The Cinematography Podcast

By: The Cinematography Podcast
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  • Summary

  • Art, Business, Craft and Philosophy of the Moving Image
    2024
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Art
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Episodes
  • Paul Guilhaume, AFC: opera and realism in Emilia Pérez

    Paul Guilhaume, AFC: opera and realism in Emilia Pérez
    Feb 19 2025
    Emilia Pérez is about a Mexican cartel leader, Manitas Del Monte (Karla Sofía Gascón) who hires a lawyer (Zoe Saldaña) to help him disappear, undergo gender affirming surgery, and transition into a woman. But even as Emilia Pérez, she is unable to fully leave her dark criminal past behind. Director Jacques Audiard saw the film as a unique blend of gritty drama like Amores Perros and an opera. He approached cinematographer Paul Guilhaume, AFC to collaborate on his vision. With a combination of operatic grandeur, gritty realism, and dynamic camerawork, Paul Guilhaume has been nominated for an Academy Award for his visually stunning cinematography in Emilia Pérez. Paul was impressed with the story arc when he received the script for the movie. “There is something a bit like a classic drama or a very classic structure of a play,” he explains. “The actions of the past come back, and the darkness comes back in the film at the end.” This dramatic structure, combined with the operatic elements, presented a unique challenge. Audiard initially conceived Emilia Pérez as a five-act musical stage play before deciding to film it. The theatrical influence is apparent in the film's structure and visual approach. The drama unfolds during the musical numbers, revealing information about the story. All of the musical numbers were written into the script and became a thread interwoven throughout the film. Paul used a variety of styles to shoot each music scene. He chose classic shot-reverse-shot for intimate moments, to stylized, modern music video techniques and grand, classic musical visuals for moments of heightened movement and energy. Months of preparation and rehearsal allowed the actors to meticulously block and choreograph the dance scenes in tandem with the Steadicam, resulting in seamless integration of movement and camera. In Emilia Pérez, the camera is always in motion, matching the pacing of the music. “Jacques has an aesthetic of movement, the camera is almost never still,” says Paul. “There's something in motion in each and every frame that's not photographic composition, but cinematographic composition. Your eye is always in motion, taking you from one shot to the next.” The film's visual tone shifts as Emilia's past catches up with her. Paul responded to the shift with higher contrast, theatrical lighting, bringing up the darks with black walls and using an infrared camera. Despite the film's ambitious scope, it began as a small, independent production with a limited budget before being picked up by Netflix. This constraint led to the decision to shoot digitally with a Sony Venice, a choice that ultimately saved time and money. Paul and Audiard focused on crafting memorable moments, striving to create one key image per scene to build a lasting "visual memory" for the audience. Emilia Pérez is on Netflix. Find Paul Guilhaume: Instagram: @paul_guilhaume Sponsored by Hot Rod Cameras: https://hotrodcameras.com/ Sponsored by ARRI: https://www.arri.com/en The Cinematography Podcast website: www.camnoir.com YouTube: @TheCinematographyPodcast Facebook: @cinepod Instagram: @thecinepod Blue Sky: @thecinepod.bsky.social
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    1 hr
  • Sugarcane filmmakers Emily Kassie and Christopher LaMarca

