through the eyes of a fictional group of
teenagers: gifted poet Zeke, a.k.a. Books
(Justice Smith); philosophy-spouting Ra-Ra
(Skylan Brooks); and Ra-Ras brothers Boo-
Boo (Tremaine T.J. Brown Jr.) and Dizzee
(Jaden Smith). Then there is Shaolin Fantas-
tic (Shameik Moore), the mysterious graffiti
artist in red suede Pumas whom the
younger boys revere.
When I first met Baz and [executive
producer] Catherine Martin, we spoke of
music and dance of the 1970s and the
American Cinematographer
history of New York, says director of
photography William Rexer, speaking to AC
by phone in New York, where the series is
shot. I am a New Yorker and both my
parents and grandparents grew up in New
York City. My dad had been a child
performer, then later a music producer and
agent. I grew up with my dad producing
Cab Calloway, the Hines Brothers, the Spin-
ners and many more. This history was
important to Baz.
Hip-hop is a collection of different
elements and techniques beats and
The Get Down unit photography by Myles Aronowitz and David Lee, courtesy of Netflix.
breaks, spinning, sampling, and scratching
that form a kind of collage, and thats
the feeling Baz wanted for the show,
Rexer continues. He also wanted The Get
Down to be as far away from a documen-
tary feel as possible. The story needed to be
grounded in reality, but rather than gritty,
Baz wanted a sense of myth. He wanted
epic, in the form of long tracking shots,
sweeping camera moves, high and low
angles, and wide pullouts. He also wanted
the camera to be an active participant with
Zeke and his friends to make the viewer
one of the kids, discovering things as they
do.
An arsenal of lights, lenses and
camera supports was required to accom-
plish these goals. To place viewers alongside
the characters, Rexer chose to use a Freefly
Movi M15 three-axis motorized gimbal
stabilizer. More than half of the series,
which commenced production in June
2015, was captured on Movi and

Cinematographer William Rexer studies a close-up of Billy Porter, who portrays DJ Malibu.
Steadicam, with the two often shooting
simultaneously. The rest was done on cranes,
dollies and sliders.
The cinematographer selected Reds
6K Epic Dragon, in part due to Netflixs 4K
shooting requirement and also because he
likes the narrow depth of field that the larger
sensor offers. As The Get Down is a period
piece with numerous street scenes, Rexer
wanted to eliminate any background
anachronisms. If I could control the fore-
ground and mid-ground and let the back-
ground go soft, we would have a lot more
freedom and believability in terms of story-
telling, he says. Small and lightweight, the
Dragon could also be used with the Movi
and when the even-lighter Red Weapon
came on the market near the end of the
shoot, it became the Movi camera.
The Dragon also offered excellent
dynamic range. I knew Id be dealing with a
lot of different shades of skin tones, says
Rexer. I worked with John Crowley, senior
digital colorist at Technicolor PostWorks [New
York], to design a LUT that maintained black
in the toe area while keeping detail in the
darker skin tones. It was based on Eastman
EXR 200T 5293, but we opened the blacks
more. Ninety percent of the show was shot
using that LUT. Digital-imaging technician
Luke Taylor worked on set for the pilot, the
only episode to employ a DIT.
Another LUT was used for edgy night
scenes and in subway stations the same
one Rexer had employed on his previous TV
series, Public Morals, which was set in 1960s
26 October 2016
New York. Cyan contamination in the
shadow areas was part of the Sixties look,
notes Rexer. Baz loved the look, so we
added it as a secondary LUT.
Framed for the 1.78:1 aspect ratio,
the show was shot in Reds Redcode Raw
format, with 5:1 compression, and recorded
to Red Mini-Mag SSDs. Rexers go-to lenses
were Arri/Zeiss Master Primes. They are
fast, focus-puller friendly, and have a very
narrow depth of field. We generally aimed
for a T1.8, whether day or night.
While the Master Primes were used
most frequently, they constituted only a
fraction of the lens package. A collector of
old lenses, Rexer volunteered his own Ange-
nieux 25-250mm (T3.9) and 20-120mm
(T2.9) zooms, both built in the 1970s,
which offered a softer, gentler look that
blended well with the archival footage.
Other lenses included Zeiss Jenas, made in
East Germany in the 1960s. They dont 65mm Master Prime for close-ups. Andy was
have a coating and they flare gorgeously,
the cameraman enthuses. We used those
in very particular situations and for night-
time photography.
We also had a 100mm Tokina
Macro lens, he adds, an 11-16mm Tokina
zoom T2.8, modified by Duclos Lenses; and
an 18-35mm Sigma, modified by GL Optics
in China. Finally, we had a Lensbaby shift-
and-tilt. Using a wide variety of tools gave
us that kind of collective feel Baz wanted
for the show. Cameras and lenses, other
than those owned by Rexer, came from
TCS, Inc., where the cinematographer
American Cinematographer
worked with Erik and Oliver Schietinger. For
weight-factor considerations, Zeiss Compact
Primes were used with the Movi rig.
The Red [Epic] Dragon and Red
Weapon are great tools, Rexer says. The
folks at Red have made a wonderful modular
system. You can build it small for Movi and
Steadicam or larger as a studio camera. We
stripped it down and put the camera in places
where [a traditional motion-picture camera]
could not go.
Each of The Get Downs 12 episodes
incorporates several big dance numbers. The
first takes place at a popular disco nightspot
called Les Inferno. The clubs exterior was a
practical location, while the interior was built
on a soundstage at Broadway Stages in Glen-
dale, Queens. (Sixty percent of the show was
shot on stage and 40 percent on practical
locations). Two cameras were constantly in
play, with B-camera operator Andy Voegeli on
the Movi and Steadicam/A-camera
operator Jeff Muhlstock alternating between
Steadicam and crane. If Muhlstock wasnt on
his own camera, he was controlling the pan,
tilt and roll wheel for the Movi; otherwise
Voegeli operated solo.
Camera movement is a piece of the
choreography, says Rexer. It is never obser-
vational. Jeff has covered so many live events
that he is almost an active dancer with the
characters. Either Rich or Tone Talauega
brothers who served as choreographers on
the series remained next to Muhlstock,
guiding the secondary dancers around so
they wouldnt collide with the camera.
We shot a lot of wide-lens stuff for
those dance numbers, recalls Muhlstock. I
ended up using that crazy little 11-16mm
Tokina, although Id switch to a 50mm or
on the Sigma 18-35mm most of the time.
Will loves to shoot wide open on period
shows and, while the soft drop-off created in
6K really lends itself to the period look, its
incredibly difficult to pull focus. Michael Burke
and James Madrid first ACs on A and B
cameras, respectively are genius focus
pullers and great technicians.
Burke and Madrid used the Preston
MDR3 lens-control system. Because of the
shallow depth of field used throughout, we
opted for SmallHD DP7 OLED monitors, says
Burke. They provide a very contrasty image
that really helps when pulling focus.
 Left: From their perch on a fire-escape balcony, series co-creator Baz Luhrmann, Rexer and writer Nelson George prepare for a crowd scene.
Right: The crew captures a performance on set.
Rexer reports that most of the dance
sequences were shot at either 48 or 72 fps.
Baz wanted us to over-crank whole scenes.
He would play them back at regular speed
and then, at certain points, elongate the
images for a moment or two. Action
sequences, such as Shaolin jumping from
roof to roof to escape local gang members,
also tended to be shot at 72 fps, as well as
with either a 90- or 45-degree shutter angle.
It really accentuates the action, observes
Rexer. We varied the shutter angle on both
action and dance sequences, depending
upon whether I wanted to capture the move-
ments or the blur.
As to the difficulties of shooting a
normal 180-degree shutter on todays city
streets, now that so many streetlamps have
switched to LED lights, Rexer notes that the
frequencies arent the same and the street-
lamps flicker. After some research and exper-
iments, I found that a 144-degree shutter
eliminated the flicker.
The Movi operated in Majestic Mode
i.e., by a single operator for much of its
use on the shoot. Wearing an Easyrig with a
Flowcine Serene to take some of the weight
from the Movi was some help to the opera-
tor, though it wasnt always a possibility. In
one scene Voegeli had to climb out of a
limousine and track Shaolins briefcase as the
graffiti-artist-turned-deejay is taking it to a
meeting with Grandmaster Flash
(Mamoudou Athie). I am crouching down,
hand-holding the Movi, following the brief-
case, relates Voegeli. [Then] I rise up into
the scene, into a classic over-the-shoulder of
Shaolin. With a laugh he adds, I couldnt
28 October 2016
have gotten out of that limo in an Easyrig.
In another situation the Movi was
used to re-create a 1970s photo taken by
photographer Joe Conzo whose images
influenced the entire production here
featuring Zeke and his friends on a boulder
in St. Marys Park. The Movi was also
employed to pass the camera from inside a
limousine, through the window to another
operator, who walked across the street and
entered a building, where it was seamlessly
hooked onto an overhead pulley and
continued shooting from its new vantage
point. It was also suspended in the center of
a school stairwell and panned like a
corkscrew, as Voegeli describes, to follow
Zeke and his unrequited love interest
Mylene (Herizen Guardiola) up three flights
of stairs.
Every day on set, Burke enthuses,
was about trying something beyond what
has been and is being done on other shows,
and pushing the new technology and utiliz-
ing old technology in new ways to better tell
the story.
The Movi and Steadicam were both
used so extensively that Rexer attests it was
like having multiple A cameras. Jeff, Andy,
Michael, gaffer Scott Ramsey my whole
team was great. When Andy had to leave,
Tim Norman assumed the B camera and
Movi reins, followed by Derek Walker, who
operated on the last couple of episodes.
Both were excellent, as was Ron Petagna,
the construction coordinator on the show.
He and his department were incredible.
They could build anything and everything
was well-built. Lamont Crawford and the
American Cinematographer
grip team were exceptional; [they were]
responsible for all the crane and amazing
dolly work. Danny Beaman is one of the
best dolly grips that I have ever worked
with.
Crowley performed the final color
grade at Technicolor PostWorks New York,
employing FilmLights Baselight system. The
work was completed in ProRes HQ 4:4:4:4
for a UHD ProRes HQ 4:2:2 final deliverable.
The facility also contributed visual effects to
The Get Down with Autodesks Flame.
My crew and I had all worked
together before, but none of us had ever
worked with Baz, Rexer adds. Right from
the get-go he and Catherine created an
unusually collaborative environment. Baz
really wanted input from everybody on the
crew, and he appreciated what everybody
brought to the table. He only directed the
pilot, but he was present, either on-set or
watching via live feed, for every frame we
shot. I cant stress enough how his and
Catherines spirit of collaboration made this
such a fun and satisfying project to work
on.
TECHNICAL SPECS
1.78:1
Digital Capture
Red Epic Dragon, Weapon 6K
Arri/Zeiss Master Prime;
Zeiss Compact Prime, Jena;
Angenieux; Duclos rehoused Tokina;
GL Optics rehoused Sigma;
Lensbaby Composer
 Family
Business Cinematographer Paul M. Sommers embraces color contrast and
concert lighting for the hit series Empire.
By David Heuring

30 October 2016 American Cinematographer


O
n the west side of Chicago, the
former Ryerson Steel Co.s
Unit photography by Chuck Hodes,
cavernous industrial spaces have
been transformed into Cinespace
Chicago Film Studios, a proudly local,
family-run business that bills itself as
the largest stage complex east of
courtesy of Fox.
Hollywood. The sprawling 52-acre
facility boasts more than 20 soundproof
stages ranging in size from 8,000 to
20,000 square feet. One of the flagship
Opposite and this page, top: Lucious Lyon
(Terrence Howard); his ex-wife, Cookie (Taraji
P. Henson); and their three sons, Jamal (Jussie
Smollett, left), Hakeem (Bryshere Y. Gray) and
Andre (Trai Byers, not pictured) battle for
control over the familys recording label in
the series Empire. Bottom: Cinematographer
Paul M. Sommers prepares to shoot in the
Leviticus nightclub set for the season-two
episode The Lyon Who Cried Wolf.
productions for Cinespace and,
indeed, for television broadcaster Fox
is Empire, the musical drama created
by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong.
Empire stars Terrence Howard as
Lucious Lyon, a former drug dealer
whos achieved lavish success by co-
founding the hip-hop label Empire
Entertainment. According to Strong,
the show is modeled in part on
Shakespeares King Lear and the James
www.theasc.com
Goldman play The Lion in Winter; the
1980s prime-time soap Dynasty is
another, albeit less literary, antecedent.
Much of the shows intrigue involves
succession plans after Lucious is diag-
nosed with ALS and his past sins begin
to catch up with him. Further compli-
cating matters are the schemes of
Lucious ex-wife, Cookie (Taraji P.
Henson), who is the mother of his three
sons Jamal ( Jussie Smollett),
Hakeem (Bryshere Y. Gray) and Andre
(Trai Byers) and was recently released
after a 17-year stint behind bars.
Andrew Dunn, BSC shot
Empires pilot, after which Sidney Sidell
photographed the first season. Paul M.
Sommers assumed cinematography
duties at the start of the second season
and has remained with the show since.
Sommers rsum as director of photog-
raphy includes episodes of Cold Case,
The Vampire Diaries, Rectify and Bosch,
and his broad experience in music videos
and as a Steadicam operator has proven
invaluable to shooting Empires musical
performances, which play a key role in
almost every episode.
Sommers says that part of his
directive upon joining the production
was to deliver a rich, big-movie feel.
The characters live an incredibly lush
and wealthy lifestyle, but it also feels like
a story that has roots in the street, he
says. So, to some extent, the job is trying
to sell both of those worlds, depending
October 2016 31
 Family Business

Right: After 17
years in prison,
Cookie looks to
reclaim her share
of the company.
Below left, from
left: Cookie,
Jamal, Hakeem,
Rhonda (Kaitlin
Doubleday),
Andre and Lucious
gather in the
latters mansion to
celebrate Cookies
birthday. Below
right: Lucious sits
on his throne in
his Empire
Entertainment
office.

on the scene. I reference Dreamgirls
[photographed by Tobias Schliessler,
ASC; AC Dec. 06] for the more lush
performance pieces, and American
Gangster [Harris Savides, ASC; AC
Dec. 07] for the rougher, mean-streets
looks. Im constantly being pushed by
[executive producer and director] Sanaa
Hamri, Lee Daniels and Danny Strong
to refine the look. They all have a
wonderful visual sense and are very
collaborative.
The show is a behemoth, and
Im lucky to be a part of it, Sommers
continues. I aspire to be the most
prepared person on the set. If my guys
have to carry heavy gear, its respectful to
only make them do it once. You have to
keep it moving, but you also have to
know when you need to slow down and
take your time to make something
perfect. Im getting more patient the
longer I shoot. Ive always been decisive,
but now Im giving myself a chance to
take a breath, to really look at and feel
the scenes. We dont do many takes, and
take one is our rehearsal, so it better be
good.
Although the series is set in New
York City, its produced almost entirely
in Chicago, with the exception of
certain aerials and establishing shots
captured in the Big Apple. AC visited
the Empire stages at Cinespace as the
crew was wrapping up the second
season; work on the 18-episode third
season began this past July.
A-camera operator and second-
unit director of photography Jody

32 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 Top: Designed in
gold tones, the
living room of
Lucious mansion
is one of the
shows primary
standing sets.
Middle and
bottom: For the
season-three
episode Light in
Darkness, the
crew captures a
scene between
Byers and Leslie
Uggams who
portrays Andres
grandmother Leah
Walker as well
as a family dinner.

