Canadian Cinematographer Magazine May 2021

CANADIAN SOCIETY OF CINEMATOGRAPHERS

May 2021 www.csc.ca

Douglas Koch csc

Steve Cosens csc

Trickster

”

A publication of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers

FEATURES – VOLUME 13, NO. 2 MAY 2021 Fostering cinematography in Canada since 1957. The Canadian Society of Cinematographers was founded by a group of Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa cameramen.

Since then over 800 cinematographers and persons in associated occupations have joined the organization.

The CSC provides tangible recognition of the common bonds that link film and digital professionals, from the aspiring student and camera assistant to the news veteran and senior director of photography.

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Credit: ARRAY Releasing

We facilitate the dissemination and exchange of technical information and endeavor to advance the knowledge and status of our members within the industry. As an organization dedicated to furthering technical assistance, we maintain contact with nonpartisan groups in our industry but have no political or union affiliation.

Paradise Lost: Douglas Koch

on Funny Boy

csc

By Fanen Chiahemen

The CSC is a not-for-profit organization run by volunteer board members of the society.

Thank you to our sponsors for their continued support.

Shifting the Lens: Steve Cosens

csc

Talks Trickster

24

By Fanen Chiahemen

Credit: Lilja Jónsdóttir/CBS © 2019 CBS Interactive

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Credit: Sienna Films/CBC

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By Ian Harvey

From the Editor-In-Chief From the President In the News What's Up at the CSC CSC Member Spotlight – Micha Dahan csc On Set Production Notes/Calendar/Classifieds

Cover Arush Nand as Young Arjie from a scene in Deepa Mehta's Funny Boy. Credit: ARRAY Releasing

Canadian Cinematographer May 2021 Vol. 13, No. 2 EDITORIAL BOARD JOAN HUTTON csc, Editor-in-Chief FANEN CHIAHEMEN, Editor, editor@csc.ca JANEK LOWE, Photo Editor PATTY GUYADER, Copy Editor SIMON EVERS, Graphic Designer GUIDO KONDRUSS, Advertising Manager, gkondruss@rogers.com GEORGE WILLIS, csc sasc CLAUDINE SAUVÉ csc SUSAN SARANCHUK, susans@csc.ca CSC BOARD OF DIRECTORS Zoe Dirse csc Jeremy Benning csc Rion Gonzales Joan Hutton csc Kristin Fieldhouse Guy Godfree csc Claudine Sauvé csc George Willis csc, sasc CSC EXECUTIVE PRESIDENT George Willis csc, sasc PAST PRESIDENT, ADVISOR Joan Hutton csc VICE PRESIDENTS Philip Lanyon csc Bruno Philip csc Penny Watier MEMBERSHIP CHAIRS Arthur Cooper csc Zoe Dirse csc EDUCATION CHAIRS George Willis csc, sasc Martin Wojtunik AWARDS CHAIR Arthur Cooper csc ONLINE CONTENT COMMITTEE Jeremy Benning csc – Co-Chair Christina Ienna – Co-Chair Carolyn Wong – Co-Chair DIVERSITY COMMITTEE CHAIR Rion Gonzales MENTORSHIP COMMITTEE Nyssa Glück – Co-Chair Iris Ng – Co-Chair RELATIONSHIPS Gaston Bernier OFFICE / MEMBERSHIP / SUBSCRIPTIONS 131–3085 Kingston Road Toronto, Canada M1M 1P1 Tel: 416-266-0591; Fax: 416-266-3996 Email: admin@csc.ca, subscription@csc.ca Canadian Cinematographer makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information it publishes; however, it cannot be held responsible for any consequences arising from errors or omissions.

The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written consent of the publisher. The opinions expressed within the magazine are those of the authors and not necessarily of the publisher. Upon publication, Canadian Cinematographer acquires Canadian Serial Rights; copyright reverts to the writer after publication.Canadian Cinematographer is printed

by Winnipeg Sun Commercial Print and is published 10 times a year. One-year subscriptions are available in Canada for $40.00 for individuals and $80.00 for institutions, including HST. In U.S. rates are $45.00 and $90.00 for institutions in U.S. funds. International subscriptions are $50.00 for individuals and $100.00 for institutions.

Subscribe online at www.csc.ca.

ISSN 1918-8781 Canadian Mail Product Sales Agreement No. 40013776 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses 131–3085 Kingston Road Toronto M1M 1P1 THE CANADIAN SOCIETY OF CINEMATOGRAPHERS IS A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION.

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FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Joan Hutton csc

For the second time in three years, the Academy Awards have honoured a black-and-white film for its cinematography. Erik Messerschmidt ASC took home the 2021 Oscar for his spellbinding work on Mank directed by the enigmatic David Fincher. Alfonso Cuarón topped the category in 2019 for his film Roma. Set in the 1930s and early ‘40s, Mank is a depiction of old Hollywood’s glamour and sleaze through the chronicling of boozy screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz (Gary Oldman) and his struggle to churn out the initial draft of Citizen Kane for Orson Welles.

Mankiewicz was never given credit for his script.

I first viewed Mank last December when the film debuted on Netflix.

I was not sure what to expect given that it was about a filmmaking period that was defined by Gregg Toland ASC through his groundbreaking crisp deep focus imagery in Citizen Kane. Messerschmidt did not disappoint. What unfolded was a monochromatic delight, truly breathtakingly silvery images with rich tonal depth that echoed rather than copied a bygone era. Modern filmmaking technique at its retro best. Rather astonishingly, Mank is Messerschmidt’s first dramatic feature film as a director of photography.

Photographed in high-dynamic-range (HDR), Messerschmidt employed the RED Ranger 8K camera with a HELIUM Monochrome sensor for Mank, which not only allowed the realization of a pure black-and-white image, but also speedier shooting and capture which aided his digital deep-focus innovation. For lenses Messerschmidt settled primarily on Leica Summilux-Cs with their apparent greater depth of field over other lenses. To accentuate depth of field even further, Messerschmidt incorporated a cmotion Cinefade into the cinematography. This is a cinematic device that has the ability to adjust the depth of field all the while maintaining the correct exposure level throughout the entirety of a single shot. The result was a tip-of-thehat from Messerschmidt to Toland for his pioneering work. However, more importantly, Messerschmidt’s dynamic deep-focus work created

a 1940s visual look for Mank that transcended into a vital storytelling element with its own defining pulse.

In keeping with modern viewing conventions, Mank was shot with 2.21:1 aspect ratio to attain the perspective of a 70 mm, 5-perf spherical widescreen format. In contrast, an accurate aspect ratio for its time period would have been 1.37:1 boxy format, which appealed to neither Messerschmidt nor Fincher. The larger widescreen format allowed for more visual information to be displayed, giving license to highlight the grandeur of Hollywood’s golden age and the vastness of the California desert with his stunning images.

