American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 12

President’s Desk

Photo by Douglas Kirkland.

This column marks my first appearance here since the conclusion of my last term as
president in June of 2005. To once again occupy this position is truly humbling, and
I offer profound gratitude to the ASC Board of Governors for choosing to elect me.
I’d also like to express appreciation to my immediate predecessor, Stephen Lighthill,
ASC. No one in a leadership post of an organization like ours gets a free ride. He
provided steady guidance and engineered some magnificent results in what I know
can sometimes be a difficult, thankless job. For that, I salute him.
Looking back over columns I wrote during my previous go-round, I’m only a
little chagrined at my occasionally prickly tone regarding the decisive arrival of digital
technologies. I even recall hearing the word “curmudgeon” tossed my way, which
was funny, because my general outlook fits anything but that description. What I was
intent upon doing was taking digital manufacturers to task for the claims they were
making about their equipment, some of which were quite outlandish, if you recall. I
also tried to represent the cinematographer’s point of view in a way that still holds
true today: the belief that a new product must not just measure up to what it’s
replacing, but in fact exceed it by helping us do our jobs more creatively and efficiently. I assure you that this was not always the case during the first crest of the new
wave, and anyone who took offense at my presentation probably deserved it.
Calling on the grace provided by nearly a decade’s worth of hindsight, it’s amazing to consider how much those
same technologies have improved. Though the consensus remains that the film look is the gold standard of motion imaging, even today’s mid-market digital cameras, when properly deployed, deliver results that are every bit equal and sometimes superior to photochemical technology. (Bless film’s heart for hanging on, if only by the width of a sprocket hole.)
Certainly, there are areas of contention. The across-the-board standardization we took for granted during film’s dominance is apparently gone forever. Everything we use seems to change three times a year. And in the postproduction
arena, where it has never been more important for cinematographers to exercise control, there exist as many workflow
options as there are moves on a chessboard. Nonetheless, the ridiculous arguments over the benefits of one medium vs.
another have subsided, and we’ve learned that our fears and apprehensions concerning “the new” were unfounded. We
have not only accepted the inevitability of a future that was thrust upon us much too quickly, we are also instigating new
trends and forging new paths. Our job responsibilities have grown exponentially … and we have grown with them.
Yet, we must still keep the essential truth alive: technology is just a tool. Absent the hand of an artist — who, even
in the most mundane situation, acts from some internal impulse, if not inspiration — all mechanical advancements are
worthless. ASC legend Haskell Wexler takes this a step further by declaring that our tools are the least important part of
our work: “It’s really about the people you’re involved with and the effort you make together, the relationships you
create. It’s learning about yourself and experiencing things and growing as a human being.” For anyone who has been
around the track a few times, Haskell’s observation is a refreshing antidote to what can sometimes be a cold or heartless
business. Endorsing what he said is easy; embracing it and putting it into action represents something else entirely. If cinematographers are to maintain any sort of relevance in the future, we’re all going to have to make an effort well beyond
the realm of technology. Haskell is a wise man, and we’d do well to listen to him.
Now, that’s not very curmudgeonly, is it?

Richard P. Crudo
ASC President

12

August 2013

American Cinematographer



American Cinematographer - August 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - August 2013

American Cinematographer - August 2013
Contents
Editor’s Note
President’s Desk
Short Takes: Wild Horses
Production Slate: The Hunt • Berberian Sound Studio
Big Guns
Battle Bots
Rapturous Action
Shattered Past
Post Focus: Under the Dome
New Products & Services
International Marketplace
Classified Ads
Ad Index
Clubhouse News
ASC Close-Up: Stuart Dryburgh
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - American Cinematographer - August 2013
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 1
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 2
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Contents
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 4
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 5
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 6
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 7
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 8
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 9
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Editor’s Note
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 11
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - President’s Desk
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 13
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Short Takes: Wild Horses
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 15
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 16
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 17
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 18
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 19
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Production Slate: The Hunt • Berberian Sound Studio
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 21
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 22
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 23
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 24
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 25
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 26
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 27
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 28
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 29
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 30
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 31
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Big Guns
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 33
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 34
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 35
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 36
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 37
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American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 41
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 42
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 43
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 44
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 45
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Battle Bots
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 47
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 48
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 49
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 50
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 51
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 52
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 53
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 54
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 55
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Rapturous Action
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 57
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 58
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 59
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 60
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 61
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 62
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 63
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 64
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 65
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Shattered Past
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 67
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 68
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 69
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 70
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 71
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 72
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 73
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Post Focus: Under the Dome
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 75
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - New Products & Services
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 77
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 78
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 79
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 80
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 81
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - International Marketplace
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Classified Ads
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Ad Index
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 85
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Clubhouse News
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - 87
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - ASC Close-Up: Stuart Dryburgh
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - August 2013 - Cover4
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