Canadian Cinematographer Magazine November 2018

CANADIAN SOCIETY OF CINEMATOGRAPHERS

$4 November 2018 www.csc.ca

The Land of Steady Habits Alar Kivilo csc, asc Pasha Patriki csc Black Water

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A publication of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers

FEATURES – VOLUME 10, NO. 6 NOVEMBER 2018 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.

SMPTE Full Frame Cine Camera Night

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Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

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 non-partisan groups in our industry but have no political or union affiliation.

Credit: Joseph Sunday

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.

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.

CORPORATE SPONSORS

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Comfort Zone: Alar Kivilo csc, asc in The Landy of Steady Habits

By Fanen Chiahemen

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Credit: Dave Pavlina

AC Lighting Inc. All Axis Remote Camera Systems Applied Electronics Limited Arri Canada Ltd. Canon Canada Inc. Codes Pro Media Cooke Optics Dazmo Camera Deluxe Toronto DMG Lumière FUJIFILM, North America Corporation FUJIFILM, Optical Devices Division Fusion Cine Henry’s Camera HD Source Inspired Image Picture Company Keslow Camera Kino Flo Lee Filters Mole-Richardson MOSS LED Inc. Nikon Canada Inc. PRG Panasonic Canada Panavision Canada REDLABdigital RED Red Square Motion Rosco Canada S1 Group Sigma SIM SIMMOD LENS Sony of Canada Ltd. Technically Yours Inc. Technicolor The Source Shop Urban Post Production Vistek Walter Klassen FX William F. White International Inc. Zeiss ZGC Inc. ZTV

Of Two Minds: Pasha Patriki csc Directs and Shoots Black Water

By Trevor Hogg

COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS 2 4 6 10 12 30 34 36 Cover

From the Editor-In-Chief From the President In the News On Set CSC Member Spotlight – Vic Sarin csc Tech Column Masters Awards Production Notes/Calendar Anders (Mendelsohn) in a still from the film The Land of Steady Habits.

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

Canadian Cinematographer November 2018 Vol. 10, No. 6 EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Joan Hutton csc EDITOR EMERITUS Donald Angus EXECUTIVE OFFICER Susan Saranchuk, admin@csc.ca EDITOR Fanen Chiahemen, editor@csc.ca COPY EDITOR Patty Guyader ART DIRECTION Berkeley Stat House WEBSITE www.csc.ca ADVERTISING SALES Guido Kondruss, gkondruss@rogers.com EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBER Bruce Marshall, brucemarshall@sympatico.ca CSC BOARD OF DIRECTORS Phil Earnshaw csc Carlos Esteves csc Joan Hutton csc Antonin Lhotsky csc Bruno Philip csc Joseph Sunday PhD George Willis csc, sasc CSC EXECUTIVE PRESIDENT George Willis csc, sasc PAST PRESIDENT, ADVISOR Joan Hutton csc VICE PRESIDENTS Carlos Esteves csc, Toronto Bruno Philip csc, Montreal MEMBERSHIP CHAIRS Arthur Cooper csc Zoe Dirse csc EDUCATION CHAIRS Carlos Esteves csc George Willis csc, sasc AWARDS CHAIRS Andre Pienaar csc, sasc Samy Inayeh csc PUBLIC RELATIONS CHAIR Bruce Marshall 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

T

here was a collective mopping of brows when Canadian and American negotiators finally – after thirteen months of wrangling – agreed to a new NAFTA deal, or as it’s been now christened, the United States-Mexico-Canada-Agreement (USMCA) on trade. It could have been much worse for Canada given the political climate in the White House, but for the most part, it’s business as usual, at least where our film and television industry is concerned.

Of concern during negotiations was whether the cross-border movement of professionals would be changed. Thankfully, nothing was altered and it’s business as usual for Canadians with TN visas or green cards heading to the US, while Americans need a visa or a work permit for Canada. Actually, I was hoping that a new trade deal would result in broader cross-border movement for our industries. Simpler is always better for business in my books.

What’s also good is that Canada’s cultural industries remain outside the deal. That means we can continue to make films and series about Canadians, by Canadians, for Canadians without interference, which could have been curtailed if, let’s say, Disney had the option to buy into or acquire the CBC. Far-fetched? Maybe, but not really, considering the integrated nature of our industries.

Of concern, though, is the digital copyright chapter in the USMCA, which is essentially American-corporation-influenced copyright, and it’s left no room for Canada’s copyright mechanism. What we’ve been hearing about mostly, rightly or wrongly, is the extension of copyright protection from 50 to 70 years after a creator’s death.

Where we should actually be taking a critical look is at the onerous “notice-and-takedown” provisions, where a copyright holder, simply suspecting a possible infringement, can have content or even an entire website removed from the Internet without legal oversight or effective recourse. This provision effectively gives large corporations for the most part the keys to the Internet as to what people see, hear and do, while destroying its neutrality as a hub for creativity and invention. The “notice-and-takedown” provision would override Canada’s nuanced and balanced “message-to-message” system of providing notice of any alleged copyright infringement without a slash-and-burn approach. Recently, the CRTC rejected Bell Media’s version of “notice-and takedown,” so there are voices of reason. The USMCA is still a handshake agreement being fine-tuned. Let’s hope that reasoned voices dictate Canada’s Internet neutrality before the deal is inked.

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FROM THE PRESIDENT George A. Willis csc, sasc

R

ecently, a questionnaire was sent to the CSC membership. As with any survey, the specific purpose was to obtain data, and in this case, information relating to many aspects of the Society. The most important part was to gauge the members’ observations and opinions that relate to their evaluation of the Society, as well as the request for their input.

As filmmakers, most of us are familiar with the term “pre-production,” the formal meeting that is convened allowing for a production to be effectively analyzed and finally given the go-ahead. The purpose is also to establish and confirm that everyone has been given the opportunity to provide pertinent and valuable input.

I believe that the questionnaire provides a similar opportunity to offer feedback as well as suggestions that relate to the Society. Just as pre-production is critical to any production, so, too, is this survey critical to the way in which the Society is managed.

As with many surveys of this kind, one cannot realistically expect a 100 per cent poll, but we were very disappointed at the low response. We were hoping that the membership would avail themselves of the opportunity to offer their opinions and suggestions; in short, to provide feedback. This was a valuable opportunity to say whatever it is that they might possibly find to be lacking, as well as the opportunity to offer any remedial steps that they might deem appropriate to suggest and/or request.

Although far removed from the film industry, another relevant comparison would be the process of voting for an election. The action of expressing one’s opinion is vital to the democratic process, which is made available to the constituency. This electoral process gives everyone the opportunity to have their say. We believe that this process also holds true for the Society’s membership as it offers a vehicle for discussion.

The Board of Directors is always willing to listen to the membership. To listen and act positively upon any input and feedback received is the most important part of the process. We thought that an ideal opportunity was being presented to obtain information that would be of great benefit to the membership and the Society. However, while the response to the survey is disappointing, we will still continue with our mandate to provide the best possible service to the membership. We trust that any future decisions made by the Board of Directors and the various committees will be well received and supported.

Although this survey has now officially closed, the Board of Directors is always very receptive to the members’ opinions and we welcome any input and suggestions. We thank those members who took the time and opportunity to respond to the questionnaire. Your input is very valuable indeed.