Interestingly, with digital moviemaking all around him, Messerschmidt dug deep into an old filmmaking bag of tricks, the shooting of day for night where a scene is underexposed during daylight hours to simulate the darkness of nighttime. The set was the garden at a private mansion in Pasadena, a standin for William Randolph Hearst’s San Simeon estate. The action is a moonlight stroll through the Hearst castle grounds by an inebriated Mankiewicz and Hearst mistress Marion Davies (Amanda Seyfried) as they build a platonic connection through witty repartee discussing politics and a brewing feud between Hearst and a muckraking politician of the day. In an interview, Messerschmidt said to light the grounds to portray San Simeon in all its splendour with exotic animals and statuary “would have been profound” and “impossible” in some sequences, which made a night shoot untenable. However, shooting day for night brought

its own challenges. Most notably during daylight, because of the sun’s brightness, faces become considerably underexposed. To lower the contrast and brighten the actors’ faces, Messerschmidt bounced large quantities of fill light from enormous white fabric sheets placed on the ground and sides. This decidedly low-tech approach worked, but it also made the actors squint – a dead giveaway that this was not nighttime. To mitigate the problem, sunglass tinted contact lenses were fabricated for the two actors. The finished scene in the film is simply spellbinding, exuding an almost ethereal dreamlike quality and a further testament to Messerschmidt’s dazzling craftsmanship.

Amanda Seyfried in a scene from Mank.

Messerschmidt has also been honoured recently for his work on Mank with the Outstanding Achievement in a Feature Film Award from the American Society of Cinematographers and the British Society of Cinematographers Award for Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature Release.

Mank is probably the most cinematically creative films of the year and a highly recommended mustwatch on Netflix. The only way to top it is viewing it on a large theatrical screen to enjoy its full impact.

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

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FROM THE PRESIDENT George A. Willis csc, sasc

“And the winner is…”

Dare I reference that well-known phrase that everyone is now so familiar with? Traditionally, we are accustomed to witnessing awards being presented in person during the CSC Awards, but now we must be content to honour the winners virtually until the time when we can once again gather in person to celebrate the talents of our cinematographers. There are many impediments and challenges that will need to be overcome before that day dawns, but we are hopeful that it will be soon.

On Sunday, April 18, there was encouragement via a special treat that came in the form of the virtual ASC Awards. The event took on a new dimension via a virtual platform called Remo. While preparing to partake of this new platform – it requires some personal input, time and training – someone asked me to describe this new platform and the only way that I could offer some insight was to reply, “It’s like Zoom on steroids.”

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Space will not allow the opportunity to effectively describe the process, however, I will say that it offered the opportunity to engage with friends and colleagues in a manner other than the usual Zoom meetings. I was invited by one of our sponsors to attend the event and given a link to attend the training sessions that were made available.

In short, it works like this: the platform shows an overview, or map, of the ASC Clubhouse and surrounding buildings, each with a sponsor’s name – ARRI, Fujifilm, Panavision, etc. I was offered a seat at a table in the ARRI building and was able to find my place for the Awards presentation. The interesting aspect to this, though, is that prior to the time given for the Awards, we were able to select the ASC Clubhouse on the map to look at who else was there.

I could also search for anyone with whom I wished to contact using the chat button on the screen.

Once I made contact with the person I was looking to meet, I clicked on my name, which showed my position at one of the many tables in the room and double-clicked on the person whom I was looking to contact. I was then teleported to a vacant seat at that table. The tables varied as far as the seating was concerned, and if a table was fully occupied then a visual sign came up, at which point I went looking for another contact or I could decide to wait for a seat to become available.

See President, page 6

President, from page 4 At the appointed time, we had to return to our assigned table in the sponsor building where we were able to watch the Awards presentation. At the conclusion of the Awards, we left the sponsor building to proceed to the “after-party” where a similar process existed to find colleagues and friends.

The after-party was different to the “meet and greet” room in the clubhouse and one could access the various floors in order to find available tables to

join. The accompanying screen grab shows the third floor, which featured a dance floor, bar and various areas for relaxation. In the screen grab, one can also see the long table (at middle, left of the dance floor) where the group of us were seated, and there we all are in the thumbnails above, which relates to the seats that we occupied. It certainly was a very different Awards gala, and who knows, we might use this great creative platform for the next CSC Awards Gala. Stay tuned.

In The News

CSC Members among Canadian Screen Award Nominees CSC congratulates the members who have been nominated for Canadian Screen Awards Achievement in Cinematography Maya Bankovic (Akilla’s Escape) James Klopko csc (A Fire in the Cold Season) Best Cinematography in a Feature Length Documentary Ryan A. Randall (Workhorse) Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary Program & Best Writing, Documentary John Walker csc (Assholes: A Theory) Best Photography, Drama Steve Cosens csc (Cardinal: Until the Night) Pierre Gill csc (Transplant – pilot) Serge Desrosiers csc (Within These Walls) Best Photography, Comedy Brett Van Dyke csc (Jann– “The Tunies”) James Klopko csc (Kim’s Convenience – “Couch Surfing”) Jim Westenbrink csc (Letterkenny – “The Rippers”) Eric Cayla csc (Private Eyes – “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes”) Kristin Fieldhouse (Workin’ Moms – To Lure A Squirrel) Best Photography, Documentary or Factual Chris Romeike csc (9/11 Kids) Mark Caswell & Alysha Galbreath (Cheating Hitler: Surviving the Holocaust) Martin Buzora (Enslaved: The Lost History of the Transatlantic Slave Trade – “Cultures Left Behind”) The awards will be announced as a seven-part genre-based series of presentations streamed live from May 17 through May 2

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ARRI Launches Remote Solutions Toolkit

ARRI recently launched Remote Solutions, a remote production ecosystem that can be customized to meet near-set and off-set workflows, allowing professionals to safely get back to work without compromising operational and creative control. With a complete system of connected ARRI cameras, lights, remote heads, and accessories, ARRI Remote Solutions offers workflows that enable safe social distancing between talent and crew, as well as between crew members. In other news, ARRI also announced a new version of its AMIRA camera: the AMIRA Live. Designed specifically for multi-camera live broadcasts, it eliminates external cabling between the camera body and the fibre adapter.

Courtesy of ARRI

William F. White Announces Fortress Studio and Support Space in Calgary William F. White International recently announced its first studio offering in Calgary and tenth in Canada: Fortress Studio and Fortress+ Support. Fortress Studio offers clients 97,500 square feet of filmable space and a clear height of 36 feet within the 109,100-square-foot facility. Fortress+ Support acts as a supplementary property with 69,999 square feet of support space and 19,751 square feet of private offices, boardrooms, and additional workspaces. Both properties are a short driving distance away from each other, WFW, the Calgary Film Centre, Sunbelt Rentals, and a large outdoor green space.

Netflix Announces Women in Post with Canadian Academy In early March, ahead of International Women’s Day, Netflix announced the first $5 million of its Creative Equity Fund will go towards programs that help identify, train and provide work placements for up-and-coming female talent. The streamer had previously announced the Netflix Fund for Creative Equity, which will invest $20 million a year for the next five years in building more inclusive pipelines behind the camera through partnerships with third parties and bespoke Netflix programs to support a range of initiatives. Women in Post, a new eightmonth program that builds on the Netflix and Canadian Academy Directors Program for Women, will provide mentorship and training within postproduction to female creatives from across Canada.

