Dear Colleague:
Here's an advance look at the March 2005 issue
of American Cinematographer magazine,
which will highlight documentaries.
Aliens of the Deep (Disney)
Underwater cinematographer Vince Pace helped director
James Cameron (Titanic, Ghosts of the Abyss)
continue his intrepid oceanic adventures on this 3-D
Imax movie, in which the filmmakers join NASA scientists
to explore the Mid-Ocean Ridge, a submerged chain of
mountains that band the Earth and serve as home to some
of the planet's most unique life forms. The filmmakers
will detail the preparations and special equipment that
were necessary to capture glimpses of the fantastic
species that exist so far beneath the water's surface.
Deep Jungle (PBS)
Six cinematographers participated in the filming of
this upcoming PBS miniseries, which was shot in the
rainforests of Borneo,
Peru, Brazil and other exotic locales. Extreme conditions
required the filmmakers to come up with inventive shooting
strategies that involved a highly specialized arsenal
of high-tech equipment. Our article on the show will
detail the crew's peak experiences, including their
travels to some of the world's most amazing sites and
their close encounters with exotic creatures.
Be Cool (MGM)
Jeffrey Kimball, ASC was behind the camera on this
showbiz sendup, the sequel to the popular 1995 farce
Get Shorty. In the film, John Travolta reprises
his role as mobster Chili Palmer, who, after becoming
disenchanted with the movie business, decides to try
his luck in the music industry; along the way, he meets
and romances a deceased executive's attractive widow
(Uma Thurman). Kimball, best known for his work on action
movies such as Top Gun, Mission: Impossible II
and Windtalkers, will explain how he shifted
gears to generate laughs.
Tonino Delli Colli, AIC will receive the ASC
International Award at the Society's annual awards
gala on February 13, 2005.. To further honor his contributions
to the art of cinematography, AC will publish
a detailed Q & A with the veteran director of photography,
whose long list of credits includes the films The
Gospel According to St. Matthew; The Good, the Bad and
the Ugly; Once Upon a Time in the West; The Canterbury
Tales; Seven Beauties; Tales of Ordinary Madness; The
Name of the Rose; Intervista; Once Upon a Time in America;
and Life Is Beautiful. Delli Colli was in the
front ranks of a new generation of cinematographers
who pioneered neorealist cinema between 1944 and 1997.
The Ministry of Performing Arts in Italy has presented
him with the prestigious annual David di Donatello Award
four times, and he has also earned six top cinematography
awards from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists.
The March issue's departments will also offer
illuminating insights:
DVD Playback will review three DVDs of films
that center around unusually intense relationships.
Kicking off the section will be Gone With the Wind
(1939). Shot by ASC members Ernest Haller and Ray
Rennahan, this classic romance sweeps viewers into the
stormy love affair between stubborn southerners Rhett
Butler (Clark Gable) and Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh)
during the Civil War. Next up will be Eyes Without
a Face (1959). Shot by Eugen Shuftan, this French
cult film concerns a professor who murders young girls
in a mad attempt to graft their faces onto that of his
beloved but mutilated daughter. Finally, AC will
also examine the weird world of Wild at Heart
(1990), shot by Frederick Elmes, ASC for director David
Lynch. An affectionate, twisted homage to The Wizard
of Oz, this surreal road movie follows the trail
of soulmates Sailor (Nicolas Cage) and Lula (Laura Dern)
as they attempt to elude the pursuit of hitmen, petty
criminals and Lula's murderously vindictive mother.
Production Slate will open with a piece on Dust
to Glory, a digitally-shot documentary about the
Baja 1000, an annual off-road race in Baja, Mexico that
attracts hundreds of participants and thousands of fans.
In this section we will also profile acclaimed documentarian
William Greaves, who recently received the International
Documentary Association's 2004 Career Achievement Award.
Points East will examine director Hal Hartley's
latest indie film, The Girl From Monday, which
was shot in the MiniDV format by cinematographer Sarah
Cawley.
Short Takes will profile cinematographer Daniel
Bronks' work on the music video “Bittersweet Bundle
of Misery,” directed by Scott Weintrob for British musician
Graham Coxon, best known as the guitarist for the art-pop
band Blur.
ASC Close-Up will offer insights into the life
and career of Stephen Lighthill, ASC, whose credits
include documentaries such as Berkeley in the '60s,
Vietnam Story: The Last Days, The Good Fight and
The Spirit of '76.
