American Cinematographer - February 2008 - (Page 27) inspired two earlier films, 1964’s The Last Man on Earth (shot by Franco Delli Colli) and 1971’s The Omega Man (shot by Russell Metty, ASC), but according to Andrew Lesnie, ASC, ACS, the director of photography on I Am Legend, the new film “is closer to Matheson’s book thematically than either of those films. Neville is initially presented as the last savior of humankind, his very existence promoting a previous way of life while he searches for a cure to the virus. Clinging to the semblance of a normal life, he has placed mannequins throughout a local video store so he has ‘people’ to talk to! He eventually realizes what’s happening is a form of evolution, and that he is the anachronism in a new world.” By relocating the story to New York City, I Am Legend director Francis Lawrence provides the perfect environment for themes of isolation and survival. The film features memorable wide shots of deserted city blocks, destroyed bridges, and major arterial roads clogged with abandoned vehicles. In an early scene that also demonstrates the scale of the biological disaster, Neville drives a Shelby Mustang at breakneck speed through Manhattan, and the camera rises above the buildings to reveal a wider view of the devastation. Lesnie used the Go-Mobile, a Shotmaker camera car and the Russian Arm with a gyrostabilized head mounted on an SUV to film the earthbound parts of this sequence. “The second unit kicked off in preproduction to take advantage of the easier crowd and traffic control during the weekends,” he recalls. “Director/stunt coordinator Vic Armstrong and cinematographer Brian Pearson made great use of the Russian Arm system, while the main unit later used the Go-Mobile, driven by Kevin Scott, to do all of Will’s driving shots.” Shooting around major New York City landmarks such as the Brooklyn Bridge, Grand Central Station and the Metropolitan Museum of Art was an elaborate logistical exercise. “Shooting this film was all about dealing with locations,” says Lesnie. “All the relevant departments, including the Mayor’s Office, the New York police and fire departments, the police Harbor Unit, the Transit Authority, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Federal Aviation Administration, were incredibly helpful. We needed two location managers, Paul Kramer and Rob Striem, to deal with the requirements of securing and locking down major locations.” A walk-and-talk sequence down Fifth Avenue that involves Neville and two other survivors, Anna (Alice Braga) and Ethan Opposite: The new face of the human race: a mutated, flesheating “dark seeker.” This page, top: Andrew Lesnie, ASC, ACS wields two 6P LED flashlights to stave off an attack. Bottom: After the sun sets, virologist Robert Neville (Will Smith) and his best friend, Sam, take shelter from the creatures outside. Photos courtesy of Warner Bros. American Cinematographer 27
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