By Robert Goldrich

One DP has made an auspicious U.S. feature debut, scoring an ASC Award nomination in the Spotlight category.

Another DP also scored her first career ASC Award nod–in the episodic half-hour TV series competition.

And our third cinematographer, by contrast, is already a two-time ASC Award winner, and just picked up his fifth career nomination.

Here are insights from: Adolpho Veloso, ABC (Brazilian Society of Cinematographers) on Jockey (Sony Pictures Classics); Paula Huidobro on Physical (Apple TV+); and Jon Joffin, ASC on Titans (HBO Max).

Adolpho Veloso
With his U.S. feature debut, cinematographer Adolpho Veloso has made a major splash, garnering an ASC Award nomination for Jockey. The nod came in the Spotlight category in which the ASC recognizes exceptional cinematography in independent and art-house-type films. 

It’s been an eventful awards season thus far for Jockey, which marks the feature directorial debut of Clint Bentley and features a stirring performance by Clifton Collins, Jr. in the title role of Jackson Silva, a champion horse racing jockey grappling with the end of his career run. Collins’ performance earned a U.S. Dramatic Special Jury Award at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, as well as a leading actor nomination for a Film Independent Spirit Award. Jockey is also up for a marquee Spirit honor, the John Cassavettes Award for the best feature made for under $500,000. And among assorted other accolades, Jockey won Best Narrative Feature distinction at AFI Fest.

The ASC nomination also gave some measure of geographical balance to Veloso’s awards mantle. Originally from Brazil, he has been nominated for six ABC Trophies from the Brazilian Society of Cinematographers, winning three times for his lensing of the feature film Mosquito, the documentary On Yoga the Architecture of Peace, and the short film Diana. Veloso has additionally earned two Camerimage nominations for his music video exploits–for his work on the Brazilian alternative single, “Rastro de Po,” by Tagua Tagua, and the fantastical “Miracle” music clip by British artist Labrinth.

Veloso recalled that On Yoga the Architecture of Peace helped him get the Jockey gig. Bentley–who also wrote the screenplay with Greg Kwedar–wanted to shoot Jockey as a kind of blending of documentary style with scripted scenes, explained Veloso whose mix of narrative and documentary experience drew the director to him. Bentley was particularly drawn to On Yoga the Architecture of Peace, reflecting a cinematic language he wanted to tap into in part for Jockey, a character study deploying just three lead actors (Collins, Molly Parker as his trainer/boss, Moises Arias as a rookie jockey) with the remainder of the cast consisting of real people.

Veloso marveled at the work of Collins, Parker and Arias–not just in terms of their performances but how they brought out the best from their non-actor cast members. “There was a lot of improvisation with the director telling Clifton and a non-actor for example what a particular scene was about, what he wanted them to talk about generally, the idea of the scene. They would then improvise and play around, really led by Clifton, trying to extract things from the non-actors. The teamwork was remarkable.”

This mesh of scripted, documentary and improvisational sensibilities helped to make the film a different kind of immersive experience. Documentary parts of the film felt less like a documentary. And scripted scenes felt more real.

While capturing all this, including the inspiring actor performances, was the priority for Veloso, he also had the opportunity to make the most of the story’s racetrack surroundings and natural ambiance. Most scenes in Jockey take place during the magic hour–after the sun has risen or before it has set. Those are the hours in which champions are made as we are invited into pre- and post-race training at Turf Paradise, a Phoenix racetrack. That Southwestern light in the Arizona desert brings an atmospheric mood that dovetails with the changes that the characters are undergoing. Both the beauty and brutal danger of horse racing are depicted, akin to the wide range of emotions experienced by the protagonists, in particular Collins as Silva.

Veloso noted that Bentley afforded him “a lot of freedom” while being clear about the mood and vibe of the film. Exploring the depths of Silva’s character was personal for Bentley who basically grew up on the racetrack alongside his jockey father. We see the jockey lifestyle and commitment, how grueling the profession is, and the ways in which it is compounded for Silva who’s taken a physical beating, his body ravaged over the years. Furthermore, Silva now has to deal with the arrival of a young jockey (portrayed by Arias) who also claims to be his son. 

