American Cinematographer - April 2018 - 117

For Achyu and crew, the camera's industrystandard workflow set them free as well.
In addition to the Alexa Classic
package, I carried my Blackmagic Pocket
Cinema Camera with PL mount for car
work, guerrilla shots, and as a backup
body. I appreciate its Super 16 sensor, 10bit color space, and how well it can match
the Alexa's color space.
We shot Loev with a 35mm and a
Super 16 set of Zeiss Super Speeds. There
is a "honeymoon" portion of the film,
which takes place outside in the breathtaking Sandhan Valley. Shooting this portion
almost wide open, and allowing the Super
Speeds to bloom the highlights and edges,
echoes the gentle whimsy that our characters, Sahil and Jai, feel.
Collaboration
I'm feeling great. Prep month for
The Inspectors has come to an end, and
we are deep into shooting Season 3. While
shooting today, I steal away with gaffer
Ben Baggott and key grip Dave Justice to
discuss pre-rig needs for next week's sets; I
pop into tomorrow's swing sets to touch
base with set decorators Missy Ricker and
Cara Rhodes, and to share coverage notes
I've gleaned from this week's director; I
stop by production designer Leslie Keel's
office to review previs images for the sets
she's designing four episodes out. Keel and
I have devised denotations in our breakdowns to qualify sets as "Full Sets" or
"Long Lens Limited Sets" to stretch both
budget and time. "Full Sets" offer 360degree shooting, which Keel builds out in
great detail. "Long Lens Limited Sets" are
targeted at short scenes or one-off locations where coverage requires only one or
two set walls and less detailed finishing.
When I need to step away, I am
covered because I have a camera team
whose members each work like cinematographers in their own right. Shooting
with two Red Epic MXs - productioncompany owned - fitted with a shared
set of Bausch & Lomb Super Baltars, Acamera/Steadicam operator Robert Arnold
leads our camera team, with B-camera
operator Jake Butler delivering that extra,
critical piece of coverage.
I love saying "let's figure out how"
to showrunner Bryan Curb and our visiting

directors. Getting into their minds is the
best part of my job, because everything is
imaginary until the director calls "action"
and the camera rolls. I want to know we
are creating from complementary points of
inspiration. When all of us are in sync, I
don't call it "making the day"; I high-five
the team and exclaim, "We have won the
day!"
During a rare break in the day, I
pause to remember just three months
back, when I was interviewing to shoot

The Inspectors. I was in Atlanta co-leading
a Julie Donovan-organized camera-operating workshop alongside Geoff Haley and
Hilda Mercado. The major differences
between shooting an indie project like
Loev versus a studio project like The
Inspectors were on my mind. I asked
Geoff, whose career had risen through the
film ranks from shoestring to blockbuster
- at that time he had just wrapped The
Fate of the Furious - for his opinion.
"There is no critical difference," he
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