American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 46

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High Anxiety

Top: Cartel boss Elena (Salma Hayek) is as evil as her henchmen, but Mindel used glamorous lighting to emphasize her beauty. Bottom: Elena dialogues with corrupt DEA agent Dennis (John Travolta).

initially portrayed as a Mediterraneanstyle paradise; the ocean is blue and crystal clear, the foliage is emerald green, and the inhabitants dress in kaleidoscopic hues. After Elena and Lado kidnap Ophelia, the colors become less saturated and harsher as the violence escalates, progressing to the bleachedout, sun-blasted extremes of the climax at the Mexican border. “Just as some movies reflect the auras of their characters with soothing colors, I tried to create an acidic, Day46 July 2012

Glo feel for some of the heavier characters in Savages,” says Mindel. “These are colors much like what you’d find in signage and décor in places like Tijuana — blue, yellow, pink and green. It was an idiosyncratic approach to photographing our idiosyncratic characters.” He cites the brutal henchman Lado as an example. “Lado is incredibly scary and violent, but initially I tried to photograph him in a way that wasn’t classically scary. We wanted him to look as pedestrian as possible when he first
American Cinematographer

appears onscreen, and once the violence kicks in, we begin using unsettling colors to manipulate the viewer into feeling a certain way about him.” In a scene that shows Lado torturing one of his cartel associates (Demían Bichir) in a basement, Lado’s single-minded brutality is expressed by a single shaft of greenish daylight. Outside the location, Mindel’s crew positioned a Bebee boom truck with 15 6K HMIs tinted 1⁄2 Plus Green, focusing all of the light through the room’s only window. The bounce from the floor was redirected around the room with white cards and beadboard. Prampin describes the resultant look as “low light from the side that underscores Lado’s evil nature.” Though she is equally evil, Lado’s boss, Elena, always looks glamorous. Mindel lit Hayek with covered wagons, batten strips of four 500-watt ECT Photofloods softened with Lee 250 Half White, and a 2K Blonde bounced into a book of unbleached muslin and Lee 129 Heavy Frost. Throughout the shoot, the filmmakers looked for any excuse to experiment with color. “We’d get to a scene and just go through the rolls to see what



American Cinematographer - July 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - July 2012

American Cinematographer - July 2012
Contents
Editor’s Note
Short Takes: Keane’s “Silenced by the Night”
Production Slate: Trishna • Two and a Half Men
Ancient Aliens
High Anxiety
Hair-Metal Heroes
Shooting J.R.
New Products & Services
International Marketplace
Classified Ads
Ad Index
Clubhouse News
ASC Close-Up: Peter Lyons Collister
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - American Cinematographer - July 2012
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 1
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 2
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Contents
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 4
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 5
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 6
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 7
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Editor’s Note
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 9
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Short Takes: Keane’s “Silenced by the Night”
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 11
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 12
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 13
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 14
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 15
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Production Slate: Trishna • Two and a Half Men
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 17
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 18
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 19
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 20
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 21
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 22
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 23
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 24
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 25
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 26
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 27
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 28
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 29
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Ancient Aliens
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 31
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 32
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 33
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 34
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American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 37
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American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 39
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 40
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 41
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - High Anxiety
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 43
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 44
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 45
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 46
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 47
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 48
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 49
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 50
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 51
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 52
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 53
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Hair-Metal Heroes
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 55
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 56
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 57
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 58
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 59
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 60
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 61
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 62
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 63
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Shooting J.R.
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 65
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 66
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 67
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 68
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 69
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 70
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 71
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - New Products & Services
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 73
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 74
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 75
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 76
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 77
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 78
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 79
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 80
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 81
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - International Marketplace
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Classified Ads
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Ad Index
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 85
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Clubhouse News
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - 87
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - ASC Close-Up: Peter Lyons Collister
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - July 2012 - Cover4
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