American Cinematographer - May 2018 - 48

Björn Charpentier, SBC
shoots handheld anamorphic
to capture a covert rescue
operation for Brad Anderson's
period thriller Beirut.
By Patricia Thomson
*|*

Friend in Need
L

ebanon in 1982 was a tinderbox ready to explode, with its
neighbor Israel on the brink of a controversial, wholesale
military invasion meant to wipe out the PLO. This is the
historic setting for Beirut, a taut political thriller from
director Brad Anderson and cinematographer Björn
Charpentier, SBC. Inspired in part by the 1984 kidnapping of
CIA station chief William Buckley, the script, written in
1991, was an early one for Tony Gilroy, penned long before
the Bourne trilogy, Michael Clayton, and Rogue One: A Star
Wars Story. The script sat undeveloped until Argo proved there
was an audience for such fare.
Beirut begins with a prologue in 1972, when U.S. diplomat Mason Skiles ( Jon Hamm) sees his wife killed by masked
men who invade their home to extract a Palestinian boy the
couple has been planning to sponsor. Ten years later, Skiles is
working as a contract negotiator in Boston and has fallen deep

48

May 2018

into the well of alcoholism. One night he gets a message
summoning him back to Beirut. The CIA needs a negotiator
for the release of an American hostage, a high-value agency
veteran - and someone Skiles was once close to. From there,
the story speeds along as Skiles faces a negotiation deadline
while struggling with his memories and the bottle, not knowing
whom to trust among his handlers, supposed allies, and foes.
Anderson wanted a look that felt real, raw, and in the
moment - something suggesting documentary, but cinematic
in composition and optics. He wanted it fast-paced on screen
and needed the same on set. "As is usual for my films, there was
not a lot of time or money," says Anderson, who had 34 shooting days, which had been shortened from 37 with no scenes
dropped. The director intended to use two cameras and available light whenever possible, and he wanted a director of
photography who was quick on his feet and good with creative

American Cinematographer



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - May 2018

Contents
American Cinematographer - May 2018 - Cover1
American Cinematographer - May 2018 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - May 2018 - 1
American Cinematographer - May 2018 - 2
American Cinematographer - May 2018 - Contents
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