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In The News • The most qualified personnel, high-end technical facilities and state-of-the-ar t equipment readily available from coast-to-coast • An extensive after-hours support network dedicated to troubleshooting or problem-solving whenever you need it • Ultra High Definition (UHD), 4K-8K and Large Format cameras available for rental • 35MM, Spherical, Anamorphic and Large Format optics at the ready

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Red Square Motion, founded by Pasha Patriki csc, announced in September it has joined forces with Canadian distributor Indiecan Entertainment and Toronto-based production/post company Unstable Ground to launch a globally-focused one-stop solution for digital storage, protection and delivery of film and media assets. The core of the service is designed with protection of content from unauthorized sharing and piracy in mind, by using a blockchain-based forensic encoding technology. LightVAULT

addresses the needs of both distributors and independent filmmakers alike, offering an end-to-end solution for the secure storage, QC, conversion and delivery of film assets to clients worldwide. A user-friendly triple-redundancy backup system on encrypted servers, protected screener featuring forensic watermarking, and secure delivery are the hallmarks of the service. The partnership was negotiated between Patriki, Avi Federgreen of Indiecan Entertainment, and Justin McConnell of Unstable Ground.

MIX Technology Wins 2018 cinecAward for Lighting Engineering

Credit: Courtesy of the ASC

In The News

Companies Partner for Industry Solution LightVAULT

ASC President Kees van Oostrum and ARRI President and CEO Glenn Kennel

American Society of Cinematographers Breaks Ground on ARRI Educational Center The American Society of Cinematographers broke ground in September on the construction of the new ASC ARRI Educational Center. The contemporary building, located behind the historic ASC Clubhouse in Hollywood, will serve as a hub for the organization’s ongoing efforts to educate the next generation of filmmakers on the art and craft of cinematography. The structure also will be home to all print and digital publications staff. The ASC ARRI Educational Center offers a modern space with offices and meeting rooms and is slated to be completed by 2019.

The educational centre is made possible through the patronage of ARRI

6 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

MIX technology from DMG Lumière

by Rosco in late September took top prize at this year’s Cinec International Trade Fair in Munich, winning in the Lighting Engineering category by the Society for CineTechnik Bayern (CTB).

The “Bavaria” statue, which is a symbol of Munich, is awarded for outstanding and market-ready achievements and innovations in the fields of motion picture technology and postproduction.

Patent-pending MIX technology uses six unique coloured LEDs that bring true Rosco colour to a portable and durable LED fixture. Created by technicians to improve workflow, the myMIX app gives its users full control, without the need to set up DMX universe or profiles. With a robust library of Rosco gel colours, it permits technicians to mix, save and share colours with colleagues. Users can also capture a colour with a mobile phone or tablet camera and send the captured colour to the light. MIX will initially be available in the SL1 and MINI fixture formats. The myMIX app is now available for download onto android and iOS devices.

CFC, Netflix Partnership to Empower Distinctive Canadian Voices The Canadian Film Centre and Netflix in September announced the start of a new five-year partnership that will help showcase Canadian talent within

ACCT Announces Music Video Initiative The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television recently announced a new initiative, in partnership with RBCxMusic, called the MVP Project, which will provide funding and support to emerging music video directors, with grants ranging from $5,000 to $15,000.

This means that directing, producing, cinematography and editing credits on Canadian music videos are now eligible towards membership under the Digital Media division. Those who apply with music video credits that consistently exhibit originality, creativity, style, innovation and effective execution, may also choose to be considered under the Cinema division. More information is available at mvpproject.ca.

Comweb/Whites Board Member Bernie Nisker Dies

Credit: Courtesy of William F. White

and beyond its borders. The initiative aims to foster and accelerate a broad scope of diverse Canadian creators and their film/TV projects, and to advance Canadian talent and opportunities in the international marketplace. In recognition of Netflix’s commitment to Canada’s creative community, Netflix will become the Presenting Sponsor of CFC’s Annual Gala & Auction, CFC’s Annual BBQ Fundraiser, CFC’s Annual Garden Party and CFC’s Annual Reception in L.A. In addition, a restored cottage on the CFC campus will become the newly named Netflix House.

Bernie Nisker On September 10, Comweb/Whites Board of Advisors member and friend of the company, Bernie J. Nisker, passed away following a brief battle with esophageal cancer. A seasoned chartered accountant with more than 40 years of executive-level experience, Nisker successfully led reputable companies in the roles of CEO, COO and CFO. Over the years, he held tenures with established accounting firms such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, Cantol Corp., Soberman LLP (now Crowe Soberman LLP) and Mercatus Technologies Inc. “Bernie was not only a dear friend, but

the first member of our board when it was established over 10 years ago,” Whites’ Chairman/CEO Paul Bronfman said. “On a personal and professional level, he was a gentleman in every sense of the word and the true definition of a mensch (a person of integrity and honour). I will miss Bernie forever.

He had a huge impact on my life, and our company will be eternally grateful for over 20 years of contributions.”

William F. White, CFC Announce $100,000 Scholarship for Indigenous Filmmakers Paul Bronfman, chairman/CEO of Comweb Corporation/William F. White International, and Slawko Klymkiw, CEO of the Canadian Film Centre, in September announced the creation of the Jay Switzer Comweb/William F. White International Indigenous Creator Scholarship as a tribute to the late Canadian media figure. Administered through the CFC, the $100,000 award will be distributed over the next 10 years.

Further details concerning the scholarship will be announced at a later date.

Cineplex and CJ 4DPLEX Announce Canadian Expansion Plans In mid-September, cinema technology company CJ 4DPLEX, in partnership

Netflix Launches Post Technology Alliance Netflix in September announced the Netflix Post Technology Alliance (NPTA), a logo program that identifies production and postproduction tools that have been developed in collaboration with Netflix to meet the company’s technical and delivery specifications. Manufacturers of products bearing this logo are closely partnered with Netflix, have early access to the Netflix technical roadmap, and collaborate with Netflix on technical support, training and updates. The NPTA currently includes industry leaders in four categories: cameras, creative editorial, colour grading and IMF packaging, with products from Adobe, ARRI, Avid, Blackmagic Design, Canon, Colorfront, Fraunhofer IIS, Filmlight, Marquise Technologies, MTI Film, Ownzones, Panasonic, RED Digital Cinema, Rohde & Schwarz, and Sony. Netflix said it will add more products in these categories over time and expand the categories to include sound production, dubbing and other disciplines in postproduction. More information is available at: pta.netflixstudios.com.

Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

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In The News

with Cineplex, announced a new agreement that will bring the 4DX experience to as many as 13 additional Cineplex locations across Canada over the coming years. CJ 4DPLEX’s 4D technology enhances the onscreen visuals of blockbusters, transcending the traditional cinema experience through special effects, including motion-synchronized seats, wind, fog, rain, lightning, snow, bubble, vibration and scents. Cineplex and CJ 4DPLEX have said that Calgary would be the next Canadian city to open a 4DX auditorium.

in the Canadian film and television industry. “So Not Cool” is designed to empower bystanders and all cast and crewmembers to help create a safe and respectful environment on set and off.

The campaign rollout includes print materials and buttons, as well as an online presence at SoNotCool.ca and on YouTube. The campaign microsite promotes resources available to those seeking assistance and content to help assistant directors, production managers and other crew to integrate respectful workplace information into safety talks and safety manuals.

