American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 36

◗

Over the Line
shots that we could do if the sun went
away, like car interiors or close-ups. It
was our battle plan.
What focal lengths did you use?
Deakins: I like working with
prime lenses because it forces you to be
quite precise about the focal length and
where you put the camera. I normally
tend toward a 32, 35 or 40mm. I find
there's a huge difference between a 32
and a 35. Our wide lens would be a 27,
or sometimes a 21. All camera equipment was supplied by Otto Nemenz.
Sicario starts with a very bright
day exterior, and there are many more
throughout the film.
Deakins: It's interesting, because
the first thing people say about digital
cameras is that they can't handle day
exteriors. That's a rather old attitude, but
there are still people [who adhere to it]. I
was myself concerned about that until
Skyfall [AC Dec. '12], where we did some
scenes with very bright sunlight that
worked out really well. That experience
settled the issue for me.
Do you use a meter with the
Alexa?
Deakins: Not on every shot, but
most of the time. I use my Gossen,
which I've had for 30-odd years. I use a
meter a little less often when shooting
digitally than on film. I work with a digital-imaging technician - Josh Gollish
- so there's a certain confidence factor
there. I use the meter to check where I
am relative to what my eye is seeing. I
usually just take one reading, or stand in
one place and take a reading of the shadows or highlights. Even when shooting
film I've never been obsessive about
meter readings on a shot; I don't walk
around and work out contrast ratios and
all that. I am not technical in that way.
During the journey to Juárez,
there are many car interiors. Did you
use any lighting for those shots?
Deakins: We had rigged some
LEDs inside the car, but we didn't end
up using them. When the car is stopped
at the border, I did do a little bounce on
a 4-by-8 poly. But a lot of the stuff in the
car was just natural light. Sometimes I
put diffusion on the car's front wind-

Top: Kate is
enlisted to join a
special task force
that is targeting
the cartel's
leaders. Middle:
Kate and Reggie
help interrupt
the cartel's cash
flow. Bottom:
Alejandro
(Benicio Del
Toro, crouched in
front of camera),
a mysterious
member of the
task force, hunts
for information
near the border.

36

October 2015

American Cinematographer



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - October 2015

Contents
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - Intro
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - Cover1
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 1
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 2
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - Contents
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 4
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 5
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 6
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 7
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 8
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 9
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 10
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 11
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 12
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 13
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 14
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 15
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 16
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 17
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 18
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 19
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 20
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 21
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 22
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 23
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 24
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 25
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 26
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 27
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 28
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 29
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 30
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 31
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 32
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 33
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 34
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 35
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 36
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 37
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 38
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 39
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 40
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 41
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 42
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 43
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 44
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 45
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 46
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 47
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 48
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 49
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 50
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 50a
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 50b
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 51
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 52
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 53
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 54
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 55
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 56
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 57
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 58
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 59
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 60
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 61
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 62
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 63
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 64
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 65
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 66
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 67
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 68
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 69
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 70
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 71
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 72
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 73
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 74
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 75
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 76
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 77
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 78
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 79
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 80
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 81
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 82
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 83
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 84
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 85
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 86
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 87
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 88
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 89
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 90
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 91
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 92
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 93
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 94
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 95
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - 96
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - October 2015 - Cover4
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