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

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Ontario Union Launches Terminology Reform Initiative for Film and TV Ontario film and television union NABET 700-M UNIFOR recently launched a new initiative aimed at eliminating discriminatory onset jargon. The Terminology Reform bulletin highlights terminology used regularly on set, primarily in the grip and lighting departments, that are deemed to have discriminatory origins and/or implications, such as “ubangi,” referring to an accessory used to offset the camera from the dolly, which originates from a North American term to describe individuals from Africa who wear lip plates. Along with IATSE 87, IATSE 667 and IATSE 671, other supporters include the Canadian Media Producers Association, the Directors Guild of Canada, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, ACTRA National and ACTRA Toronto, the Indigenous Screen Office and BIPOC TV & Film. The initiative launched on March 21, International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

Rogers Announces $26 Billion Acquisition of Shaw Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications in March announced that they have reached an agreement for Rogers to acquire all of Shaw’s issued and outstanding Class A Shares and Class B Shares in a transaction valued at approximately $26 billion. As part of the transaction, the combined company will invest $2.5 billion in 5G networks over the next five years across Western Canada. Additionally, Rogers will commit to establishing a new $1 billion Rogers Rural and Indigenous Connectivity Fund dedicated to connecting rural, remote and Indigenous communities across Western Canada to high-speed

Internet and closing critical connectivity gaps faster for underserved areas.

Producer Bruce Mallen Dies at 83 Montreal-born Bruce Mallen, credited for his pioneering studies in the economics of the movie industry, died in March at the age of 83.

Mallen entered the film industry in 1978 when he moved to Southern California, becoming a producer of a number of major movies such as Paradise, The High Country, and Heartaches, as well as a real-estate developer who built the Sony Pictures Plaza in Culver City. After almost 20 years in California’s show business, Mallen became dean of Florida Atlantic University’s College of Business where he founded The DeSantis Center for Motion Picture Industry Studies. In 1999, he and his wife Carol introduced the Carol & Bruce Mallen Prize for Published Scholarly Contributions to Motion Picture Industry Studies. Mallen was also an advisory board member of Concordia University’s Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema, vice chairman of the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, and a senior fellow at The Center for The Digital Future at USC’s Annenberg School. He is a member of the Producers Guild of America, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, and the Society for Cinema Studies.

ACCEPTANCES / AWARDS / NOMINATIONS Kelly Mason, associate member (director/DP) Pave the Road (feature documentary) accepted: Barcelona ARFF Film Festival, Barcelona, March 25-26, 2021

8 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

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What’s Up at the CSC The CSC is a not-for-profit volunteer-run organization which serves to foster the art and craft of cinematography in Canada. We encourage our members to volunteer on the various committees dedicated to different aspects of our society.

Being part of a committee is also a benefit of being a member; it’s a great way to network and get to know other cinematographers and to come together with shared visions to create new initiatives or assist with ongoing ones.

1. CSC Q&A The CSC Q&A Sessions wrapped up in April. You can watch them all on our YouTube channel and IGTV.

2. INSIGHT SERIES Launching in May, the CSC Insight Series will release monthly and feature our members on the CSC YouTube channel.

3. KINO FLO Kino Event: CSC Workshops presents Colour Science for Cinema Cameras, a live multi-media Zoom event with Frieder Hochheim, lighting expert and manufacturer. Hosted by CSC Education Co-Chair Martin Wojtunik.

May 30, 2021, 1:00 p.m. EST CSC members: free Non-members: $25 Register at admin@csc.ca

4. AWARDS The 64th CSC Awards Gala will be on Sunday, October 3, 2021 (details to follow).

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

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Micha Dahan csc What films or other works of art have made the biggest impression on you?

I remember seeing one version of Claude Monet’s Woman with a Parasol that really made an impression on me for a couple of reasons – the moment of frozen motion captured by the woman’s dress, coupled with the little boy in the deep background looking right at the “lens.” This breaking of the fourth wall reminded me of my role as the viewer and my role as the image creator. I was standing where Claude was standing while he was painting this image. The little boy was also looking at Claude.

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How did you get started in the business?

In high school I made films instead of writing essays. I couldn’t believe they let me do that. I then got a placement from my co-op program at the Canadian Centre for Advanced Film Studies [now known as the Canadian Film Centre]. I volunteered on a couple of sets while in film school. First real job was PA’ing on music videos where Marcus Elliott took me on as a second AC. I sparked with Fast Eddy for a few glorious years; I gaffed music videos.

I bought a Bolex and started shooting.

Credit: Gurjeet Manna

CSC Member Spotlight

Who have been your mentors or teachers?

I had a couple of chats when I was starting out in the industry that really made an impression on me because they explained fundamental things so simply. One was with Dylan Macleod csc, the other with Tim Bewcyk (then gaffer, now of Pie in the Sky Studios.)

Since then, I have learned that everyone I have met and will meet is my teacher. And the medium is my teacher. And I am my own teacher. As I continue to learn and grow and evolve with intention.

What cinematographers inspire you?

Jordan Cronenweth asc; Rodrigo Prieto asc, amc; Robert Richardson asc; Sir Roger Deakins asc, bsc, cbe; Conrad Hall asc; and Robby Müller nsc, bvk.

Name some of your professional highlights.

Standing inside the big ball at the neutrino observatory 2km underground in Sudbury. Filming in Israel and getting to speak Hebrew on set. Receiving my CSC accreditation. Juno nominations.

Like Night and Day

What is one of your most memorable moments on set?

It gets me every time serendipity plays into our day; like when a freak fog descends over a scene where we wished we could afford smoke machines.

What do you like best about what you do?

Making things with others. Finding flow in the process. The creative play, the intensity, the adventure, the togetherness, the access, the trust, externalizing a vision, sharing my hallucinations.

What do you like least about what you do?

The long hours and the general bodily aches and pains. Oy. I used to spend time “disliking” the constraints and limitations inherent in the process. Now I try to remember what Orson Welles said: “The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.”

What do you think has been the greatest invention (related to your craft)?

I think the digital camera has democratized the medium, allowing for experimentation and feedback, making mastery available to anyone with the passion and dedication to put in their time.

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How can others follow your work?

michadahan.com

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

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TORONTO | MISSISSAUGA | OTTAWA CALGARY | EDMONTON

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On Set

Credit: Jon Thomas

Far right: One of the main setups, using J.L Fisher Dolly with a Ronin 2 head, controlled through a DJi Mimic by affiliate member David Grif on the set of the music video for Unimerce and Nadia Stone “What you Sayin?”

Credit: Courtesy of David Grif

DP and associate member Dana Barnaby sets up a shot for One Perfect Wedding on the peak of Hemlock Mountain, Harrison, B.C.

DP Brad Rushing csc shooting TV show teaser with 1st AC Sabrina Mendez, director Shaun Piccinino and writers/ producers Jeremy and Tony.

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Credit: Courtesy of Pieter Stathis csc

Credit: Derrica Barbee

Credit: Courtesy of Christina Ienna

Associate Member Christina Ienna, director Maya Annik and producer Kate Fraser review footage with capoeira dancers on the set of the documentary Why We Fight.

