Zak Mulligan
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“It Was More Akin to Shooting Dance than Shooting a Live Sporting Event”: DP Zak Mulligan on Hustle
In Hustle, a burned out Philadelphia 76ers scout (Adam Sandler) discovers a raw talent (pro hooper Juancho Hernangómez) in a Spanish pick-up game and attempts to put him on the NBA’s draft radar. It’s got the familiar structural bones of the underdog sports drama—complete with epic training montage—but Hustle is like a perfectly run play. Even if you know what’s coming, you’re defenseless when it’s executed properly. The plot mechanics may be recognizable, but the approach to shooting the basketball scenes is novel. As Hustle cinematographer Zak Mulligan points out, televised presentations of the sport—and most basketball movies—offer the action […]
by Matt Mulcahey on Jun 29, 2022 -
“Even Before It’s a Vision, It’s a Need”: Director Jeremiah Zagar Talks the Creative Process and his New We the Animals
“I will do everything you do.” Filmmaker Jeremiah Zagar (In a Dream) dubs that his motto, his ethos, while on set. And when you watch his simultaneously epic and beautifully specific film We the Animals, it will come as no surprise that Zagar created for his collaborators such a collaborative, safe space for taking risks. Premiering at Sundance Film Festival this year where it won the NEXT Innovator award, it’s the first narrative feature for Zagar. His documentarian’s eye combined with his ability to draw vulnerable and vibrant performances from his cast creates sparkling portrait of three young boys discovering […]
by Meredith Alloway on Aug 18, 2018 -
DP Zak Mulligan on Shooting Sundance Drama We the Animals on Super 16mm
Cinematographer Zak Mulligan has worked on roughly 30 shorts, features, documentaries and TV series over the past decade. Mulligan served as DP on We the Animals, which premieres at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival as part of the NEXT lineup. The film marks the first narrative feature from Jeremiah Zagar, a documentary filmmaker whose 2008 In a Dream was shortlisted for an Academy Award and whose 2014 Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart screened in competition at Sundance. Below, Mulligan speaks with Filmmaker about blending digital and 16mm footage, stretching the number of shoot days and twisting his ankle on the set […]
by Filmmaker Staff on Jan 20, 2018 -
FACES FROM SUNDANCE ’11
Here we highlight the stills Jamie Stuart took while shooting interviews for the site. Check out his videos from Sundance here.
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 31, 2011 -
The Microbudget Conversation : Films Too Small To Fail
I first met Zak Mulligan through my DP Sean Donnelly a few years back. After a bit of back and forth on the merits of Kickstarter, I helped him with a little production design on his first feature, and we became fast friends and supporters of each others work. Zak and his directing partner Rodrigo Lopresti were recent participants of IFP’s Independent Filmmaker Labs with their first feature film I’m not me. Zak also won the Best Cinematography award at Sundance last year for his work on the film Obselidia. He’s here to talk a bit about the advantages of […]
by John Yost on Jan 18, 2011