DGC Launches Campaign to Tackle Harassment

Century Studio Opens in Mississauga

The Directors Guild of Canada’s National Lead on Respectful Workplaces Kendrie Upton announced recently the DGC’s latest push in its efforts to combat harassment, discrimination, bullying and violence

In October, Century Studio, an 82,000-square-foot space, opened to outside productions. The studio houses a 33,000-square-foot sound stage, plus 50,000 square feet of support space. Over the summer it hosted studio production on

Netflix’s V-Wars and In the Shadow of the Moon. The space is run by Thomas Walden and Eric Birnberg of High Park Entertainment.

CBS Announces Plans for Toronto Studio in 2019 U.S. network CBS announced at the end of September that it plans to open a production hub in the Greater Toronto Area by mid-2019.

The 260,000-square-foot Mississauga facility will include six sound stages, production offices, support facilities and other services for film and television projects. John Weber and Frank Siracusa, executive producers of CBS All Access’ Star Trek: Discovery, will oversee the development of the project and the management of the production facility, which is to be dubbed CBS Stages Canada.

TriBro Breaks Ground on Pickering Studio

IBC 2018 Highlights

TriBro Studios will begin construction on its Pickering studio facility next spring, the company’s head, Peter Apostolopoulos, said in media reports in September. The roughly 400,000-square-foot studio facility will feature four large sound stages aimed to accommodate tentpole productions, including two 70,000-square-foot sound stages, as well as a 100,000-square-foot stage and a 50,000-square-foot stage. Apostolopoulos said the first stage is expected to be operational by mid-2020.

At IBC 2018, which took place from September 13 to 18 in Amsterdam: • ARRI introduced a new app for professional lighting control. Stellar, as the app is named, automatically manages complex DMX settings. Coded intelligence and advanced communication enables the app to easily connect to the ARRI SkyPanel and L-Series fixtures, and Stellar has been designed with graphic interfaces tailored to the different ways of selecting colour.

• Cooke Optics presented the 50 mm focal length of the new Anamorphic/i Full Frame Plus range. The range, featuring a T2.3 stop, will offer 32 mm, 40 mm, 50 mm, 75 mm, 100 mm, 135 mm and 180 mm lenses; the 50 mm will be the first in production, with the rest following over the next 12 months.

The image circle will cover a full 24x36 still size sensor, with a 1.8 squeeze.

Cooke also presented the Panchro/i Classic 65 mm Macro and 21 mm lenses for the first time, as well as various lenses from the S7/i, miniS4/i, Anamorphic/i and Anamorphic/i SF families.

• FUJIFILM officially introduced the latest in its Premier UA Series of UHD 2/3” lenses – the UA46x9.5B and UA46x13.5B. The UA46x9.5B features 46x zoom ratio and a wide angle from 9.5-437 mm (19 – 874 mm w/2x) with an F2.0 aperture. The “Tele” version UA46x13.5B lens also features a 46x zoom ratio and a telephoto reach from 13.5-621 mm (27 – 1242 mm w/2x) with an F2.8 aperture. Both lenses have a total weight of 5.7kg/12.56lbs and length of approximately 345.8 mm.

• FUJIFILM also introduced the 4K UA70x8.7BESM field lens. The UA Series is designed for UHD broadcast applications and made to optimize 4K HDR performance from today’s new 4K 2/3” cameras. The UA70x7.8BESM zoom features a 70x zoom ratio and focal length range of 8.7 - 610 mm (17.4 - 122 0mm w/2x).

IATSE 667 Mourns Camera Operator Andy Chmura International Cinematographers Guild 667 announced on September 20 the passing of longtime member Andy Chmura. Chmura was well known across the industry and worked across Eastern Canada. A well-regarded operator, his projects include Married to It, Long Kiss Goodnight, the Jesse Stone MOWs, Pacific Rim and Good Witch.

Kodak Begins Shipping New EKTACHROME Films Eastman Kodak Company and Kodak Alaris announced in late September the availability of the highly-anticipated KODAK EKTACHROME Film line. KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTACHROME Film E100, available from Kodak Alaris, will initially be available in 135/36x camera format. KODAK EKTACHROME 7294 Color Reversal Film in the Super 8 format was also scheduled to be available beginning October 1 from Eastman Kodak Company.

Availability of EKTACHROME products in the 16 mm format are scheduled to follow later this year.

Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

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On Set

Credit: Michelle Faye Fraser

Brent Craig (A 1st AC), Jessica Salter (B 2nd AC), Alex Perrotin (trainee), Lauren Carson (A 2nd AC), Brent Robinson (B operator), D. Gregor Hagey csc (DP), Morning Glory (DIT), Rion Gonzales (2nd unit DP), Chris Chung (B 1st AC), Brett Hurd (A operator) on the set of Wayne, a new series for YouTube Premium.

Paul Sarossy csc, asc, bsc wrapping the shoot of Tin Star, Season Two.

ACCEPTANCES / AWARDS / NOMINATIONS / Michael Jari Davidson, associate member (DP) SuperGrid (feature), accepted: Calgary International Film Festival, September 21, Calgary; DedFest 2018, October 19, Edmonton; Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival, November 14, Saskatoon; (DP) Art of Obsession (feature), accepted: Requiem Fest Fest, September 22, Montreal; (DP) Hang Up! (short), accepted: Celluloid Screams, October 21, Sheffield, England; accepted: Edmonton Festival of Fear, October 26, Edmonton

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Todd M. Duym, associate member (cinematographer) Dawn (short), nominated for Best Cinematography in a Dramatic Short Film, International Cinematographer’s Film Festival, September 29, Bitola, Macedonia; official selection: Argentinian Society of Cinematographers Film Festival, September 5, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Encounters Film Festival, September 27, Bristol U.K.; Reggio film festival, November, Italy

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Christopher Probst, ASC Director of Photography

WWW.RED.COM Canadian Cinematographer - March 2018 •

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Credit: David McIlvride

CSC Member Spotlight

Vic Sarin csc

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

My father used to run a movie theatre, so I started to watch movies at a very early age. Films such as 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Vera Cruz and, of course, David Lean’s movies were a window for me to a world of magic. At the time, there was also a very strong Indian cinema – before it became commercial Bollywood – where I watched such classics as Mother India; Two Eyes, Twelve Hands; Stay Awake and many others.

How did you get started in the business?

My father knew that I had no interest in finishing university, but he also knew that I loved cinema. For my 18th birthday he decided to give me a camera. Knowing nothing about cameras, he asked a local camera salesman. To make a quick sale, he advised him to buy an 8 mm movie camera.

The deal was struck, and just before taking the camera my father asked if this was the best camera he could buy. A few days later, I received a 16 mm Bolex camera with two rolls of black-and-white Dupont film along with printed exposure instructions. So started the journey of making films. I still cherish that camera.

Who have been your mentors or teachers?

As a teenager, I used to hang around with an older crowd. I was immensely impressed by their minds and their knowledge of things. But soon I discovered that their knowledge all came from reading other people’s work.

From then on, I developed a phobia of reading books or being influenced by other people’s work, preferring instead to gain knowledge through my own experiences. Consequently, I hardly ever read or followed any particular person’s thoughts or advice. As I look back, perhaps I shortchanged myself in some ways, but on the other hand, I learned to experiment and find my own path, which has been so valuable in my creative work.

What cinematographers inspire you?

I was aware of cinematographers growing up – in those days usually called “cameramen” – but I was mostly drawn to the movies themselves.

