American Cinematographer - January 2021 - 67

BEHIND-THE-SCENES PHOTOS BY PATTI PERRET. ALL PHOTOS
COURTESY OF AMAZON STUDIOS.

AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER ASCMAG.COM

about to retire from football and pursue an acting career.
The feature One Night in Miami gives equal weight to all
four, but it's Clay who first draws the viewer in. The movie
kicks off with an earlier fight in London, one of the few
times Clay was knocked down. " We enter the film feeling
like it's Cassius' story - that's what grabs you, " says director
Regina King.
King had clear ideas about the production's look: Keep
the camera moving, create an immersive experience, use
vibrant colors, and respect history. " It was important for Regina to keep the historical references to actual events and
locations, " says cinematographer Tami Reiker, ASC, who
was working with the director and Oscar-winning actor for
the first time. (Reiker calls King " a powerhouse and an incredible collaborator. " ) Historical accuracy was paramount
not only in the fights, but also in various scenes based on

iconic photographs. These include Clay posing underwater
in a perfect boxer's stance; the tuxedoed boxer holding court
in a diner after the Liston fight; overhead shots of spectators rushing into a ring, post-knockout; Brown announcing
his NFL retirement on the set of The Dirty Dozen; and Cooke
debuting " A Change Is Gonna Come " on The Tonight Show.
Another priority was bold color. " I told Tami that Black
people are so vibrant, " King says. " We're like the most resilient beings because we've been through so much, but we
still manage to dance, to smile, to sing, to have an energy
that comes off of us that's so colorful. I wanted to capture
that without it feeling like a musical. " Her touchstone was
Jacob Lawrence, known for his colorful mid-century paintings of African-American life.
Prior to her interview with King, Reiker sent the director a lookbook packed with color. Street photographers
Saul Leiter and Garry Winogrand were in the mix, as were
stills from Wong Kar-wai's In the Mood for Love (AC Feb.
'01). " What I presented was a very rich and saturated look, "
Reiker recalls. " I wanted to show the vibrancy of Miami at
night. We chose a vibrant blue to contrast with the warm
tungsten interiors of the hotel room. "
Another guiding principle: " We wanted to make it a very
immersive experience, " Reiker says. That affected everything from choice of format, to shooting long takes, to letting shots run in the edit.
Reiker pushed for an Arri Alexa 65 and a 2.39:1 aspect
ratio after her positive experience with it on The Old Guard.
" It's just so beautiful, the falloff you get, and it [creates] an
immersive experience for the audience. You feel like you're
right in there. "
The production didn't have the budget for large format,
but Reiker pleaded her case with Arri Rental in Burbank
anyway. " I did my whole song and dance about how amazing it would be, " she recalls. " Arri was fantastic. They said,
'We'll make this happen. We want filmmakers to know the
65 isn't just for big action movies or superhero movies; it's
also for small, intimate movies.' "
The production obtained two Alexa 65 cameras and
an Alexa Mini LF, as well as Arri Prime DNA lenses, which
Reiker chose for their speed, softness and falloff. She used a
Tiffen Bronze Glimmerglass 1 filter on the lens throughout
the shoot. " It added a warmth to the overall feel and also a
warmth to the skin tones, " she says.
Though One Night in Miami was King's feature-directing
debut, it was not her first go-round in the director's chair.
She had helmed numerous television projects - a mix of
movies, pilots and episodes - but this time, she says, " my
choice was not to lean on extreme close-ups to make a point
for a piece of dialogue or an intention in a scene, because I
didn't feel it complemented the large format. So, how do we
come up with frames that are going to put an 'exclamation
mark' on a moment? That takes time to find. " With a 30-day

JANUARY 2021 / 67

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American Cinematographer - January 2021

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