    Sugarcane filmmakers Emily Kassie and Christopher LaMarca
    Feb 12 2025
    Sugarcane is a powerful documentary film that delves into the dark history of abuse and murder at a Canadian residential school. These Catholic boarding schools in North America and Canada have caused lasting trauma across Indigenous communities. The film centers around the Williams Lake First Nation in British Columbia, where a ground-breaking investigation into the St. Joseph's Mission residential school is underway. Sugarcane is Oscar-nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Director Emily Kassie is an Emmy and Peabody-nominated investigative journalist and filmmaker. She was compelled to tell the story of the ongoing investigation and asked journalist and co-director Julian Brave NoiseCat to be a part of the team. NoiseCat's family has an intimate and painful connection to the residential schools. His father, Ed Archie NoiseCat, was born at St. Joseph’s Mission to a student there. The NoiseCat family story became inextricably woven into the fabric of the documentary. Emily envisioned a film that was not only informative but also deeply sensitive. She partnered with cinematographer Christopher LaMarca, whose verité style of filmmaking hinges on the power of time, trust and truth. Over two and a half years, Kassie and LaMarca spent 160 days in Williams Lake, embedding themselves within the community. “The approach to true verité filmmaking is time,” says Chris. “You need lots of time to shoot this way. You need to spend time with people before you even start shooting so that they trust you. It's a way of being instead of just being a cinematographer.” Emily fully embraced Chris's approach. “For me, what comes with time is trust and intimacy,” she says. “It was so important to earn the trust of this community that has been ravaged by colonization, that has been lied to and betrayed by white people since they arrived on the land.” This trust informed every aspect of their filmmaking. The decision to use prime lenses, for example, was a deliberate choice. Instead of the distancing effect of a zoom lens, prime lenses required the filmmakers to physically move closer to their subjects, fostering a sense of connection and intimacy. “Prime lenses render the face and space differently than a zoom does,” Chris notes, emphasizing the importance of physical proximity in creating a sense of genuine conversation. The resulting close-up shots, born from their time spent in the community, offer a powerful and intimate glimpse into the lives and experiences of those affected by the residential school. Both Emily and Chris were shooting with a Canon C500 Mark II camera at all times, simultaneously filming and recording their own sound. The emphasis on capturing dialogue was crucial, allowing them to connect the dots in the ongoing investigation and understand the full scope of the story. Emily meticulously logged and organized all the footage, immersing herself in the project for three and a half years. She became intimately familiar with every piece of research and evidence uncovered in the residential school archives. For Chris, the most vital part of their process happened after each day of filming. Every night, they would download the footage and reflect on the moments that resonated most deeply. “You're recalling all of the things that hit your heart the hardest and penetrated the deepest,” he explains. “And in that moment, that's where the film starts to get made – not on paper, but from the heart, being totally clear and focused on what was happening in the day.” Sugarcane premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and is available to stream on Disney+ and Hulu. Find Emily Kassie: http://www.emilykassie.com/ Instagram @emilykassie Find Chris LaMarca: http://www.christopherlamarca.com/ Instagram @christopher_lamarca Sponsored by Hot Rod Cameras: https://hotrodcameras.com/ Sponsored by Aputure: https://aputure.com/ The Cinematography Podcast website: www.camnoir.com
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    58 mins
  • Pierre Gill, CSC: lighting the darkness in Dune: Prophecy

    Pierre Gill, CSC: lighting the darkness in Dune: Prophecy
    Feb 6 2025
    Dune: Prophecy, the six-episode prequel series to the Dune films, now streaming on Max, delves into the origins of the Bene Gesserit. The series is set 10,000 years before the events of the movies. Bringing this ancient future to life was just one of the challenges faced by cinematographer Pierre Gill, CSC, a veteran of science fiction and period pieces alike. Pierre, who has a deep affinity for the sci-fi genre, sees it as a close cousin to historical dramas. “It's like another type of period piece,” he explains, citing the importance of costumes, lighting, and set design in creating an immersive world. His experience in science fiction is extensive, having served as additional and second unit cinematographer on Denis Villeneuve’s Dune, Arrival, and Blade Runner 2049. This prior experience proved invaluable for Dune: Prophecy. “On Dune: Prophecy, the challenge is there's not really a lot of light source in the concept of the universe,” Pierre notes. The goal was to respect the established aesthetic of Villeneuve's Dune, avoiding an overabundance of typical sci-fi lighting. During his initial interview for the series, Pierre emphasized his understanding of the Dune look, a perspective informed by his work on the first film. He felt the series should align with the films, potentially even enhancing viewers' appreciation of the cinematic universe. However, Pierre was also determined to bring his own artistic vision to the project. “At the same time,” he admits, “it's difficult because as a cinematographer, I don't want to recreate what Greig Fraser, the master, did. I don't want to copy him.” Pierre's approach for Prophecy involved strong, wide shots with splashes of bold color. After extensive lens and camera testing, Pierre chose to shoot with the Arri Alexa 35. He also used two Steadicams to maximize efficiency during the action-packed shoot. Pierre favored a centered camera, even in close-ups, and faced the significant hurdle of lighting the massive sets. Time constraints limited pre-lighting opportunities, forcing Pierre to find innovative solutions. He employed mobile softboxes and book lighting to sculpt the actors' faces, creating soft bounce light. The presence of ceilings on some of the sets allowed for lower camera angles and the inclusion of more background detail. He was also able to use many practical lighting sources throughout the set. Dune: Prophecy has been picked up for a second season and Pierre is excited to explore the Dune universe further. “Season 2 will be even more powerful, I think,” he predicts. You can see Dune: Prophecy on Max. https://www.max.com/shows/dune-prophecy-2024/57660b16-a32a-476f-89da-3302ac379e91 Find Pierre Gill: Instagram @pierregill_dp Sponsored by Hot Rod Cameras: https://hotrodcameras.com/ The Cinematography Podcast website: www.camnoir.com YouTube: @TheCinematographyPodcast Facebook: @cinepod Instagram: @thecinepod Blue Sky: @thecinepod.bsky.social
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    1 hr and 7 mins

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