The camera crew for Hallmark’s Aurora Teagarden 16. Front row L-R: Pieter Stathis csc, Coenraad Been (B cam 2nd AC), Collin Morrison (A cam op), Patrick Paes (A cam 2nd AC), Chris Smith (A cam 1st AC); back row L-R: Wes Miron (B cam op), Keith Granger (A cam dolly grip), Rob Hamilton (gaffer), Jason Kwan (DIT), Declan Miller (B cam dolly grip), TJ Gibson (B cam 1st AC), Jeff Wood (key grip).

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Paradise Lost / Douglas Koch csc

16 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

Credit: ARRAY Releasing

T

he feature film Funny Boy, directed by Deepa Mehta and adapted from Shyam Selvadurai’s 1994 novel of the same name, tells the story of Arjie Chelvaratnam, a Tamil boy growing up gay in 1970s Sri Lanka amid escalating unrest between Tamil and Sinhalese people in the lead-up to full-scale civil war. Shot primarily on location in the Sri Lankan city of Colombo, Funny Boy was named one of Canada’s top ten feature films for 2020 by the Toronto International Film Festival.

According to director of photography

Douglas Koch csc, who lensed the film, Mehta wanted to take “a super simple approach in terms of the photography. She wanted to just go for maximum flexibility, and she wanted a much more freeform style, using a lot of available light, as many practicals as possible and shooting mostly handheld. I think she appreciated that it would give it this nice buzz of realism.

When she first said this, I was a bit nervous like that sounds like quite a handful of things to do, and I was operating too.

But I must confess that it really panned

By Fanen Chiahemen

(R-L) Arush Nand (left) from a scene in Funny Boy.

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

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Credit: ARRAY Releasing

Top: Arush Nand (centre) as Young Arjie. Middle: A scene on the beach in Funny Boy. Bottom: Nimmi Harasgama and Arush Nand.

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out, and I grew to embrace it very quickly and found that it was very liberating. You can shoot in any direction, there’s never gear in the way, and if you change your mind about something, there’s no loss of momentum for the actors and the director, like dolly track having to be relayed or dance floors or whatever.”

Mehta was already in Sri Lanka scouting locations when Koch was brought on board and there was hardly any time for prep, but he remembered reading an interview with Yves Bélanger csc and Ronald Plante csc describing the way the HBO series Sharp Objects was shot (see October 2018 issue). “I really liked the show; I liked the way it looked, and there was a somewhat similar situation where you had a director saying, ‘I don’t want any lights in the room,’” Koch recalls.

“And then when you read about how it was done, you go, ‘This all makes so much sense, I can totally see how this came about,’ that kind of realism and working style, that freedom of being able to shoot in any direction at any time and the DPs forced to be really devious with their use of practicals.”

Taking a small camera crew from Toronto – including first AC Paul Steves, second AC Augustina Saygnavong, gaffer Anya Shor, key grip Spencer Johnston, dolly grip Chelsea Barrie and DIT Jeff Scheven – Koch’s camera package consisted of two ARRI ALEXA Mini LFs with ARRI Signature Primes (which were used for 80 per cent of the film), three ARRI/ZEISS Master Primes for extreme low light work (29 mm, 50 mm and 85 mm), and a couple of Zeiss Compact Zooms (28-80 mm and 70-200 mm). “We had a very small lighting package,” he says. “I think the biggest light was a 6K and then a couple of 4K pars. So the lighting tools were just a few HMIs and then what the gaffers and electricians call ‘franken lights’ or Fran-

kenstein lights, so they’d be like unusual LED-type lights we’d made that are sort of custom, lightweight and really flexible.”

He found the experience of shooting handheld freeing. “For me what was so fun about it was you could just adapt to things and go, ‘Oh, we’re going to follow him right inside this bus and get in front of him, swing around and sit down,’” he says.

It was of particular benefit when shooting the early scenes of Arjie and his friends playing as children. “The scene where they’re fighting in the backyard and the little wedding scene and also the cricket match – when I looked at them on paper in the script, it’s a little bit frightening, but then again it was this kind of keep it loose and just keep shooting, “For me what was and it was more of an inso fun about it was tuitive thing,” Koch says. you could just adapt “That’s another big bonus about having this freeto things and go, ‘Oh, wheeling style. You spend we’re going to follow most of your time shoothim right inside this ing and even if you need bus and get in front to change something, you of him, swing around don’t think, ‘Okay, we have to reconfigure the dolly, or and sit down.’” we have to drag this track over here,’ or anything like that.

“There were only a couple of times where I had to step in and say, ‘I think we should do that again because there are things the kids are doing that are going to be jarring in a continuity way. But that’s another thing about the kind of action-packed, higher-energy shooting and cutting style.

It’s a bit more forgiving than the slow, formal studied style where things that go wrong might actually stand out more.”

A violent scene in which Tamils are attacked by a Sinhalese mob on a train at night was potentially more difficult, being shot in a working train station. “The train and the Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

19

train station would have been tricky except I managed to get Errol Kelly, the production designer, and Anya Shor, the gaffer, to stick stuff in a few days ahead of the night scenes. There, the art department has their own electricians so that if you want to put some fluorescent lights in the ceiling, or a lightbulb on a wall or something, the electricians from the art department will do it.

So I would say to Errol, ‘Can you put 4-foot fluorescent fixtures here, here and here in this train station?’ So by the time we actually went to shoot in the train station to do these night scenes, all the stuff was already set up “What was really inand had been stuck into teresting was that the place. So it could have been really difficult, but blood you see of the because we were able people lying on the to sneak around and do floor was all done in this stuff ahead of time, post. Which I thought it made it easier. And we was very clever and I had all these funky tubes all pre-gelled to make the wasn’t expecting, so it colours from them sort of was horrific when we skunky; they were greenshot it, but then when I ish and cyan. watched it, it was even “What was really intermore so because there esting was that the blood you see of the people were these pools of lying on the floor was blood that weren’t there all done in post,” Koch when we actually did it.” adds. “Which I thought was very clever and I wasn’t expecting, so it was horrific when we shot it, but then when I watched it, it was even more so because there were these pools of blood that weren’t there when we actually did it.”

But shooting on the train itself was logistically challenging. “It was tight doing moving shots inside the train,” he recalls.

“That’s where it took some crazy rejigging like batteries hung under the camera and not sticking out the back and stuff like that. Even though the camera was kind 20 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

of small to start with, you had to make it really small to get through some of these spaces; it was pretty funny.”

Another challenging sequence required the production simulating an explosion on a low budget. “Nearer to the end when older Arjie has left his lover Sehan’s place and is on his way home during the terrible night when the troubles begin erupting, he comes upon some victim of the mobs, a man beaten to death lying on the road,” Koch recalls. “As he checks out if he is alive, a big explosion erupts. Of course, we had no physical effects making explosions. I kept wondering about how to bring more drama to this scene. I kept thinking that the orange flash of light from an off-camera explosion combined with excellent sound design could really help.