Subconsciously, I was very much aware of the power of the visuals, haunted by them without realizing exactly how they were captured. I was drawn to images but in a way that had more to do with feeling than thinking. Two of the cinematographers that caught my eye in the early days were Freddie Young asc, bsc and Conrad Hall asc.

Name some of your professional highlights.

I was fortunate to get to be the first cinematographer on CBC’s long-running drama series For the Record. I was also the first staff cameraman to

12 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

work on The Fifth Estate when it started in 1972 and worked on a number of well-known documentaries and public affairs shows. From there, I served as DP on such known CBC films as Louis Riel, War Brides, Charlie Grant’s War and many more in the heyday of CBC when we shot movies on film. I also feel good about my work on features such as Dancing in the Dark, Burning Season, Margaret’s Museum, Whale Music and many others.

What is one of your most memorable moments on set?

As a DP, I always operated my own camera even though this sometimes put me at odds with the unions. As an operator, I was the first person watching the movie we were making. In this scenario, the director and I worked very closely. In those days, most of the actors came from the stage, but soon many of them developed a sense of the camera and cared how they came across on the camera. I used to love it when the director would say, “Cut!” and actors such as Kenneth Welsh, Maury Chaykin and R. H. Thomson would turn and look at the man behind the camera for approval first and then the director. For me, it wasn’t the ego boost of having that control, but rather being part of the machine making a movie.

What do you like best about what you do?

To me, the richness of life is the experience of the journey itself. The movie camera allowed me to open so many new doors and be able to see and feel things I otherwise couldn’t. This priceless gift came from the camera.

What do you like least about what you do?

The introduction of the monitor was a great disappointment to me. It certainly has many advantages, but I enjoyed being the eye of the production as a film was being made. The DP was much more a part of making a movie in the days before monitors. Things are done by committee now and the DP’s role is diminished and not as personal as it used to be.

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

Ironically, probably the monitor. It has changed the role of the DP, but it certainly has made life much easier in many ways too. If it is used as a tool and not a crutch, it is very helpful to a production.

How can others follow your work?

I don’t believe following is necessary. Just follow your instincts and do your own thing. Experience your life on all levels and be honest to your creative impulses. This will be reflected in your work no matter what you do.

SMPTE Full Frame Cine Camera Night Panavision Toronto, September 20, 2018 Sponsored by Fusion Cine

Franรงois Gauthier (ARRI Canada) discussing ALEXA LF camera, with Signature Prime LF lenses.

Credit for all: Joseph Sunday

Thomas Rose (Panavision, Woodland Hills, California) discussing Panavision DXL-2 camera, with Primo Artiste lenses.

Above: Luc Lamarre (Canon Canada) discussing C700 FF camera Left: Simon Marsh (Sony Venice senior product manager, Los Angeles) discussing the Venice camera, with new sensor extension system between capture and recording modules.

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THE WITH FUJINON MKX CINE LENSES

Canadian Cinematographer - September 2018 •

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16 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

Ben Mendelsohn in the opening scene of The Land of Steady Habits.

Comfort Zone Alar Kivilo csc, asc in

The Land of Steady Habits

By Fanen Chiahemen

T

he Land of Steady Habits is the latest feature from writer-director Nicole Holofcener (Enough Said, Please Give, Friends With Money, and Lovely & Amazing). Adapted from Ted Thompson’s novel of the same name, the comedy drama is a portrait of one man’s midlife crisis in upscale suburban Connecticut, one of the most affluent and comfortable places in America. Ben Mendelsohn plays Anders Hill, a middle-aged man who has left his wife and his lucrative finance job for no apparent reason, swapping his large rustic family home for a cookie-cutter condo. He spends his days attempting to escape suburban ennui by drifting aimlessly through department stores, picking up women for mid-afternoon hookups, going to strip clubs and doing drugs with the teenage son

Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

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of a family friend, as well as trying to get his adult son, recently out of rehab, back on the right path. Edie Falco of The Sopranos co-stars as Anders’ ex-wife, Helene, while Friday Night Lights’ Connie Britton plays his new love interest.

The Netflix original film, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, was shot by Alar Kivilo csc, asc, who says he appreciated Holofcener’s brand of caustic social comedy. “I really loved the script right from the get-go,” Kivilo says. “Her films are really so character-driven. The plots are less in your face; it’s really all about character and the growth of the character.”

The DP says at their first meeting, Holofcener gave him a specific mandate for the feature: “She said up until The Land of Steady Habits her visual style had been somewhat subdued, or she didn’t put too much emphasis on it, and that’s what she wanted to extend a bit, to build it further with the visuals than she usually does,” he recalls.

To visually highlight the absurdity of Anders’ new living situation, for instance, in a shot where the character drives up to his condo, Kivilo emphasized the uniformity of all the condos by adding a tracking shot “so you go from one house that looks the same to the next house that looks the same and then he drives in, so they’re subtle little things to visually add some humour but also to underscore the story and the character,” he says.

The opening frame of the film is perhaps one of the most cinematic – Anders stands in front of a giant wall of towels, organized in every colour, at a big-box store. Anders’ bewil-

“I really loved the script right from the get-go. Her films are really so character-driven. The plots are less in your face; it’s really all about character and the growth of the character.”

]

DP Alar Kivilo csc, asc with director Nicole Holofcener.

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

[

derment at the scope of choice before him is so obvious in that shot it always gets a laugh at screenings, Kivilo says, explaining that the shot was not in the script but came out of an organic process during location scouting.

“We went to Bed Bath & Beyond to scout, and we were just looking at different areas where Ben Mendelsohn’s character might be shopping, trying to start his life anew in his new condo, and I saw these towels and immediately shot a test of the shot I had in mind with our location manager standing in for Ben,” the DP says. “That was fun because it was total visual storytelling.

You’re setting up who this character is, but you’re also making a little joke. That’s another example of how I tried to elevate the visuals in subtle ways.”

The shot also underscores the use of framing as a visual tool in a comedy, Kivilo says. “If that was shot as a tight shot or a bunch of cutaways, it wouldn’t have had the laughter it did,” he explains. “By not cutting, a certain tension was built into it and the setting dwarfing the protagonist focused the audience’s attention on the actor’s body language, which in the end produced the release of laughter.”

He brought the same simplicity to his lighting as well.

“Because the story is so much about character and characters living in a real place, I think the cinematography has to blend into the story and not overtake it, and also with Nicole’s deadpan style I think keeping everything simple seemed like the right thing to do,” he offers.

Netflix provided Kivilo with a list of possible cameras to shoot

Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

19

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

Left: Holofcener discusses a scene with Mendelsohn. Above: Anders (Mendelsohn) in a still from The Land of Steady Habits.

with that did not include the ALEXA, which the DP says would have been his first choice. But after doing some tests on the cameras on the network’s list, he found that the Varicam, “in terms of the quality of its grain or noise, was the most ALEXA-like,” he says. He used Leica Summilux lenses and framed the movie in the cinematic 2:1 ratio. “This gives a widescreen feel without being too exaggerated. For a film about relationships it was perfect,” he says.

On A camera Kivilo had Charles Libin, who the DP had worked with on several films, while Denny Kortze operated the B camera and the Steadicam. Kivilo’s gaffer was William Newell, who had recently worked on British director Steve McQueen’s latest feature, Widows (DP Sean Bobbitt bsc).

