Oct 022021
 
-- Gordon Willis : A Web Reference

– The photo shows the standing ovation Gordon received the evening he received his honorary Oscar for his body of work. This event is featured among the Gordon Willis Web Reference, a selection of annotated links I put together about the great cinematographer on thefilmbook ASC blog. (Willis did not receive any nominations for his [...]

Sep 092021
 
Kubrick self-portrait on set of THE SHINING

Stanley Kubrick shoots a mirror self-portrait with his daughter Vivian on the set of The Shining, his most perfect film, if not his best one. Kubrick worked as a professional photographer in his youth. It’s telling to see him blur out everything (including the movie star) except for himself, his daughter Vivian and the Arri [...]

Feb 022021
 
20 Frames from ROMA

Netflix published a YouTube video showcasing the wonderful cinematography by Alfonso Cuaron for his film ROMA. I grabbed some of the beautifully intricate frames below. Every still frame merits study, like a photograph. Click on any image to enter into a slideshow mode: +++ YouTube link: http://bit.ly/Roma-Cinematography-YouTube +++

Aug 042019
 
D A Pennebaker 1925-2019

D A Pennebaker has left us, my condolences to his family and friends. Click on an image to start slide show. +++ D A Pennebaker was a pioneer of cinema vérité, along with Richard Leacock and producer Robert Drew, notably shooting and editing PRIMARY, the landmark documentary about the 1960 presidential campaign. For me, Pennebaker’s [...]

Feb 242019
 
Notes on the SHALLOW "Oner" with Cooper and Gaga at the 2019 Oscars

+++ The performance of SHALLOW by Bradford Cooper and Lady Gaga at the 2019 Oscars was captured in a single-shot Steadicam “Oner”. The scene is beautifully sober, with simple backlighting and a staging and camera movement that ends up with a stunning close-up of their two faces. As Lady Gaga recounts to Jimmy Kimmel, Bradford [...]

Sep 022016
 
-- Interview with Xavier Dolan about MOMMY

— “I’ve learned is that it is very important in this business to never doubt yourself, although it’s just as crucial to doubt your ideas” The brilliant young director talks about “Mommy”, his creative process & his collaboration with DP André Turpin Published on thefilmbook blog on ascmag.com web site +++ Link: http://bit.ly/XavierDolanMommyThefilmbook +++