American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 24

24

struggling with self-doubt, but not just
personal, introspective self-doubt. The
world is telling them, 'Behave a certain
way.'"
In selecting a cinematographer,
Davis-Marsh sought a collaborator who
would push, rather than simply reaffirm,
her own ideas. "When I talked to Ante,
he came in and had interesting ideas,
and he really had thought about how
best to photograph this story," she says.
"I was really impressed with his preparation and how thoughtful he was about
choices. His lighting is particularly
gorgeous."
The filmmakers selected the
2.39:1 aspect ratio for CODA. Cheng
wanted a wide frame to account for the
unusual use of subtitles, which the director planned to superimpose at different
spots in the frame rather than exclusively at the bottom-center of the image.
"Having grown up in Asia, I'm used
December 2019

to watching
movies with
subtitles,"
Cheng says, but
now he was
tasked
with
designing shots
with the knowledge that "the
subtitles would
be following the actors." The widescreen
format allowed the filmmakers to
proceed with the confidence that there
would be ample room for this text, no
matter where it ultimately appeared on
the screen.
The aspect ratio was also advantageous when it came to capturing
scenes in Alex's dance studio, as well as
the concluding sequence in which Alex
gives a deeply felt performance on a
large stage in a cavernous theater.
"Most dancers prefer to dance in wide
ASC 100th Anniversary

angles instead of being cropped into a
close-up or medium in which most of
their legs are out of frame," Cheng says.
"That's omitting half of their body
language."
If sign language was one form of
visual storytelling, dancing was another.
Prior to production, Cheng spent time
observing the dancers who would be
featured in those scenes, absorbing the
choreography and taking mental notes
on the best way to represent it on the
screen. "We put a lot of effort into

Photos by Becky Chen.

p Alex expresses herself through dance.
t Cinematographer Ante Cheng operates the
dolly-supported camera in the dance studio.
q Director Erika Davis-Marsh (right)
demonstrates how to sign "finally."



American Cinematographer - December 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - December 2019

Contents
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - Intro
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - Cover1
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - Cover2
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 1
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - Contents
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 3
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 4
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 5
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 6
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 7
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 8
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 9
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 10
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 11
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 12
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 13
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 14
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 15
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 16
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 17
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 18
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 19
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 20
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 21
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 22
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 23
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 24
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 25
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 26
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 27
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 28
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 29
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 30
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 31
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 32
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 33
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 34
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 35
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 36
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 37
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 38
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 39
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 40
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 41
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 42
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 43
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 44
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 45
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 46
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 47
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 48
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 49
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 50
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 51
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 52
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 53
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 54
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 55
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 56
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 57
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 58
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 59
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 60
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 61
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 62
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 63
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 64
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 65
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 66
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 67
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 68
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 69
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 70
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 71
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 72
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 73
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 74
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 75
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 76
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 77
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 78
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 79
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 80
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 81
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 82
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 83
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 84
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 85
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 86
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 87
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 88
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 89
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 90
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 91
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 92
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 93
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 94
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 95
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 96
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 97
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 98
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 99
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 100
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 100a
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 100b
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 101
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 102
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 103
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 104
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 105
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 106
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 107
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 108
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 109
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 110
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 111
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 112
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 113
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 114
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American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 116
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 117
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American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 119
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - 120
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - Cover3
American Cinematographer - December 2019 - Cover4
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