Cinematographers
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“[You] Build a Movie Like You Build a Fire”: Lost Highway DP Peter Deming on Restorations, Lighting and Working with David Lynch
Lost Highway (courtesy of the Criterion Collection)
With all three seasons of Twin Peaks having arrived on MUBI today and two sold-out 35mm screenings of Lost Highway(1997), presented by cinematographer Peter Deming, having taken place at Film at Lincoln Center last night, it’s clear that David Lynch’s… Read more
Space in 40mm: DP Christophe Nuyens on Andor Season Two
DP Christophe Nuyens (right) on the set of Andor season two
When it comes to streaming series, it’s better to have too little of a great show than too much. With a finite amount of time to work with before the events of Andor collide with their preordained conclusion in Rogue… Read more
Practical Magic: DP Aaron McLisky on Bring Her Back
Billy Barratt in Bring Her Back
In A24’s Bring Her Back, a grieving mother (Sally Hawkins) takes a pair of orphaned siblings into her secluded home with nefarious ulterior motives. It’s another slice of southern Australian horror steeped in trauma and grief from Talk to Me twins Mark and… Read more
“Not Everything Could Have Been IMAX”: DP Andrew Droz Palermo on Thunderbolts*
Andrew Droz Palermo (left) on the set of Thunderbolts*
In the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe entry Thunderbolts*, a reluctant squad of antiheroes team up to save New York City. Behind the scenes, another superteam comprised of A24 alumni joined forces. As this trailer breaks down, Thunderbolts* is brought to you… Read more
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“Two Giant Oners Put Together into One Piece”: DP Hillary Fyfe Spera on Daredevil: Born Again
When it comes to the work of cinematographer Hillary Fyfe Spera, you’ll find two consistent elements – 1970s inspirations and Panavision glass. Both are present in Daredevil: Born Again, a new Disney+ series that continues the story of lawyer by day/vigilante by night Matt Murdock originally begun on Netflix. The season opens with Murdock (played by Charlie Cox) and his nemesis Wilson “Kingpin” Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) trying to forsake their daker halves before they’re ultimately pulled back into their respective alter egos as crime fighter and crime lord. The show’s final arc took a circuitous route to fruition. Nearly six […]
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“1.66 Just Felt Good”: DP Jarin Blaschke on Nosferatu
Over the course of his four feature films, Robert Eggers has gained a reputation as a filmmaker obsessed with meticulous period accuracy. After listening to Jarin Blaschke talk about moon size as a mathematical equation, it’s easy to see why Eggers has enjoyed working with the equally meticulous cinematographer for almost two decades. “I’m kind of a stickler about how big a moon is when a CG moon is in frame,” said Blaschke. “It needs to be 1/80th the width of the screen, because the moon is a half a degree wide and our lens takes in 40 degrees. So, […]
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“It Doesn’t Have to Always Cost $200 Million”: DP Lol Crawley on Shooting The Brutalist (Mostly) in VistaVision
In The Brutalist, a creatively uncompromising Hungarian-Jewish architect (Adrien Brody) immigrates to Pennsylvania after World War II and struggles to complete an ambitious project financed by a wealthy industrialist (Guy Pearce). Creating a three-hour epic in 34 days for under $10 million doesn’t allow the luxury of boundless obstinance, yet it’s easy to draw parallels between the protagonist’s unyielding artistry and a team of filmmakers that insisted on using the VistaVision format whose heyday ended more than 60 years ago. With the film, which is up for 10 Academy Awards, still in theaters and now also on VOD, Oscar-nominated cinematographer […]
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“I Made Sure My Presence and Camerawork Reflected the Difficult Position They Were Put In”: DP Amy Bench on Shooting The Librarians
With a style influenced by her work with documentary director Albert Maysles as well as shadowing DP Emmanuel Lubezki on The Tree of Life, Amy Bench wanted her work on Kim Snyder’s Sundance-premiering doc The Librarians, about a group of Texas librarians fighting censorship, “to shoot in the way that showed audiences the urgency, alarm, and fear felt by librarians and students in Texas.” Below, Bench, whose previous credits include the 2016 Sundance title Holy Hell and the 2015 Berlinale Silver Bear-winner Bad at Dancing, discusses those influences, anonymizing her subjects, and for what scene she brought in a second […]
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“We Wanted to Get Across a Sense of the Overbearing Heat”: DP Rufai Ajala on Mad Bills to Pay
Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo) is director Joel Alfonso Vargas’s feature adaptation of his short film May it Go Beautifully for You, Rico. The film follows Rico, his family and his girlfriend as they adjust to the latter’s new pregnancy. The film is a 2025 Sundance Film Festival NEXT selection and was shot by Rufai Ajala, who also served as DP on the original short. Below, Ajala discusses translating New York’s summer heat into visuals and the advantages of shooting in New York City. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer […]
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“Perfection Can Be Your Enemy”: DP Paul Gleason on Didn’t Die
In Didn’t Die, the host of a podcast continues broadcasting even after the apocalypse, using irony to mask her fear. The 2025 Sundance Film Festival Midnights selection contrasts her podcast demeanor with her family life and takes inspiration from George Romero and Post-Impressionism. Paul Gleason wore many hats for the production of Didn’t Die. Below, he answers questions in his capacity as DP, elucidating how to navigate budgetary limitations with carefully chosen equipment and connecting the effect budget has on aesthetic to film noir and horror films. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. Filmmaker: How and why did […]
