City of God

"City of God" is a film that has influenced and inspired me as a filmmaker since I saw it in the theater in 2003.  After I recovered from the effects of the disturbing but incredibly stunning imagery of the film itself, I read a fascinating article in American Cinematographer about how the filmmakers were able to achieve their cinematographic vision.  Aside from the dazzling camerawork, two things in particular resonated with me. 
     First, I was impressed to read that, as the primary source of illumination for many of the chaotic street scenes, the film's DP, Cesar Charlone, decided to use the soft, reflected light that existed naturally within the labyrinth of colorful sidestreets and alleyways in Rio de Janeiro's favelas. By relying primarily on natural light, the filmmakers were able to create a set environment that was atypical of most big budget productions. [more]

40 x 9

Cortina Productions hired me to work as one of three directors of photography on a film for the New England Patriots to be played in the main theater of the Hall at Patriots Place.  The goal of the film was to capture New England life and illustrate how the Patriots were an integral part of the New England experience.  Because the projection screen in the theater was 40' long by 9' high, the technical challenges in acquiring effective imagery were daunting.  At that size and panoramic aspect ratio, HD was not an effective option because its native resolution would not hold up at that level of enlargement.  The director wanted to be able to incorporate full screen panoramic beauty shots, shots that stretched the full 40' width of the screen, and more manageable 16x9 or similar size frames into the presentation.  With those goals in mind, the production team got to work.  The decision was made to reconfigure, create actually, a ground glass that would allow the DP to see both the panoramic frame (4. [more]

Robyn Hitchcock

I was recently contracted to shoot a Robyn Hitchcock performance at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater in Manhattan.  The performance was being filmed for a documentary on the legendary musician titled, "Robyn Hitchcock - Death, Food, Sex, and Insects", by British Director, John Edginton.  It was a multi-camera shoot that included two Panasonic Varicams, two HDV "master wide" cameras, and a handheld camera onstage.  Operating one of the Varicams, I was tasked with shooting close-ups and cutaways from a position near the front of the stage, theater left, in the audience.  His performance did not disappoint.
     Throughout my career, I've had the opportunity to film several legendary musicians and songwriters including Vassar Clemens, Gino Delafose, and Blues greats DC and Selby Minner.  As a cinematographer filming performances, I am given the opportunity to experience the music in such a uniquely intimate way.  Be [more]

Primal Fear - Part 1: Lighting & Special Effects

I was hired by Northern Light Productions to work as the director of photography on a 2-hour special for The History Channel called "Primal Fear".  Divided into chapters, the goal of the film was to analyze and attempt to understand our most primal fears, their origin, and how they have evolved over time.  During the filming, I worked closely with two good friends of mine - producer/director, Ken Winikur and scriptwriter/sound recordist, Ben Avishai.  Together we had many harrowing adventures as we traveled all over the country, shooting in several different exotic and not-so-exotic locations.  We would often joke that the three of us should've been the subject of a 2-hour special on primal fear because we were, in fact, experiencing incredible levels of fear every day on set, working with and handling rats, snakes, grizzly bears, mountain lions, and other terrifying beasts.
     That said, what struck me the most after seeing the final product, aside from the impressive storytelling, editing, and animation, was the effectiveness of our studio recreations. [more]