Veloso opted for the ARRI Alexa Mini coupled with Zeiss Super Speed lenses for Jockey. He wanted a camera that was small, that he could be quick and nimble with so he could be amongst the jockeys, leaving as small a footprint as possible. The Zeiss lenses, he continued, offered “a bit of texture to the image,” and meshed well with the desire to use as much natural light as possible. 

The Alexa Mini also enabled Veloso to get up close and intimate with Collins’ performance, creating visual angles that connected the viewer deeply with the character and his story. This approach even helped with the lensing of the horses. “Shooting animals is always tricky,” said Veloso, who noted that at times he didn’t need to have horses in scenes that would have typically called for them. Instead, being in so tight on Collins’ face sufficed.

Jockey affirmed for Veloso that “you can actually do a really good movie with a small group of people. Sometimes that gives you even more quality somehow. Depending on the type of movie you want to make, it can give you more freedom, more intimacy. Working with non-actors, experienced actors, having small sets, everyone so involved has been a wonderful experience. I would love to make more movies like that. There is such an intimacy.”

Beyond the ASC, ABC and Camerimage honors over the years, Veloso won the Torino Underground Cinefest’s Best Cinematography Award for the Brazilian drama Rodantes. On Yoga the Architecture of Peace additionally earned him the IMAGO International Award for Best Cinematography. And his work on the Portuguese war drama Mosquito also earned the Best Cinematography Award at the Mostra de Valencia-Cinema del Mediterrani film festival.

Paula Huidobro
Also enjoying a gratifying season on the awards show circuit has been Paula Huidobro–for both feature and television work. On the latter score, she recently garnered her first ASC Award nomination–it came in the Half-Hour TV Series category for the “Let’s Get Together” episode of Physical. The series stars Rose Byrne as Sheila Rubin, a housewife in 1980s’ San Diego who’s battling inner demons and a negative inner voice but then takes a 180-degree turn when she discovers aerobics which take her on a path towards empowerment and success.

This isn’t Huidobro’s first marquee recognition in the TV arena. In 2018 she earned an Emmy nomination for her lensing of an episode for the sitcom Barry.

The ASC nod is especially gratifying for Huidobro who was born in Mexico City, attended the London International Film School and later on specialized in cinematography at AFI. She recalled during her film school days in London going to the library to read back issues of the ASC’s American Cinematographer magazine. “I took notes on specific movies, tried to learn as much as possible from the articles.” To now receive an ASC Award nomination seems surreal for her.

Huidobro got her foot in the door for Physical thanks to EP Craig Gillespie, who also directed the first episode. She had shot second unit for director Gillespie’s feature Million Dollar Arm some years back. “I had to re-meet him. It had been awhile (since Million Dollar Arm),” related Huidobro who once again struck up a rapport with Gillespie. The director’s credits also span features (Lars and the Real Girl; I, Tonya) and commercials (for which he’s earned five DGA Award nominations via production house MJZ, winning the Guild honor in 2006). Gillespie and Huidobro teamed to set the look of Physical on the first episode and she wound up lensing the show’s entire season, including the installment–directed by Liza Johnson and Stephanie Laing–that garnered the ASC nomination. Huidobro continues to work with Gillespie; the two have since collaborated on three episodes of the Hulu series Pam & Tommy.

In terms of setting the visual tone for Physical, Huidobro noted that Gillespie afforded her some creative latitude, particularly for what the DP described as those “inside-her-head moments” that shed light on protagonist Rubin. “The camera and lighting were a little more ‘out there.’ It didn’t necessarily have to be realistic. Rather the cinematography had to reflect what was going on for her emotionally.” Huidobro was drawn to the character and how her voiceovers were deployed–”how she would say one thing and inside be thinking completely different.”

Huidobro went with the ARRI Alexa Mini, mostly Steadicam, for Physical, tapping into anamorphic Panavision lenses fine tuned by Panavision guru Dan Sasaki who at press time was set to receive the ASC’s inaugural Curtis Clark Technical Achievement Award, which recognizes an individual who has made significant technological contributions to the art and craft of cinematography.

As for her alluded to feature endeavors, Huidobro served as DP on writer-director Siân Heder’s CODA (Apple) which just earned three Oscar nominations–for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Troy Kotsur) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Heder).

