American Cinematographer - June 2015 - 80b

in a very improvisational way. It's very loose - what we're going
to accomplish on a given day, how it's going to be shot, and what
the actors are going to say and do. I wanted to use the camera
to counter that. I kept things very locked down and static, with
carefully chosen compositions, and a decisive feeling."
The format was 3-perf 35mm, and the aspect ratio was a
widescreen 2.35:1. The cameras were ARRICAM LTs and the
lenses were generally Cooke 5/i in the medium range of focal
lengths - usually 32mm or 40mm, and occasionally a 65 mm.

"Because so many projects are
digital, shooting on ﬁlm makes
the movie stand out. It just
feels more human, more analog,
more natural, and ultimately,
more stylized."
"We did side-by-side tests with digital formats, and there
was just no comparison," says Lipes. "It was very obvious to
everyone that ﬁlm was the way to go. It felt better, and it
creates uniqueness about the ﬁlm. Because so many projects
are digital, shooting on ﬁlm makes the movie stand out. It just
feels more human, more analog, more natural, and ultimately,
more stylized. It's not as sharp - it's more pleasing. It wasn't a
scientiﬁc decision. It just felt like the right way to go."
The classic romantic comedy aesthetic comes with a
higher-key approach to lighting. "This was deﬁnitely the most
bright and broad lighting I've done for a ﬁlm," says Lipes.
"That's what was appropriate."

The aspect ratio and format were a creative choice dictated
partially by the New York setting. The 3-perf format had the
additional beneﬁt of saving 25 percent over 4-perf in stock
and processing.
"Judd had shot his previous ﬁlm digitally, and I think he found
the ability to keep rolling forever counterproductive," says Lipes.
"After a certain point, the cast and crew get burned out. Being
able to take a break and reload for a minute is welcome."
The ﬁlm stocks were KODAK VISION3 500T Color
Negative Film 5219 and KODAK VISION3 50D Color Negative
Film 5203. The majority of the ﬁlm unfolds in day interior
situations, which were split between stage work and locations.

In one important scene, Schumer and Hader return to his
character's apartment after a ﬁrst date. The environment
included a lot of glass and extensive city views. Even though
it was on the seventh ﬂoor, Lipes lit up the interior from the
outside. The lights were aimed up from the sidewalks, through
the big windows, and bounced off the apartment ceiling, thus
avoiding reﬂections in the glass and allowing the camera to
look in any direction.
"Generally, the lighting was all very straightforward and very
traditional in a lot of ways, and it was good to go through that
exercise," says Lipes. "I worked with a great gaffer (Andy Day)
and a great crew, and they really helped me get the ﬁlm in the
right place. Coloring it in post was very simple, and Judd was
quite happy with the images in the end."
Trainwreck is in theaters this summer.
Photos: Previous page: Amy Schumer and Bill Hader star in Trainwreck. This page, top:
Schumer and Brie Larson. This page, bottom: LeBron James and Hader in a scene from
Trainwreck. Photos © Universal Pictures.
American Cinematographer - June 2015

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