Fresh off the historic success of Top Gun: Maverick, director Joseph Kosinski took the approach to shooting vehicles in motion at incredibly fast speeds that was pioneered for that film and adapted it to a new form. F1 launches like a rocket from its very first moments, putting audiences in the driver’s seat of cars that can travel … Continue reading F1 – Prepared for Anything
What does it cost to be the greatest? That’s the question at the heart of HIM, the twisty new sports-horror film that dives into the dark heart of ruthless ambition and the parallels between America’s fascination with sports and religious practices. To get inside the psyche of Cam, the young pro-football hopeful at the center of … Continue reading HIM – Getting Into Character
Based on the stage musical adapted from Manuel Puig’s 1976 novel by John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Terrence McNally, Kiss of the Spider Woman contrasts the bleak reality of its principal characters against the romantic, Technicolor fantasy and spectacle of a movie musical from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Bill Condon’s film adaptation draws a starker line … Continue reading KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN – Classical Framing, Modern Techniques
As members of the radical revolutionary group, the French 75, Pat Calhoun and Perfidia Beverly Hills are no strangers to danger. Raiding immigrant detention centers, robbing banks, and planting bombs is all in a day’s work. But after Col. Steven J. Lockjaw develops a fetishistic fascination with Perfidia during a French 75 raid he begins … Continue reading ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER – Battle-Ready Operating
With 36 feature films since 2008 (not to mention numerous shorts, mini-series, and TV movies), it’s safe to say that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been something of a cultural force for the past decade-and-a-half. The downside, however, of such a successful run is that there is increasing risk of the product becoming stale. Thunderbolts*, in … Continue reading THUNDERBOLTS* – New Look, New Techniques, New Avengers
Nearly a decade after it began production, the television adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale has reached its conclusion with a sixth season that is—true to form—morally murky and bubbling over with righteous anger. Camera Operator had the opportunity to talk with camera operators Brett Hurd, SOC, and Sarah Mulholland, SOC, about seeing this series, which has … Continue reading THE HANDMAID’S TALE – Filming a Revolution
In the midst of the world shutting down and people being forced to isolate during the Covid-19 pandemic, The White Lotus emerged, serving as an escapist travelogue and a sardonic glimpse into the lives of the very wealthy. Now in its third season, the anthology series continues with yet another set of characters and stories, a whole … Continue reading THE WHITE LOTUS – Immersed in a Location
Each year, the Society of Camera Operators hosts its annual Lifetime Achievement Awards to honor not only some of the finest examples of camera operating in the past year, but also to shine a spotlight on individuals who have given us a career’s worth of exceptional work behind the camera. It’s a space where people … Continue reading Operating for Operators – Society of Camera Operators Lifetime Achievement Awards
At once a biting satire of the movie business and a love letter to the movies themselves, The Studio juggles both the Herculean effort that goes into trying to get anything made in Hollywood with the absurdity of the egos of people calling the shots. To discuss the series, Camera Operator had the opportunity to talk with both A … Continue reading THE STUDIO – Making the Camera Honest
Based on Jeff Keating’s 2020 true crime podcast, Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist recounts the story of the infamous house party robbery that eclipsed Muhammad Ali’s grand return to boxing on the next morning’s front page. Camera Operator had the opportunity to speak with A camera and Steadicam operator Xavier Thompson and B camera operators Brigman … Continue reading FIGHT NIGHT: THE MILLION DOLLAR HEIST – Another Eye in the Room
David Daut 