Williams has been living and working

in Chicago for 20 years, and has been
with Empire since the series first season.
Paul, gaffer Gino Crededio and key
grip John Hudecek are all from
Chicago, he says. To my knowledge,
Empire is the first time that weve had
Chicago talent drive the photography of
a major show [shot in the city]. The
collaboration and communication we
have is paramount to our success.
Regarding the series visuals,
Sommers offers, Its a bit of a television
convention to use longer lenses. That
makes it easier to get two cameras
working, and it helps hide any sins in
the production design. But on Empire
we embrace wider focal lengths for our
close-ups, usually 50 to 75mm. On
most other shows Im working around
150mm to 200mm.
Sommers employs his personal
set of Arri/Zeiss Master Primes, and he
makes extensive use of 18-85mm (T2),
24-180mm (T2.6) and 75-400mm
(T2.8-3.8) Fujinon Premier zooms
when the camera is mounted on a dolly.
The Premiers are absolutely spectacu-
lar, and they match [well] with the
Master Primes, he offers. The way
they flare when they flare is great,
and they handle the contrast range

www.theasc.com October 2016 33

 Family Business
better than any other zoom Ive worked
with. I also use a set of Arri Shift & Tilts
for the flashbacks.
The Empire production carries a
minimum of two Arri Alexa Plus
camera bodies that record ProRes
4:4:4:4 to SxS cards. An Alexa Mini is
also part of the daily package and is
called into action for handheld,
Steadicam and crane work. Once or
twice per episode, four or five cameras
might be used for a particularly big
sequence. While keeping the cameras
ISO at 800, Sommers typically shoots
interiors at T2.8; night exteriors are
usually T1.4, and day exteriors are
frequently shot at a T4/5.6 split. The
show is framed for a 1.78:1 aspect ratio.
Empires main standing sets
include Lucious elegantly appointed
office and opulent mansion, where the
production aims for a refined, classic
look with a palette heavy on gold and
red tones; recording studios; the lobby of
the Empire offices; Cookies apartment;
and the Leviticus nightclub, which
new for the third season includes a
vaudeville-style performance space.
Surrounding the perimeter walls of
every major interior set are 4x4 Kino Flo
housings fitted with daylight- and tung-
sten-balanced MacTech LED bulbs.
Crededio says that the MacTech bulbs
are brighter than the original Kinos and
dont tend to go green as they age.
Custom-made Light Grid frames
soften the clear MacTech bulbs while
allowing adequate light for the desired
stop. Lighttools Soft Egg Crates
Top: For season provide direction and keep light off the
three, a walls.
vaudeville-style Closer to the actors, Sommers
performance
space has been sometimes turns to Arri SkyPanel S60-
added to the C color-tunable LED units. When I
Leviticus can get away with it I go to bigger
nightclub.
Middle: Lucious sources, the cinematographer says, but
addresses the usually I prefer more control over the
crowd. Bottom: light, and I dont have a great deal of
Sommers shares
a laugh with time or space to use [larger fixtures].
Smollett. All these ceilings can be raised,
Crededio notes. We have soft light
everywhere, but were lighting the
subject and not everything else. The
walls are lit properly, and there are a few

34 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 This lighting
diagram
illustrates the
fixtures
employed for a
season-three
performance
staged in the
Leviticus set.

www.theasc.com October 2016 35

 Family Business
highlights. Its a classic look.
All of the overhead lights in the
mansion and office sets are LED
dubbed MacDaddies and consisting
of four MacTech tubes in a Kino hous-
ing as are the fixtures used to light
the backings on three of the sets. The
36 October 2016
Above: Lucious performs with Jamal and
Hakeem in a scene from the season-two
episode The Lyon Who Cried Wolf. Left:
Sommers lines up a shot for the scene.
mansion, office, and Jamals are
day/night JC Backings, Sommers says.
We have a Translight at Hakeems.
The cinematographer notes that the
efficiency of the LEDs has cut down
significantly on amperage and cables,
but these units havent yet completely
taken over the set for example,
Sommers offers, they still cant
adequately depict hard sunlight. For
that, he uses both 20K and 10K beam
projectors, he says. For soft north
light, I use both coops and space lights.
Supporting Sommers and
Crededio is dimmer-board operator
Jared Moore, who works with a High
End Systems Hog 4 and an ETC Ion
console. He notes, Day to day, when I
am running the more conventional
stages, I use [ETCs] iRFR app on an
iPad linked back to the Ion so I can be
on set with Gino and Paul to ease
communication during setups.
Beyond the stage work, the
production typically ventures out to
locations around Chicago for one or
two of each episodes eight shooting
days. Crededio says that a rough light-
American Cinematographer
ing plan for each location is hammered
out during an initial scout. For the first
episode of the season, he and Sommers
will both go on the scout, but for each
subsequent episode, the gaffer usually
scouts without the cinematographer,
reporting back regarding the particular
needs of each space.
Sommers and Moore look
forward to the series musical numbers.
To me, one of the most interesting
aspects of the show has been the oppor-
tunity to shoot music again, the cine-
matographer opines. Its just a ton of
fun. When I was a Steadicam operator I
did more music videos than you can
shake a stick at. The last time I had done
anything like that was probably 15 years
ago, so there was a bit of a learning
curve, but these large performance
setups were the candy that enticed me
to move back to Chicago and shoot the
show.
The producers also wanted those
scenes to look bigger and lusher, he
continues. Instead of shooting what is
essentially a music video on a stage, they
wanted it to feel like a performance in
front of a stadium audience. This show
gives us the ability to really get into that
world, which is exciting. Also, the music
has direct ties to the dramatic action and
the storytelling of the show. The music
comes out of the familys lives. [It
is] storytelling in a different way not
just eye candy or an interlude.
For the larger performance
setups, Sommers and Crededio usually
employ 50 to 80 moving lights
comprising PRG Best Boys, GLP
Impression X4s and X4 Bar 20s, Clay
Paky Sharpys and Alpha Spot HPE
700s, Robe Robin Pointes, and TMB
Solaris Flare LED strobes with
perhaps another 50 color-changing
Martin Rush Par 2 RGBW Zooms,
depending on the shot. The Sharpy
units, Robin Pointes and Best Boys are
useful for harder light or gobo spins,
while the X4s frequently serve as wash
lights.
We have moving lights that are
LED as well as some that are regular
discharge [units], says Sommers. That
 Family Business
Right: In the same
performance from
The Lyon Who
Cried Wolf,
Hakeem stands in
the background
awaiting his cue
while Lucious and
Jamal start the
song, awash in red
and gold tones.
Below: Sommers
checks the sets
lighting.
allows us to combine textures. The
LEDs do have a tremendous zoom
range, which allows you to get patterns
coming from above, but youre always
going to get a sharper source out of the
older, more traditional instruments.
Part of the assignment is giving
each musical number its own distinctive
look. Well be in a theater in Joliet, and
weve got to put in a rig that can look
completely different for three different
acts, the cinematographer offers. The
ability to put in a rig thats flexible
enough we just couldnt do it without
the LEDs. The color-changing ability
of the spots and the washes on
discharge lights has been around
forever, but the ability to have a wash
38 October 2016
light that can be any color of the rain-
bow at the drop of a hat is a huge
advantage.
Moore adds, When we create a
look for a performance, Paul has ideas
about the way he would like fixtures
placed on the stage and the color palette
for the song. We listen to the music
separately, and I come up with what
feels like an appropriate cue list for the
song, and then I program preliminary
looks, timings and effects. We typically
meet up for a brainstorm two hours
before call and do some more cueing
and editing, and then we go with it.
Two hours to program before
call time thats a big challenge,
Sommers emphasizes. A rock n roll
American Cinematographer
touring act might have a couple months
to build a lighting plot and figure out
the choreography and timing!
So much is done to have the
songs on the show help further the
plot, adds Moore. For me, its about
feeling where the music takes you. If a
character is in a frenetic place or is
making a defiant choice, hopefully that
comes across in the palette and the
movement of the lighting in the perfor-
mance.
As our performances grow in
size, concept and scope, were starting to
experiment with linear timecode [LTC]
that will fire cues on my console as well
as [the productions Unilumin] video-
wall rig, Moore continues. I come
from a heavy background in theatrical
and modern-dance lighting design, so I
like to run performances live to get the
feeling right but perfect timecode
playback really helps smooth verse-
chorus-verse transitions, leaving me free
to trigger other live effects and moves.
I think all programmers
myself included create and manage
LANs [local area networks] for their
stage setups, says Moore. For our new
performance space [in the Leviticus
club], I built a rig of 16 universes of
wireless control. Wireless DMX has with that kind of crazy idea, they get the download station, and then loads
become a workhorse technology on the just as excited as I do, and theyre them into a Convergent Design
Empire set I cant live without it at immediately trying to figure out how to Odyssey7Q+ that serves as a combina-
this point. That special rig I built has make it work. I cant say enough about tion LUT box and scope for viewing on
Wireless Solutions W-DMX ProBox how wonderful they have been. the set. I can build a LUT in about a
F-2500 G4S transmitters powered Foxs budget for Empire does not minute and a half, he says. I have lift,
by a 24-port PoE Ethernet switch as cover a digital-imaging technician, so gamma, gain and RGB, and then over-
well as two High End Systems DP8K Sommers instead utilizes a hybrid all contrast Im not getting into
processors and about 40 F1/F2 system whereby he builds custom look- secondaries. I preload how I want it to
receivers. up tables on a Blackmagic Design look, and from there its relatively small
Sommers credits Production DaVinci Resolve system thats set up at tweaks.
Resource Group, which provides
Empire with the vast majority of its
lighting equipment, as a trusted partner.
PRG has been really wonderful about
getting lights for us to try out and play
with, and helping us build that lush
look while making it look different
every week, the cinematographer
enthuses. I can see something online
maybe a video wall behind the
performers and decide to try it, and
the people at PRG have experience
with that kind of lighting. Theyve run
into any potential problems maybe
its flicker, or color fidelity, or how an
instrument interacts with a camera.
When we ask for something, were not
the first, and thats an advantage. They
understand our world, and theyre a
good bridge into the world of perfor-
mance lighting.
Its a team sport, Sommers
continues. I may be talking to Jared
about programming for one episode
while Gino is prelighting a set for me. I
cant do this alone. I need a good gaffer,
a good key grip, a good dimmer-board
operator and good vendors. If I dont
get that support from everybody, its not
as good a show.
Sommers says that Keslow
Camera which maintains a rental
office on site at Cinespace has also
been a key ally for the Empire crew. We
had a sequence in a strip joint with all
these moving lights, he recalls. I
wanted a star-filter effect, but I wanted
it to rotate so that all the highlights
spun in the frame. Id done this once
before, on an episode of Cold Case about
15 years ago. I mentioned it to Keslow,
and they had a working prototype for
me in two days. Whenever I come up
 Family Business
A crane-
mounted
camera frames
up on Smollett
for a scene in
the episode
Light in
Darkness.
This system, Sommers continues,
allows me to control what the eyeballs
in dailies and editorial see. If I were to
shoot straight Rec 709, I would
constantly be saying, Its going to look
different later, and they dont hear that
voice in the editing room. If I change it
too much after that, the producers have
a panic attack. Having a degree of
control at that early stage saves me a lot
of trouble later.
Such control is crucial given the
shows wide range of skin tones and
Sommers use of mixed-color-tempera-
ture sources. I set myself a challenge on
this show to grow as a director of
photography by embracing more color
contrast, he says. Often, Im in situa-
tions where adding a contrasting color
really helps define a moment. Maybe its
a blue edge, or its a combination of
sodium and 60 Cyan. In the perfor-
mances, all bets are off; there, it all
comes from the music and the overall
context of the scene. And if we have
story beats during a song, that has to be
serviced as well, and it affects my
choices.
Final color correction is
performed at Warner Bros. Motion
Picture Imaging in Burbank, Calif.,
with colorist Scott Klein one of
Sommers regular collaborators for close
to a decade. Klein works in Resolve, and
Sommers makes timing notes while
watching an H.264 file, preferably on a
calibrated monitor. Im watching at the
end of the day, after 16 hours of work-
ing, and giving notes off of the files, the
cinematographer explains. Having
somebody that I trust completely in that
part of the process is invaluable its a
vital creative partnership. He really has