At some point I started wondering if we could find those trucks that have a huge LED TV panel on the side. I know that when they use them in daylight, they have to turn up the screen’s brightness to full so that they are clearly visible. I had production track down a company that did this. I basically grabbed different videos of fireballs and explosions off the Internet and then had our DIT do some colour correcting on them to make them more suitable. A favourite clip was chosen and could be played back on command into this big LED screen. So on cue, a bright orange flash then faded out in an appropriate way and illuminated Arjie, the laneway and the big white church behind him.

Poor man’s AR sort of. In the end, the VFX crew took the orange lighting effect that we had built into the scene, augmented it, added camera vibration and a very convincing rolling cloud of black smoke and debris. Worked out great!”

A major advantage of shooting in a place like Sri Lanka was the abundance of picturesque locations, according to Koch.

“These locations are really interesting

Credit: Douglas Koch csc

Credit: Ihshan Iqbal Credit: Courtesy of Douglas Koch csc.

Clockwise: The crew on the set of Funny Boy. Best Boy Sundar Jegatheesan. (L-R) 1st AD Reid Dunlop with director Deepa Mehta. (L-R) 1st AD Reid Dunlop and Douglas Koch csc.

looking,” he says. “There’s an amazing patina in a lot of these places, and you’re not shooting in a beat up old, white-walled house in Scarborough [Ontario]. And then when you step outside you’re in a tropical place, so there are things about it that are on your side in a big way.”

Having shot a few of Mehta’s previous features, Koch was familiar with the director’s specific approach to colour palette. “I remember in [2002’s] Bollywood/ Hollywood she really wanted to try to keep green out of it,” Koch says. “But in this case,

yellows and oranges and greens were the primary colours with splashes of red, and a really big absence of blue except with Arjie’s aunt Radha. In the first scene where Arjie first meets his aunt, they’re both wearing blue, just so there’d be something that was particular to Arjie and their relationship.

It’s the only blue in the film; there was that level of control. So if you think of all the locations like the different homes you’re in and stuff, there were a lot of yellow walls and there was green in certain places, like teen Arjie’s lover has this crazy green Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

21

Credit: ARRAY Releasing

Top: (L-R) Brandon Ingram as Older Arjie and Rehan Mudannayake. Middle: Brandon Ingram (centre). Bottom: (L-R) Agam Darshi and Arush Nand.

22 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

room with green glass windows, and they actually made it that way, they went in and painted it that way.”

It was particularly important for Koch to be in sync with the makeup crew. “I was doing some kinky stuff in the look so I had designed a LUT for it, and it did have an effect on the way certain colours would be rendered,” he says. “So what I would do is show the key makeup artist Liz Gruszka and the wardrobe supervisor Sapna Yadav before-and-after pictures, and I’d go, ‘Here’s just what a normal straight photograph of a particular scene looks like and here’s how it alters with this look we’re “It was tight doing going to do.’ And it moving shots inside was neat because in a lot of situations it the train. That’s where would be really subtle it took some crazy or invisible or inconrejigging like batteries sequential, but with hung under the camera certain things like and not sticking out reds it would have a noticeable effect. the back and stuff like And one of the most that. Even though the important things was camera was kind of blood because the small to start with, you technique we were had to make it really using would make the blood much darker, small to get through so that was the most some of these spaces; carefully tested thing. it was pretty funny.”

And shades of lipstick too. But that also was fun for me because that became part of my arsenal for the look besides trying to make judicious use of available light.”

For a shoot that required a lot of extras, a good working relationship with the locals was also crucial. “I thought the people were super great to work with,” Koch recalls. “The thing I always kept thinking was this film has elements of a terrible historical event that actually occurred in ’83,

Director Deepa Mehta (centre) on the set of Funny Boy.

and what’s really shocking is every once in a while there would be this sobering moment where you could look around you and think, ‘Holy shit, there’s probably people here that suffered terribly during this time.’ There could even be people watching us here who are perpetrators.

Personally, one of the most striking scenes for me that really moved me when I saw the film finished was near the end when all the Tamils are hiding out at that Catholic church. Shooting it was almost like watching it and you would just come around the corner and there’d be some woman with her rosary. And their faces; it was amazing how they just really looked like they were incredibly destitute, just flattened by what had happened to them.”

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

23

the Lens

24 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

Steve Cosens csc talks

Trickster

By Fanen Chiahemen

T

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

Credit: Sienna Films/CBC

he supernatural thriller series Trickster, adapted from author Eden Robinson’s bestselling trilogy of novels, follows Haisla teen Jared (Joel Oulette), whose already unstable life is thrown further into disarray when he begins witnessing strange phenomena, including talking ravens, doppelgängers and skin monsters. When the first season of the coming-of-age story premiered on CBC Television last fall with co-writer Michelle Latimer directing, it was noted for its use of Indigenous myths and folklore to explore contemporary issues, such as racism, cultural heritage, identity and intergenerational trauma. Also notable was the Indigenous talent both in front of and behind the camera.

25

Joel Oulette, Craig Lauzon as Phil, and Kalani Queypo as Wade in Trickster.

Credit: Lindsay Sarazin/CBC

Director Michelle Latimer (centre) and DP Steve Cosens csc (right).

26 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

Credit: Sienna Films/CBC

I

n December 2020, when her claims of Indigenous status came into question, Latimer stepped down from the series, and an announcement of the show’s cancellation followed in January 2021. Despite its cancellation, Trickster, which is available for viewing on CBC Gem, remains a symbolic cultural milestone with a unique look created by director of photography Steve Cosens csc.

“I think a lot of the originality from Trickster comes from Eden’s unique interpretation of her culture’s trickster mythology and we just built on top of that,” Cosens says. “The modern storytelling of that trickster mythology was something that Michelle was interested in exploring. She was really interested in creating a show that incorporated elements of

stylized naturalism, documentary photography, the body horror of [David] Cronenberg, and the surrealism of small-town dysfunction like in Twin Peaks. She wanted to have something that was slightly tonally askew but still grounded in reality, but she also wanted to fable-ize the story, which really gave us a lot of creative freedom in how we told the story. And we both wanted to be in there and present and moving through the characters’ worlds with them, with looser lenses so that it was intimate and more visceral. We had both our A camera operator, which was a Ronin operator, and our B camera was a Steadicam, so we could have two cameras that were constantly moving, which was great and freeing.”

During preproduction, Cosens spent a lot of time with Latimer location scouting in North Bay where most of the series was shot on sound stages. “It was a little tricky because we were trying to

Credit: Sienna Films/CBC

tie in North Bay to Kitamaat [Village, B.C.], where the story is set, the DP recalls. “A bunch of the exteriors were shot in Kitamaat where we started, so it was a lot of logistical conversations about how to tie in this to that and how to represent Kitamaat in North Bay in terms of the architecture and vibe of the place.

“A lot of the show takes place on a reserve and it was important that the aesthetic of the reserve was depicted truthfully and not glamorized so that was part of our scout out to Kitamaat, to really just spend time there and absorb the place. We met with all the elders and we were welcomed into the town, and we walked around with them and looked at all the houses and talked to people and really got a sense of the community.

