Cinematographers
Interviews - Cinematographers
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“It’s a Conflict of Ideas”: DP Michał Łuka on Prime Time
Jakub Piątek’s feature debut Prime Time is a thriller set in the deadly world of broadcast television. In 1999, a youth named Sebastian (Bartosz Bielenia) hijacks a TV studio, taking two hostages along the way. His reasons for doing this slowly unravel, including to himself. DP Michał Łuka tells us how they captured the youthful rebelliousness of the ’90s in shooting. 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? Łuka: I think every time it’s a whole spectrum of both […]
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“We Like the Poetic, Dreamy Quality”: DP Edu Grau on Passing
Rebecca Hall’s Passing is an adaptation of the Harlem Renaissance era novel by Nella Larsen of the same name. Starring Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga as two mixed race women who “pass” for white in the 1920s, the film explores their acquaintanceship as one “pretends” to be white while the other lives life as a black woman. DP Edu Grau shares why they opted to film the Passing with a more vintage style. 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? Grau: […]
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“The Lighting Started from a Real Place of Honesty”: DP Mia Cioffi Henry on Superior
Having lensed several notable works that have been released in the last couple of years (Jeremy Hersh’s The Surrogate, Ja’Tovia Gary’s The Giverny Document, and the shorts In Sudden Darkness and Dominant Species, among others), New York-based DP Mia Cioffi Henry arrives at Sundance with Erin Vassilopolous’s stylish psychodrama, Superior, based on the director’s 2015 short, which Henry also shot. Below, Henry discusses her own journey back to this material following the short, how references find their way into finished works, and being open to the truth of practical locations. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the […]
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“The Complexities of Being a Hearing Child in a Deaf Family”: DP Paula Huidobro on CODA
Sold for a reported $25 million-plus, CODA (the title is an acronym for Children Of Deaf Adults) stars Emilia Jones as the hearing child of a deaf fishing family. DP Paula Huidobro discusses the process of coordinating with deaf actors onset, learning about fishing and her ongoing collaboration with director Sian Heder. 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? Huidobro: I first met Sian at the DWW program at AFI and we have continued to work since then in two […]
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“I Wanted to Experience Intimacy With the People I Was Filming”: DP Jessica Beshir on Faya Dayi
Jessica Beshir’s feature debut Faya Dayi is all about khat, a plant native to Ethiopia harvested and known for its euphoric properties when chewed. On another level, the film is about khat’s cultural significance as a major cash crop, analyzing its role both economically, socially, and generationally. Beshir tells us why she decided to take on the role of DP for her own film. 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? Beshir: I started filming Faya Dayi as a very […]
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“It Was Important Always to Keep the Spirit of Dance”: DP Naiti Gámez on Ailey
Jamila Wignot’s Ailey explores the life of seminal choreographer Alvin Ailey in poetic manner. With a heartbeat as studied as Ailey’s jazz-dance that made him famous. DP Naiti Gámez tells us about the magic of capturing dance on film, and the ephemerality of shooting with no possibility of retakes. 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? Gámez: I’m not entirely sure, actually. I don’t remember. ;) Filmmaker: What were your artistic goals on this film, and how did you realize […]
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“It’s a Balance of Preserving Your Strength”: DP Sean Havey on Homeroom
Homeroom, the final entry in Peter Nicks’ Oakland trilogy, couldn’t have come at a more bizarre time. Amid the early days of the pandemic and movements to defund the police, Oakland High School’s class of 2020 prepares to graduate into an unforgiving world fighting for justice. DP Sean Havey details filming long school board meetings and the intimacy of camerawork. 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? Havey: I was the associate producer, assistant editor, second camera unit […]
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“I Wanted to Create a Kind of Subtle, Candy-Coated Pop Aesthetic”: DP Daryl Wein on How it Ends
Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister-Jones’ How it Ends takes place on the eve of the Earth’s destruction. Followed by her younger self (Cailee Spaeny), Liza (played by Lister-Jones) tries to make it to a party despite the fact that her car has been stolen. Acting as co-DP (as well as co-editor and co-writer), Wein shares how he got close to the material as a consequence of the pandemic. 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? Wein: I chose to […]
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“The Girls Ride Big Muscular Bikes and Look Tough as Nails”: DP Sam Levy on Mayday
Karen Cinnore’s Mayday is a new kind of action movie, devilishly blurring several genre conventions to produce a feminist war film. After getting swept up in a storm, Ana (Grace Van Patten) is whisked away to another world where she meets Marsha (Mia Goth), the leader of a platoon of female warriors trapped in an endless war. DP Sam Levy tells us of the inclement weather of Croatia and how they filmed Mayday‘s several motorcycle scenes. 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 […]
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“Dreams Are Never Bound or Restricted by Austere Conditions”: DP Mahmoud Bashir on Captains of Zaatari
In his feature debut, Captains of Zaatari, Ali El Arabi turns his eye on the teenagers living in the world’s largest Syrian refugee camp. Unafraid to dream despite their bleak surroundings, Fawzi and Mahmoud hope to escape Zaatari and enter the world of professional soccer. DP Mahmoud Bashir discusses becoming friends with the boys at the center of the film and the importance of natural lighting. 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? Bashir: I did shoot more than […]
