
“It Was the Movie I’d Been Waiting For”: DP Paul Meyers on Omaha

Sundance 2025 U.S. Dramatic Competition entry Omaha follows a father and his two young children on a cross-country journey that follows an unexpected family tragedy. The film is the feature debut of Cole Webley after a series of shorts and commercials.
Making the leap to features alongside Webley is his frequent partner Paul Meyers, who served as DP on Omaha. Below, Meyers elaborates on the challenges of shooting a film with child actors and how it necessitated an ingenious solution to a day-for-night sequence.
See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here.
Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led to your being hired for this job?
Meyers: Director Cole Webley and I have been longtime collaborators, working together on numerous commercials and short-form projects for the past 8 years. When he approached me about Omaha, I was so deeply moved by Robert’s script that I knew immediately it was the movie I’d been waiting for. Having a son and daughter the very same ages as the film’s Charlie and Ella, the script struck a chord inside me, and I knew I had to be part of it. I said yes—I’m all in.
Filmmaker: What were your artistic goals on this film, and how did you realize them? How did you want your cinematography to enhance the film’s storytelling and treatment of its characters?
Meyers: My main goal for the cinematography of Omaha was to stay out of the way! I really just wanted the imagery to underscore the beautiful performances of the characters and let their emotions drive the story. The visual language had to be simple and honest. Set against the backdrop of the vast American West, Omaha follows the intimate journey of a small family’s struggle and resilience in the aftermath of tragedy. I wanted the cinematography to be grounded in realism, but seen through the lens of a child.
Filmmaker: Were there any specific influences on your cinematography, whether they be other films, or visual art, or photography, or something else?
Meyers: During pre-production, Cole and I came across the incredible work of photographer Justine Kurland. Her book Highway Kind documents the years-long journey of her and her son’s travels across the highways of America. Many photographs in that book were important references for the visual language of Omaha. Kurland’s work is a remarkable blend of realism and beauty. She describes her work as “equal parts raw and romantic, idyllic and dystopian.”
This juxtaposition deeply resonated with Cole and me. We both knew from our very first discussions that the imagery of the film had to feel unpolished and honest while still maintaining the innocence and beauty of the world experienced through the eyes of a child. Striking this balance was my constant focus and challenge throughout the shoot.
Filmmaker: What were the biggest challenges posed by production to those goals?
Meyers: The biggest challenge we faced shooting Omaha was the short shooting window we had each day to film the two child actors in nearly every page of the script. Having only four-and-a-half hours a day with them meant that we would try and prepare for every scenario, but when they arrived it was a sprint to get each scene shot in time. It was a huge daily challenge that forced us to be very specific and efficient with our coverage.
Filmmaker: What camera did you shoot on? Why did you choose the camera that you did? What lenses did you use?
Meyers: We opted for the versatile Arri Alexa 35 as our primary capture tool for Omaha. The freedom to roll long, uninterrupted takes and react quickly in unrehearsed moments was crucial to capturing the many unscripted performances of Molly and Wyatt. We shot Omaha with Zeiss Super Speed mk III lenses. I was drawn to them for their softness and warmth and the organic way they render details, especially faces. Even stopped down to a 4-5.6, the Super Speeds paired with the Alexa 35 maintain a natural softness and texture without feeling clinical or harsh.
Filmmaker: Describe your approach to lighting.
Meyers: I wanted the lighting on Omaha to feel as invisible as possible. My approach included working with available light and practicals whenever we could and only augmenting with movie lights when necessary. Given the time constraints of our young cast, the shooting schedule demanded that we be prepared to shoot each scene nearly 360 degrees. Having only four-and-a-half hours each day to work with our child actors, there simply wasn’t time for relighting big turnarounds. Each fixture was set and programmed in advance so we could move quickly and react in a moment to the spontaneous performances of the kids. I could never have managed this without the experience and support of my amazing team. Key grip Steve Dorman and gaffer Matt Kubas were crucial to the success of our shoot. Consistently being one step ahead and preprograming each lighting setup in advance allowed us the freedom to make even complicated lighting adjustments on the fly—oftentimes during the middle of takes as the blocking and performances evolved on camera.
Filmmaker: What was the most difficult scene to realize and why? And how did you do it?
Meyers: An important scene in the script takes place at night around a motel swimming pool. However, due to the long daylight hours that time of year and the curfew restrictions of our young cast, filming at an outdoor pool during the night wasn’t feasible. We needed to move the scene to an indoor motel pool to create a convincing day-for-night look. The challenge was that every location we found had extremely low ceilings that we weren’t allowed to hang our own fixture from. My key grip, Steve Dorman, came up with a critical solution that saved the scene. With several large pieces of truss and every black rag we could get our hands on, his team built a series of large black tents around each of the pool’s huge windows. The tents allowed us to maintain the illusion of night while also allowing for a series of light fixtures outside the building to mimic “streetlights” shining into the room as our key. The outdoor fixtures paired with the pool’s underwater lights provided a natural ambient glow inside the room that felt right for the scene.
Filmmaker: Finally, describe the finishing of the film. How much of your look was “baked in” versus realized in the DI?
Meyers: Part of my regular pre-production routine for every digital project involves building and finetuning a shooting LUT to use for monitoring on set. This is a critical part of my creative process because it allows me to define the look and feel of the digital “film stock” that the director, myself and all the crew view throughout principal photography. We then carry that look through dailies and editorial, and it establishes a baseline for the final grade. On Omaha, I was blessed to work with Daniel DeVue at TRAFIK for the final color of the film. I’ve been lucky enough to work with Daniel for many years in commercials and having his eye and sensibilities on Omaha was an absolute privilege.
TECH BOX
Film Title: Omaha
Camera: Arri Alexa 35 (Arri Alexa MiniLF – 2nd unit)
Lenses: Zeiss Super Speed Mk III, (Canon Type SK – 2nd unit)
Processing: Digital 4K Master
Color Grading: Daniel DeVue @ TRAFIK with BaseLight