American Cinematographer - January 2011 - 8

Editor’s Note
Rodrigo Prieto, ASC, AMC is clearly held in high esteem by his collaborators. Oliver Stone sang his praises in our October coverage of Wall Street: Money N ever Sleeps, and within this month’s overview of Biutiful (“Letting Go,”page 30), director Alejandro González Iñárritu offers his own endorsement in a sidebar commentary (“Iñárritu on Method,” page 38). “The visual grammar of this film was very delicate and sophisticated because it had to combine the social, the physical, the metaphysical and a hyper-realistic approach,” Iñárritu notes. “To me, Biutiful is by far Rodrigo’s most lyrical and poetic work. Realistically and metaphorically, he found light in the darkest places possible.” The film offered Prieto ample opportunity to be creative. The emotional journey of the main character, Uxbal (Javier Bardem), led Prieto to suggest the unusual strategy of shifting from 1.85:1 to anamorphic 2.40:1, with a transition point that combined the 1.85 format with anamorphic lenses. “I suggested we test starting at 1.85 and eventually opening up to 2.40 to represent the transition from [Uxbal’s] tight control to ultimate release,” he says. “There was some concern that the shift would be too jarring, but we decided it worked.” That spirit of experimentation is also evident in David O. Russell’s boxing drama The Fighter, which allowed cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema, N SC, FSF to blend drama scenes shot on 2-perf 35mm with fight sequences shot on Betacam-SP. For the former, van Hoytema used Aaton’s Penelope camera, and for the latter, he employed vintage Sony video cameras. “When shooting 2-perf for [2.40:1] output, you expose far less negative than 4perf, saving a lot of money, and if you are interested in getting grain and texture, it’s the way to go,” the cinematographer tells Michael Goldman (“Tough Love,” page 42). The sci-fi spectacle Tron: Legacy required Claudio Miranda, ASC to combine a variety of strategies, including 3-D camera rigs, LED and Electro Luminescent lighting technology, high-speed cameras and face-replacement animation effects. As Miranda explains to Noah Kadner (“Back to the Grid,” page 52), some of the lighting was built directly into the futuristic costumes worn by characters in the computer environment known as the Grid: “The suits really drove the pastel look of the digital world. We wanted to see the suit lights casting interactive light from character to character and have everything look as luminous as possible, like the glow of a computer monitor.” Further insights into the production are offered in a sidebar Q&A with Digital Domain’s visual-effects supervisor, Eric Barba, and head of animation, Steve Preeg (“Barba and Preeg on Tron: Legacy,” page 60). This issue also offers a heartfelt salute to cinematographer Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC, a longtime friend of the magazine who will receive the Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award on Feb. 13. Though still in his prime and shooting as artfully as ever, the seemingly tireless Deakins has built a legacy of excellence that simply demanded the ASC’s highest honor. Pat Thomson’s account of his remarkable career (“A League of His Own,” page 64) offers illuminating details about his formative years, insights earned after decades of experience, and a sidebar on True Grit, Roger’s latest collaboration with the Coen brothers.

Stephen Pizzello Executive Editor
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Photo by Owen Roizman, ASC.

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American Cinematographer - January 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - January 2011