American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 41

to understand why I'm doing what I'm
doing. He's got to understand the whole
arc of the season."
The "Lyon Family Anthem"
sequence in episode 16 of season two,
"The Lyon Who Cried Wolf," marks
the culmination of a story arc driven by
the conflict between Lucious and two of
his sons, Jamal and Hakeem. In the
sequence, the American Sound Awards
- Empire's version of the Grammys -
pit Jamal and his father against each
other for Song of the Year honors.
Cookie, meanwhile, has managed to get
the Lyon family a slot on the awards
show, so that all of the family's musicians can be showcased. The song - a
grudging collaboration between
Lucious, Jamal and Hakeem - is first
performed for the awards show's
producers, as an audition for the telecast.
The scene took place on the
Leviticus nightclub set, where the crew
rigged 36 LED Pars, 20 tungsten Pars,

10 Philips ColorBlast LEDs, miles of
LiteGear LiteRibbon RGB LED tape,
and a dozen Robe Robin Pointe units.
Sommers says his main goal with this
sequence was to simultaneously express
the love and tension between all the
characters - not a bad way to summarize the series as a whole - and he
notes that this was a chance to employ
rock 'n' roll lighting to underscore character and story.
"We had to reinvent the space
and help bring the emotion of the song
to the audience," the cinematographer
reflects. "We embraced the red and gold
palette for the beginning of the song,
[where] I tried to play a dichotomy in
color between Lucious and Jamal. They
are more alike than different, but the
conflict between fathers and sons is as
old as civilization; I think everyone in
the audience can feel the tension. When
Hakeem enters, he adds a new flavor -
rap - and I did a change to a really rich
purple to add some dimension to the

palette. I really enjoy the way that color
played on Hakeem's skin tone; it added
a richness and depth that was missing
from the beginning of the song.
"By the end," he continues,
"they're all performing together, and the
blending of the three main colors was an
attempt to tell that story. Though all
three of these characters are tremendous
artists on their own, together they can
fly, and transcend their individual limitations."
●

TECHNICAL SPECS
1.78:1
Digital Capture
Arri Alexa Plus, Mini
Arri/Zeiss Master Prime,
Fujinon Premier,
Arri Shift & Tilt

41


http://www.jlfisher.com http://www.jlfisher.de

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - October 2016

Contents
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - Intro
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - Cover1
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 1
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 2
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - Contents
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 4
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 5
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 6
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 7
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 8
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 9
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 10
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 11
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 12
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 13
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 14
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 15
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 16
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 17
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 18
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 19
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 20
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 21
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 22
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 23
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 24
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 25
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 26
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 27
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 28
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 29
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 30
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 31
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 32
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 33
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 34
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 35
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 36
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 37
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 38
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 39
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 40
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 41
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 42
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 43
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 44
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 45
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 46
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 47
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 48
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 49
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 50
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 51
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 52
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 53
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 54
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 55
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 56
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 57
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 58
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 59
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 60
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 61
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 62
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 63
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 64
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 65
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 66
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 67
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 68
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 69
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 70
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 71
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 72
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 73
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 74
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 75
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 76
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 77
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 78
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 79
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 80
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 81
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 82
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 83
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 84
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 85
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 86
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 87
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - 88
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - October 2016 - Cover4
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