The Land of Steady Habits was shot mostly on location in “various little towns just north of Manhattan,” Kivilo says, and even though there were many locations to shoot in, he adopted the same simple approach regardless of the space. “Back in the film days, one would often start by building up the light for exposure, but now shooting digitally the very first step is to just turn the camera on. This very quickly gives the visual parameters of what you’re dealing with, and very often it’s more about turning things off than turning things on. I get a feel for what the natural light is doing itself and then augment only if needed. A great way to avoid over-lighting,” he says.

One of the biggest setups on the film involved a nighttime shot with a Technocrane in a scene in which Anders and his teenage friend, Charlie, drive up to a boatyard to do drugs inside a sailboat. “Faced with shooting a big expanse of boats wrapped up in white plastic for the winter, there really was only one place to

[

put a light, so I got a giant crane with a balloon on it and I took advantage of the Varicam’s dual ASA mode,” Kivilo explains.

“I activated the 5,000 ASA setting, and within that dialed it to 2,500 ASA. Despite the high ASA, the images didn’t have excessive noise, however, in post I did have to grad down the sky in a few shots because the city glow was too bright.”

He lit the interior with a Coleman lantern, which had a greenish tint. “It was not the most pleasant-looking light, but then again it underlined that this is a grown-up guy doing drugs with a 17-year-old in the middle of the night in a boat. You didn’t want it to be too pretty,” he says. “In that scene the practical lights in the boat were warm tungsten and it was also art directed with Christmas lights. I could have embraced that, but I thought just to offset the warmth, the Coleman lantern provided a strong colour contrast and got us more into the hard reality of the scene.

“A detail from that scene I love is when Ben Mendelsohn slumps back into his seat and, luckily, one of the Christmas lights, a green Christmas light, dangled right in front of his face, creating a weird glow. I think Ben or Nicole was going to adjust it, but I said, ‘No, let’s leave it.’ It again underlined Ben’s state of mind,” Kivilo says.

Practical lights were essential to his minimalist approach, although he says one of Holofcener’s quirks is an aversion to practicals with white shades. “So in preproduction we were very particular about our practicals, and I told our set decorator [Robert Covelman] we need practicals that will emit light but also will be aesthetically pleasing to Nicole,” Kivilo says. “So pretty well all the practicals that you do see were chosen and brought in by us. I would turn the practicals on and very often I would just

“Because the story is so much about character and characters living in a real place, I think the cinematography has to blend into the story and not overtake it, and also with Nicole’s deadpan style I think keeping everything simple seemed like the right thing to do.”

20 • Canadian Cinematographer - September 2018

]

Canadian Cinematographer - June 2018 •

17

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

Credit: Alison Cohen Rosa alisoncohenrosa.com

Clockwise: Anders (Mendelsohn) with love interst Barbara (Connie Britton) in a still from the film. Thomas Mann as Anders' wayward son Preston in a still from the film.

Holofcener and Kivilo frame up a shot. Anders avoids his family at Christmas by holing up in a hotel room.

augment with Litepanels, something simple and quick.”

Kivilo says that for him the “holy grail” of filmmaking is capturing the fine performances of the actors. “I love actors. Without actors, there wouldn’t be a movie, and this cast was amazing, amazing character actors,” he observes. “So it was important to see what was going on in the faces. And for me on any film, the trick to that is to not clutter anything up with lighting style or camera movement. Again, keep it really simple. So we just took our cues from what was naturally happening and then made sure that we saw what was going on in the faces. So basically I used very soft directional light on every one of them.”

He says he always kept in mind what a character was feeling or what the scene was depicting when framing up the actors. Describing a scene where Mendelsohn’s character seeks refuge in a motel an hour from his home, the DP says, “There’s a close-up of him that starts the scene where he’s just looking like shit, and there I just did no filling; I just let the natural light that was coming from the window hit him. And it was kicking in at such an an-

[

gle that it wasn’t pretty, but I really love that because you could really feel how he’s cut off from his family. He’s obviously made the wrong decision in his life and now he’s sitting in this empty hotel room alone and neglected and lost at sea. So subtle little things with lighting and framing underline those character points. When there is too much camera movement in a pivotal scene with an actor, it’s harder to see what’s going on in their face.”

Some of the most satisfying moments for Kivilo were when he was in sync with the actors to capture a feeling. Going back to the opening frame of the film at Bed Bath & Beyond, he says Mendelsohn heightened the comedy in the shot with his body language. “Sometimes actors, especially if it’s something that’s purely visual, they’re sometimes suspect, but Ben Mendelsohn just loved that shot and understood and added that little slump with his body at the end of the shot,” the DP recalls. “He understands where the joke came in, so he’s a filmmaker too. We’re all filmmakers. We may all have different categories, but at the end of the day we’re all filmmakers trying to tell a story.”

“We’re all filmmakers. We may all have different categories, but at the end of the day we’re all filmmakers trying to tell a story.”

22 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

]

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Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

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Of Two Minds

Pasha Patriki csc

Directs and Shoots Black Water

By Trevor Hogg, Special to Canadian Cinematographer Photos by Dave Pavlina

G

lobal outrage erupted when it was revealed that the CIA had a network of covert international locations where suspected terrorists were being interrogated and tortured. And it’s the Black Site program that serves as an inspiration for the recent film Black Water in which deep cover operative Wheeler ( Jean-Claude Van Damme) is held captive aboard a submarine, and chaos ensues as he attempts to escape. The action thriller is the directorial debut of Pasha Patriki csc who also served as the cinematographer. “Two previous projects I worked on as cinematographer were also about shooting in a confined environment,” Patriki observes.

“Gridlocked revolved around a team of NYPD officers who are under siege inside a small police training facility, and much of the action in the horror film The Sound took place inside the abandoned subway tunnels of Toronto. It is probably fate that connected me with Black Water since I have clearly developed a certain set of skills for shooting in confined spaces!”

An effort was made to streamline the script written by Chad Law. “As a filmmaker, I decided to take out a lot of technical details from the story, like who framed who and why does he have this USB drive that everyone wants to kill for?” Patriki says. “Originally, the script was packed with all these explanations that I felt clouded the action. We simplified the story and made it about Wheeler getting off the Black Ops prison site rather than about discovering the true meaning of this big secret plan orchestrated by the Russians or perhaps the Chinese. It was truly an amazing experience to not only create the visuals for the story, but also to be able to weave the storyline itself.”

Prep time was about a month, with 22 days of principal photography taking place in Mobile, Alabama, at the USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park. “In a discussion with the producers and our production designer Fernando Valdes, I suggested that we use mainly the interior of USS Alabama, but also still try to shoot a couple of smaller scenes on USS Drum while also building four sets that had the most action with shooting guns and explosions.”