“In Kitamaat, being a northern coastal town, the architecture is very specific, so in North Bay we were really trying to find our hero house ( Jared and his mother Maggie’s) that was true to that look and feel of the west coast,”

Cosens explains. “On a reserve outside of North Bay we found a house that really worked for us, so we shot exteriors there, and the interior we built as a set; we pretty much copied the interior and added 10 per cent more space. I asked the production designer to put the entire 8’ roof in so that I could install practicals in the ceiling and shoot almost doc-like with real sources in the frame. There wasn’t really money to do extensive backdrops outside the windows, plus we were shooting in a pretty tight warehouse space in North Bay, so there just wasn’t room or a budget to do backdrops out there.

It worked for Michelle and I that Maggie lived slightly enclosed and concealed so I chose for the most part to burn out the windows or play the curtains down. It helped us move quickly with just practicals and windows that were providing varying grades of coloured soft light.”

The diner where Jared works was an abandoned coffee shop up in the hills outside of North

Joel Oulette as Jared in Trickster.

“The modern storytelling of that trickster mythology was something that Michelle was interested in exploring. She was really interested in the body horror of Cronenberg and Twin Peaks.”

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

27

Credits: Sienna Films/CBC

Top: Kalani Queypo as Wade.

Bottom: Joel Oulette and Nathan Alexis as Crashpad.

Bay. “We took that over and retrofitted it to work as a diner and I thought it was so perfect, it really felt of Kitamaat,” Cosens says.

“Once again, I asked the production designer to install lighting in the ceiling just so I could flow and move in there without adding additional film lights to the space. Generally that’s what I’m trying to do these days, work as closely as I can with the production designer to bring in fixtures to a place so I can just move and light organically with the lamps that are in that space and retain 28 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

the integral vibe of the place.”

His lighting package consisted of mostly LED lights like SkyPanels and Astera tubes, augmented with practicals and small LEDs in interiors, and he often had to improvise, such as in later scenes taking place in Jared’s grandmother’s cottage. “It was at the end of the schedule and our time was so tight and I kept thinking, ‘How can I light this in a way that I’m going to be able to move in here freely and make it all happen and look good and be able to flow?’” he recalls. “And one

day I noticed they had part of the set roof off on the one side and I noticed that some ambient light from another set was spilling through the top and down into the set and it looked so good, so when it came time to shoot that space I changed my plan and I just bounced some light up into the warehouse roof outside the set and it filtered down and in and just felt like it was coming from the clerestory windows of the old cottage.”

In a climactic scene in which Wade, a mythical trickster who is Jared’s biological father, walks into Jared’s dark trailer home, “it was really just playing with some of our created sodium vapour streetlight that was sneaking in from the outside and just augmenting slightly with some underexposed grey light on the interior and using silhouette for definition,” Cosens recalls. “The colour of light coming from the bathroom was an inspiration from a house in Kitamaat that had blue/green curtains in the bathroom and cast a beautiful eerie cyan into the house, and I knew when I saw it that it was the right colour. I really liked how the colour of the curtains played against the wood panelling, and it was something I was trying to do in Jared’s house, to play with volumes of different coloured light in different rooms.

“I love playing with colour and especially playing with discordant colour,” the DP says. “How two seemingly antagonistic colours can create a tone that is beautiful and unexpected in a way.”

Certain colours appear to be linked to principal characters in Trickster, with Jared being represented by the colour red. “We talked about what colour his room would be, and when we were in Kitamaat we saw a lot of houses that had curtains on the windows or blankets on windows, and one day we just saw this intense kind of red sheet hanging and went, ‘Oh, that’s it, that’s his colour,’” Cosens says. “So I chose a red fabric and then I augmented the light coming through the cloth with a bit of red gel just to make it rich in the room.”

Cosens captured the action on an ALEXA Mini, operated by A camera Ronin operator Sasha Moric. “Sasha is the best Ronin op in the city, and he really under-

“I love playing with colour and especially playing with discordant colour. Just how two colours can create a tone that you wouldn’t normally get, and I think the more I shoot, the more I enjoy playing with that discordance of colour on a set.” stands how I see, and we speak a similar visual language,” Cosens says. “I knew I was going to be in smaller places so I wanted a small camera, and I also knew because I was going to be shooting hot practicals and fire and a lot of less controllable natural light, that the Master Primes would be good for them. I also wanted a slightly

crunchier, more contrasty look, so the cleanness of the Master Primes was appropriate for that.”

The series employs a smoky haze at times as Cosens wanted to represent the environment of characters who smoke. “I wanted to feel the atmosphere more in this show, so I was continually running a DF-50 hazer. There’s

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also a lot of atmosphere in Kitamaat because it’s near ocean and mountains and it gets a lot of rain and fog, and when we were there you’d see these low-lying clouds and mist kind of just drifting through. It was something that when I was there I was like, ‘Okay, we need to keep this look going,’ so when we were in Kitamaat I augmented often just with long stretches of tubing with

atmosphere. And similarly in North Bay, in any given exterior location I would just have long tubes for atmosphere to kind of drift though and keep that vibe.

It also helped sell the fable-esque kind of feeling of it all.”

From the very beginning, part of the conversation with the producers and the writers was the importance of honouring Robinson’s story, as well as the Indig-

“When we started in Kitamaat, all the elders held a dinner for us where we got to meet the locals so they could all get a sense of who we are, and they had local community dancers who came in.

It was really inspiring, and I felt a lot of responsibility to tell a story that was going to resonate with them since the origin story is from that culture.”

30 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

enous traditions that were a part of the narrative, and as one of the non-Indigenous creatives on the show, “I have a lot of respect for those voices, so I really just did a lot of listening,” Cosens says. “When we started in Kitamaat, all the elders held a dinner for us where we got to meet the locals so they could all get a sense of who we are, and they had local community dancers who came in. It was really inspiring, and I felt a lot of responsibility to tell a story that was going to resonate with them and honour their culture. And when we were in North Bay sometimes there would be a prayer said in the morning by a local elder or sometimes at noon there would be a gathering where you could go and just talk about things that were happening in your life, kind of just sharing experiences. It’s something that I for one really respect and admire, that there’s this openness and talking about spirit and how we are connected, and just an open dialogue about who we are. So to have that always there in the background of production was really nice and grounding.”

Cosens indicates that the cancellation of the second season of Trickster was equally painful for him. “I’m disappointed,” he says.

“I feel bad for all the people that have put so much heart and soul and blood, sweat and tears into

Left: Crystle Lightning as Maggie.

Top: Keenan Grom (Wade at 17) and Gail Maurice (Georgina).

Middle: Crystle Lightning as Maggie.

Bottom: Crystle Lightning and Joel Thomas Hynes as Richie.

Credits: Sienna Films/CBC

that production because I really felt it was saying good things and introducing the world to some talented Indigenous actors. The first season is always tough; you’re trying to find your footing, you’re trying to find out what the show is, what does it look like, what does it sound like, and so you hit your stride halfway through a show often.

So you’re always looking forward to what you can do if you get a chance to do it on another season because you can refine it and evolve it. So there’s a lot of disappointment out there.”

