American Cinematographer - March 2021 - 32

ACCELERATED EVOLUTION

scouting, viewing, dailies, color correction, editing - all are benefiting from the increasing
capability to work via a high-resolution interactive link.
The same priority applies on set - existing
technologies like remote dimmer boards and
lens controls, originally designed for efficiency
and convenience, are now used to allow crewmembers to be separated from the cast and
other crew. Remote heads and even crane arms
can serve the same purpose.
Michelle MacLaren, who recently served as
an executive producer and director on Coyote
for CBS All Access, is now directing In Treatment
for HBO. She reports that both of the show's
two cameras are on remote heads, leaving only
the dolly grips near the actors. The production
has also turned the necessity for remote communication to their advantage. A special headset connected her to cinematographer Steven
Fierberg, ASC, as well as the operators, dolly

grips, set dresser and DIT. Everyone on line is
in sync. It works great, but still it's not her preference. As much as MacLaren loves the systems
that let her and her team work, she adds, " I'd
rather be close to the actors, sitting next to the
camera. " Fierberg agrees; he was surprised at
first by how much he was missing when, while
rolling, his only view of the set was through
the remote cameras. Neither he nor the operators could see or react to what was happening
outside the frame. The headset arrangement
helps enormously, but it does leave out some
non-verbal emotional information. The link is
like " radio instead of cinema. " Fierberg is looking forward to when he can once again walk
over to a colleague to give a note. And he misses the hugs.
Rodney Taylor, ASC, is working on the Apple
TV Plus series Swagger in Virginia. He, the director and the script supervisor all sit at isolated monitors. Most of the crew must watch the

Mat Beck, ASC started out shooting personal
films and documentary footage, then began
designing digital tools for the VFX industry, including likely the first microcomputer
motion-control system. Simultaneously, he
worked as a camera operator, progressing
to cinematographer and VFX supervisor. He
founded Entity FX (Los Angeles, Vancouver)
in 2002.
Beck has worked on more than 70 feature
films, including such notables as Titanic, The
Abyss, Moonstruck, both X-Files movies,
True Lies, Galaxy Quest, Batman Returns,
The Nutty Professor, Into the Wild, Michael

Jackson's This Is It, I Am Number Four, Yogi
Bear, Riddick, and Laundromat. He recently
finished work on the Netflix feature The
Babysitter's Guide to Monster Hunting and a
sizzle reel for Bedrock Productions.
For television, Beck has produced and/
or supervised visual effects for more than
50 series, including Godless, The Walking
Dead, The Vampire Diaries, The Originals,
Mike and Molly, Smallville, Breaking Bad,
and The X-Files. HBO productions included
Watchmen, The Righteous Gemstones, Curb
Your Enthusiasm, True Detective, Getting
On, Game of Thrones, Ballers pilot, Six Feet
Under, Entourage and Band of Brothers.
Beck has also directed multiple 2nd units
on feature and television projects, as well as
an episode of Smallville.
He has been nominated for VES and
ATAS awards, and has won two Emmy
statuettes. He has served on the ASC MITC
committee, the VES Board of directors, the
AMPAS executive committee, the ATAS Peer
Group, and is a member of the DGA.

shooting through a Wi-Fi link. The gaffer is behind him, separated by a plastic shield. When
lighting with stand-ins, he has to extrapolate
the look of each face because they are wearing masks. Camera assistants can't trade tips
or gossip around the camera carts because the
carts are parked apart by the prescribed distance. For people who get so much joy from
working together with their talented, motivated teammates, the job becomes emotionally
harder. It's that connection thing again; with
the masks on, you can't see your colleagues'
smiles.
But there are compensations. Taylor reports
that the set is quieter, more focused. They actually are working more efficiently - with no
problem making their days. Also, it's quicker
to get to work, because there always has to be
crew parking close by. Self-driving is safer. And,
of course, it's possible for crewmembers to pursue side projects after hours or on weekends -
maybe learn a musical instrument - or just
save a bunch of money, because where are you
going to go and spend it?
MacLaren describes her experience on set as
" lovely. People are so grateful to be here, to be
working. " Everyone is making an effort to help
each other out. The dolly grip sees MacLaren's
goggles fogging from her mask and gives her
the best solution to keep them clear. The AD decrees water breaks for cast and crew because no
beverages are allowed on set. A huge directors'
email chain trades hints on handling subtle onset challenges. MacLaren is impressed by the
massive, and costly, undertaking by the studio that allows them to work safely, and she's
" grateful that we are still able to tell stories. "
As Homo Cinematogensis continues to
adapt to the challenging environment, newer
technologies are offering their possibilities.
The groundbreaking advances in virtual-production techniques that were introduced to expand the world of the story now
can be used to reduce the vulnerability of actors and crew. A large world can be filmed on
a small volume with fewer vulnerable people.
And those techniques are already migrating to
smaller productions.
Director Randal Kleiser is currently working

PREVIOUS PAGES, PHOTO BY JACKIE ROMAN FOR GUM STUDIOS.

" Ultimately, our success depends on
finding ways to stay connected. "

32 / MARCH 2021

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American Cinematographer - March 2021

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