American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 73
Unit photography by Scott DW Smith, courtesy of Steve J. Roberts.
From left: Director Alex Muñoz and cinematographer Steve J. Roberts shoot a
scene featuring Wendell Mills Jr. and Terrencio Dutchie.
movie Escape. It was written, acted and
shot by the Ute Mountain youth. The
project was a great success, playing to full
theaters in the region, screening at festivals around the world, and winning three
significant awards, including Best Student
Film at the LA Skins Fest. Many of the
participants boarded a plane for the first
time to travel to the ceremony. When they
learned they'd won, they were in a state
of disbelief.
During this year's workshop, participants wrote an intense script centered on
drug addiction and loss. Their story,
Destiny, follows the life of a drug dealer
haunted by the ghost of his younger
brother, who died from an overdose. As
the dealer's life spirals downward, he falls
victim to the addiction that destroyed his
brother and family. The young filmmakers
dedicated their movie to a 2015 FYI
program participant who was murdered
by a family member under the influence of
methamphetamine. Postproduction on
Destiny will be completed by December,
after which the movie will be screened
publicly in southwestern Colorado and
entered into festivals around the world.
Gearing up and Learning on
the Set
Selecting gear for a project and
working to fulfill the director's vision is my
favorite challenge. Doing that while teach-
ing a group of 12-19 year-olds who have
never handled professional film equipment takes that challenge to another level
entirely. We worked with the kids to teach
them how a film set is organized, the roles
of the crew and the general process of
filmmaking. Participants spent a lot of
hands-on time with the equipment. At
first they were intimidated by the expensive gear, but after we reviewed proper
handling, their fear disappeared and
creativity took over.
The kids ran the set, both in front of
and behind the camera. Along with their
dedicated FYI instructors, they were
supported by a crew that included Kyle
Dagenhart, who managed sound recording, and Craig Evans, who handled grip
and lighting.
The light in the high desert provides
its own set of challenges. At any given latitude, the sun's intensity increases by 6
percent per 1,000' above sea level. In
Towaoc, elevation 5,900', the sun's rays
are about 36 percent stronger than at sea
level. Because of this, I opted for Red
Weapon and Epic Dragon camera packages. Red's Dragon sensor has one of the
widest dynamic ranges available; the
cameras do a great job holding highlights
while still being able to capture detail in
the shadow areas of high-contrast
outdoor scenes. The cameras performed
flawlessly, even in the extremely hot, dusty
73
http://filmo-usa.com
American Cinematographer - November 2016
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - November 2016
Contents
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - Intro
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - Cover1
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 1
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 2
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - Contents
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 4
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 5
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 6
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 7
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 8
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 9
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 10
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 11
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 12
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 13
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 14
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 15
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 16
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 17
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 18
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 19
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 20
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 21
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 22
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 23
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 24
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 25
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 26
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 27
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 28
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 29
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 30
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 31
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 32
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 33
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 34
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 35
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 36
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 37
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 38
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 39
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 40
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 41
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 42
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 43
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 44
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 45
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 46
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 47
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 48
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 49
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 50
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 51
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 52
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 53
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 54
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 55
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 56
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 57
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 58
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 59
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 60
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 61
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 62
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 63
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 64
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 65
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 66
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 67
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 68
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 69
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 70
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 71
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 72
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 73
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 74
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 75
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 76
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 77
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 78
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 79
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 80
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 81
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 82
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 83
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 84
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 85
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 86
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 87
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - 88
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - November 2016 - Cover4
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