40
to understand why Im doing what Im
doing. Hes got to understand the whole
arc of the season.
The Lyon Family Anthem
sequence in episode 16 of season two,
The Lyon Who Cried Wolf, marks
the culmination of a story arc driven by
the conflict between Lucious and two of
his sons, Jamal and Hakeem. In the
sequence, the American Sound Awards
Empires version of the Grammys
pit Jamal and his father against each
other for Song of the Year honors.
Cookie, meanwhile, has managed to get
the Lyon family a slot on the awards
show, so that all of the familys musi-
cians can be showcased. The song a
grudging collaboration between
Lucious, Jamal and Hakeem is first
performed for the awards shows
producers, as an audition for the tele-
cast.
The scene took place on the
Leviticus nightclub set, where the crew
rigged 36 LED Pars, 20 tungsten Pars,
10 Philips ColorBlast LEDs, miles of
LiteGear LiteRibbon RGB LED tape,
and a dozen Robe Robin Pointe units.
Sommers says his main goal with this
sequence was to simultaneously express
the love and tension between all the
characters not a bad way to summa-
rize the series as a whole and he
notes that this was a chance to employ
rock n roll lighting to underscore char-
acter and story.
We had to reinvent the space
and help bring the emotion of the song
to the audience, the cinematographer
reflects. We embraced the red and gold
palette for the beginning of the song,
[where] I tried to play a dichotomy in
color between Lucious and Jamal. They
are more alike than different, but the
conflict between fathers and sons is as
old as civilization; I think everyone in
the audience can feel the tension. When
Hakeem enters, he adds a new flavor
rap and I did a change to a really rich
purple to add some dimension to the
palette. I really enjoy the way that color
played on Hakeems skin tone; it added
a richness and depth that was missing
from the beginning of the song.
By the end, he continues,
theyre all performing together, and the
blending of the three main colors was an
attempt to tell that story. Though all
three of these characters are tremendous
artists on their own, together they can
fly, and transcend their individual limi-
tations.
TECHNICAL SPECS
1.78:1
Digital Capture
Arri Alexa Plus, Mini
Arri/Zeiss Master Prime,
Fujinon Premier,
Arri Shift & Tilt
41
 Smoke
on the Water
Enrique Chediak, ASC and blowout. Despite the fact that the rig was state of the art and
had one of the best-trained crews in the industry, every one of
his collaborators create a the Horizons defenses failed, the article states. In the end, it
convincing conflagration for the notes, many lives were saved by simple acts of bravery.
ripped-from-the-headlines drama This human element is at the heart of Deepwater
Horizon, a feature based on that New York Times story. It was
of Deepwater Horizon. important to feel what these people went through the heat,
the mud and the sense of hell, says director of photography
By Patricia Thomson Enrique Chediak, ASC, who worked with his team to devise a
system of large LED walls in order to simulate an infernal
| blaze large enough to consume a 32,588-ton structure.
First, though, there were other pressing matters.
Chediak joined the New Orleans-based production a couple of

I
n 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig went down in
flames in the Gulf of Mexico. Eleven lives were lost and oil
gushed for 87 days, destroying marine habitats and entire
coastal economies. Eight months after the rig exploded,
The New York Times published Deepwater Horizons Final
Hours, an 8,500-word expos that tracked the cascade of
safety failures that followed the initial oil and methane
weeks after director Peter Berg, who came on to replace the
original director. Set construction had already been underway
for several months in the parking lot of an abandoned Six Flags
amusement park. The initial plan had been to build a full-scale
rig whose lowest platform would tower 40' above the ground.
When I arrived and saw Id have to be working up there, I
thought Id require three very big construction cranes for my

42 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 Opposite: Mike
Williams (Mark
Wahlberg) fights
to survive aboard
a burning deep-
water oil-drilling
rig in the feature
Deepwater
Horizon, based
on the events
that transpired
on the rig of the
same name in
2010. This page,
top, from left:
Don Vidrine (John
Malkovich),
Andrea Fleytas
(Gina Rodriguez),
Jimmy Harrell
(Kurt Russell) and
Williams stand on
the rigs bridge.
Bottom:
Cinematographer
Enrique Chediak,
ASC.

needs only, says Chediak. Only for my

needs one department. Imagine all
the other departments!
Working with production
designer Chris Seagers, the team moved
everything they could to the ground,
with Chediak providing input on sun
orientation and myriad other details.
The original armature was outfitted like
a real oil rig up to the first level, which
included a functional helipad; that set,
surrounded by a water tank that held
more than 3 million gallons, was used
for all scenes in the sea looking back
Unit photography by David Lee, courtesy of Summit Entertainment.

toward the rig during the final evac-

uation, for instance. The main deck was
a separate ground-level set, and the drill
floor was constructed 10' off the ground
to accommodate special-effects appara-
tus for the blowout. The bridges of
Deepwater Horizon and the supply
ship Damon B. Bankston were built in an
old grocery store turned stage, as were
the rigs living quarters.
Chediak and Berg wanted a
naturalistic, immersive film, one that
stayed close to its characters espe-
cially electrical engineer Mike
Williams, played by Mark Wahlberg. I
call it enhanced reality, says Chediak.
You have to really feel the rig, the
people, the heat, the sweat so it has
to be very naturalistic. If you start
making things too beautiful or cine-
matic, you lose the audience.
Ultimately, there was very little
location work just five days at the
beginning of the 13-week shoot and
about that much at the end. Chediak
reports that the production shot one day
in the Louisiana city of Gretna for the
house of Andrea Fleytas (Gina
Rodriguez), one day in Slidell for Mike
Williams house, one day in Port
Fourchon for the beginning of the
movie, one day in Galliano for the heli-
copter terminal and a day in the
Crowne Plaza [in Kenner, La.] for the
end scenes; this is the actual hotel were
they brought the crew of the Deepwater
Horizon after the disaster.
When first thinking about the
productions visual design, three things
came to Chediaks mind. First of all,
he says, [I thought about] the fluores-
cent aspect of the beginning of the
movie all the industrial light sources
these rigs have.
Second, the cinematographer
cites the black-and-white photos of
Kuwaits burning oil fields, taken by
Sebastio Salgado on assignment for
The New York Times Magazine in 1991,

www.theasc.com October 2016 43

 Smoke on the Water

Top: Williams spends time with his wife, Felicia (Kate Hudson), and daughter
Sydney (Stella Allen) before heading to work on the rig. Bottom left: Williams serves
as Transocean chief electronics technician, overseeing the rigs computers and
electrical systems. Bottom right: The crew captures a scene between Williams and
BP representative Vidrine.

documenting an environmental disaster
deliberately caused by Saddam
Husseins retreating troops. That was
an important reference because of the
deep blacks and this very contrasty feel,
Chediak says. I wanted to apply that as
much as possible in color, to create that
contrast and the sense that [the oil-
covered] faces are almost liquid or
mercury. So especially [in terms of ]
everything that had to do with the mud,
and later the fire explosion, I asked head
makeup artist Howard Berger to really
enhance the sweat and dirt of these
characters, so we could get those blacks,
that shininess, and that metal aspect.
Chediaks third touchstone was
the actual color of fire. Fire caused by
burning oil is very red and has deep
blacks, he says. You cannot get that
with the substance that the special-

44 October 2016 American Cinematographer

effects crews use all those propane
fires are yellow. Oil fire has a very
specific quality, and I wanted to reach
that. It was important to feel the sense
of hell.
These inspirations led to a
number of Chediaks technical deci-
sions. For example, the Salgado
photographs steered the cinematogra-
pher to work with CW Sonderoptics
Leica Summicron-C (T2.0) and
Summilux-C (T1.4) primes, which
would enhance the desired contrast and
mercury-like sheen. In his previous
films, Berg had favored zoom lenses, but
this time, Chediak explains, I asked
him not to use zooms. [I suggested we]
stay with wide-angle lenses close to the
faces in order to be more with those
characters. Pete liked the idea, and we
went with that approach. So with the
two cameras running simultaneously,
we usually had the combination of a
wide-angle and a tighter lens. The
filmmakers favored the 21mm, 25mm
and 29mm at the wide end and the
75mm and 100mm for longer focal
lengths for both the Summicron-C
and Summilux-C lenses.
Seeking a narrow depth of field
without color shift, Chediak coupled
the Leica lenses with Mitomo True ND
filters. Apart from that, there are no
tricks in the camera, he says.
According to Chediak, Berg is
practically minded and less interested in
conceptualizing, talking, and preplan-
ning than in responding to actors on set.
Pete is very talented and passionate
with the actors, says the cinematogra-
pher. Hes very concerned with the
realism of the situation and characters.
Berg also proved to be very fast. Once
hes on the set and starts shooting, no
more lighting is possible he just
shoots and improvises until the scene is
done. Sometimes we shot eight-page
scenes in six hours. We shot a very
complicated scene with five cameras,
two helicopters and 140 extras in a boat
in three hours!
Knowing this would be the case, Top: Williams meets Caleb Holloway (Dylan OBrien) on the deck of the rig. Middle: Director
Chediak spent his 10 weeks of prep Peter Berg (left) discusses a scene with actors Jeremy Sande, OBrien and Wahlberg.
Bottom: Holloway and Vidrine inspect aberrations on the drill floor.
striving toward a Zen mode, which he

www.theasc.com October 2016 45

 Smoke on the Water
describes as not planning anything in
terms of the shots, but staying ready for
absolutely everything. He decided he
wouldnt operate camera, entrusting that
job to a pair of operators who had previ-
ously worked with Berg: Jacques Jouffret
and Richard Coy Aune. Both had
amazing instincts for being at the right
place in the right moment very
important for Petes shooting style,
Chediak says. This also goes for both
focus pullers, Jimmy Jensen and Glenn
Kaplan, who had to improvise a lot and
work with quite shallow depth of field.
The majority of the film was shot
with two handheld Arri Alexa XTs
using no special rigs. Chediak quickly
tallies the number of times the crew
used a dolly (once), Steadicam (three
Top: A mud
times) and Technocrane (here and
geyser erupts there), while noting that the crew
from the floor. executed a couple of cable-cam shots
Middle: A
handheld camera
when characters jump overboard from
frames the frenzy the burning rig.
as Williams and Framed for a 2.39:1 aspect ratio,
Holloway search
the burning rig.
the Alexas captured ArriRaw data in
Bottom: To Open Gate 3.4K mode, recording onto
illuminate the Codex XR Capture Drives. Footage was
blaze, Chediak
and gaffer Andy
viewed in Rec 709 on digital-imaging
Ryan had technician Daniele Colomberas Sony
footage of actual OLED PVM-A250 monitors. I tend
oil fires played
through large
not to work too much with color on the
LED walls. set, especially on a film like this, because
I have to be very concentrated on these
30-minute takes, 360 degrees, explains
Chediak. He and Company 3 dailies
colorist Rajiv Bedi did do a limited
amount of pre-coloring with
Colombera. We set the contrast and
color we wanted, but we didnt work in
a lot of detail, the cinematographer
says. Id give just enough information
for the dailies colorist to go and do the
color. After wed finished, I would stay
with the DIT and wed tweak the things
we wanted to tweak.
Knowing that the ultimate goal
was an Imax release, Chediak consid-
ered shooting with Arris Alexa 65,
though there were few available at the
time. The production did use one for a
day, however, recording at 6.5K for the
sequence in which the crew was rescued
and taken to the Damon B. Bankston.

46 October 2016 American Cinematographer


One of Chediaks most impor-
tant and farthest-reaching decisions was
to light all sets with practicals in 360
degrees. This approach demanded an
enormous pre-rigging job, but it would
give Berg and the actors maximum flex-
ibility while enabling Chediaks Zen-
style preparedness. I mainly tried to use
the kind of industrial lighting youd find
on [the real] rig, Chediak says.
Gaffer Andy Ryan adds, At one
point, we had more than 4,500 practi-
cals. Among that number, we had
different kinds of fluorescents, [includ-
ing] explosion-proof fluorescents on all
the exterior rig sets. We had metal-
halide fixtures, we had quartz work
lights and we had more LEDs than
you can imagine that we ran off of our
four-channel LED controllers.
Each fixture was on its own
dimmer line, operating off MA
Lightings GrandMA2 console, and
could be switched off on cue when,
for instance, the rigs electricity shuts
down, leaving only emergency lights
functioning or dimmed down to, say,
20 percent on the bridge when the film-
makers wanted the fire outside to read a
little hotter. That in and of itself was an
achievement, Ryan says of the rigging.
But then we had to make [each unit]
Left: The crew
captures a post-
explosion scene.
Below: Shooting
handheld, the
crew follows the
action for a scene
in which Fleytas
and Curt Kuchta
(David
Maldonado) help
an injured Harrell
escape the
flames.
waterproof and GFI-protected, so if
something went wrong, it would shut
itself off. To manage that job, Ryan
assembled a fixture crew that included a
foreman, best boy and six others who,
starting eight weeks out, worked full-
time to build, wire and trouble-shoot
the thousands of units.
In selecting the fluorescents that
would dominate the rigs interior, Ryan
tested a variety of tubes, from tungsten
to daylight to the various degrees of cool
white, because cool white goes in three
or four different colors, the gaffer
notes. We had five different tubes that
we tested against set walls and
wardrobe. What we chose was a cool-
white tube that burned at 4,600K a
little bluer than average.
Chediak worked closely with
costume designer Kasia Walicka- Shooting the explosions that
Maimone to ensure that the red doomed Deepwater Horizon required
Transocean uniforms worn by the oil extensive planning and teamwork
rigs crew wouldnt seem quease-induc- between all departments, including
ing under the greenish fluorescents. By Industrial Light & Magic, the lead
taking that red more toward burgundy, supplier of the productions visual
they found a compatible combination. effects. The disaster broke down into
In addition, with Seagers, they tested two parts. First was the blowout, which
various colors of wall paint. We ended sent dense mud gushing up like a
up going with a shiny silver, Chediak high-pressure geyser through the drill
notes. It worked very well with the floor; the second phase began when a
fluorescents. gas cloud spread throughout the rig,
www.theasc.com October 2016 47
 Smoke on the Water
Right: Williams,
Fleytas and other
crewmembers
fight for their
lives. Below: The
LED walls often
worked in concert
with practical
flames and
explosions.
triggering a series of explosions and
fireballs that eventually tore the rig
apart.
A scale model of the rig stood at
the center of the productions war
room, where photos of oil rigs plas-
tered the walls. Everything that had to
do with mud and with fire was particu-
larly complicated, says Chediak. We
spent a lot of time [talking with previs
regarding] that model.
For the blowout sequence, light-
ing was perhaps the least complicated
component. The drill-floor set had
already been rigged with practicals that
would do the yeomans work. Added to
that were four motion-picture lights,
brought in to backlight characters or
48 October 2016
mud as needed. I put up two Condors,
one on either side, each with a couple of
Arri M90s to turn on or off depending
on which way we were looking, says
Ryan. We corrected back to the cool-
white color temperature with a 14
CTO and a 14 Green.
The M90s also came into play
once the mud started spewing and
covering up the practicals. I think we
destroyed something like 22 rain deflec-
tors [on the cameras], says Chediak.
Jimmy Jensen came up with a system
to keep the mud off the rain deflector
longer, but sometimes the temperature
difference of the mud which had to
be warm for the actors fogged the
lenses. Some of that fogging is in the
American Cinematographer
final edit and adds some spice to the
scenes.
After each take, it took half an
hour to hose everything down and reset.
Protocols were put in place to keep
things clean, and included a shower at
the set exit. Nonetheless, Chediak
noticed something strange happening
with the dailies. The rushes were
becoming warmer and warmer, he says.
Then we realized it was the mud on
the lights it was like having filters on
the practicals. So we had to start clean-
ing every practical light to maintain the
color as much as possible without a
shift. For that, says Ryan, I had a
rigging crew who would come in when
wed go home. Theyd repair practicals
 Smoke on the Water
that had broken and clean off practicals
that needed cleaning off. It was a full-
time job.
On the real Deepwater Horizon,
nine minutes passed from the initial
blowout to the incapacitating explo-
sions. Engines were destroyed. Without
electricity, the fire-suppression system
failed. The blaze grew and engulfed the
entire rig. Reproducing this inferno was
the films tall task.
When I came on the show,
Ryan recalls, they said, We want to do
fire without real fire. Can you light
that? Nothing looks like fire except real
fire so I said to them, Yeah, theres a
way: Project fire [from] LED walls. It
was a novel solution, similar to some-
thing Ryan and Chediak had used
before on a much smaller scale on The
Maze Runner (AC Oct. 14), when they
needed an elevator to appear as if it was
racing past the floors. On that produc-
tion, Ryan had suggested a poor-mans
process that utilized an LED wall with
moving white bars, visible through the
elevators cracks. He notes, I said to
Enrique, Remember what we did on
Maze Runner? Remember how well
that worked?
When I came to Deepwater
Horizon, using the LED walls was
completely on my mind, based on the
experience we had on The Maze
Runner, says Chediak. At the begin-
ning, it was a little complicated to
convince production because of the
price. Though costly upfront, the strat-
egy proved a smart choice in the end
economically, practically, and because it
provided exactly the kind of firelight
Chediak desired.
The idea was to have footage of
actual oil fires, which had been captured
as reference plates for ILM, playing on
the LED walls. ILM passed these
plates to production, and Chediaks
team chose the shots they liked. These
played on a loop wherever firelight was
needed. Of course, Ryan says, with
these LED walls you have complete
Production designer Chris Seagers devised a set outfitted like an actual oil rig, complete with a control over the intensity and the color.
functional helipad and surrounded by a water tank for shots from the sea looking back toward
the Deepwater Horizon. We could make it redder or more
orange.

