Kate McCullough won top honors for her cinematography in the world documentary lineup at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival for the film His & Hers. She returned to the festival this year with It’s Not Yet Dark, the debut film from director Frankie Fenton. It’s Not Yet Dark tells the story of Simon Fitzmaurice, an Irish film director who in 2008 was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (ALS). The film chronicles his efforts to make a feature film despite total physical incapacitation, using only his eyes to direct. Below, McCullough speaks with Filmmaker about the unique challenges of photographing this emotional story. Filmmaker: How and why did […]
An innocuous night out among four women turns silly, dark and ultimately touching in Fun Mom Dinner. With a cast that includes Molly Shannon, Toni Collette and Adam Scott, the film marks the feature debut of director Alethea Jones. Jones hired Sean McElwee – who shot last year’s Morris From America, another Sundance premiere – to DP the film. McElwee spoke with Filmmaker ahead of the film’s premiere about the earnest-yet-edgy approach he and Jones took to this story. Fun Mom Dinner makes it world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your […]
Jonathan Olshefski spent a decade filming the Rainey family. He’d visit the family’s home often without a camera, simply to spend time with Quest, his wife and their children. As he notes in his interview with Filmmaker, this longterm commitment allowed him to “fade into the background and record natural scenes where the camera was not intrusive.” His documentary feature debut, Quest offers an intimate, vérité-like portrait of a black family in Philadelphia. Below, Olshefski speaks about the genesis of the project, his documentary influences and serving as his own DP. Quest made its world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and why did you […]
Shawn Christensen’s second feature following his Oscar-winning short Curfew, Sidney Hall chronicles the tumultuous life of a writer at the ages of 18, 24 and 30. The film boasts an impressive cast (Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler, Michelle Monaghan, Nathan Lane) to supports its titular lead, played by Logan Lerman. Below, cinematographer Daniel Katz speaks to Filmmaker about the cameras, lenses and lighting approaches he used to distinguish each era of Sidney’s life. Sidney Hall held its world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors […]
In 2007 a group of four comics and creators joined to form Good Neighbor, a sketch comedy team that would go on to breach the ranks of Saturday Night Live. The group is known mostly for Kyle Mooney, a weirdo comic voice whose left-of-center SNL skits often get cut for time. Mooney stars in Good Neighbor’s feature film debut, Brigsby Bear, directed by fellow group member Dave McCary. The film tells the story of a secluded young man with an unhealthy obsession with a TV show literally no one has ever seen. Below, DP Christian Sprenger speaks to the film’s tricky tone, which eschews […]
Among the world’s most well-known surfers, Laird Hamilton has surfed professionally since he was 17 years old. Now in his 50s, he’s the subject of a documentary from Academy Award-nominated director Rory Kennedy. Take Every Wave offers a profile of Hamilton as a surfing innovator, celebrity and family man. Below, DP Alice Gu discusses the challenges of shooting this fast-moving, larger-than-life figure. Gu, one of two DPs on the project, goes into detail on the cameras and lenses required for the project. Take Every Wave will screen four times during the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind […]
Director Maggie Betts and DP Kat Westergaard became creative partners on The Carrier, a 2010 documentary that premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. The two worked together again on a 2014 short (Engram) and again on Novitiate, which debuted at Sundance last week. The film marks Betts’ fiction feature debut and stars Margaret Qualley and Melissa Leo. Westergaard spoke with Filmmaker ahead of the festival about the film’s painterly aesthetic, lighting challenges and “ghostly intimacy.” Novitiate will screen in competition six times during the 2017 Sundance Film Festival Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and attributes that led […]
Sean Price Williams has become an indomitable force in American independent cinema. Filming regularly on Super 16mm, Williams has served as DP on the films of Alex Ross Perry (Queen of Earth, Listen Up Philip), Robert Greene (Kate Plays Christine), Albert Maysles (Iris) and the Safdie brothers (Heaven Knows What). Williams sought to shoot something unlike any of his previous work for his latest feature, Marjorie Prime. With a cast that includes Jon Hamm, Geena Davis and Tim Robbins, Marjorie Prime is the latest film from writer/director Michael Almereyda. The film will have its world premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and why […]
Twice in a row the first film I’ve seen at Sundance is so brilliant, so accomplished that I start Sundance on a mountain high — and it’s not the thin air. I had to miss 2016 Sundance, but two years ago it was Tom Hardy in Steven Knight’s Locke, a tour de force of a one-hander that’s nonetheless a nail-biter — Hardy in close-up the entire film, speeding through the night in his car, his life crumbling in real time with each harrowing Bluetooth call. You learn a lot about concrete pours and the consequences of poor choices. But I […]
Shaul Schwarz and Christina Clusiau are the cofounders of Reel Peak Media, a production company that prides itself on documentary work of both “journalistic integrity and cinematic quality.” Both filmmakers began as photojournalists before making the move to documentary cinema. On Trophy, Schwarz and Clusiau served as DPs with Schwarz acting as director. Their film explores the worlds of big game hunting, breeding, and wildlife conservation. Below, the two discuss these issues ahead of Trophy‘s premiere at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? Schwarz and Clusiau: Since we are directors who started as photojournalists, […]