Sundance Film Festival
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DP Nick Higgins on the Nearly Eight Hour Documentary O.J.: Made in America
The producers of ESPN’s acclaimed 30-for-30 documentary series deliver a nearly eight-hour opus with O.J.: Made in America. The film was shot by Nick Higgins, a seasoned cinematographer behind more than 30 non-fiction shorts and features. Below, Higgins speaks to the visual ideas of a film that’s 90 percent talking heads. He also discusses shooting “eight hour mega monster marathon interviews,” his love of classical portraits and working with a crew of two. 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? Higgins: In the […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
Director Dawn Porter and DP Chris Hilleke on “Abortion Clinic Fluorescent Lighting” and Trapped
Documentary filmmaker Dawn Porter first entered the Sundance arena in 2013 with Gideon’s Army, a paean to the work of public defenders. She returns to the festival in 2016 with Trapped, her film about abortion in America. Porter and co-cinematographer Chris Hilleke speak with Filmmaker below about the many hurdles – both aesthetic and ethical – of filming a documentary in an abortion clinic. 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? Porter: It was really crucial that everyone who shot on this film […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
“The Strength and Drive of Female Ambition”: Director Meera Menon | Equity
In every film, there is the story that you knew you were telling, the story the audience perceives. But there is always some other story, a secret story. It might be the result of your hidden motivations for making the film, or, instead, the result of themes that only became clear to you after you made the movie. It might be something very personal, or it might be a story you didn’t even know you were telling. What is your film’s secret story? With Equity, we were seeking to tell a story about the strength and drive of female ambition […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
David “Daps” Reinert on Filming His “Early Idols” in Sundance Doc Film Hawk
American indie film champion Bob Hawk has, to date, 28 “special thanks” credits to his name. An early friend and supporter of Kevin Smith, Ed Burns, the Duplass brothers and many others, Hawk has served as a consultant, producer and promoter for many Sundance regulars. In 2016, Hawk gets a Sundance film his own with Film Hawk, a documentary on the man and his influence. Below, Film Hawk DP David “Daps” Reinert discusses the film’s visual style and the stress of filming your idols. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the factors and […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
Photographer turned Filmmaker Maya Goded Talks Sundance Doc Plaza de la Soledad
An accomplished photographer hailing from Mexico, Maya Goded has had her work shown in solo exhibits in the U.S., Spain, Peru, South Africa and elsewhere. She makes her debut as a filmmaker with Plaza de la Soledad, an intimate documentary on a group of sex workers in the La Merced neighborhood of Mexico City. As she told Filmmaker, Goded has been meeting with and photographing these women for more than 20 years. Below, she speaks about how she cultivated such a strong sense of intimacy with her documentary subjects. Filmmaker: How and why did you wind up being the cinematographer of your film? What were the […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
Hélène Louvart on why the Director of American Mass Shooter Drama Dark Night Wanted a European DP
Since the 1980s, prolific French cinematographer Hélène Louvart has worked with such art-house favorites as Wim Wenders and Agnes Varda. For her new film, she collaborates with writer/director Tim Sutton on Dark Night, a film based on the 2012 movie theater mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado. She spoke with Filmmaker ahead of the film’s world premiere at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival about her European perspective, natural light and shooting with a very small crew. 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? Louvart: […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
Christopher Raymond on Shooting in the Remote Regions of Mongolia for The Eagle Huntress
An entry in the Sundance Kids program at Sundance 2016, The Eagle Huntress tells the story of a young girl who trains to participate in the Kazakh tradition of hunting with golden eagles. The documentary charts her ascent as she breaks down gender barriers and masters her craft. Filmmaker spoke with Christopher Raymond, the co-DP on the film, about The Eagle Huntress ahead of its Sundance premiere. 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? Raymond: I was hired to shoot some […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 31, 2016 -
“A Poultry-Infused Visual Remix” of The Shining: Nick DenBoer on The Chickening
A garish, absurdist riff off The Shining, The Chickening is prime fodder for Sundance’s Midnight Shorts Program. Animation duo Nick DenBoer and Davy Force wrote and directed the film, which blends shots from The Shining with a Tim & Eric-esque cocktail of inventive, abrasive imagery about a fried chicken tycoon. Below, DenBoer discusses how he and Force created the meticulously crafted images of their giddy short 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? Nick DenBoer: My co-director Davy Force and I collaborated […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 30, 2016 -
“Why Is This Film So Angry?”: Director J.T. Mollner | Outlaws and Angels
In every film, there is the story that you knew you were telling, the story the audience perceives. But there is always some other story, a secret story. It might be the result of your hidden motivations for making the film, or, instead, the result of themes that only became clear to you after you made the movie. It might be something very personal, or it might be a story you didn’t even know you were telling. What is your film’s secret story? On the surface, Outlaws is a family drama and well as revenge film with a female empowerment […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 30, 2016 -
DP Philippe Bellaiche on Israel/Palestine Doc The Settlers
Documentary DP Philippe Bellaiche has worked steadily on more than 30 documentary features and shorts over the past 16 years. On The Settlers, the Israel/Palestine documentary from Shimon Dotan, he had his first encounter with physical violence. Below, Bellaiche speaks about the film’s evolving structure, the region’s landscapes and getting assaulted by a group of young men while on a shoot. Dotan and Bellaiche’s previous film together, Hot House, won the Special Jury Prize in the World Documentary program at Sundance 2007. 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 […]
by Soheil Rezayazdi on Jan 30, 2016