50 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 For hardware, Ryan turned to started, we had the real fires as our run independently or combined to form
Solomon Group, a New Orleans primary foreground element, and then one large 24-by-8 video screen. The
company whose founders came from wed turn on those scissor lifts to 8x8s hung like a curtain off a truss and
theater lighting, entertainment tech- augment it always in the back- were moved by forklift. We used the 8-
nology and live arena productions, and ground, never on the actors. When we by-8 walls every single day when shoot-
who now create large-scale events and shot actors, it was always either real fire ing the bridges, says Ryan. For instance,
attractions, from Lollapaloozas EDM or the LED wall. Chediak adds, We did a row of smaller
stage to the LED display at the For scenes on the bridge sets, the LEDs and put that outside the bridge
Superdome in New Orleans. For their same approach was simply scaled down. when its on fire and [the oil rig starts]
test presentation, Solomon Group We had three video walls that were 8- losing electricity. At times, the walls
brought in a 12'x12' wall of interlocking by-8 [feet], says Ryan. They could be were broken down further into 4'x4'
LED modules specifically ROE
Visuals Radiant MC-9H panels, each
of which measures approximately 2'x2',
features a 9.375mm pixel pitch, and
outputs 3,000 lumens. Moving
forward, the production used these
panels like building blocks, putting
together walls of various sizes.
Their largest, used for conflagra-
tions on the Six Flags sets, was a 42'x24'
wall comprising 252 panels. Placed
inside a truss box, it was so large it had
to be dropped into place using one of
the enormous 500-ton construction
cranes that production had initially
ordered for the exterior sets. This
particular setup had an overall resolu-
tion of 1,344x768 pixels per inch,
running on [ROEs] Evision processors
and software, says Ryan. The LED
wall was receiving video from a PRG
Mbox Media Server fed into an
ImagePro-II [video scaler, made by
Barco], which was being controlled via
Art-Net by a GrandMA2 lighting
console.
Chediak says, When we are in
these big extensions, the LED wall
provides the base [ambience] and
sometimes the key light for whatever
action is happening up there on the rig
platform. All that is enhanced with
either gelled Maxi-Brutes for back-
ground or real fire. The whole set was
rigged with fire: fire in the sets, fire in
the water. I dont know how much
propane we used, but it was a crazy
amount.
As Ryan elaborates, When we
were shooting in the big tank, we had
eight scissor lifts each with four 12-
light Maxis, through a double CTO, on
flicker generators. Once the big fire
 Smoke on the Water
Cast and crew work on a scene on the rigs exterior.
configurations for reflections in the hall-
ways, for example. When in close prox-
imity, the LEDs might be dimmed
down to 20-30 percent; at full throttle,
52
they were bright as day. Walk down to
Times Square, and youll get some
idea, says Ryan.
Everybody got into it our
team, the local vendor and I had a
really good programmer, Ryan contin-
ues, adding that his best boy, Jaim
ONeil, was indispensable: A lot of this
would not have happened without his
persistence. You can imagine that when
you construct a big wall, you might
have one or two panels out, and youve
got to go through the troubleshooting
to get those panels back on while the
director is ready to go. Key grip Jimi
Ryan did a great job flying those huge
walls over the sets with enormous
construction cranes, sometimes with
very strong Louisiana winds.
An unforeseen advantage of
utilizing the LED walls was that they
minimized the need for greenscreen.
The main deck set was surrounded by a
300' greenscreen rigged on container
walls, but otherwise, says Ryan, there
wasnt a lot, and it got smaller and
smaller. Wed use greenscreen just to
plug in places here and there.
On the bridge set, they did away
with it entirely. As Chediak relates, We
were going to use greenscreen, but
when we came in the middle of
construction, Chris Seagers had already
put in the bridge ceilings, which were
very low and metallic they reflected
everything. If wed used greenscreen, it
would have been reflected on every
single metal surface and on the ceiling
of the bridge. That would have been
tremendously expensive to clean [with
visual effects]. Instead, the crew
surrounded the bridge with a painted
cyc that depicted water and Caribbean
clouds, which was lit with Arri M40s
on an overhead truss and Arri M90s
from the floor. It was overexposed by
2.5 stops when it was daylight,
Chediak says. When it was night, we
just put black around [the set]. These
reflective surfaces are actually what
made these bridges visually interesting.
After the fire starts, the LED flames
were reflected in all those metal surfaces
as well.
All along, Chediaks goal was to ILM did an incredible job, the
get a nice, rich negative, as wed say in cinematographer adds. They enhanced
the past. Following those guidelines, the some of the practical effects and created
post was very simple, because every- a lot of the fire. They respected my
thing was already there. After the guidelines for color, especially the tones
online edit on Autodesk Flame, the film we wanted for the fire. So thanks to
was graded on Blackmagic Designs everybodys great work, the grading
DaVinci Resolve at Company 3, first in ended up being very easy.
L.A., then in New York. It was colored
in EXR scene linear and mastered to
16-bit DPX files.
On the final grade, Chediak
worked with senior colorist and ASC
associate Stefan Sonnenfeld as well as
Stephen Nakamura. To tell the truth, a
lot of the work was done during
production by testing and choosing the
right temperatures for practicals and the TECHNICAL SPECS
right colors for the sets and costumes, 2.39:1
says Chediak. We did two [color
passes] in two weeks and everything Digital Capture
matched very nicely. Both Stefan and
Arri Alexa XT, Alexa 65
Stephen helped me in working the
contrast and giving the movie some Leica Summicron-C,
spice. Summilux-C
53
 BeingThere
VR director of photography Lewis
Smithingham and lighting director
of photography John Engstrom
dive into 360-degree storytelling
with the series Invisible.
By Noah Kadner
| bution platform, with an eye toward future release on addi-
C
reated by filmmaker Doug Limans production company
30 Ninjas in partnership with Cond Nast
Entertainment and Samsung, Invisible is an episodic
action series but more than that, its a 360-degree
stereoscopic presentation that offers viewers an immersive
experience when watching with a virtual-reality headset. The
story chronicles the adventures of the Ashlands, a prominent
New York City family blessed throughout the generations
with the supernatural gift of invisibility. The series is set to
debut as five six-minute episodes on the Samsung VR distri-

54 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 tional 360-video/virtual-reality plat- Opposite and this page,
top: Gifted with
forms such as Oculus Rift, HTC Vive invisibility throughout
and Google Cardboard. the generations, the
Photos by John Engstrom, Matthew Grossfield, Julina Tatlock, Kezia Jean and Lewis Smithingham, courtesy of 30 Ninjas.

As a relatively early entrant in the Ashland family now

teeters on the brink of
nascent medium of 360-degree story- their secret being
telling, Invisible was in many ways a exposed in the 360-
large-scale experiment for Liman and degree/virtual-reality
story Invisible. Middle:
his production team, which included VR cinematographer
executive producer/director Julina Lewis Smithingham
Tatlock, VR director of (right) and executive
producer/director Julina
photography/VR supervisor Lewis Tatlock (over
Smithingham, lighting director of Smithinghams shoulder)
photography John Engstrom and on set in Haiti.
Bottom: Lighting
visual-effects supervisor Chris Healer. I cinematographer
was brought on to help Doug shoot a John Engstrom.
camera test for the project back in
August 2015, recalls Smithingham.
Doug is amazing to work with because
hes so tech-minded and iterative. If you
explain something to him, he listens and
understands, and then he wants to get
his hands dirty.
Principal photography began in
January 2016, and proceeded on
location in Los Angeles, Connecticut,
New York and Haiti at a pace of two
to three shooting days each month
through March, with postproduction
work conducted throughout. The
production elected to work with multi-
ple camera systems, including GoPro
Hero4 Black 4K cameras arrayed in
various six-camera configurations by
Freedom 360, custom rigs designed by

www.theasc.com October 2016 55

 Being There

Top and bottom:

The crew preps the
lighting on
location in
Connecticut.
Middle: Brothers
Josh and Jason
Diamond ready the
Jaunt One camera
for the location
shoot.

Smithingham and Freedom 360

mounted with GoPro Hero4 Black
cameras, a single Sony a7S II mirrorless
4K camera rigged on a nodal head, and
the Jaunt One purpose-built VR
camera. We shot approximately 80
percent of Invisible with the Jaunt, says
Smithingham.
In contrast to a traditional
motion-picture camera, the Jaunt One
has no interchangeable lenses. Instead,
the spherical body features 24 fixed and
synchronized camera modules, each
with a 112" native HD global-shutter
sensor and custom, wide-angle prime
optics that offer a 130-degree diagonal
field of view and an f 2.9 maximum
aperture. With its multiple lenses clus-
tered around a vented metal dome, the
cameras appearance is akin to a biome-
chanical spiders head.
The productions GoPros were
modified to accept C-mount optics, and
Smithingham notes that the crew
utilized 1.34mm and 1.07mm Entaniya
Fisheye lenses. The Sony a7S II had a
Rokinon [Fisheye] 8mm lens, which we
modified, he adds. I shaved the flange
so it had a slightly wider field of view
and then put it onto a Metabones Speed
Booster. That effectively made it into a

56 October 2016 American Cinematographer

6mm lens, and we were then shooting it
on a [panoramic] head. In addition to
fixed tripods and monopods, the
production deployed cameras on
Steadicam, a custom rover and custom
drones by Aerobo, a wirecam by
Varavon, and motion-control sliders by
KFX and Kessler.
Theres a lot of discussion in VR
about what you can and cannot do in
this new medium, Tatlock notes. In
distribution with the headset, you can
actually make people nauseous with
excessive movement. Whenever we had
a shot we thought might cause someone
to get ill, we always covered [the action]
static just to be safe. We had to deter-
mine what the narrative rules were while
working in a medium that is still being
invented.
Simon Crane directed our final
episode, and as Dougs longtime 2nd-
unit director and stunt coordinator, he
came in from an action POV, with very
specific ideas of where the camera
should go, Tatlock continues. Those
ideas included hanging a camera off of
the sixth story of a building and running
the rig at top speed in a remote-control
car down a Tribeca alleyway. We would
have considered both of those shots
impossible to do at the start of the show,
but both of them are in the final cut. We
were constantly pushing things techni-
cally and creatively.
Smithingham adds, As a general
rule I think having a fixed horizon really
helps. Placing something a long distance
The crew readies the fireplace scene inside the Connecticut location. In the bottom photo, a
away that you can visually key into really small LED can be seen strapped to the cameras support; with a 360-degree view, VR cameras
helps with potential viewer illness. We demand creative thinking when it comes to hiding lights.
target the perspective in such a way that
it will feel ergonomically successful to shots in the entire series that are POV. overlap somewhat. This is due to a vari-
experience for people who are sitting on We shot it much more like a regular ety of factors, such as the difficulties of
a couch with a headset although I movie. There are shots that are very low- placing movie lighting so it wont appear
personally prefer to view in headset down in places where human beings in the cameras all-encompassing view;
while standing up. We also planned the could never possibly be, and some shots the fixed lens of the VR rigs; and the
editing choices and motivated our that are very high up. We didnt think inability to monitor the cameras native
camera moves so you dont constantly about it in terms of placing you into the output live during takes.
need to twist your neck around to see scene we thought about it from the Just starting a take is complex,
the key action in a shot. perspective of placing you into the observes Smithingham. First you make
One of the things that most VR story. sure the cameras are all on, and then you
series do is obsess with first-person On a VR production, the more press record. Then you have to run
POV, he continues. We didnt do that traditional roles of cinematographer, around the rig and make sure that all of
so much, and I think there are only a few gaffer and digital-imaging technician the cameras are actually recording. Next

www.theasc.com October 2016 57

 Being There
Top: Pictured is a
direct-from-camera
image from the
productions shoot
on location in New
York. Bottom left:
Engstrom suspends
the Jaunt off of a
building in
Brooklyn. Bottom
right: With a Ricoh
Theta camera
positioned atop
the Jaunt for help
with previewing
the 360-degree
image, Alan
Bucaria lines up a
shot during the
Tribeca shoot.