The USS Alabama is a massive environment, according to

24 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

Patriki. “The previs for us really became a challenge of mapping what room on what ship serves for what script location, and we created this complex colour-coded map of Ship Compartments vs. Story,” he explains. “A fairly detailed shot list mapped out how we would transition from one space to another.” Frequent collaborator and friend Allan Ungar suggested using Crimson Tide, photographed by Dariusz Wolski asc, as a lighting reference. “Ironically, when we were in prep, our costume designer Ashley Allen rented uniforms that were actually used on Crimson Tide! In Crimson Tide you see fairly saturated colours, with two colours usually dominating any specific scene. Dariusz Wolski masterfully made sense of the saturated colours as if it is coming from the lights on the equipment. I embraced that concept and even took it a few steps further. We replaced every

Credit: Bernie Sawyer

Top right: Pasha Patriki csc in action. Second row from left: Sunset over USS Alabama, one of the filmimg locations. Actors Al Sapienza (foreground) and Aleksander Vayshelboym in a still from Black Water. The lighting setup on the deck of USS Drum, a WW2 submarine. Patriki goes through the dialogue with actors Jean-Claude Van Damme and Al Sapienza. Cameras and fake weapons taking a rest between shooting. Third row from left: Actors Al Sapienza (foreground) and Aleksander Vayshelboym in a still from Black Water. Actor Tahj Vaughans as Sommer in a still from Black Water.

Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

25

bulb on the ship with coloured LED bulbs from Home Depot and turned the otherwise bland and desaturated interior of the ship into this magical colourful world.

Covering the scenes mostly handheld with minimal coverage gave a sense of being present in the tight space with our story’s heroes.”

Other locations found in Mobile were a seedy motel, various warehouses and official offices, and the CIA headquarters building. “With the help of a local locations manager, Kyle Bucher, we were able to find great-looking locations quickly,” Patriki remarks. “We had to build four sets: the submarine command room, the retrofitted submarine prison that has corridors, cells and a security control room.

Actors Van Damme and Jasmine Waltz shoot a scene.

“We replaced every bulb on the ship with coloured LED bulbs from Home Depot and turned the otherwise bland and desaturated interior of the ship into this magical colourful world.”

26 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

In building the sets, I worked closely with Fernando Valdes on constructing sets that would resemble the feel we have created on USS Drum and USS Alabama but would ultimately cheat the dimensions and be bigger and wider to allow for easier moving around and a larger variety of camera positions.”

The Barton Academy was the site of the production office and doubled as a studio, with sets being constructed within the hallways and large rooms.

The RED EPIC-X camera and Zeiss CP.2 lenses were supplied by 9 Light Entertainment in Toronto. “We shot 2.39 aspect ratio and 5K resolution, with the DMT downloading footage on set and processing dailies,” Patriki states. “Dailies were then uploaded to Red Square Motion [a Toronto-based post facility founded by the cinematographer in 2009], which has its own iOS app for viewing dailies. They were available for me and producers every day; we could quickly recall any take, which was a great help, especially with continuity. While shooting inside of the warships, we had zero cellular signal because of being surrounded by multiple layers of thick metal. The Dailies App from Red Square Motion allowed us to save some takes into the offline viewing, so even without any connectivity I could pull up any takes that I downloaded into my phone earlier. It literally saved our butts many times.” The main footage format was 5K RED RAW, he adds. “We also used some DJI drone footage, as well as my iPhone to act as a security camera POV.” Patriki is not a fan of utilizing LUTs on set.

“I like shooting RAW, not because the digital is so different from shooting on film, but actually it is so similar to the film workflow.

Sure, you can play with all the LUTs you want on set, but ultimately the raw camera sensor records only one type of data, just like the negative stock inside a film camera.

When the time comes to post, you’d have the printer do timing, and this is similar to me giving the DMT some initial looks for the dailies, which I always dial in manually without any pre-made LUTs. When it comes to final colour-correction (DI), this is where the true magic happens – you are now grading from RAW, and it’s like working with the original camera negative, only better and with more options,” he says, adding that colourist Mila Patriki at Red Square

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25

“It is probably fate that connected me with Black Water since I have clearly developed a certain set of skills for shooting in confined spaces!”

Patriki with stunt team, Van Damme and some of the crew.

Motion in Toronto helped to solve a few lighting challenges using DaVinci Resolve. “The quick looks I created during the dailies processing were close to the final look of the film, though of course the DI pass gave the movie a polished and consistent look,” he says.

Postproduction on the project lasted for 10 months. “Aside from being the director and the DP on the project, I also had to wear the hat of VFX supervisor, simply because there wasn’t one around,” Patriki reveals. “We hadn’t planned on this being a VFX-heavy movie.” Shooting in an active public museum meant that the signage and photos on the walls could not be physically removed. “The decision was made to paint out all of these elements in post. It turned out to be a 100-plus shot list for the visual effects to deal with in post, which was also handled by Red Square Motion.” The underwater environment was fully CG. “We identified 10 places in the film where we would need to cut to an exterior shot of the submarine while it is sailing underwater. I studied the differences between various submarine models, through which I became quite an expert! It had to make sense that the submarine is fairly modern but also not brand new, which is why they would have taken it off the military service and turned it into a CIA Black Site,” he says.

Visual effects leads Chris De Castro and Crystal Reeves at Red Square Motion digitally produced and lighted an Ohio-class US submarine. “We looked at footage of sharks and whales, in order to see how the light refractions from water work on their bodies,” Patriki explains. “The entire film’s story takes place over-

28 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

night, so that was an additional challenge. In reality it would be pitch black, so we had to cheat that as well. We looked at the final renders and thought that something was still missing from the picture.” What was needed were out-of-focus particles floating in the water. “I took a camera to my large turtle aquarium and through the glass shot plates of underwater particles, as turtles aren’t the cleanest creatures. The plates were overlaid on top of the submarine footage, providing the final addition of realism that we were looking for,” he says.

Black Water brings together the dynamic action duo of Dolph Lundgren and Van Damme for the fifth time. “It was a great experience for me to work with them both,” Patriki says. “Each action hero has a different approach to their work, and it was exciting and humbling to witness the process of their preparation and work on their roles.” Supporting cast members include Jasmine Waltz, Al Sapienza, Patrick Kilpatrick, Courtney B Turk, Aaron O’Connell and Aleksander Vayshelboym. “The most exciting and challenging scene would be the climax in the submarine’s Command Room, with everyone doing a sort of a Mexican standoff. Being a first-time director, it was challenging to block a scene with so many actors in one room where there is very little space to move. Everyone has to remain in the same spot, yet the scene needs to be dynamic enough for the audience not to doze off.”

Patriki headed back to land for his next project, a film called Spare Parts – produced by Hangar 18 Media in partnership with Raven Banner entertainment – with a story revolving around four members of a girl punk-rock band.

Tech Column

Bigger Is Better but Smaller Is Popular

W

hen it comes to images, bigger is better, right? Which is why 4K, 8K and beyond are the trends for cinematography capture.

What about smaller? We’ve seen exhibition screens get bigger – such as Cinesphere showing IMAX films – but there’s also a remarkable trend in video content consumption pointing 180 degrees in the other direction.

When it comes to consuming video, apparently smaller is more popular because it’s expedient. Still, it’s one thing to shoot a film on a mobile device, but watch a feature flick on your iPhone? Yes, it’s a thing.

Telefilm Canada has been tracking how people consume video over the last four years, and their review of 2016 data is

30 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

about to be published showing the existing trend is holding.

Watching video – either feature films or broadcast or streamed television shows on a TV screen at home – is the preferred mode for 81 per cent of respondents in 2015, while 16 per cent went to the theatre, and just 3 per cent opted to watch content from Netflix and You Tube on their mobile phones or tablets.

However, in some types of video content, it surges to eight per cent on mobile devices. The numbers aren’t huge, but in 15- to 17-year-olds it’s a growing trend and it shifts for feature films, broadcast television, video-on-demand, YouTube and Facebook.

