American Cinematographer - July 2010 - 8

Editor’s Note
From his very first feature, the 1998 thriller Following, director Christopher Nolan has favored challenging narratives. Quick trips to the concession stand during his movies are not recommended, as his films have put a postmodern spin on film noir (Memento), sleight-of-hand (The Prestige) and a popular superhero (Batman Begins and The Dark Knight). With his new film, Inception, Nolan takes viewers on another head trip, this time with a tale about thieves who steal valuable secrets by invading and manipulating people’s dreams. Nolan once again tapped Wally Pfister, ASC, his accomplice since Memento, to create unforgettable imagery. Keeping plot twists secret was of paramount concern; security on the set was so tight it made Area 51 seem like an open house. Fortunately, AC’s long and friendly relationship with the filmmakers earned us special access, though we half expected we’d submit to retinal scans at the stage door. What we saw onstage was intriguingly surreal, but, as Pfister tells AC contributor David Heuring (“Dream Thieves,” page 26), “Often, the surrealism in the movie comes from the environment rather than the camerawork or photography. By maintaining a realistic feel, we believed we could introduce a bizarre or unsettling feel very subtly, without taking the viewer out of the story.” While Pfister was bending minds, Andrew Lesnie, ASC, ACS was busy bending the elements on M. Night Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender (“Elements of Power,” page 40). The production posed a number of challenges, but Shyamalan knew that Lesnie, who had survived Mount Doom on the Lord of the Rings trilogy, could handle them. “I wanted to tell a story with an intricate narrative on a larger scale than I’ve ever attempted,” the director tells AC’s Simon Gray. “Andrew’s balance of artistry and accessibility, as well as his fluency in the newest technologies, made him the perfect cinematographer for this movie.” Showtime’s period drama The Tudors, which recently wrapped after four compelling seasons, proved equally ambitious. In an interview with Michael Goldman (“Crowning Achievements,” page 58), Ousama Rawi, BSC, CSC notes that he spotlighted the show’s handsome costumes and sets by applying feature-film techniques, including extensive camera movement. “These sets were so elaborate, large and interconnected that I felt it would be an injustice not to use them, so I’d pan the camera all over the place, up and down, tracking from room to room. That required more lighting and setting up, and the art department had to dress more sets.” Cinematographer Yorick Le Saux also created a lush look for the Italian melodrama I Am Love. Patricia Thomson’s piece (“An Emotional Rebirth,” page 50) offers a feast of details about the film, in which the wife of a wealthy businessman has a romantic affair with a humble chef from the country. Describing the approach he took with director Luca Guadagnino, Le Saux offers, “From the beginning, we talked about the two worlds. The world of the Recchis is strict, with more contrast, wide angles and a colder feel in the characters’ relationships. For the countryside, Luca wanted natural light, longer lenses, more close-ups and no depth-of-field, and we strove to be open to catching everything that happened on set.”

Stephen Pizzello Executive Editor

Photo by Owen Roizman, ASC.

American Cinematographer - July 2010

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - July 2010