you have to slate, which is a three-step
process for light, sound and motion. The
cameras do not accept timecode, so for
the Jaunt camera which is genlocked
the team used a traditional slate as
well as a digital slate that plays back a
coded signal to attach [in the cloud] the
ambisonic audio to the camera take. For
the GoPros, which are not genlocked
and have rolling shutters, [I built] a
custom slate that consisted of a trash can
lined with camera charts. A hole was
drilled in the top to accept a camera
flash or flashlight. When it was time to
shoot, the trash can was placed over the
rig, the flash triggered which
provided a visual sync and then the
trash can was hit with an object to create
a loud sound for the sound sync, and
then spun to calibrate for stitching. The
C-mount lenses need to be constantly
checked for back-focus, so the charts
allowed us to do that on every take.
Finally, you have to run and hide so
youre not in the shot. Youre rolling for
up to a minute before you can get the
action going, and then you tend to run
scenes longer than a traditional shoot.
Once the action started, actually
seeing what the cameras were capturing
was the next major hurdle. We had
these cell-phone cameras that were
placed back-to-back next to the VR
rig and ran into a hacked system, with
which our post department figured
out how to do a very-low-resolution,
security-camera-style playback,
Smithingham explains. Sometimes we
used a hacked Theta S that ran into a
Raspberry Pi with Wi-Fi to broadcast
the signal; other times we just video-
chatted with cell phones strapped to the

58 October 2016 American Cinematographer

 Bucaria and Smithingham prep a scene on location in Haiti.
monopod. Healer adds, The code I
wrote to transmit Theta S on a RaspPi
is posted on GitHub at github.com/
themolecule/thetaServer. It was a very
useful production tool.
A key aspect of VR production is
making sure your camera department is
very aware of how these cameras are
designed, Smithingham continues.
You have to know how your camera
functions or you can totally destroy a
shot. [The cameras] have blind spots
due to how the different angles are all
stitched into a single sphere, so if you
place an actor in the wrong place relative
to the camera, you can lose the whole
shot. You have to be very cognizant of
how these cameras will function in post-
production, or else you end up with an
insane magnitude of rotoscoping costs.
You can just imagine the absurdity of
rotoscoping an 8-by-8K, 60-fps moving
shot.
Both the Jaunt One and the
GoPro array recorded to individual SD
cards one each per camera module.
For the Jaunt One, the SD data is
imported using the Jaunt Media
Manager and uploaded to the private
Jaunt Cloud Rendering system, which
uses proprietary light-field based stitch-
ing algorithms to create a seamless
360x180-degree stereoscopic work
product that can be downloaded from
the cloud in a variety of formats. The
GoPro systems, on the other hand, do
not have an importer. The a7S II
recorded to internal SD cards at 4K in
XAVC S format.
The abundance of digital infor-
mation made data management another
logistical challenge. At one point, for a
multi-cam stunt shot, we had 96 sensors
total, which is insane, Smithingham
says with a laugh. Our heaviest day
included a stunt in which we destroyed
a location. Rolling simultaneously were
two Jaunts, with a total of 48 SD cards;
two three-camera GoPro rigs; an a7S II;
and two 1.07mm single-camera GoPro
rigs for a total of 63 SD cards. I was
actually the DIT on that day, and
towards the end we were running with a
tiny crew less people to hide. But we
also shot some days where we had two
units running, which would have added
12 more GoPros to that number. Our
DIT Joe Belack had 96 SD cards
both MicroSD and standard SDHC
to import. We were shooting at 60
fps, and the data rate came out to about
60GB a minute, so we ended up some-
where in the range of 64TB of raw
footage by the end of the production for
a 30-minute show.
Engstrom tackled many of the
duties a gaffer would traditionally
handle, and hiding lights and cables was
59
 Being There
A series of equirectangular storyboard images.
one of his primary concerns. The
camera sees out of every window and
down every hallway, he says. Its always
been like this in our business, but with
VR youre really seeing the whole world.
Its a million times harder to hide
fixtures, and you need more time.
In many cases there was no way to
hide cable in a scene. In those situations,
Engstrom deployed battery-powered
lighting units, including Dedolight 200-
watt HMIs; ETC Source Four Mini
60 October 2016
LEDs; Litepanels Astra 1x1 LEDs;
Arri SkyPanel S60s and S30s; LiteGear
LiteRibbons; and Litegear LiteMats, seam in the finished 360-degree clip. So
versions 1, 4 and 2L. There were times
when I had to bounce a light from far
away, and for that [we used] standard
ETC Source Four 750-watt tungsten
units, notes Engstrom. I would have
to throw light completely across a scene,
from the other side of the room, where
I could hide a light and bounce it off of
a wall.
American Cinematographer
In addition to bounce lighting
and battery-operated units, Engstrom
made extensive use of practicals. Never
has set dressing with fixtures been more
important, he says. Many times the
lights are going to be in the shot. In
some cases I had to put lamps where
there was no power; we would run up to
three LED bulbs [equivalent 60 watts],
gelled to 4,500K, off of a battery-block
inverter or K5600 Slimverter, which ran
them for hours off of Anton/Bauer
batteries. I tried to keep color tempera-
tures in the mid-4,000K range as
opposed to having it turn a gnarly
orange, which the GoPros tend to do at
3,200K.
While sorting out these logistics,
the crew also chipped away at the
formats optical limitations. In the fifth
episode, Simon was directing a scene set
in a diner and he wanted to get very
close to an actor, says Smithingham.
Wed never gotten closer than 4 feet,
because at that distance you may have to
deal with major parallax issues, and
objects can essentially disappear within a
I looked into how the Jaunts optical-
flow algorithm stitches everything
together and generates stereo, and
figured out a way to trick the computer
into thinking something wasnt a solid
object and throwing the stitch into a
place where it wouldnt overlap the
actor. We used a technique called dazzle
camouflage, where you break a solid
shape into a confusing pattern in this
case by adding very specific set dressing.
Dazzle camo is a type of camou-
flage technique primarily used in World
War I, he continues. Its also known as
disruptive camouflage. It reasoned that
by painting the ships with confusing
patterns, U-boats stereoscopic coinci-
dence range finders would have trouble
determining the shape, size and direc-
tion of a ship, because they would not be
able to accurately create depth, and thus
range, based on a triangulation formula.
I reasoned that if the pattern were
confusing enough, the optical flow algo-
rithm might have similar trouble and
just throw a stitch around the edge of
the pattern, or throw a stitch into the
pattern in such a way that it would be
concealed. So we placed the actors in a
narrow space in front of a glass fridge
that was surrounded by odd-colored
patterns similar to a Barbers pole. These
objects were sometimes closer than 18
inches, but because of their confusing
patterns, the algorithm was unable to
find depth and threw the stitch around
them. This was accentuated by putting
brightly colored objects at various
depths within the glass fridge. The actor
moved between 18 and 24 inches.
Tatlock mentions other tech-
niques the crew learned along the way
that greatly enhanced the process of
planning and executing their shots. For
example, she offers, You should try to
storyboard for 360 with a cube map and,
if possible, review [the storyboards with
a VR] headset so you can actually see
how the story looks in VR. Then trust
yourself more than anyone else about
what works. A lot of people will get up
on a VR stage and say, This technique
works and that one doesnt. But maybe
you can figure out a better way, and then
all of a sudden youve invented a new
shot in VR.
Smithingham, Fred Beahm and
Michael Vincent handled editorial
duties for Invisible, using Adobe
Premiere with Mettles SkyBox VR
plug-in for live VR headset previews.
Meanwhile, Healer spearheaded work
at The Molecule in New York. Our
 Being There
Top: Filmmaker
Doug Liman
whose production
company 30 Ninjas
co-created Invisible
views a shot
from camera
position while
Smithingham
stands in as a dead
man. Bottom left:
Liman and
Smithingham
discuss a visual-
effects-heavy shot.
Bottom right: Liman
uses an Oculus Rift
DK2 to preview a
quick-stitched shot
on set.

primary tool for [stitching the individ-
ual camera captures into] 360 VR
panoramas is [The Foundrys] Nuke,
along with ancillary tools like Hugin,
Autopano and Nukes Cara VR toolkit,
Healer explains. We also built a lot of
custom gadgets within Nuke to create
our own magic toolset.
The general approach depends a
lot on which camera were working
from, Healer adds. For example, with
the GoPro footage, we receive three to
six individual MPEG-4 movie clips for
each shot that we immediately decode
into JPEG image sequences for stitch-
ing. For Jaunt [footage], we could access at that standard, but in 360 degrees, only
the cloud renders directly and download certain segments of the sphere [feature]
EXR frames. Finally, for the Sony a7S motion, so the final shot the viewer sees
II, we transcoded from Sonys native is a hybrid of re-grained stills and
XAVC S-Log 4K format. Footage motion footage.
from the a7S II was a combination of The Molecule was also responsi-
video and stills captured from a nodal ble for creating visual effects and anima-
head. Video was all at 4K and 30 fps. tion using Autodesks Maya, mapping
Theres still a little debate about the effects into stereoscopic 360-degree
ideal frame rate for VR, Healer notes, space and dealing with final renders at
and I will admit that I have perhaps 4Kx2K latitude-longitude resolution,
fought it the most, but 60 fps seems to per eye, at 60 fps. And although a host
be the winner, and certainly for this of technical considerations went into
show we have to conform all things to the final product, the effects team at
60 fps. Footage is interpolated to arrive The Molecule also poured plenty of

62 October 2016 American Cinematographer

artistic creativity into the mix by taking
stock of other movies that feature invisi-
ble characters. We talked about a lot of
them, like The Invisible Man [1933],
Predator and Hollow Man, says Healer.
One of the most interesting references
was the chameleon effect of an octopus,
which can absorb color and texture to
effectively camouflage itself while not
actually being transparent.
The technical hurdles for The
Molecules crew included transposing
tried-and-tested visual-effects develop-
ment techniques into the 360-degree
realm. In episode one theres a fight
sequence in a hospital between a tall
invisible character and a much shorter
visible character, says Healer. The invis-
ible character gets stabbed with a pair of
scissors, which then float in midair as he
continues to fight and the camera dollies
through the room. Normally youd shoot
a clean plate of the background and
composite the scissors into the action, but
its really difficult to shoot clean plates in
VR. You cant really over-scan the frame
like you would from a single viewpoint,
so you dont get the guaranteed geometry
of the shot for the plate, and the stitching
in post can distort things so much that
they dont match up. The solution we
found was to shoot the plates and the
action [within the same take]. Wed start
a take completely clean, have the actors
step into their marks, call action, and
then step out to a clean frame again [at
the end of the take]. That was the best
way to guarantee a clean plate and more
consistent geometry. If a clean plate is
embedded in the head or tail of a shot, we
know that it will not follow a different
computational path and will be useful.
Each take is in essence a unique solve.
Expanding on geometry concerns,
Healer mentions that pixel aspect ratio is
a hot topic in VR post. In the
latitude/longitude spherical distribution
formats we use, within the area between
the center of the frame and the tops and
bottoms, the issue is how much distor-
tion youre getting from a pixels specific
position on the sphere, he explains. Its
relatively easy to wrap all of those indi-
vidual sensor images onto a single
 Being There
team at Facebook has proposed cube
The productions mapping. This idea has a lot of merit in
full VR arsenal terms of dedicating pixels to the most
included the
Oculus DK2 important parts of the image, and
headset, Jaunt simplifies parts of the process. I hope
One camera, that this gains traction. Spherical
Back-Bone
modified GoPro mapping in 2D space is an age-old
Hero4 Black problem, harking back to Mercator and
cameras, Nokia contemplated by Buckminster Fuller, as
Ozo camera, HTC
Vive headset, well as many others.
Structure IOs In order to accurately evaluate
Structure Sensor, color when looking at 360-degree
Sony a7S II
camera and images stitched together from multiple
Samsung Gear taking lenses, Healer explains, We use
VR headset. HP LP2475w 24-inch IPS LCD
monitors as well as Zalman 2D/3D
passive Trimon monitors, which [can
sphere, and its also easy for an OpenGL frame, which is typically what you care accept] a direct output from Nuke.
player on a phone or a headset to about the most, contains the least With the GoPro images, he adds,
decode and present that image to the concentrated data. You wish there was a Well start with GoPros Protune and
final viewer. But its also an unfortunate way to dedicate more of the pixels in the ultimately render out in sRGB color
format because so much data is dedi- sphere to the primary subject of what space to match the cell-phone screens
cated to the top and bottom of the youre photographing. and built-in monitor screens most
frame, which are effectively squished As an alternative to spherical current VR headsets use. For final color
into a single point. The center of the mapping, Healer continues, the VR grading, The Molecule delivered

