American Cinematographer - February 2017 - 20

On having a point of view:
"When you're building your body of work, be mindful of what you
want to say, and craft your own point of view by identifying the
filmmakers you want to work with, maintaining those relationships and
building a portfolio with them. Sometimes young cinematographers are too
focused on getting as much done as possible, and they lose sight of quality.
Think about what drives you as an artist, and then work on
translating that into your body of work."
- Louiza Vick, Worldwide Production Agency

tricks but about telling a story," Kijowski
says. Dylewska brought Kijowski fully into
the fold when she took him on as a camera
operator for Agnieszka Holland's In Darkness. "We worked in Germany and in
Poland with an international crew and
cast," he recalls of the massive production.
"It was a great experience working with a
big crew on an original, creative film."
After In Darkness, Kijowski quickly
rose to prominence as a cinematographer in
Poland, receiving a Camerimage nomination in 2013 for the minimalistic psychological drama Floating Skyscrapers. "We were
searching for visual expression that would
underline the loneliness of the two main
characters," he says.
His next feature, The Lure, was a
"fairytale for adults" that won the World
Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for
Unique Vision and Design at the 2016
Sundance Film Festival. "The story takes
place in Warsaw in the Eighties and involves
two young mermaids who appear innocent
but are in fact bloodthirsty beasts," Kijowski
explains. "I aimed at presenting this duality
of innocence and brutality, beauty and
repugnance, obviousness and mystery by
merging opposing aesthetics. I wanted to
link the colorful, fairytale world of a dance
club with the vicious naturalism of sordid
interiors." Kijowski plans to reunite with
20

February 2017

Oona Menges
Oona Menges grew up with cinematography in her blood - her father is
Academy- and ASC Award-winning director
of photography Chris Menges, ASC, BSC.
"My parents' friends were all filmmakers
and Magnum photographers, so I have
always been around cameras and discussions of images," she says.
Menges has an impressive list of
mentors that includes Ivan Strasburg, BSC;
Robert Alazraki, AFC; Ashley Rowe, BSC;
Angus Hudson, BSC; Barry Ackroyd, BSC;
Robby Müller, NSC, BVK; John Mathieson,
BSC; Alan Almond, BSC; and Chris Seager,
BSC. Not surprisingly, Menges got an early
start, working as a runner on set while still
a teenager before graduating to clapper
loader when Sandi Sissel, ASC gave her the
position on the film No Secrets.
"I was beaten into shape by two
excellent camera assistants, Jacqui Compton and Sue Zwilling," she recalls, adding
that her days as a loader and focus puller
taught her the importance of prep. "You
have to surround yourself with the best and
most positive crew you can, and remain
flexible and ready to grab opportunities.
There is no room for ego."
For Menges, cinematography is an
American Cinematographer

art form dependent on capturing energy:
"My overall philosophy is that light is a spirit.
When this concept is embraced, magic can
happen." Although she loves digital technology, she worries that it sometimes works
against the creative process. "We can be
too focused on all the bells and whistles,
with clinical and polished films as a result,"
she says, adding that the digital world has
also "produced a generation of producers
and directors who think we now have such
powerful sensors that our jobs are practically
obsolete - 'if you can see it, shoot it.' They
don't understand that exposure is the least
of it."
Menges says that her best experience with digital was on a series called
Different for Girls. "We sent the 'mags'
straight to [colorist] Matt Watson at Shed
London with no downloading or DIT on set.
He then uploaded the rushes for the execs
in New York and for us on-set in London. So
we were treating it exactly as though it was
film, but with all the positive contributions
of digital."
Menges' devotion to an intimate
relationship with her images leads her to
continue to operate whenever possible. "I
have worked with operators and enjoyed
it," she says, "but I feel disconnected when
I don't have my eye to the camera."
Becky Parsons
Becky Parsons also became interested in movies thanks to her father, though
in her case her dad had no ties to the film
business. "He was a layout designer and
typographer - nothing to do with the film
or television industry," she explains, "but he
always had the latest consumer video
cameras and TVs, and was - and is - an
avid follower of film."
Living in London, Parsons would
often stumble across productions shooting

Parsons photo by Richard Groot.

Cinematographer Becky Parsons.

The Lure director Agnieszka Smoczynska on
her new film, about a woman with memory
loss who is reunited with her family - "a
psychological drama that we want to film
like a horror story," according to Kijowski.
Kijowski finds inspiration in the
content of his films, looking for the precise
visual corollary to the emotions and story. "I
believe that finding an aesthetically appropriate visual form for a story contributes to
its success," he explains. "Then once you
start telling the story, you move to a higher
level. You become an author."

American Cinematographer - February 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - February 2017