The film stars Emilia Jones as Ruby who is a CODA, the abbreviation for child of deaf adult. She is the only hearing person in her deaf family which finds its fishing business in jeopardy. Ruby becomes torn between pursuing her love of music and her fear of abandoning her parents. The film’s cast also includes deaf actors Kotsur, Daniel Durant and Marlee Matlin as CODA underscores the need for diversity in Hollywood, showing the artistry of these performers.

Huidobro has a track record with Heder that goes back to when they were at the American Film Institute (AFI) together. They went on to team on several short film projects. Huidobro also was a DP on an episode of Little America directed by Heder (who also serves as EP and showrunner on the series). And the DP shot the Heder-helmed feature Tallulah.

Huidobro gravitated to the Sony VENICE camera for CODA, drawn to the large format which was conducive to wide vistas, including capturing the seascape and nature settings of the film. Still, she observed that CODA was a special film in which it “felt like the camera had to take a backseat.” Huidobro explained that for CODA, “You almost wanted it so you wouldn’t feel the camera, you wouldn’t feel the lighting. It had to be more subtle. It was more about capturing the physical space and letting the actors perform within it.”

She added that a prime lesson from CODA was that “you have to be versatile as a cinematographer. The most important thing is to tell the story by being subtle.”

Huidobro made her feature film debut as a cinematographer on Gardens of the Night directed by Damian Harris in 2008, which received a Golden Bear nomination at the Berlin Film Festival. She want on to shoot Paul Bettany’s directorial debut Shelter, which screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Oh Lucy! for director Atsuko Hirayanagi.

On the TV side, Huidobro’s credits include such series as Insecure, Fargo, Weird City, Dave and Grown-ish.

Jon Joffin, ASC
In contrast to Huidobro and Veloso who are first-time ASC Award nominees, Jon Joffin, ASC just received his fifth career nomination–this one in the Episode of a One-Hour Television Series–Non-Commercial category for the “Souls” episode of the superhero series Titans based on DC Comics’ “Teen Titans.”

“Souls” was directed by Boris Mojsovski, ASC, CSC who himself is an accomplished cinematographer and along with fellow DPs Brendan Steacy, CSC and Fraser Brown, CSC set the look of the series. Joffin was brought in to lens season 3 episode “Souls” when a cinematographer was sought to work with director Mojsovski who’s helmed several installments of the show in recent years. Titans producing director Carol Banker reached out to Joffin to see if he might be available.

Thankfully the timing was right for Joffin who always wanted to work on Titans, having long been a fan of the series. “I admired the show and the photography from the first episodes I saw,” shared Joffin, crediting Mojsovski, Steacy and Brown for their efforts. Mojsovski, incidentally, is also nominated in the same ASC Awards category this year as Joffin for “Home,” another episode of Titans (which was directed by Larnell Stovall). And Steacy too is a current ASC Awards nominee–but in the One-Hour, Commercial Television Series category for the “Silence is Purgatory” episode of Clarice.

Joffin quipped that prior to Titans he hadn’t lensed a superhero show before–despite being based in Vancouver, B.C. However, he felt it a bit daunting to walk into a series as beautifully crafted visually as Titans. Director Mojsovski, though, gave Joffin some creative freedom, allowing him to be true to the look of the show while diverging from that a bit for the origin stories that the episode entailed. 

To create a sort of purgatory place to support the story in “Souls,” Mojsovski and Joffin wanted to shoot the episode in a rich, tonal black and white. Joffin explored some black-and-white options, including a monochrome camera, but he and Mojsovski ultimately went with the Alexa Mini shooting in color and then desaturating to final black and white. This option meshed well with the high volume of visual effects, including green screen, needed for the episode. Joffin noted that colorist Skip Kimball did a masterful job of converting to black and white while maintaining the desired rich, tonal look.

The Titans experience reaffirmed for Joffin the importance of working with “like-minded people searching for excellence in the same way that you are and who are willing to collaborate and create something really special.” He added that the series also confirmed, “If you shoot with your heart, give it your all,” then that final product can turn out great.

High-caliber results have marked Joffin’s career. He is a two-time ASC Award winner–last year for an episode of Motherland: Fort Salem, and in 2019 for an installment of Beyond.  Joffin’s first career ASC nomination came for an episode of Andromeda Strain in 2009. (This episode also garnered Joffin a Best Cinematography Emmy nod.) His second ASC nomination came in 2011 for an episode of Alice.

At press time, Joffin was at work on a final season gig for the series Star Trek: Picard.

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