64
4096x4096, 60 fps, top-and-bottom
stereo ProRes files to Local Hero Post
in Los Angeles, where colorist Leandro
Marini worked with Assimilates
Scratch.
With Invisible under his belt,
Smithinghams enthusiasm for VR as an
evolutionary filmmaking medium
continues to wax. Im a futurist, he
says, so Im already looking forward to
being able to have a new retina implant
that is computerized, and a chip
implanted into my brain stem that
would allow me to turn on VR when-
ever I want instead of having to use a
headset. I know that sounds weird right
now, but I think VR in a headset is the
brick-sized cell phone of a new wave
[of technology] that will become more
and more advanced. I read recently that
new technology can be defined as some-
thing that wasnt around when you were
born. So the things that are new to us
and seem kind of scary and intense wont
be scary and wont be intense for our
children and our childrens children. TECHNICAL SPECS
Tatlock also feels the surface has
barely been scratched in terms of VRs
potential. I personally really enjoy 4096x4096 Stereo Image
watching 360 video and playing virtual-
reality games, she says. Im sure you 360-Degree Digital Capture
can find metrics about how long people
can comfortably stay in headset its Jaunt One, GoPro Hero4 Black,
foolish to say theres no kind of story Sony a7S II
you wouldnt be able to do in VR. But
its been our experience that people who Rokinon Fisheye, Entaniya Fisheye
watch the first five minutes of Invisible
will want to keep going as long as the
story sustains.
The challenge right now is that
VR is so expensive and it takes so long
to stitch everything together, Tatlock
continues. You have to spend money
on visual effects for every shot, so no
one is making $100 million VR movies
just yet. But once that level of story-
telling resources is put up against this
medium, I think people will want to
watch.
65
 Student
Perspectives
Past participants of the
ASCs Master Class sessions share
their experiences in learning from
Society members, building lasting
relationships, and taking their careers
to the next level.
By Debra Kaufman
| respected.
B
efore the American Society of Cinematographers opened
the doors of its historic Hollywood Clubhouse for the
inaugural ASC Master Class in October 2013, consider-
able time and effort went into crafting the five-day
session to ensure it would be as rich and rewarding an experi-
ence as possible for the students. Society President Kees van
Oostrum who, along with then ASC President Richard
Crudo, initiated the idea of the Master Class recalls the
impetus behind the programs creation: We wanted to prop-
66 October 2016 American Cinematographer
agate a right way of working with the latest technologies that
serve our creative intent, so cinematographers can remain in
control of the image.
With the Master Class, van Oostrum adds, students
learn not only how to shoot the footage, but the on-set work-
ing methods with the crew, including a digital-imaging tech-
nician, and the post process with the digital intermediate in a
reference environment. As one of the principal architects of
the Master Class curriculum, van Oostrum stresses, We dont
just teach technology, but the art and content matter of being
a cinematographer. Its an educational platform to show cine-
matographers how to go about finding their talent and being
Taking place over five consecutive days, the sessions
incorporate a theoretical component that tackles such issues as
color science, visual effects, set politics, and the analysis and
appreciation of cinematography, as well as three days of prac-
tical lighting classes taught in a professional studio setting.
Instructors have included ASC members Caleb Deschanel,
Kramer Morgenthau, Shelly Johnson, Robert Yeoman, Dean
Cundey, Affonso Beato, Karl Walter Lindenlaub, John Bailey
and M. David Mullen, among many others.
From the outset, the Master Class has been aimed at
 Opposite: Shelly
Johnson, ASC
leads a practical
demonstration
during an ASC
Master Class
session. This
page, clockwise
from top left:
Master Class
instructors and
presenters have
included ASC
members Richard
Crudo, Bill
Bennett, Rodney
Charters, Rodrigo
Prieto, Amy
Vincent and
Robert Yeoman.

cinematographers who have already hard to make my choices meaningful knowledge that they were exposed to
developed an intermediate or even from both a storytelling point of view as every day. My class occurred near the
advanced skill set. This approach has well as the technical side. end of the week, and throughout our
Photos courtesy of the ASC archives.

had a powerful impact on the students,
as well as the participating ASC
members. I can honestly say that I
learned as much as if not more than
my students did, says Johnson, who
has taught an all-day class on advanced
lighting technique. Its very different to
light sets in front of a group that is
studying your decisions, and I tried very
What impressed me about the
students was their willingness to learn
and their obvious love for the art of
cinematography, Johnson continues.
They all had that twinkle in their eyes
that a cinematographer looks for when
giving advice. Their questions were
focused and they had a great capacity to
absorb the absolutely massive amount of
discussions and hands-on training, they
were interested and energetic. When we
took our material through color correc-
tion, they asked challenging questions
that showed the highest level of appre-
ciation for the techniques that were
being demonstrated.
Indeed, Crudo enthuses, the
Master Class has been a fantastic boon

www.theasc.com October 2016 67

 Student Perspectives

Top: John Toll,

ASC (left) and
Robbie
Greenberg, ASC
(center) work
together while
teaching an
interactive class.
Middle: Student
Shayne Sarte
watches a
demonstration.
Bottom: Roberto
Schaefer, ASC,
AIC conducts
a class.

for the ASC. Everyone who has taken

part has come away with renewed vigor
about what we do and where cine-
matography is going.
One surprise for the Master
Class organizers has been the number
of cinematographers coming from
outside the U.S. Its at least 50 percent,
says Crudo. Students have come from as
far away as Mongolia and the
Philippines, Venezuela and Slovakia.
Bill Bennett, ASC who has been an
instructor for every Master Class to
date, teaching automobile lighting for
commercials and branching into areas
such as black-and-white infrared shoot-
ing adds, Ive met students from all
over the world from every continent
except Antarctica.
Luk Teren, ASK, who has
worked as a cinematographer on shorts,
documentaries, music videos and
commercials in Slovakia and the Czech
Republic, recalls first learning about the
Master Class: I saw a video about it,
and in it theres a participant from
Austria saying, Why not? At that
moment, I asked myself the same thing.
I have always been a person who wants
to learn more, and I thought the ASC
Master Class would be the right place to
gain knowledge right in the capital of

68 October 2016 American Cinematographer

film, from the most experienced teach-
ers in the craft.
Filmmaker Summer-Joy Main
agrees. Honing an understanding of
light, practicing setting up a shot for the
camera, working with a crew, selecting
the best lens and frame these are
crucial skills that require practical expe-
rience, she says. The Master Class
offered that experience and, most
importantly, it was under the direction
of those most skilled at the craft.
Hailing from the Philippines,
Shayne Sarte notes that, at the time she
began her own forays behind the
camera, there was no film school in her
country so she learned by apprentic-
ing herself to a director of photography,
working as a grip and camera operator
before stepping into the role of cine-
matographer. When I learned there
would be an ASC Master Class, I knew
I had to do it, she says. As a cine-
matographer, you have to always be a
student, and the chance to learn from
the members of such a prestigious orga-
nization was a real opportunity.
Earlier in her career, Louisiana-
based Natalie Kingston attended a
Maine Media Workshop, where she
learned from ASC members Daniel
Pearl, Rodney Taylor and Rexford
Metz. It was a life-changing experi-
ence, she says, so I knew I had to take
the Master Class. Any time theres an
opportunity to take a class from an ASC
cinematographer much less multiple
ones Ill jump on it.
For David McGrory who
graduated with a degree in cinematog-
raphy from the Los Angeles Film
School in 2003 and has since been
working as a gaffer in Local 728 the
Master Class also served as a means to
establishing lasting working relation-
ships. [The value of ] being able to
contact those giants of cinematography
to ask them for advice or support cannot
be measured, he says.
Those who have attended a
Master Class session cite the chance to Top: Caleb Deschanel, ASC sits down for a discussion with Master Class students.
work with so many knowledgeable ASC Middle: Charters conducts an interactive demonstration of lighting and capturing a scene inside
a vehicle. Bottom: Student Natalie Kingston (lower right) listens to Master Class instructor
members as the most obvious highlight Bill Taylor, ASC.
of the course. But every student has his

www.theasc.com October 2016 69

 Student Perspectives

Top: Kramer
Morgenthau, ASC
holds a China ball
while lighting a
scene for his
students. Middle:
Johnson steps
behind the
camera for a
demonstration.
Bottom: Sam
Nicholson, ASC
conducts a
greenscreen
lighting
demonstration.

or her own most valuable takeaway. For

Puerto Rico-based French photogra-
pher Pascal Henri Fontana, cinematog-
raphy was something he initially learned
on his own, as an offshoot of his
successful commercial-photography
work. He cites the Master Class as an
opportunity to learn different
approaches from different ASC cine-
matographers, like Caleb Deschanel,
Checco Varese, Don McCuaig, Amy
Vincent all their different approaches
and philosophies.
What comes from the ASC
members combined and varied points-
of-view, unique personal opinions, and
decades of experiences and judgment-
calls is priceless, says David Darby,
ASC, who has participated in eight
sessions and is a regular fixture on the
Politics on a Film Set panel discus-
sion. If the Master Class had been
offered when I was starting out, there is
absolutely no way I wouldnt have
moved mountains to get into one.
Among the session highlights
Fontana mentions are learning how to
light a car from Bennett; learning about
filters with Mullen; and a great class
with Amy Vincent, which took place
on a set at Mole-Richardson and made
use of a script and actors. Amy showed
how she established a mood and look,

70 October 2016 American Cinematographer

he recalls. She described her choices
why she would do one thing rather than
another. It was very insightful. From
Varese, Fontana gleaned information
about how to shoot where there is no
light. It was a very different way of film-
ing, with the camera on a shoulder with
a flashlight and reflectors.
McGrory points to a visual-
effects seminar taught by the amazing
Bill Taylor, ASC. He turned my exten-
sive experience of working with green-
screen on its head his techniques
were unlike anything I had seen before,
even after lighting multiple Marvel
films. Other highlights, McGrory
adds, included watching Gabriel
Beristain [ASC, BSC] discuss how to
creatively shoot and light for coverage,
and David Mullens encyclopedic
knowledge of the history and science
behind all aspects of filmmaking.
Ive [taught] the introductory
video-clips class a couple of times
sort of a history of cinema and what
you can pick up from old movies,
Mullen notes. Ive also done a lighting
workshop twice: one centered on deal-
ing with smoked sets and creating shafts
of light with Lekos, and comparing
anamorphic to spherical lenses; and the
other dealing with creating deep-focus
effects with split-diopters and tilt-focus
lenses. I also showed some tricks using a
piece of angled glass in front of the lens
to either create ghost reflections or to
fog the image with colored light. The Top: Dante Spinotti, ASC, AIC demonstrates how to place the camera.
students are already working at an Bottom: Checco Varese, ASC discusses tools of the trade.
advanced level and come from a wide
array of backgrounds and disciplines,
which always makes the class interest- Morgenthaus class also chose to demonstrate cross-shooting, a
ing. resonated with Teren. His way of light- situation often used in comedy, he
For Kingston, the hands-on ing scenes inspired me to think about explains. Two actors are seated at a
demonstrations led by Morgenthau lighting differently, he says. Teren table and we place one camera on each
were incredible, she says. I connected enthuses about the opportunity to learn of them, so I am essentially shooting in
with his approach to cinematography. an array of techniques during the two opposite directions simultaneously.
He described his preproduction process Master Class. I could watch profes- Its a little tricky pulling this off and
on specific films, talked about meetings sionals at work, see their subjective keeping the lighting interesting, but Im
with producers and directors, and approach to filmmaking and, thanks to often asked to do this on my movies
showed us his look books and visual that, create my own approach. This was with [director] Paul Feig, as the actors
inspirations. Thanks to his class, I more valuable to me than reading objec- are often in an improvisational scene,
understand how to work with larger tive theories. which is difficult to re-create [for single-
light sources, which has really changed Yeoman taught a lighting session camera coverage].
the way I light. for a Master Class earlier this year. I For Main, one particular high-

