American Cinematographer - March 2008 - 8

Editor’s Note Fluid thinking. Watertight solutions. We have an extensive inventory that includes 435 and 35-3 Remote AquaCam™— 2001 winner of a Technical Achievement Award from The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences • • HD Remote AquaCam™ • Underwater camera housings • Splash bags companion • HydroHead ®— the perfectand splash bags to our RemoteAquaCam • Light meter housings • Underwater lighting — including HMI, incandescent, fluorescent & ultraviolet • Ground Fault Protection ™ for a full range of tilts and pans, in, out and over the water — now available with a third axis for even more range of motion 301 E. El Segundo Blvd. El Segundo, CA 90245 Tel: 31 0/301-81 87 Fax: 310/821-9886 www.hydroflex.com Stephen Pizzello Executive Editor 8 Photo by Douglas Kirkland. s this issue went to press, the Hollywood writers’ strike had brought scripted television production to a halt, but some shows found ways to maintain their momentum. In January, AMC’s Mad Men, the brainchild of Sopranos alumnus Matthew Weiner, took home Golden Globes for Best Television Drama and Best Performance in a TV Series. Star Jon Hamm earned the latter laurel for his enigmatic portrayal of New York advertising executive Don Draper, resident creative genius at the fictional Sterling Cooper agency. Set in the early 1960s, Mad Men boasts the same mix of dramatic complexity and dark humor that made The Sopranos team a fixture at awards galas. The show also makes the most of its retro settings thanks to the visual style of “high modernism” laid down by former Sopranos cinematographer Phil Abraham. New York-based scribe Rob Feld spoke with Abraham and gaffer Mike Ambrose about their approach to the show, which will return for a second season whenever the writers do (“Tantalizing Television,” page 46). ASC member Lowell Peterson has also been riding high thanks to his work on perennial ratings topper Desperate Housewives, which drew a whopping 19.78 million viewers to ABC in its first airing of 2008. In a chat with Jean Oppenheimer (page 50), Peterson offered his apt description of the wildly popular primetime soap: “Douglas Sirk with a comic touch.” Mystery blends with romance and wry comedy on Bones, which has been pulling strong ratings for Fox. Cinematographer Gordon Lonsdale has brought a varied cinematic palette to the weekly series, which is sparked by the onscreen chemistry between its two leads: Emily Deschanel, who plays forensic anthropologist Temperance “Bones” Brennan, M.D., and David Boreanaz, as the FBI agent who adds romantic tension to Brennan’s job. Lonsdale offered Iain Stasukevich a detailed overview of his strategies (page 54). Since this issue has a special focus on teleproduction, we saved space to salute a legendary cinematographer who has left an indelible mark on the history of both television and the industry itself: George Spiro Dibie, ASC, this year’s recipient of the Society’s Career Achievement in Television Award. Over the course of his long and distinguished career, George earned five Emmy Awards; he also served for 20 years as president of the cinematographers’ union (now known as the International Cinematographers Guild, Local 600). Along the way, he changed the face of television by bringing a more artful, nuanced approach to multi-camera comedy series. Jon Silberg penned a definitive profile of the man who calls everyone “Sexy” (“Making Sitcoms ‘Sexy,’” page 58). Of course, we haven’t forgotten about the big screen, and this month’s lead feature article proves that Emily Deschanel and her actress sister, Zooey, aren’t the only talents in the Deschanel clan. Their dad, Caleb, also knows a thing or two about creating quality entertainment, and he’s done it again with The Spiderwick Chronicles. The familyoriented adventure takes viewers into a fantastic world inspired by the series of popular children’s books written by Holly Black and illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi. Deschanel, a five-time Oscar nominee and an ASC board member, has plenty to say in Jay Holben’s article about the film (“Magical Mystery Tour,” page 26). You’ll need to leave the little ones at home when you venture out to see Cloverfield, in which a huge, hideous and very cranky monster lays waste to Manhattan. Michael Bonvillain, ASC and director Matt Reeves cleverly reinvigorate the genre of King Kong and Godzilla by simulating the “you are there” POV of Handycam-toting twentysomethings, most of whom end up squished, skewered or snacked upon in stomach-turning fashion. Safely ensconced in Hollywood, assistant editor Jon D. Witmer surveyed the aftermath (“Some Kind of Monster,” page 36). A

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American Cinematographer - March 2008

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