American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 51
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Unit photography by Wilson Webb. Photos and frame grabs courtesy of 20th Century Fox.
J
ames L. Thurber's short story The
Secret Life of Walter Mitty is the lively
tale of an excruciatingly ordinary
man with an extraordinary imagination, and since its publication, in 1939,
its titular character has become a
catchall reference to daydreamers everywhere. "He's a classic everyman with a
rich fantasy life," observes Stuart
Dryburgh, ASC, NZCS, who shot the
new adaptation of Thurber's story for
director Ben Stiller. Stiller, who also
plays the title role, says Thurber's
creation resonates because "the idea of
the life we lead in our heads, the things
we feel but don't say, the person we
imagine ourselves to be, is something all
of us can relate to. It's really human
stuff."
In the film, Mitty works as an
asset manager for Life magazine, where
he manages a vast archive of
photographs. He is contending with
change in almost every area of his life:
his mother (Shirley MacLaine) is
moving into an assisted-living facility,
Life is downsizing and preparing to
transition from print to digital publication, and his romance with a co-worker,
Cheryl (Kristin Wiig), is just getting off
the ground. When Life's most celebrated photographer, Sean O'Connell
Opposite: Mild-mannered Walter Mitty (Ben Stiller) is drawn into an amazing adventure in The Secret
Life of Walter Mitty. This page, top: Mitty works in the Life photo archive with Hernando (Adrian
Martinez). Bottom: Stiller dons his director's cap to work out a shot with Stuart Dryburgh, ASC, NZCS.
(Sean Penn), suddenly disappears with
the negative for the publication's final
cover shot, Mitty hits the road to track
him down.
There is a moment early in the
film where Mitty's assistant, Hernando
(Adrian Martinez), pledges solidarity
with O'Connell because the photographer still shoots film. Appropriately
enough, Dryburgh and Stiller also shot
on film, a choice Stiller calls "important,
www.theasc.com
if only from a karmic viewpoint. After
all, the story is about an analog guy
caught in the transition to a digital
world. But I love film and will always
prefer it; I think it might be a generational thing."
Dryburgh notes that there were
practical considerations as well. "Film
cameras are still a bit more rugged than
digital cameras, so there are practical
advantages when you get into rugged
January 2014
51
http://www.theasc.com
American Cinematographer - January 2014
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - January 2014
Table of Contents
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - Cover1
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 1
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 2
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - Table of Contents
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 4
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 5
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 6
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 7
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 8
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 9
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 10
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 11
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 12
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 13
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 14
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 15
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 16
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 17
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 18
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 19
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 20
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 21
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 22
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 23
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 24
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 25
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 26
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 27
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 28
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 29
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 30
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 31
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 32
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 33
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 34
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 35
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 36
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 37
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 38
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 39
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 40
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 41
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 42
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 43
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 44
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 45
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 46
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 47
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 48
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 49
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 50
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 51
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 52
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 53
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 54
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 55
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 56
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 57
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 58
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 59
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 60
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 61
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 62
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 63
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 64
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 65
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 66
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 67
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 68
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 69
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 70
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 71
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 72
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 73
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 74
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 75
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 76
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 77
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 78
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 79
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 80
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 81
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 82
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 83
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 84
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 85
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 86
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 87
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 88
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 89
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 90
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 91
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 92
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 93
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 94
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 95
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - 96
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - January 2014 - Cover4
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