www.theasc.com October 2016 71

 Student Perspectives
Oliver
Bokelberg, ASC
offers his
perspective
during a
lighting class.
Helping him
are actors
Brittany Belt
and Philip
Smithey.
light was working with Paul Cameron,
ASC. Pauls session, [in which he was]
working entirely with LEDs, was very
insightful, especially for smaller and
mid-level films with limited access to
rigs and lighting, she says. He spoke
honestly about his projects, the complex
and always-evolving cinematographer-
director relationship, and the develop-
ment of his personal style and visual
taste.
Sarte is one of a number of
students who have taken the Master
Class twice. There were some topics
that were a bit foreign to me because of
how differently we do it here in the
Philippines, she says. Her first instruc-
tor was Stephen H. Burum, ASC. He
shared practical knowledge on how to
deal with actors, the art department, the
director, she says. He shared so much
real-world advice that you dont get in
cinematography books. These are the
things that make me want to go back to
the Master Class.
She also recalls working with
Vincent, who gave her pointers on how
to handle the camera. Thats some-
thing else you dont get in books, says
Sarte. She showed me a better posture
for handling the camera. Such a practi-
cal thing from another female cine-
matographer is very valuable to me,
72 October 2016
because it is a shared experience. Sarte
also points to working on a practical
setup at Mole-Richardson with Jo
Willems, ASC, SBC. [ASC members]
Cynthia Pusheck, Don McCuaig and
Theo van de Sande were there, asking Jo
questions, she says. It was very
humbling that these great cinematogra-
phers would share and ask one another
questions. I got a lot from their conver-
sations.
In fact, theres been a growing
interest among ASC members to sit in
on the classes, and this participation has
developed into the formal role of
ambassador. The ambassadors take on
the role of joining in the discussion and
adding their experience, van Oostrum
explains. I couldnt have dreamed of
having so many ASC members
involved, but it evolved. They like talk-
ing about cinematography with one
another, so it became a galvanizing
aspect for our members.
[The ambassadors] are there to
support the instructors information,
offers McCuaig, who has been an
ambassador as well as a teacher, present-
ing a class on working as a 2nd-unit
cinematographer. He finds being an
ambassador to be a rewarding way to
engage with the students. Its been very
fruitful for me, he says. Conversations
American Cinematographer
with the students are quite interesting. I
find them very enthusiastic, looking to
get as much information as they can.
The Master Class has had a posi-
tive impact on the careers of many of the
cinematographers who have partici-
pated, among them Alex Beatty. He was
in his last year of studying telecommu-
nications and film at the University of
Alabama when he showed a commercial
hed directed at the 2014 Broadcast
Education Association conference in
Las Vegas. There, he met AC s circula-
tion director, Saul Molina, and ASC
member Gil Hubbs. They told him
about the upcoming Master Class, and
Beatty signed up.
Taking the class was a gateway
to working with the ASC, Beatty says,
noting that he now works as a freelance
cinematographer, editor and volunteer
for the Society. I love being a part of
everything at the ASC whenever I can.
Its great to have access to these cine-
matographers and their endless knowl-
edge.
It is part of the overall mission of
the ASC to teach cinematography to
the next generation of cinematogra-
phers, Bennett stresses. The Master
Class is a perfect opportunity for young,
upcoming cinematographers to interact
directly with some of the master cine-
 Curtis Clark, ASC gives a presentation in the boardroom of the ASC Clubhouse.
matographers alive today: the members
of the ASC.
Fontana says taking the Master
Class has made him feel more confi-
dent. I can see better, even in my still
photography and my daily life, he says.
He wrote, directed and shot a short film,
Aurora, which began airing on HBO in
August. Im ready for the next step, he
says. What I enjoy is the visual part of
the film, giving life to and supporting
the intention of the lines [in the screen-
play].
Kingston notes that through the
Master Class, she was able to create
connections with the companies
involved, including Panavision, Mole-
Richardson and EFilm. Now I know
that if the opportunity presents itself, Ill
have contacts, she says.
The connections between
students and their ASC instructors and
ambassadors also last. I was sitting in a
hotel dining room just before last
Christmas when a text came in from a
graduate, Darby recounts. We had
been in touch quite a few times, and he
needed to know where I would recom-
mend he rent a certain type of specialty
head for a job he was about to start. I
fired off my reply mid-bite and included
the reasons for my recommendation,
based on my experience. I know that
many of the other ASC members who
have taken part in the Master Class have
similar stories.
After Kingston had returned to
Louisiana following her Master Class
experience, she received a call from
Michael Goi, ASC, ISC, who was in
New Orleans to shoot American Horror
Story. He called me out of the blue,
Kingston recalls. Id expressed interest
in shadowing an ASC member on set,
so they connected me with Michael. He
encouraged me to be by his side and
introduced me to his crew, as well as to
Kevin Gilhooley, a lens technician at
Panavision New Orleans. Since then,
Panavision has helped me out with
many of my projects.
Being exposed to different cine-
matographers processes expanded my
horizons and got me to think on a
different level, sometimes outside my
comfort zone, Kingston adds. And if
you mention youve been taught by
ASC members, I feel it adds a little
more credibility to your work.
McGrory agrees, noting that
having taken the Master Class helped
him land a career-changing job. A few
months after I completed the Master
Class, I found myself up for a $1 million
feature called Tell Me How I Die, he
says. My involvement was on the ropes
 Student Perspectives
Right: Students
mingle at a
networking
mixer. Below:
Summer-Joy
Main receives her
Master Class
certificate from
Crudo and
Bennett.
for a few days, but after stressing my past
set experience as well as my ASC
connection, I was able to get the gig. It
was an arduous shoot, [filled] with chal-
lenges and it turned out to be the
project I am most proud of in my career.
My experience working in the industry
for years as well as the support of the
ASC members helped me navigate
those challenges and create something
wholly believable and true.
Todd M. Duym also found that
the Master Class provided a major boost
for his professional work. The Master
Class was such a transformative experi-
74 October 2016
ence, he says. The week at the
Clubhouse has truly had a profound
effect on my career. Each cinematogra-
pher offered a unique perspective on the
craft, and that opened my eyes to differ-
ent ways of approaching cinematogra-
phy. It gave me the courage to be brave
and to create more engaging images.
The year after Duym attended
the Master Class, he continues, I
received a nomination at the Canadian
Society of Cinematographers Awards
for a Microsoft piece in the Branded
Content category. This year, I won the
CSCs Commercial Cinematography
American Cinematographer
Award for a Lexus spot. Ive also joined
the Murtha Skouras Agency. Its
humbling so many wonderful things
have happened since I took the Master
Class. Im truly thankful for the experi-
ence.
Teren, who graduated from the
Academy of Performing Arts
Bratislavas Cinematography and
Photography department, also notes the
positive impact of his participation.
The experience gave me more self
confidence to start my own projects as a
cinematographer, he says. It opened
the possibility for me to shoot a feature-
length World War II drama, where I
had the opportunity to apply the knowl-
edge I acquired.
He continues, I also learned
about the complexity of the cinematog-
raphers job, how to prepare myself for
projects and how to search for inspi-
ration in art, from Renaissance paintings
to modern photography. As the son of a
painter, I now see cinematography as
painting with light, and painting as
telling stories with pictures. In my work,
I try to connect the world of art and the
world of technology while still being
efficient. As a result of taking the
Master Class, Teren was also chosen as a
representative of the Slovak Association
of Cinematographers to attend the
recent International Cinematography
Summit, hosted by the ASC in Los
Angeles (AC Sept. 16).
Main notes that the ASC
connected her with Ryan Broomberg
winner of a 2013 ASC Harris
Savides Student Heritage Award
with whom she collaborated on her
most recent short. While my profes-
sional opportunities in the past year
have steered me towards the role of
director, my studies of cinematography
have been crucial to the breadth of my
skill set, she says. The cinematogra-
pher-director relationship is crucial to
achieving the photographic vision in the Telecine &
most effective and efficient way. The
ASC Master Class allowed me to take
Color Grading
my working relationship with cine- Jod is a true artist with
matographers to the next level, increas- a great passion for his craft.
ing creative collaboration. John W. Simmons, ASC
Cinematographers as a group
are generous by nature, both with each Contact Jod @ 310-713-8388
other and with young [filmmakers] Jod@apt-4.com
coming up, muses Johnson. I had
some very open and honorable guys
help me when I was young, and if they
had not shown me that sort of generos-
ity, Id be fumfering around today. The
Master Class is a means through which
I can show thanks to my own teachers.
Darby adds, My fellow ASC
members and I take the approach that
the most important, enriching and
purposeful thing we can do to give back
to the wonderful career weve enjoyed is
to help somebody else have a shot at it.
Its hard, of course [to make a career of
it] but then thats one of my all-time
favorite catchphrases: Its supposed to
be hard. So give yourself every advan-
tage along the way that you can think of.
Had I had that opportunity in the form
of the ASC Master Class, theres no way
I would have passed it up.
For more information, and to enroll
in an upcoming Master Class, visit
www.theasc.com/site/asc-master-class/.
 New Products & Services
Chimera Expands Lighting Accessories Lineup
Chimera Lighting has introduced a number of new lighting
accessories, including Standard and Compact Light Booms, the Tech
Multi Bracket for OctaTech Lightbanks, Lightbank Adapters, Tech
Lightbanks for Arris SkyPanel LEDs, the Triolet to Profoto Adapter
and the Speed Ring Finder app.
The Standard and Compact Light Booms feature head exten-
sion at the end of the boom, offering up to 360-degree rotation for
directional control; all angle movements are controlled by a conve-
nient handle at the pivot point. A sliding counterweight system
the length of which has been minimized for use in smaller studios
adjusts for different sizes of lights and boxes. The Boom offers
self-arresting movement and can be assembled without tools in less
than five minutes. The company also offers a kit that includes a
Boom, Triolet and Chimera Pancake Lantern Kit.
The Tech Multi Bracket enables mounting of OctaTech Light-
banks on LED panels. This new-style ring can accommodate square
and rectangular panels from companies such as Litepanels, Cineo
and Arri. Complementing the adapter, Chimera has designed a new
5' OctaTech Lightbank that addresses several key issues: The internal
coating intensifies output strength and, in conjunction with the
specially designed baffle, ensures even distribution of the light across
the entire field. The adapters design optimizes the LED panels
beam angle for further control.
Chimera Lightings Junior and Senior adapters allow Light-
banks to now be used with space lights, enabling users to turn a
space light into a key-light source. The Junior fits small space lights
that measure about 20" in diameter; the Senior fits space lights with
a diameter of approximately 31". In addition to the adapter,
Chimera has also announced the 3' and 5' OctaSpace Lightbanks,
compatible with the Junior and Senior adapters, respectively.
Chimeras Tech Lightbank for Arris SkyPanel S30 includes the
Lightbank body, mounting frame, full-diffusion front screen, 12 and
1 4 Grid front screens, 1 8 Grid inner baffle, and a storage sack. Two
options are available for the mid-sized SkyPanel S60: a Shallow
model with a depth of 12", and a Standard version with a depth of
16". In addition to the Lightbank body, both are bundled with a
76 October 2016 American Cinematographer
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.
mounting frame, a full-diffusion front screen, 12 and 14 Grid front
screens and a storage sack; the Shallow model also includes a 18
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crates, metal honeycomb grids and barn doors are also available.
The Triolet to Profoto Adapter easily attaches to Chimeras
popular Triolet continuous-light fixture, which can accommodate up
to a 1,000-watt bulb. The adapter allows the Triolet to be used with
Profotos wide array of light-shaping tools, including reflectors and
beauty dishes.
Lastly, Chimera Lightings new Speed Ring Finder app
provides a fast and convenient tool to match light-
ing components and ensure compatibility,
whether checking inventory on a truck,
working on set or exploring future
needs. Each category Film (continu-
ous), Still (strobe) and LEDs offers an
extensive list of lighting gear from a
wide range of manufacturers. Accessi-
ble by alphabetical list or a search field,
a quick tap on the selected light automat-
ically displays the appropriate Chimera speed
rings or, for LEDs, the matching Chimera Light-
banks. Fixtures and Lightbanks can be purchased
directly from within the app, and a built-in location service identifies
the nearest Chimera dealers and rental houses. The app also
provides access to a chat room and forums, as well as email and
phone contacts for Chimera. Look for Chimera Lighting to down-
load the free app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.
For additional information, visit www.chimeralighting.com.
Magic Gadgets Fires up LED Flicker Box
Lighting-effects equipment manufacturer Magic Gadgets has
introduced the Flicker Fire LED Panel, designed to re-create the look
of authentic firelight. The fixture continues the 30-year tradition of
quality and ingenuity for which the American company is known.
Measuring 18.5"x14.25"x5.5" and weighing 34 pounds, the
compact, simple-to-use
fixture offers fine-tuning for
an array of scenarios and
can produce up to 26,000
lumens of warm firelight
color. In its setup mode, the
Flicker Fire provides control
over each color effect,
effect speed, brightness
range and effect-step
smoothness. The unit can
also save, store and recall
up to 10 control-parameter sets for easily
repeatable effects over the course of an
extended production.
The Flicker Fire allows users to tune
the color of the firelight effect without the
need for gels. The unit offers independently
adjustable color channels (white, orange
and red); basic (four-channel) and full (18-
channel) DMX modes; low-set, high-set,
speed and smoothing controls for each
color; three-color global control; a dimmer-
only mode that imitates the color-changing
properties of a tungsten light source; and
the ability to link multiple sets controlled
from a designated master unit. Any or all
color channels can be used as a lamp with
dimmer functionality and no flicker effect.
Magic Gadgets uses analog direct
DC dimming to ensure flicker-free operation
regardless of the cameras shooting speed
except, of course, when flicker effects are
desired. The unit boasts all-aluminum
construction, and its temperature is self-
controlling, with an internal heat sink and
fans that adjust their speed as needed. Its all
packed into a single unit including a 20'
hardwired 12 AWG cable with industrial 5-
15 plug and thermal circuit breaker with
no need for a separate power supply.
A plastic diffuser/protector is
included, and an accessory pack with Lee
LED diffusers is available. Moisture-resistant
models and a wheeled Pelican hard case are
also available.
For additional information, visit
magicgadgets.com.

Maccam Demos Arris SkyPanel

Firmware 2.0
Maccam recently hosted an educa-
tional open house, during which Arris Mike
Wagner demonstrated the features of the
Firmware 2.0 release for Arris SkyPanel LED
fixture. Additional Arri and Maccam repre-
sentatives including (pictured from left
on facing page) Mike Jones, Michael
McDonald, Tom Jacob, Malcolm Mills and
John Gresch were on hand throughout
the event to answer questions from the
attendees, who were able to get their hands
on the SkyPanel fixtures and test the new
firmwares capabilities for themselves.
Already able to create an array of
colors, the SkyPanel with Firmware 2.0 can
now emulate a wide variety of well-known
lighting gels, enabling users to select familiar
gels in seconds via the onboard controls or
through a new DMX protocol. SkyPanel gel
libraries comprise Rosco and Lee filter cate-
gories that include color corrections, party
colors, Rosco CalColor and Storaro Selec-
tion.
Low End Mode enables SkyPanel to
generate accurate CCTs with high color
rendition and smooth dimming at very low
light levels. In Tungsten Mode, SkyPanel can
mimic the dimming curve and strike-on and
-off effects of a traditional tungsten lamp;
the CCT warms as the light is dimmed, and
when the intensity drops quickly to zero
there is a short afterglow of warm light.
For added control and to eliminate
any sound issues for delicate installations,
the SkyPanels cooling fans can now be set
to different modes or even turned off for
short periods of time, directly via DMX. The
SkyPanel will always protect itself from
damage by turning the fans back on at a
very low level if the LEDs get too hot.
Firmware 2.0 increases the number
of SkyPanel dimming curves from one to
four. The exponential curve provides fine
control at the low end of the dimming scale,
while the logarithmic curve allows for better
control at the high end. The S curve
provides both high- and low-end dimming
fidelity with limited control in the middle,
and the linear curve gives a one-to-one
translation of the output-to-intensity level.
Remote Device Management (RDM)
is now fully implemented in the SkyPanel,
enabling two-way communication between
the fixture and the console, and saving time
by facilitating control of many SkyPanel
functions from the ground, including DMX
address and protocol, fan mode, tempera-
ture sensor readings, display settings, IP
address and special modes. Art-Net has also
been fully implemented in SkyPanel
Firmware 2.0, providing DMX-512A and
RDM functionality over Ethernet network
protocols, and allowing an expanded range
of network devices to be used in building a
complex lighting rig.
If an error should ever occur, SkyPan-
els are easy to diagnose and service with the
automatically generated error log, which
can now be exported to a USB stick, bypass-
ing the need to connect the fixture to a
computer. With the SkyPanel it is possible to
store and recall up to 10 different user
presets, and it is now possible to save these
presets to a USB stick and transfer them to
another SkyPanel. Firmware 2.0 also speeds
up the process of configuring individual
fixtures on large SkyPanel rigs by allowing all
settings to be exported to a USB stick and
transferred to another fixture.
The Firmware 2.0 update is available
free of charge at www.arri.com/lightingsoft
ware. For additional information, visit
www.arri.com and www.maccam.tv
79

