American Cinematographer - April 2016 - 62

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Rebel With a Camera
he fired the camera operator after the
first week of filming. He asked Vilmos
Zsigmond if he could recommend
someone for the job, and Vilmos
suggested me. Haskell interviewed me
over the phone and I was hired.
The Democratic National
Convention was held in August 1968 at
the International Amphitheatre in
Chicago at the same time we were filming. Haskell was aware of the possible
anti-Vietnam War demonstrations, and
that the unexpected might happen
during this convention. He cleared the
production schedule for the entire week
of the convention to be prepared for any
disturbances that might occur. As he
predicted, the anti-war demonstrations
erupted. The production team was given
yellow hard hats to protect us and to
make it possible for us to see each other.
The filming began in and around Grant
Park and the nearby streets.
Haskell had Verna Bloom, the
actress, walk through Grant Park looking for her son. She wore a bright yellow
dress that made it easier for us to see her
while she walked through the crowds in
the park. By then, tear gas had filled the
air and trash cans had been set on fire.
The anti-war demonstrations were in
full swing and the park and the streets
were filled with demonstrators, Chicago
police and the Illinois National Guard.

On the set of Blaze, Wexler lines up a shot with director Ron Shelton (top, pointing) and preps the
camera for a scene with Paul Newman.

rhythmically? I'll be putting music in
here, and it would be great if we could
zoom in to the beat.' He said, 'OK, you
sing to me and I'll work the zoom.' I just
started a beat - 'bop bop bee bop-adee' - and he was turning the zoom.
When I was done I went, 'Ba-dum!' and
waved my arms, and he said, 'Perfect,
just in!' When we printed it, the
composer was amazed that we could lay
in a flute passage that was in sync with
that zoom.
62

April 2016

In The Thomas Crown Affair, I
think his work is brilliant. It's a film that
is really style over content. And he made
it so exciting. He had a great skill for
lighting, and he gave the whole thing a
kind of romantic and beautiful sheen
that was perfect.
Michael D. Margulies, ASC
(camera operator on Medium Cool):
Haskell was the writer, director and
cinematographer for Medium Cool, and
American Cinematographer

Squires: Medium Cool was revolutionary in its use of real, unfolding
historical events to tell a scripted story.
Some of the strongest parts of that film
have to do with the documentary
aspects of the setting. Haskell's ability to
be present in the midst of all that chaos,
still tell his story, but also be incredibly
sensitive to the drama that was unfolding around him outside the bounds of
his dramatic script - it is that sensitivity to an ongoing situation, and his
empathic abilities to really understand
what is happening all around him, that
makes both his documentary and fiction
work so powerful.
Yates: Haskell was nimble and
captured stunning shots with his Éclair.

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