American Cinematographer - November 1988 - 50

What

can

he do? He has not shared

in the creative process.

He can only
pre-ordained plan... or
pull out some idea or approach
go on some

that's been used

thousand times

a

before. To counter that

possibility, I

try to be on the set all the time. I sit
in

It's

on

the rehearsal with the actors.

part of my job. The cinematog¬

rapher is the one person who is
always on the set."
On The Accidental Tourist

Bailey had the right environment
and the right director and actors to
prove his theory. He and Kasdan
and Littleton began their collabora¬
tion by choosing a film format that
would aid in the telling of the story.
"To explain this, I need to
back up a little. In Silverado, we
decided to shoot in the Super Techniscope process because we want¬
ed a sense of enormous expanse of
open country and vistas. We want¬
ed a deep depth of field, and a
sense

Demonstration of
intimate

camera

points of view
which prevail
throughout the
film.

play and thinking about a
methodology or a visual line for the
film, what happens day-by-day,
scene-by-scene is usually very dif¬
ferent from anything 1 could have
planned for.
"It's important to plan I'm not saying that it isn't - but the
important thing for a cinematogra¬
pher, absorbed in finding a way to
translate his

concerns

into the

film,

of that

point be able to let go
preparation. He has to look

at the

process

must at some

of making the film
not merely as executing his prepa¬
ration, but as being sensitive
moment-to-moment to what is hap¬
pening with the directors and the
actors. He must be able to modify
his plan or come up with a totally
fresh approach to the scene.
"That is

a

most

difficult

thing. You're on a set with the elec¬
tricians and grips, the rest of the
camera

tors

various assistants,

ac¬

director. Once the

re¬

crew,

and

a

hearsal is finished and

you've

seen

the scene, the director often leaves
to continue work with the actors..

Everyone turns to the cinematogra¬
pher and says, What do we do?'
Now, if you've got a plan, which
most cameramen try to have, then
you

48

know

American

you are

insulated,

Cinematographer

pro¬

of characters in the environ¬

tected. All you have to do is execute
that plan. The real challenge is to be

ment.

able

mythic West.

-

when

throw that

it's

plan

to whatever has

necessary

-

to

and respond
just happened in

"The Accidental Tourist is

away

rehearsal."

Bailey compared the cine¬
matographic challenge to that faced
by the actors. Once they are techni¬
cally trained to hit their marks, play
to lights or go for a certain look, the
execution of the material depends
on
finding the truth of the moment.
Sometimes that means ignoring the
technicalities and being guided by
instinct and the director. For Bailey
then, the question becomes, "Why
should any less be expected of the
cinematographer? If the cinema¬
tographer is attuned to the director
and the actors then he
can

They were larger-than-life
characters in the true sense of the

or she, too,
find the truth of the moment."

The

cinematographer
cooperation of the
rest of the filmmaking team. As
Bailey points out, "Too often the
cinematographer isn't on set during
rehearsals. The director may ask
must have the

him to leave because he wants to be

alone with his actors, or the cine¬

houses

or a

Only

a
outside

few
on

couple of apartments.
sequences take place

the streets of Baltimore,

Paris and London.

he travels around the world and
doesn't

see

anything. So the last

thing

we wanted was a Baedecker
tour of Paris and London. When

people see the film, I think they'll
be amazed at how little they see of
either

city.
"For instance, the most

of the tourists' Paris is a
night scene on the Champs Elysees
shot in a Burger King with the Arc
de
Triomphe lit up in the
background - out of focus. The
Burger King sign is much more
prominent than the arch. We knew
we were
dealing with a man who
has a really closed, repressed view
of life. The fundamental question
became How do you translate this
you see

visually?"'

rehearsal

amorphic format

November 1988

after it's worked out!

Implicit to the
plays is that

character that Bill Hurt

matographer doesn't feel comfort¬
able. The cinematographer is
brought in later to see the
-

a

very closed, hermetic world. Most
of it takes place inside a couple of

The answer to the ques¬
tion involved the choice of an-

over

the normal
American Cinematographer - November 1988

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