Chroma-Q Launches Space Force
Chroma-Q has announced the
North American availability of its Space
Force LED fixture, a cutting-edge variable-
white LED space light.
The Space Force is available as a vari-
able white source, CCT tuneable between
2,800K and 6,300K; every unit is factory
calibrated to ensure consistent output and
color temperature. Highly efficient and
natively single source, the fixture removes
the need for skirts or silks to diffuse the
light. As a result of its lightweight (17.6
pounds), low-profile and skirt-free design,
the fixture is quick and easy to set up at any
height.
The Space Force uses a fraction of
the power required by conventional fixtures
while providing an output of up to 26,700
lumens, which is comparable to a tradi-
tional 6K fixture. Using the same convec-
tion-cooling technology found in other
Chroma-Q LED models which eliminates
the need for noisy cooling fans the Space
Force provides silent and cool running.
The unit utilizes LED technology to
ensure consistent long-life performance
without the need for costly regular mainte-
nance. The Space Force provides high CRI
and TLCI values, and, like all Chroma-Q
products, comes with theatrical-grade
dimming, which allows the output to be
smoothly controlled, without stepping,
even at the low end of the dimming curve.
The Space Force also features adjustable
PWM frequencies to provide flicker-free
operation.
The fixture has onboard power and
control electronics. Control of color temper-
ature and intensity is available via wired
DMX, the optional wireless LumenRadio
CRMX, or locally via the onboard encoders.
The optional LumenRadio connectivity is
also available for retrofitting as a user-
installed accessory.
In addition to a built-in standard
bridle and suspension-hanger brackets for
80
stacking multiple units together, optional
accessories include a manual yoke and a
low-profile hanging bracket. The unit is
available with a range of optional acces-
sories, including a black mini skirt, soft
egg crate, cyc skirt/silk, soft target kit and
soft lantern.
For additional information,
visit www.chroma-q.com and
www.ac-et.com/lighting.
Frezzi Lights the Sun
Frezzi has introduced the SunLight
LED fixture, which delivers the output of a
575-watt HMI and introduces a propri-
etary Directional
Focusing LED
design that
adjusts the beam
pattern without
the use of high-loss
lenses or optical
shaping filters.
The SunLight
incorporates the latest
state-of-the-art, 90+ CRI,
5,600K, broadcast-quality high-
output LEDs, and ultra-efficient, highly
polished internal reflectors. The beam
pattern is adjustable with a precise direc-
tional focusing control that steers the
reflectors from the native 20-degree spot
to a full-spread flood.
Fully dimmable without color shift,
the SunLight consumes a maximum of
220 watts and delivers almost 1,000 foot-
candles at 10', producing enough output
for applications where HMIs are typically
required but without UV emissions, exter-
nal ballasts, heat, or expensive and fragile
HMI lamps. It can operate on AC or DC
power, and with two Frezzi HD-150
batteries it provides a run time of about 1
hour. Weighing 6.5 pounds and measur-
ing 8"x10.5"x13" (with the mounting
bracket), the ruggedized, all-metal fixture
is fully weatherproof and features a full
range of accessories. Made in the United
States, Frezzis SunLight also features
protected recessed controls and an inte-
grated battery voltmeter.
For additional information, visit
www.frezzi.com.
International Marketplace

82 October 2016 American Cinematographer

Classifieds
CLASSIFIED AD RATES SERVICES AVAILABLE EQUIPMENT FOR SALE
All classifications are $4.50 per word. Words set DoP/GAFFER WITH IMPRESSIVE TRUCK 4X5 85 Glass Filters, Diffusion, Polas etc.
in bold face or all capitals are $5.00 per word.
First word of ad and advertisers name can be set AND CAMERAS A Good Box Rental 818-763-8547
in capitals without extra charge. No agency ALEXA, C300, ZEISS, FLYPACK
commission or discounts on classified advertis- HOLLYWOOD STUDIO ANTIQUES
M18, SKYPANEL, HONDA 7000IS
ing.PAYMENT MUST ACCOMPANY ORDER. VISA, www.CinemaAntiques.com
Mastercard, AmEx and Discover card are accept- WWW.WAYWEST.TV
BUY-SELL-TRADE
ed. Send ad to Classified Advertising, Ameri-
can Cinematographer, P.O. Box 2230, EQUIPMENT FOR SALE Worlds SUPERMARKET of USED MOTION
Hollywood, CA 90078. Or FAX (323) 876-4973.
Deadline for payment and copy must be in the PICTURE EQUIPMENT! Buy, Sell, Trade.
TJs Grip Design, Inc.
office by 15th of second month preceding publica- CAMERAS, LENSES, SUPPORT, AKS &
tion. Subject matter is limited to items and servic- Grip Rigging Accessories
MORE! Visual Products, Inc. www.visual
es pertaining to filmmaking and video production. 5/8 fittings Mini Ball heads
Words used are subject to magazine style abbre- products.com Call 440.647.4999
www.tjthegrip.com
viation. Minimum amount per ad: $45

www.theasc.com October 2016 83

 Advertisers Index
AC 78 Deck of Aces 83 Panasonic System
A.C. Entertainment Digital Sputnik Lighting Communications Co. 5
Technologies Ltd. 79 Systems 17 P+S Technik Feinmechanik
Adorama 13, 27 Drone World Expo 85 Gmbh 83
Alan Gordon Enterprises 82 Duclos Lenses 75 Pille Filmgeraeteverleih
Arri 7, 19 Eastman Kodak C4 Gmbh 82
ASC Film Manual 8 Powermills 82
Filmotechnic 80 PRG 81
B&H Photo-Video-Pro Audio F.J. Westcott 59
23 Pro8mm 82
Fluotec 63
Backstage Equipment, Inc. Samys DV & Edit 77
63 Hasselblad Bron, Inc. 40 Schneider Optics 2
Blackmagic Design 9 Hexolux/Visionsmith 83 Super16, Inc. 83
Hollywood Post Alliance 78
Camerimage 87 Hollywood Rentals 52 Teradek, LLC C2-1
Cavision Enterprises 82 Thelight Luminary for
Chapman/Leonard J.L. Fisher 41 Cine and TV, S.L. 53
Studio Equip. 25 Jod Soraci 75 Tiffen 29
Chroma-Q 79 Jumpstart Guide 84
Ushio America, Inc. 61
Cinebags, Inc. 83 Kino Flo 65
Cinematography Visual Products 83
Electronics 63 LEDs 8 Vitec/Videocom 37
Cinekinetic 82 Lee Filters 64
Lights! Action! Co. 82 Willys Widgets 82
Cineo Lighting 49 www.theasc.com 84
Cooke Optics 11 Maccam 73
CW Sonderoptic Gmbh C3 Mac Tech LED 39
Manfrotto Distribution 51
Matthews Studio Equipment/
MSE 61
Mole-Richardson/Studio
Depot 82
Movie Tech AG 82
NBC/Universal 39
Nila, Inc. 75

84
 Clubhouse News
Left: Adriano
Goldman, ASC, ABC.
Right: Ed Lachman,
ASC (right) accepts
the BSC Best
Cinematography
Award for his work
on Carol; also
pictured is Sight &
Sound editor Nick
James, who was the
guest of honor at
the BSCs Summer
Lunch.
Society Welcomes Goldman
New active member Adriano
Goldman, ASC, ABC was born in So
Paulo, Brazil. Goldman began his career
as a camera operator before directing
and photographing his first short, Is
Reinaldo Still Swimming?, which was
feted at both the So Paolo Fotoptica
Video Festival and the Festival Interna-
cional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano
in Havana, Cuba. He then continued to
work on commercials, music videos and
television series, including episodes of
City of Men (Cidade dos Homens), Sons
of Carnival (Filhos do Carnaval) and
Alice.
Goldman first collaborated with
director Cary Joji Fukunaga on the
feature Sin Nombre (AC April 09), for
which he received a cinematography
award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival
as well as an Independent Spirit Award
nomination. Goldman and Fukunaga
reteamed for the feature Jane Eyre (AC
April 11). The cinematographers credits
also include the features City of Men,
Romance, Conviction, The Company You
Keep, August: Osage County and Burnt.
Fetner, LaManna, Zell
Named Associates
New associate member Chris
Fetner currently serves as a primary tech-
nical liaison at Netflix for content owners,
creators and service vendors. He oversees
86 October 2016
Netflixs preferred-vendor program for
digital supply-chain service providers and
is responsible for sharing tools, processes
and knowledge to make delivering high-
quality content simple and efficient.
Fetner previously worked as vice president
of postproduction and technical services
for BBC Worldwide in New York. Fetner
holds a masters degree in radio, television
and film studies from American Univer-
sity, and a postgraduate diploma from
Oxford University in social studies.
Ross LaManna is a screenwriter
and novelist who has served as depart-
ment chair of the undergraduate film
department at ArtCenter College of
Design in Pasadena, Calif., since 2006,
and as chair of the graduate film depart-
ment since 2014. LaManna holds a bach-
elors degree in screenwriting from the
University of Southern California and a
masters degree in dramatic writing from
Arizona State University. LaManna has
sold original screenplays and pitches, and
performed writing or rewriting services
for Columbia Pictures, United Artists,
Carolco Pictures, Fox, Disney, Paramount,
Universal, HBO and many independent
companies. LaMannas writing credits
include the telefilms Chrome Soldiers and
Arctic Blue, the miniseries Titanic, and the
features Rush Hour and the upcoming
Maximum Impact. He has also worked on
the features Cliffhanger, Universal Soldier
and Star Trek: First Contact.
American Cinematographer
Joachim Zell currently serves as
technical director and vice president of
imaging science for Deluxe company
EFilm in Hollywood. Zell started his engi-
neering and imaging-science career
when he was 16, working as a radio and
television repair apprentice in a shop near
Frankfurt, Germany. He attended an elec-
tronics engineering college before joining
the German Navy, and he later received a
masters degree from the University for
Film and Television Engineering in Wies-
baden, Germany. Zell previously worked
Photo of Clubhouse by Isidore Mankofsky, ASC; lighting by Donald M. Morgan, ASC.
as product manager of digital film
systems for Pandora International in
England; marketing manager for Thom-
son Grass Valley in Burbank, Calif.; and
vice president of advanced technology
for Technicolor, also in Burbank. In his
spare time, Zell teaches for Red Digital
Cinemas Reducation program as well as
the ASC Master Class.
BSC Salutes Lachman, Carol
Ed Lachman, ASC recently
received the BSC Best Cinematography
Lachman photo by Jacob Sacks-Jones.
Award for his work on Carol (AC Dec.
15). The award was presented during
the BSC Summer Lunch held in the
historic ballroom of Pinewood Studios. In
addition to this award, Lachman previ-
ously received the Camerimage Golden
Frog as well as Academy and ASC Award
nominations for his work on the film.
 Close-up Peter Anderson, ASC
When you were a child, what film made the strongest impres-
sion on you?
When I was about 8, my cousins gave me a used
16mm projector along with some animated and
live-action Castle Films movies. I analyzed them
every which way, including frame by frame, and I
fell in love with the art of cinema and moving
images.
Which cinematographers, past or present, do
you most admire?
Freddie Young, BSC, for Lawrence of Arabia, and
Gianni Di Venanzo, for Federico Fellinis 812.
What sparked your interest in photography?
After watching a TV episode of Mr. Wizard on photography when I
was about 9 years old, I set up a small darkroom and made contact
prints from some negatives my dad had shot. In the process I
destroyed a good set of my moms baking pans by using them for the
processing trays.
Where did you train and/or study?
In high school I shot 16mm play-by-plays of our sports teams, and
continued that at University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. When I was 19
I got on a train to California and enrolled in the Art Center College of
Design. I also studied at USC, UCLA and University of San Francisco.
Who were your early teachers or mentors?
I came across Hal Mohr, ASC as he was filming a commercial with the
prototype Mustang in 1963. I took pictures of him filming and made
up some special prints, and Hal accepted me as a friend and became
my mentor. He introduced me to Charlie Clarke, ASC at the Club-
house, and Charlie and I serviced the Clubhouses camera collection.
What are some of your key artistic influences?
Art museums and movies, and anything involving Charlie Chaplin,
Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd. And while I was a student, [I
admired] the films of Fellini, De Sica, Antonioni, Truffaut, Godard,
Resnais, Bergman, Kurosawa and many other great international film-
makers. I am also very strongly influenced by nature.
How did you get your first break in the business?
After successfully running my own advertising photo studio for a
couple of years, Macys bought me out and hired me to head up their
photo advertising department. I then returned to L.A. and worked at
Reel 3 with Richard Spies, through which I became involved in my first
live-action studio feature production, Mahogany filming Diana
Ross and Anthony Perkins. Richard also introduced me to Douglas
Trumbull, whom I then worked with on Close Encounters.
88 October 2016 American Cinematographer
What has been your most satisfying moment on a project?
Creating images that exist only in ones imagination, where nobody fully
understands what the end result will look like until I
help deliver this vision. A lot of my creativity is a result
of the convergences of art and technology. Also, two
years ago when I was awarded the Motion Picture
Academys Gordon E. Sawyer Award, which is an
honorary Oscar for technological contributions.
Have you made any memorable blunders?
There have been occasions when, had I been made
more knowledgeable of what the director was actu-
ally looking for, I would have been able to make these
images even more powerful.
What is the best professional advice youve ever received?
Oddly enough, it was a print ad that McDonalds ran back in the Sixties,
promoting being persistent and patient. This mantra has served me very
well over my career.
What recent books, films or artworks have inspired you?
Nature and travel inspire me the most. Ive traveled the world, worked
with so many talented people, and been to many amazing places, and
this inspires me more than something you can hold in your hand. Also,
Ive been a great aficionado of American Cinematographer since I was in
junior high.
Do you have any favorite genres, or genres you would like to try?
Ive been blessed to be able to work on everything from commercials to
television to features, on technical projects, motion control, and special
venues like Imax and theme parks. Ive done so many 3D and immersive-
cinematography projects, which are now making a comeback as virtual
reality.
If you werent a cinematographer, what might you be doing
instead?
I would be a photographer and a teacher.
Which ASC cinematographers recommended you for member-
ship?
Art Cruickshank, L.B. Abbott, Joseph Westheimer and Linwood Dunn
pushed for me in the Eighties, though it was Jack Cooperman, Izzy
Mankofsky, Russell Carpenter and John Hora who successfully recom-
Photo by Layne Marie.
mended me for membership.
How has ASC membership impacted your life and career?
I have been hanging around our Clubhouse for over 40 years, and it took
until the Nineties to officially become a member of the ASC. It was a vali-
dation of my ability as a creator of motion pictures.