Francesca Accinelli, director, National

Promotion and Communications at Telefilm Canada, says mobile screening is an international trend, especially in Asia where broadband rates are faster and cheaper than Canada. “In China, for example, people are watching videos on their mobiles while waiting for transit or commuting,” she says. “Their networks there were designed to handle the traffic video generates.”

For DPs and filmmakers, it’s a doubleedged sword. Those hours spent designing and building the perfect set, the painful hours it took to get the artistic lighting dialled in, and then the careful capture on state-of-the-art 4K cameras might all seem pointless and wasted if the audience is ultimately just going to watch on their

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mobiles instead of experiencing content in a theatre or at least on their own 4K television with seven-channel surround sound.

Or perhaps not. On the positive side, audiences are demonstrating they want to engage with compelling video content anywhere, anytime. They want to enjoy stories, masterfully told, whether they are clips, commercials, shorts or even features.

And the display technology is also evolving so the nuances captured aren’t totally lost on a small screen: Sony’s Xperia XZ Premium has a 5.5-inch display supporting 4K and HDR tech. Still, it isn’t sitting well with some in the industry. Director David Lynch, for example, called it “pathetic.”

“Now if you’re playing the movie on a telephone, you will never in a trillion years experience the film,” Lynch told the Independent on Sunday five years ago. “You’ll think you have experienced it, but you’ll be cheated. It’s such a sadness that you think you’ve seen a film on your fucking telephone. Get real.”

The data, however, signals something, and we’re yet to see if it starts to impact how films are conceptualized and shot. Accinelli agrees, noting how much of the stunning cinematography Greg Middleton csc, asc brought to Game of Thrones episodes will be lost on a small screen. Still, the data shows a clear trend and it prompted Telefilm to shift its own strategy accordingly. She says iTunes has been a major channel, and Telefilm is rolling out more iTunes channels in other countries – again, where mobile screens are gaining ground.

Part of the digital disruption impacting video content, she says, is also the fragmentation of audiences, though that too seems to morph and change rapidly. “As the biggest funder of films in Canada, we are changing too,” she says. “How audiences consume films is ever more challenging. Some watch on demand, some buy, some want evolution of characters, some just want to binge watch.

So we’re evolving how we finance and promote films and how we connect with all these audience types.”

Ian Harvey is a journalist who has been writing about digital disruption for 20 years. He welcomes feedback and eagerly solicits subject matter ideas at ian@pitbullmedia.ca.

Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018 •

33

The Masters “In recognition of those who have made an outstanding contribution to the art of cinematography.”

This past year was not only the CSC’s 60th anniversary, it also marks the 30 years of recognizing extraordinary excellence through the CSC’s Masters Award. This special honour is conferred upon cinematographers who have transcended from practicing their craft into leaders of their craft by influencing the cinematic art form thorough their exceptional creativity, technical skills and ingenuity. Originally called the Kodak New Century Award, it was renamed the Masters Award in 2014 to reflect industry changes brought about by the digital age.

This is part 10 in a continuing series highlighting the exceptional cinematographers who have received the Masters Award.

By Guido Kondruss

34 • Canadian Cinematographer - November October 2018 2018

Eric Cayla csc 2014

B

orn June 13, 1957, in Sorel, Quebec, and raised in Montreal, Eric Cayla, even as a young boy of seven, was mesmerized by the documentaries he watched on television.

By age 13, using money earned from a paper route, Cayla bought a projector, which allowed him to view National Film Board docs borrowed from the library. It was also during this period that Cayla bought his first stills camera – a 35 mm Topcon – to indulge his budding passion for creating images. Cayla’s cinematic aspirations were realized by age 17 when, through a church exchange program, he travelled to Cameroon to shoot his first film – a documentary about life in the West African nation – on Super 8.

After studying communications at Montreal’s Concordia University, in his early 20s Cayla shot independent documentaries for the NFB, but it was short dramas he was shooting for friends that captured and propelled his interest in narrative filmmaking. It also launched a new career path that took him to Los Angeles and to the famed American Film Institute to focus on cinematography.

It was during an AFI workshop with Blade Runner DP Jordan Cronenweth ASC that Cayla’s imagination was set afire by the innumerable creative possibilities of light to fashion a drama’s atmosphere and story progression. Cayla’s artistic vault had been unlocked.

Returning to Montreal, Cayla began his meteoric rise to the upper echelons of the Quebec film industry, shooting television dramas and acclaimed features such as Cap Tourmente and Le sexe des étoiles. As Cayla’s reputation as a DP exceptionally talented in designing nuanced lighting grew, he soon caught the attention of producers and directors across North America and is credited for defining the look of top-rated series such as Bomb Girls and Haven. Recognized as one of Canada’s finest DPs, Cayla continues to be based out of Montreal.

David Moxness csc, asc 2015

Glen MacPherson csc, asc 2016

D

M

avid Moxness literally grew up with a film camera in hand. Born on April 19, 1964, in Jasper, Alberta, Moxness grew up in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley, where by age 11 he had commandeered his father’s 8 mm camera to become the neighbourhood auteur, pressing into service friends and family as actors and crew to film his many productions. While Moxness’ childhood filmmaking was very experimental and loads of fun, it also laid the foundation to a future stellar career.

After studying theatre and film at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, Moxness dove head-first into the Canadian film and television industry. Initially a production assistant and then a highly-regarded grip, Moxness continued to hone his cinematography skills shooting productions whenever he could. By 1999, Moxness landed the popular TV series Earth: Final Conflict, which cemented his credentials as an elite director of photography.

As a cinematographer, Moxness has retained his sense of adventurous visual experimentation he honed as a child.

Moxness probes each production until he finds the key to unlock his vision to enhance the storytelling. His artistic methodology and talent have delivered a diverse and stunning palette of films, such as recreating the vivid colour-saturated Technicolor look from the 1950s for the comedy feature Alien Trespass to capture the spirit and campiness of the era’s science fiction films. To ensure that look, Moxness insisted on using only original prime lenses from the 1950s. At the other end of the spectrum are the elegant and brooding visuals Moxness shaped for the high drama in the critically acclaimed historical miniseries The Kennedys.

A dazzling talent with matching technical skills, Moxness has been honoured throughout his career for his cinematography, including awards from the CSC, the American Society of Cinematographers, Geminis, Leos and an Emmy nomination.

Moxness is based out of Los Angeles and Bellingham, Washington.

esmerizing and captivating always seem come to mind when describing the visual style of Glen MacPherson.

Born on October 29, 1957, in Montreal, MacPherson’s cinematic journey began at a young age while experimenting in his grandfather’s darkroom where developing negatives ignited his passion for photography and eventually cinematography.

As a first-year student in a community college film program, MacPherson found that he was much in demand to shoot the films of graduating students. It was then that he decided to leave school and break into film and television.

At age 20, MacPherson landed his first industry job on the feature Quintet, being directed by the legendary Robert Altman at the Expo ’67 site in Montreal. Although he was only hired to man the catering truck, MacPherson didn’t mind because he was through the door and close to the action.

As the doors opened wider, MacPherson eventually became one of Canada’s top 1st camera assistants before shooting his first feature in 1988. MacPherson consequently evolved into one of the foremost directors of photography in action cinema, where he used his considerable talents to create the distinct looks for films such as the apocalyptic world in the blockbuster Resident Evil franchise, the wild beauty of Rambo or the urban angst of 16 Blocks. MacPherson says that his ever-evolving lighting tableaus are based on “vastly different qualities of light” he’s discovered travelling the world.