Still, he is hopeful about the show’s legacy. “I can only speak for myself, but I feel proud to have put that out into the world and to have collaborated with Indigenous creators on something that is meaningful. With the younger actors on the show, I hope at least it opens some doors for them. Like Jared, it was so beautiful to see him evolve from where he started on that first day of shooting when he was so nervous to where he was at the end. It was pretty incredible, and they just have so much respect for Michelle; she really nurtured the young actors on that show in a really beautiful way.”

Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021 •

31

Tech Column

Credit: Lilja Jónsdóttir/CBS © 2019 CBS Interactive. All Rights Reserved.

World’s Largest Virtual Set Lights Up GTA Sound Stage

(L-R) David Ajala as Book and Sonequa Martin-Green as Burnham in Star Trek: Discovery.

Star Trek has landed on a huge virtual set (VS) at CBS Stages Canada west of Toronto Airport. The VS is built on a 70-foot sound stage and arranged more or less in a horseshoe shape with a gap to allow loading in and out of gear at one of six sound stages at CBS Canada’s 260,000 square-foot facility. The proprietary design by Pixomondo includes ceiling panels for lighting only and is an upgrade on the Stagecraft concept for Mandalorian.

Mahmoud Rahnama, head of studio for Pixomondo Toronto/Montreal, says more will follow and that landing the set here was no accident. “Pixomondo has eight global offices on three continents, the largest facility being in Toronto, and Ontario being one of the largest production hubs in the world, so it was a no-brainer,” he says. “We’re in talks with several studios to build more stages in Ontario and throughout Canada.”

Jason Zimmerman, CBS VFX supervisor for all the Star Trek shooting, says the set will be pressed into service out of the gate, with Star Trek: Strange New 32 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

Worlds set to roll, along with Star Trek: Discovery.

Philip Lanyon csc is shooting Star Trek: Discovery and test shot during construction in January. “We’re calling it the Holodeck,” he says, paying homage to Star Trek’s recurring narrative feature. “It is definitely a learning process.”

They test shot with an ARRI ALEXA Super 35 using 2x Cooke special flare anamorphic lenses and also an ALEXA LF with Cooke special flare 1.8x anamorphic and found there were some adjustments needed from the traditional approach. Lighting too, is a learning curve. “It’s a bit of a blessing and a curse,” Lanyon says. “It’s wonderful to have the right colour and right direction and right quality of light, and reflections are great because you actually get a real reflection on someone’s eyes in a closeup and you really get a sense of reality in the space.”

Still, the spectrum of RGB LED doesn’t have as much full spectrum as traditional film or tungsten lighting or sunshine, so having an “unnatural” colour on the set could create some issues to work

around, Lanyon adds. “We are testing colours carefully to be sure they render on camera as you’d expect. We’ve added in traditional film lighting to augment colour and create harder, more spectacular light than walls can output.”

Rahnama says the current iteration has been two years in development based on the Stagecraft concept with several upgrades in both the LED panel resolution and the software driving it. The first test was 48 LED panels followed in February 2020 with a 400-panel setup. However, it didn’t have a ceiling, and the walls were flat not curved, he adds.

At CBS Stages, the 2,500 LED panels are 0.5m x 0.5m modular squares, which connect to each other like LEGO pieces, he says, and overall resolution of the stage is around 22K. “The content is rendered in real time using very powerful computers and distributed using very fast LED processors,” Rahnama says, noting the wall tiles go up to roughly 2,000 nits and the ceiling tiles peak at around 6,000 nits.

With VFX shooting green and blue screens and everything in between, the bonus about a virtual

set is that everyone sees the same thing, there’s no guessing, according to Zimmerman. “If the screen calls for the actors to look away to a point on the set, they can all see the same point of interest and their eyelines all match up,” he says.

Also, and perhaps this is one of the big pluses, there’s light from the LED screens, which bring light back into the scene the way it would on an exterior.

While the new technology is expensive, compared to having sets built, it’s more versatile and allows more creative freedom, he notes, which has made it more accessible for TV show budgets.

On a show like Star Trek, it’s also useful because almost any kind of landscape or interior/exterior can be created and once designed, pulled back up again.

“Also with COVID-19, you don’t want to be travelling a lot to exterior locations, which is expensive,” Zimmerman says. “Instead of having to pack up and go to Iceland, for example, you can create Iceland.”

Ian Harvey is a journalist who has been writing about digital disruption for 21 years. He welcomes feedback and eagerly solicits subject matter ideas at ian@pitbullmedia.ca.

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Production Notes & Calendar

CHESAPEAKE SHORES V (series)

DP Kamal Derkaoui csc

to July 13

Parksville

CHILDREN RUIN EVERYTHING V (series)

DP Douglas Koch csc B Camera 1st Assistant Brent J. Craig

to May 14

Toronto

CHRISTMAS LETTER, A (MOW)

DP David B Perrault csc

to May 28

Sault Ste. Marie

CHROMA (series)

DP Craig Wrobleski csc (alternating episodes) 2nd Unit DP/C Cam Op D. Gregor Hagey csc

to August 17

Toronto

DARK WINDOWS I (series)

DP Colin Hoult csc

to August 13

Toronto

DC’S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW VI (series)

DP David Geddes csc, asc (alternating episodes)

to May 11

Burnaby

DIGGSTOWN III (series)

Camera Operator Forbes MacDonald Jr

to July 16

Dartmouth

EXPANSE THE VI (series)

DP Jeremy Benning csc (alternating episodes)

to May 11

Toronto

FIRESTARTER (series)

DP Karim Hussain csc

to July 21

Hamilton

FLASH, THE VII (series)

DP Alwyn J. Kumst csc, sasc & Brenton Spencer csc (alternating episodes)

to May 19

Vancouver

FOR THE RECORD, (series)

DP Kim Derko csc

to August 30

FROM (series)

DP David Greene csc, asc

to September 26

Halifax

GUILTY PARTY (pilot series)

DP Paul Sarossy csc, bsc, asc

to May 28

Calgary

HOLLY HOBBY III (series)

DP Lainie Knox Camera Operator Gregory Biskup

to July 25

Etobicoke

HOT ZONE: ANTHRAX (miniseries)

P Thom Best csc (alternating episodes) 1st Assistant Kevin Michael Leblanc

to May 24

Mississauga

JOE PICKETT (series)

DP Jarrett Craig (alternating episodes)

to August 30

Calgary

KINGSWOOD (series)

DP Marc Laliberté csc (alternating episodes)

to August 30

Mississauga

LETTERKENNY VI (series)

1st Assistant Tony Lippa B Camera Operator Monica Guddat

to June 25

Garson

LILY & ISAAC (TV series)

DP Glen Keenan csc (alternating episodes)

to July 23

Mississauga

LOCKE & KEY III (series)

DP Dylan Macleod csc B Camera Operator Brad Hruboska

to Sept 10

Toronto

MAGNESIUM II (series)

DP Justin Black

to June 17

Etobicoke

MILL STREET (series)

DP Philip Lanyon csc (alternating episodes) C Camera Operator J.P. Locherer csc

to June 10

Toronto

MURDOCH MYSTERIES XV (series)

