American Cinematographer - March 2008 - (Page 46) Tantalizing T elevision Cinematographers from three top series reveal their secrets. by Rob Feld, Jean Oppenheimer and Iain Stasukevich Mad Men Set in the Madison Avenue advertising world in 1960, the AMC series Mad Men looks like nothing else on television. “Many TV projects rely greatly on close-ups for coverage, and that is not necessarily part of our language,” notes cinematographer Phil Abraham. “Mad Men has a somewhat mannered, classic visual style that is influenced more by cinema than TV.” Mad Men made its debut last summer, and the series’ second season is scheduled to go into produc46 March 2008 tion later this year, depending on the duration of the writers’ strike. Abraham recalls that when he began discussing the look of the show with creator/executive producer Matthew Weiner and pilot production designer Bob Shaw, “we talked about not simply referencing the period as seen in movies of that time. We wanted to be more genuine than that. Movies were an influence, but we didn’t say, ‘Let’s make The Apartment.’” Other reference materials included photography, graphic design and architecture of the period. “We noticed that in all the Skidmore, Owings & Merrill designs of contemporary buildings, the ceiling — the overhead grid of lights — was a strong graphic element in all the office spaces. In one design we loved, the whole ceiling was like a lightbox. It was a time of high modernism, and we embraced the notion of presenting the world in that way. These were new work spaces — sleek, not stuffy.” Abraham segued into Mad Men after wrapping The Sopranos, for which he earned four Emmy
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - March 2008 American Cinematographer - March 2008 Contents Editor’s Note Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore Production Slate: 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids Magical Mystery Tour Some Kind of Monster Tantalizing Television Making Sitcoms “Sexy” Post Focus: Mega Playground Helps Set Look for Sibling Post Focus: Visual Effects Society Launches White Paper New Products & Services International Marketplace Classified Ads Ad Index In Memoriam: John McPherson, ASC ASC Membership Roster Clubhouse News ASC Close-Up: Wayne Kennan American Cinematographer - March 2008 American Cinematographer - March 2008 - American Cinematographer - March 2008 (Page Cover1) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - American Cinematographer - March 2008 (Page Cover2) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - American Cinematographer - March 2008 (Page 1) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - American Cinematographer - March 2008 (Page 2) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Contents (Page 3) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Contents (Page 4) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Contents (Page 5) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Contents (Page 6) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Contents (Page 7) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Editor’s Note (Page 8) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Editor’s Note (Page 9) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore (Page 10) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore (Page 11) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore (Page 12) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore (Page 13) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore (Page 14) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Short Takes: Bill Viola’s Ocean Without a Shore (Page 15) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 16) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 17) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 18) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 19) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 20) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 21) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 22) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 23) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 24) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Production Slate: Chantal: A Night at the Pyramids (Page 25) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 26) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 27) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 28) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 29) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 30) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 31) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 32) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 33) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 34) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Magical Mystery Tour (Page 35) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 36) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 37) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 38) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 39) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 40) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 41) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 42) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 43) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 44) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Some Kind of Monster (Page 45) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 46) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 47) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 48) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 49) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 50) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 51) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 52) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 53) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 54) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 55) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 56) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Tantalizing Television (Page 57) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 58) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 59) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 60) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 61) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 62) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 63) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 64) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Making Sitcoms “Sexy” (Page 65) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Post Focus: Visual Effects Society Launches White Paper (Page 66) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Post Focus: Visual Effects Society Launches White Paper (Page 67) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Post Focus: Visual Effects Society Launches White Paper (Page 68) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Post Focus: Visual Effects Society Launches White Paper (Page 69) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 70) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 71) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 72) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 73) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 74) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 75) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 76) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - New Products & Services (Page 77) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - International Marketplace (Page 78) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Classified Ads (Page 79) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Ad Index (Page 80) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Ad Index (Page 81) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - In Memoriam: John McPherson, ASC (Page 82) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - In Memoriam: John McPherson, ASC (Page 83) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - ASC Membership Roster (Page 84) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - ASC Membership Roster (Page 85) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Clubhouse News (Page 86) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - Clubhouse News (Page 87) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - ASC Close-Up: Wayne Kennan (Page 88) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - ASC Close-Up: Wayne Kennan (Page Cover3) American Cinematographer - March 2008 - ASC Close-Up: Wayne Kennan (Page Cover4)
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