Women bear all in Smoke Sauna Sisterhood, the intimate documentary from Estonian filmmaker Anna Hints. While partaking in the ritualistic cleanse, a group of women divulge secrets, talk through past traumas and, above all, foster their feminine bond while sweating bullets in the nude. DP Ants Tammik tells Filmmaker about the complications of shooting in such a hot, stuffy environment with sensitive equipment —and a few injuries he sustained along the way. 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 […]
An aspiring chaplain named Mati navigates tragedy, grief and her own bandwidth for handling the incalculable loss of the pandemic in A Still Small Voice, the latest from documentary filmmaker Luke Lorentzen. Finishing her yearlong residency at the spiritual care department in New York City’s Mount Sinai Hospital, Lorentzen captures Mati and her supervisor Rev. David’s fight to maintain hope and warmth between 2020 and 2021, two of the deadliest years in U.S. history. Lorentzen, who directed, shot and edited the film, discusses how his one-person shoot allowed him to blend into the doc’s setting—and gain the trust of subjects—more […]
Since the disappearance of her sister, Jax (Lily Gladstone) has been taking care of her niece Roki (Isabel Deroy-Olson), both of them desperately hoping for her return. When she’s been officially declared “missing” for two weeks, CPS shows up at Jax’s door, leading to a dogged fight for her to keep caring for Rokii. The feature debut from writer-director Erica Tremblay, Fancy Dance explores womanhood and Indigenous identity through one family’s fractured ties. Cinematographer Carolina Costa talks about shooting the film, including a singular motto the team adopted during the shoot. See all responses to our annual Sundance cinematographer interviews here. […]
In Iron Butterflies, the hybrid doc from director Roman Liubyi, the political ramifications of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17—which was shot down by Russian forces as it was passing over eastern Ukraine—are unraveled and contextualized within broader global events. DP Andrii Kotliar talks about his experience shooting the film, including one particularly scorching day on the job. 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? Kotliar: It’s not quite a classic […]
When Ria (Priya Kansara) finds out that her art school dropout sister Lena (Ritu Arya) is giving up her creative dreams to marry a wealthy man, she sense that an evil force is afoot. Using her amateur martial arts moves, Ria concocts a plan with some schoolmates to kidnap Lena from her own wedding. The feature debut from writer-director Nida Manzoor, Polite Society charts the physical and social struggles of being a teenage girl who no one will take seriously. Cinematographer Ashley Connor tells Filmmaker about how she came to work on the film and her immediate connection to the […]
Two best friends struggle to make a living as fishermen in Bombay’s Indigenous Koli community in Against the Tide, director Sarvnik Kaur’s documentary that explores the impact of pollution, invasive species and other environmental factors contributing to a region’s dwindling fish population. DP Ashok Meena discusses her experience working on the project, including the influence that Iranian cinema has had on her work. 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 […]
Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck are co-directors, producers, cinematographers and editors of Fantastic Machine, their documentary that serves as a “meticulous dissection of image-making and a mapping of its movement through society.” Below, the duo discuss how they approached their duties as DPs on the film, including how they view that role as distinctly hunter-like. 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? Danielson & Van Aretryck: As directors, […]
The sophomore feature from writer-director Carolina Costa, Heroic examines the brutality of the Mexican military through the experiences of 18-year-old recruit Luis (Santiago Sandoval Carbajal), a cadet at the Heroic Military College located in the rolling mountainside. DP Carolina Costa talks about her experience shooting the film, which proved to be incredibly emotional. 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? Costa: This is the second film I shot for […]
Teenage lovers Brandon (Algee Smith) and Cassidy (Sierra Capri) embark on dangerous but lust-fueled journey in Young. Wild. Free., the feature debut from director Thembi Banks. Cinematographer Cary Lalonde tells Filmmaker about shooting this modern day take on Bonnie and Clyde. 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? Lalonde: The project was initially shut down after one day of shooting in the early days of COVID. Once it was […]
Rebecca Zlowtowski’s longtime cinematographer discusses shooting Other People’s Children, the writer-director’s latest film that stars Virginie Efira and Roschdy Zem and grapples with themes of motherhood and the concept of being child-free. 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? Lechaptois: I met [director] Rebecca [Zlowtowski] in 2009 when shooting her first feature Belle Epine. I have since shot all her films. Filmmaker: What were your artistic goals on this […]