DP Yuri Yakibuw csc

to February 14, 2022

Toronto

OVERLORDS & THE UNDERWOODS (series)

DP Mitchell Ness csc

to July 22

Kleinburg

PEARL IN THE MIST (MOW)

DP/Operator David Bercovici-Artieda

PRETTY HARD CASES II (series)

DP Kristin Fieldhouse Camera Operator/Steadicam Andreas Evdemon B Camera Operator Robert J. Barnett

to August 22

Toronto

RAPHANIS I (series)

DP Gavin Smith csc

to June 8

Calgary

REACHER I (series)

DP Ronald Plante csc & Mike McMurray csc (alternating episodes) 2nd Unit DP David Makin csc

to July 30

Brampton

RESCUED BY RUBY (feature)

DP David Bercovici-Artieda

to July 9

Victoria

Victoria

RIVERDALE V (series)

DP (Block 1) Ronald Richard & DP Bernard Couture csc

to June 1

Langley

SINNER, THE IV BLOCK 1 (series)

DP André J. Pienaar csc, sasc (alternating episodes)

to July 31

Chester

SLUMBERLAND 2021 (feature)

2nd Unit DP/Operator Ian Seabrook csc

to May 15

Toronto

STAR TREK: DISCOVERY IV (series)

DP Philip Lanyon csc (alternating episodes) C Camera Operator JP Locherer csc

to June 4

Toronto

STATION ELEVEN (series)

DP Steve Cosens csc & Daniel Grant csc (alternating episodes) DIT Andrew Richardson

to July 15

Mississauga

STRANGE NEW WORLDS I (series)

DP Glen Keenan csc (alternating episodes)

to July 16

Mississauga

SUPERGIRL VI (series)

DP Michael Story csc (alternating episodes) C Camera Operator Jill MacLauchlan

to August 6

Langley

SUPERMAN & LOIS (series)

DP Stephen Maier & Gordon Verheul csc (alternating episodes)

to July 5

Vancouver

SWEATER VEST (TV series)

DP Thom Best csc 1st Assistant Ciaran Copelin B Camera Operator Paula Tymchuk

to July 15

Toronto

TITANS III (series)

DP Boris Mosjovski csc & Fraser Brown csc (alternating episodes)

to June 11

Toronto

Y: LAST MAN, THE I (series)

DP Catherine Lutes csc (even episodes) & Claudine Sauvé csc (odd episodes) Trainee Ashley Bowa

to July 5

Mississauga

YELLOWJACKETS (series)

DP C. Kim Miles csc, asc, mysc (alternating episodes)

to October 6

Burnaby

CALENDAR MAY 16, CSC Full Member Spring Selection Committee, csc.ca 17-20, Canadian Screen Week, Toronto, academy.ca/awards 30, Kino Event: CSC Workshops presents Colour Science for Cinema Cameras, csc.ca

AUGUST 10-12, Inter Drone, Dallas, interdrone.com 24-26, Cine Video Television Expo, Mexico, revistapantalla.com/expo SEPTEMBER 9-18, Toronto International Film Festival, tiff.net 10-13, IBC, Amsterdam, show.ibc.org

34 • Canadian Cinematographer - May 2021

23-26, Cine Gear Expo, Hollywood, cinegearexpo.com/la-expo OCTOBER 3, 64th CSC Awards Gala, csc.ca

Classifieds EQUIPMENT FOR SALE Arriflex BL camera with 12 - 120 blimpted Angenieux lens, several film magazines, and accessories. Arriflex S camera with 9.5 - 95 Angenieux lens, film magazines, and accessories. C P 16 camera with angenieux 12 -120 lens with several film magazines and accessories. 2 Canon Scoopic film cameras, one takes a 200 foot load. Bell and Howell DR 70 wind up camera with lenses.

Al Sugerman at 519-768-1623, or at sugermana8@gmail.com COLORTRAN Nook light with bard doors and bulb. Includes long power cable and Quartzcolor 2K switch. $75. LOWEL Blender with AC power adapter, battery adapter for Canon E6 batteries, 1 protective screen, 3 diffusion screens. Very Good condition. $250. CHIMERA Triolet with 3 bulb adaptors, Chimera 9890 ring, glass diffusion dome and small Chimera pancake lantern (type 1864). $475. CHIMERA Extra Small Video Pro Plus with 3 screens (type 8115, 16"x22"). New condition. $200. CHIMERA Small Video Pro Plus Strip bank. (type 8155, 9"x 36").

Good condition. $250. epkcine@gmail.com 416.587-4848 Canon CN-E Prime Lenses. 24mm T1.5, 35mm T1.5, 50mm T1.5. In excellent condition. EF mount, covers S35 and full frame. Asking $3400 each.

Contact info@johnker.com.

35 4x5.6 Schneider filters: ND’s, color correction, diffusion, grads 2 138mm Tiffen Tobacco, Sunset grad 2 138mm Schneider Tru Pola, 85 Pola 2 138mm Schneider CU diopter #1, Cu Diopter • includes case and pouches for every filter.

• Excellent condition • 4x5.6 and 138mm. clears included Today’s value in U.S. dollars $13,705 U.S. Selling price $9,500 CDN CONTACT: Bert Tougas H: 514-634-2374 C: 514-913-2376 I have 15 - 3x3 Tiffen filters for sale - fogs, Promists Grads, 812's etc. all with cases. $185.00 - contact Barry Casson csc - 250-721-2113 or e-mail bcasson@speakfilm.com TIFFEN ULTRA STEADICAM , HD Ultrabrite color monitor ,HDMI Decimator 2,Iso-elastic arm, 4-24 volt batteries, 1-Pag battery charger 24v,1-Lentequip battery charger 12/24v,Klassen vest and carrying bag, 1 Preston F1+Z transmitter 1 Preston MDR-1 receiver,1 Preston control, 2 motors, 2 batteries, charger, numerous Hill motor mount brackets rossette brackets and rods, 1 long dovetail plate,1 short dovetail plate, 1 docking bracket,1 fgs wheel chair/dolly adaptor,rain cover, too many cables, hard cases and accessories to list.This rig was well maintained looks new, all it needs is a few upgrades. $23,000.00 cad 416 817 3938 or acadian@rogers.com Rick Kearney Preston FIZ 2 kit - $5,000 2 x Arri MB-20 studio matte box - $8,000 Arri LMB-15 Clip-on matte box - $1,200 Power-Pod Classic - $5,000 Please contact Michael Balfry csc @: michaelbalfry@gmail. com for a complete list of items.

Looking for a set of old, no longer used, standard legs with Mitchell base. Or any type of disused heavy camera support.

This is to be used to mount a Mitchell BNCR camera in order to place it on display. Anyone with access to such a tripod or with information about one, please contact me: rawi@earthlink.net 416-691-6865 CAMERA CLASSIFIED IS A FREE SERVICE PROVIDED FOR CSC MEMBERS. For all others, there is a one-time $25 (plus GST) insertion fee.

If you have items you would like to buy, sell or rent, please email your information to editor@csc.ca.

@canadiancinematographer @csc_CDN

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Fostering and Promoting the Art of Cinematography Since 1957