One cinematographer recently wrapped his return to the feature film arena as he enjoyed another long-form collaboration with director David Fincher, for whom he has also shot commercials over the years.
Another DP earned an AICP Show honor this year for Best Cinematography and saw his work account for the largest segment of a feature-length documentary which debuted at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival. The project teamed him with an Oscar-winning filmmaker .
And a third DP also garnered a Best Cinematography honor at the AICP Show, and at press time was lensing the feature filmmaking debut of a noted commercial director.
Here’s our close-up look at accomplished cinematographers Jeff Cronenweth, ASC, Darren Lew, and Simon Duggan, ACS (Australian Cinematographers Society).
Jeff Cronenweth, ASC
Jeff Cronenweth, ASC, is a man for all disciplines and varied roles. He spends time in the director’s chair as part of the helming duo The Cronenweths with brother Tim via Los Angeles commercial production house Untitled. Jeff Cronenweth also remains most active as a DP, shooting commercials for select directors, even recently taking on lensing of a special live concert project in London featuring Rage Against The Machine, and getting back into feature film cinematography by renewing his collaborative relationship with director David Fincher.
The latter saw Cronenweth recently complete shooting of The Social Network, which centers on the story of Harvard undergrad and computer programming wiz Mark Zuckerberg whose seminal work translates into the global social network Facebook, sparking a communications revolution. He becomes a billionaire but at great personal cost which also entails complex legal problems and litigation.
Cronenweth is no stranger to Fincher, having lensed commercials for him and some 12 years ago shooting his feature Fight Club. Cronenweth has shot a smattering of feature films off and on since (including K-19: The Widowmaker for director Kathryn Bigelow, and One Hour Photo for director Mark Romanek). The cinematographer made a conscious decision to be extremely selective about feature cinematography gigs in that they are generally time consuming and his personal priority was to spend more time with his family. However when Fincher called him regarding The Social Network, Cronenweth was all ears.
“For one, it was three to four weeks on location, with the rest of the shooting in Los Angeles, meaning I could be close to home,” related Cronenweth. “But more importantly, I was hooked when I read the script–it’s a cerebral movie that’s all dialogue. There was no dark side other than how you interpret the actions of Mark Zuckerberg and those around him. There are no chase scenes or complex visuals, It’s essentially a courtroom drama without a courtroom. Instead it’s set in two deposition rooms and in surroundings where certain events took place. The visual approach was more reality driven, contemporary–these were events of the past six or seven years. It was an exercise in constraint–visually adding to the performances and the words being said. It was great to see how one of our industry’s brightest and most talented directors tackled this.”
At the same time, Cronenweth observed, “If Fincher calls you, do you even need to read the script to decide if you want to work with him? Of course not–the chance to work with David is too good to pass up. You know the project will be ambitious and challenging.”
Cronenweth shot The Social Network on a state-of-the-art RED One camera, which filmmaker Steven Soderbergh provided for Fincher. Cronenweth had used RED in the past but found this new iteration with the Mysterium X chip to be advantageous. “I believe this was the first major movie to use this new chip, which offered increased dynamic range in latitude and color, the ability to hold highlights better than its predecessor, the capability to deal with warm light. So many of our locations dictated what our lights sources would be–the aesthetics that the scenes would demand at places like Harvard and in Cambridge. Had RED not progressed with its new chip, then the demands of this movie would have been an issue.”
Fincher has been proactive in digital cinematography on his features in recent years, going with the Viper on Zodiac (with Harris Savides serving as the cinematographer) and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (DP Claudio Miranda), for example. Cronenweth explained that this digital bent does not stem from an aversion to film but rather Fincher’s desire to own and control as much of the imagery as he possibly can, being less vulnerable to outside forces like film labs where issues like scratches, handling of the work and timing can surface.
Cronenweth himself is open-minded about new tools, going with what’s best for the particular project. He earlier for example had a positive experience deploying the Sony F35 on a Fincher-directed iPhone spot produced last year by Anonymous Content for TBWAChiatDay and Media Arts Lab, L.A.
Still, Cronenweth is an unabashed lover of film. “There’s no mystery, no surprises per se when shooting in HD which to some is the advantage of HD. But I love the texture of film, the grain, not always knowing what you have.”
On one hand, quipped Cronenweth, “I love not having to call the film lab at 5 a.m. wondering if I will have a job that day. But not knowing exactly what you captured, sometimes having a little fear is not necessarily a bad thing–I’m not sure all the young DPs appreciate that. If you’re brave enough to embrace the mystery and the surprises you can get on film, that pushes you. Without that, there are people who might not be pushing and taking the risks they should be taking.”
Asked for how he and Fincher have evolved over their years of collaboration–spanning spots, two features divided by a dozen years (The Social Network and Fight Club) and earlier Fincher movies for which he served as second unit DP (The Game, Seven)–Cronenweth observed. “We have grown. We are both better, more concise as filmmakers. We know how to arrive at desired points sooner, easier. We communicate better with each other. I understand his language. There’s more short hand between us.”
