American Cinematographer - January 2020 - 24

SHORT TAKES

Emerging Filmmakers
By Debra Kaufman

Established to inspire the next generation of cinematographers, the ASC Student Heritage Awards took place on Oct. 12 at
the Society's Clubhouse in Hollywood, where honors were
presented to three emerging directors of photography. In the
Graduate category, the Richard H. Kline Student Heritage Award
was presented to Łukasz Dziedzic, of the American Film Institute,
for Animals. In the Undergraduate category, the Richard H. Kline
Student Heritage Award went to Oscar Ignacio Jiménez, of
Brigham Young University, for Gather. The Haskell Wexler
Student Documentary Award was given to Jazleana Jones, of
Florida State University, for King, Charles. The winners took time
with AC to discuss their work on these standout projects.
Animals
Cinematographer: Łukasz Dziedzic
Director: Chen-Wen Lo

In Animals, two child soldiers, a brother and sister, escape
their unit's jungle outpost but are captured and confined in a
stable, where the sister must watch her brother suffer the ravages
of dengue fever. The movie is set in Myanmar in 2013, during a
domestic conflict between the government and separatists.
January 2020

Director Chen-Wen Lo, producer Miguel Lozano and
production designer Dara Zhao arranged a meeting with cinematographer Łukasz Dziedzic to talk about his participation.
"They told me the story, and I was immediately onboard," he
says. "I felt this was a project I wanted to shoot."
The logistics were challenging from the outset. The AFI
requires student projects to be shot within 30 miles of Los Angeles, so finding locations that could double for the jungles of
Myanmar was critical. Lo and Lozano began scouting for locations about a year before shooting began. The spectacular,
panoramic opening shot was captured at Malibu Creek State
Park. Other locations were Sanna Ranch in Santa Clarita, carefully
chosen sections of the Warner Bros. backlot, and AFI's surrounding hillside, augmented by jungle plants. Success, says Dziedzic,
was about "finding the right angle to photograph and not show
everything." He adds, "There was a lot of back-and-forth about
what would be an organic view and what isn't in Asia. We
managed to fool everyone."
Dziedzic shot with an Arri Amira and Cooke Speed
Panchro lenses from The Camera Division. "I like the aesthetic of
the lenses," he says. "They're soft and have a strong veiling glare
when wide open, an effect I used as a tool in our visual storytelling." He also used a Sony PMW-F55 CineAlta as a B camera for
a few shots. For his lighting package, he had two 9Ks and two 4Ks
from Illumination Dynamics and Cinelease, as well as the Light

American Cinematographer - 100 Years

2019 Student Heritage Awards photo by Alex Lopez.

Student Award Chair David Darby, ASC (second from left) with winners (from left) Łukasz Dziedzic, Oscar Ignacio Jiménez and Jazleana Jones.

American Cinematographer - January 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - January 2020