An adept technophile, MacPherson was an early adopter of modern 3D technology. The Final Destination and subsequent Resident Evil films established him as an expert DP in the genre.

Beyond creating dynamic action sequences, MacPherson uses 3D tools to innovatively define characters and to create spatial moods. In doing so, MacPherson elevated 3D storytelling from what was once a novelty into a whole new realm of filmmaking.

A Gemini award winner, MacPherson is based in Los Angeles.

Canadian Cinematographer - November

2018 •

35

Production Notes Calendar

ANOTHER LIFE (series)

DP Ryan McMaster csc Camera Operator David BercoviciArtieda

to November 20

Langley

ARROW VI (series)

DP Gordon Verheul csc (odd) & Neil Cervin csc (even)

to April 27, 2019

Vancouver

BLOOD AND TREASURE (series)

Camera Operator Alfonso Maiorana 2nd Unit DP Claudine Sauvé csc

to December 15

Montreal

CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA, THE

(series) DP Stephen Maier (alternating episodes)

to December 5

Langley

CORONER (series)

DP Samy Inayeh csc B Camera Operator (until October 23) Duraid Munajim

to November 9

Etobicoke

DC’S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW IV (series)

DP David Geddes csc, asc (alternating episodes)

to January 24, 2019

Burnaby

DEPARTURE (series)

DP David Green csc, asc

to December 18

Etobicoke

EXPANSE, THE IV (series)

DP Jeremy Benning csc B Operator/Steadicam Yoann Malnati

to December 21

Toronto

FLASH V (series)

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

to April 19, 2019

Vancouver

GOOD WITCH, THE V (series)

DP John Berrie csc B Camera Operator Paula Tymchuk

to December 13

Toronto

GHOSTING (MOW)

DP Amy Belling csc

to November 30

Burnaby

GREEN HARVEST II (series)

DP Glen Keenan csc (odd) & Tico Poulakakis csc (even) B Camera Operator J.P. Locherer csc

to November 22

Toronto

HOT ZONE (miniseries)

DP François Dagenais csc

to November 16

Toronto

iZOMBIE V (series)

DP Michael Wale csc

to January 21, 2019

North Vancouver

KASLAN PROJECT, THE (feature)

DP Brendan Uegama csc

to November 8

Burnaby

LA BELLE ÉPOQUE (feature)

DP Nicolas Bolduc csc

to November 28

Paris, France

LOST IN SPACE II (series)

DP C. Kim Miles csc (alternating episodes) B Camera Operator Ken Krawczyk csc

to February 12, 2019

Burnaby

MAGIC HOUR (series)

DP François Dagenais csc

to April 12, 2019

Richmond Vancouver

MAGICIANS IV (series)

DP Corey Robson & Elie Smolkin (alternating episodes)

to November 9

MURDERS, THE (series)

DP Kamal Derkaoui csc

to December 20

Burnaby

MURDOCH MYSTERIES XII (series)

DP Yuri Yakubiw csc 1st Assistant Kevin Michael Leblanc

to November 8

Toronto

OCTOBER FACTION, THE (series)

B Camera Operator Perry Hoffman

to December 17

Toronto

PUPPY PREP ACADEMY (series)

DP/Operator Mark Irwin csc, asc

to December 14

Victoria

READY OR NOT (feature)

B Camera 1st Assistant Jim Chirayouth Saysana

to November 16

Toronto

REX (series)

DP Stephen Reizes csc

to December 21

St. John’s

RIVERDALE III (series)

DP Brendan Uegama csc

to March 30, 2019

Langley

SEE (series)

B Cam Operator Ian Seabrook csc

to March 30, 2019

Delta, B.C.

SNOWPIERCER I (series)

DP Thomas Burstyn csc, nzcs (alternating episodes)

to December 22

Langley

SUITS VIII (series)

Camera Operator/Steadicam Michael Soos

to November 20

Toronto

SUPERGIRL IV (series)

DP Michael Storey csc (alternating episodes)

to May 15, 2019

Langley

SUPERNATURAL XIV (series)

DP Serge Ladouceur csc Camera Operator Brad Creasser

to March 26, 2019

Burnaby

TWILIGHT ZONE (series)

DP Craig Wrobleski csc

to March 8, 2019

North Vancouver

WU ASSASSINS (series)

DP John Bartley csc, asc

to November 26

Vancouver

NOVEMBER 10-17, Camerimage International Film Festival, Bydgoszcz, Poland, camerimage.pl/en 13-14, ProFusion, Toronto, profusionexpo.com 14-16, Inter BEE, Tokyo, inter-bee.com 16, CSC Lens Testing Module, Toronto, csc.ca 17-18, CSC Camera Assistant Workshop, Toronto, csc.ca 19, CSC full member submission deadline, csc.ca

36 • Canadian Cinematographer - November 2018

DECEMBER 1, CSC/IATSE 669 Lighting Workshop, Vancouver 4, WIFT Crystal Awards Toronto, wift.com 4-7, SIGGRAPH Asia, Tokyo, sa2018.siggraph.org 7, CSC Full Member Selection Committee, csc.ca JANUARY 19, CSC Workflow Topics Module, Toronto, csc.ca 24-Feb. 3, Sundance Film Festival, Park City, Utah, sundance.org 31, CSC Awards entry deadline, csc.ca

Classifieds EQUIPMENT FOR SALE 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 PLEASE 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 - 250-7212113 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,1Lentequip 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. $ 35000.00 can 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. Your ad will appear here and on the CSC’s website, www.csc.ca. If you have items you would like to buy, sell or rent, please email your information to editor@csc.ca.

@canadiancinematographer @csc_CDN

Canadian Cinematographer welcomes feedback, comments and questions about the magazine and its contents. Please send your letters to editor@csc. ca. Letters may be edited for clarity and space.

THE POWER OF ARRIRAW NOW AVAILABLE FOR AMIRA AS A LICENSE The AMIRA ARRIRAW License Key enables in-camera 16:9 2.8K (2880 x 1620) ARRIRAW recording at frame rates of up to 48fps. It delivers uncompromised image quality, the highest postproduction flexibility and raw data archiving.

ARRIRAW is the only format that retains the camera‘s natural color response and great exposure latitude as uncompressed and unencrypted sensor data.

Get your license at: https://alshop.arri.de

ARRI AMIRA. TRULY CINEMATIC.

VENICE EXTENDS ITS VISION By incorporating feedback from filmmakers including a close collaboration with James Cameron on Avatar sequels, the capabilities of Sony’s VENICE motion picture camera continue to grow.

A new extension system allows the camera body to detach from the image sensor block, offering a highly configurable and portable method of operation. The tether, which can extend up to 18 feet, makes the small, lightweight body ideal for use in tight and unconventional spaces as well as for use with gimbals, handheld stabilizers, underwater and helicopter rigs and more.

Also available in February 2019, Sony will provide the free VENICE Version 3.0 firmware upgrade, offering a new highly efficient profile called X-OCN XT, along with new image modes, cache REC and more.

COMMERCIAL PRO VIDEO Direct: 416- 644-8010 • Fax: 416-644-8031 • Toll-Free Direct: 1-866-661-5257 • CommercialVideo@vistek.ca

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