Having worked with the likes of Fincher, Bigelow and Romanek, Cronenweth noted that these experiences have helped him as both a director and cinematographer. A prime lesson learned from these filmmakers, said Cronenweth, is “all of them have strong creative convictions. They believe in themselves. They believe in ideas and fight hard for them.”
Meanwhile Cronenweth–who’s repped as a DP by Dattner Dispoto and Associates–continues to shoot a variety of projects for different directors, spanning spots, music videos and the alluded to live concert for Rage Against The Machine. The free concert, with Cronenweth as cinematographer, deployed some 40-plus cameras and was directed by Daniel Catullo of DC3 Group. Cronenweth also recently lensed the directorial debut of Justin Timberlake (whom the DP got to know during the filming of The Social Network)–a commercial for the pop star/actor’s branded liquor 901 Silver produced by superstudio for St. Louis agency Core. Other DP credits for Cronenweth as of late include a Delta faucets job directed by David LaChapelle of HSI; Mercedes-Benz helmed by Simon McQuoid of Imperial Woodpecker; and a music video, “Ain’t No Doubt About It,” starring Timberlake, The Game and Pharrell, and directed by HSI’s Diane Martel.
As for his directorial career under the banner The Cronenweths, Jeff and Tim’s most recent exploits include Nike for Wieden+Kennedy, Portland, Ore., Direct Energy for Texas agency RAPP, Kellogg’s for Leo Burnett, Toronto, and Kraft out of mcgarrybowen, Chicago. The spots are all cut from atypical creative cloth such as the two-and-a-half minute theatrical spot for Kraft depicting football teamwork in a single play, underscoring the power of working together to address hunger–Kraft feeds millions of homeless people each year.
Jeff Crownenweth finds directing to be gratifying–not just for its artistry but also for being able to do it in tandem with his brother. “We have had similar journeys–a father [the late legendary cinematographer Jordan Cronenweth, ASC] who introduced us to the business, and our coming together and maturing together as brothers and filmmakers. We’ve grown past egos. If we have battles, they are over aesthetics and to get a better end result.”
What about the prospect of directing a feature together? “We’d like to at some point,” said Jeff Cronenweth. “If it ever comes to pass, I don’t know if I could let go of the shooting part.”
Darren Lew It’s been a stellar year thus far for Darren Lew with work ranging from spots to shorts to feature documentary fare, and recognition coming for his contributions to all these disciplines. His lensing of Levi’s “America” :60 directed by Cary Fukunaga of Anonymous Content for W+K, Portland, earned AICP Show honors in the Cinematography and Visual Style categories, as well as a Bronze Lion for Cinematography in the inaugural Film Craft competition at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.
Lew additionally shot a short film, Bastard, directed by Kirsten Dunst, which was a selection at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival and the Cannes Film Fest International Critics Week.
Tribeca also came calling for the feature documentary Freakonomics, which was the Fest’s closing night gala film. The documentary featured segments from different documentarians–the longest portion being that directed by Oscar-winner Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side), who brought Lew aboard as cinematographer.
Freakonomics is based on the book “Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Exposes The Hidden Side of Everything.” Noted filmmakers each took on documentary adaptations of different chapters in the book, including Gibney whose portion focused on corruption in Sumo wrestling, entailing shooting on location in Japan and the U.S. Sumo is used as a jumping off point from which to explore cheating in society in general and specifically in the financial markets.
“I’m proud of Freakonomics and getting the chance to work with a great intellect in Alex,” related Lew, who put together a visual presentation to convey his vision and sensibilities for shooting in Japan. This helped Lew win Gibney’s trust and the assignment to shoot alone in Tokyo for six nights. Gibney provided Lew with an audio rough cut that had segments of interviews with former Japanese police officials and journalists talking about corruption in Sumo wrestling.
“Alex in essence wanted me to provide a visual soundtrack to those words,” said Lew. “I would go through the rough cut during the day, and write down key words and phrases from what I transcribed. I would carry around a piece of paper with these words on it as I hit the streets of Tokyo at night. I looked for twice removed visual metaphors to go with the words. I didn’t want to ram images down people’s throats. I wanted viewers instead to work, to have to think twice to see the connections. When dealing with how someone was strangled and suffocated, I went with an image of the famous Japanese puffer fish, and another fish gasping for air in a water tank located in a Tokyo fish market. I didn’t want the images to be literal. I wanted them to reflect things subtly That’s more in line with Alex, with what clicks for him. He gave me the freedom to go out and capture that.”
Lew deployed small stealthy cameras for this quest–primarily the Sony EX3, along with the Canon 7D Mark II for additional shots. He then went to New York for the same subtle images yet found this much more challenging. “I live in New York and because of that it’s hard to see regular surroundings in a fresh way–the way I did in Tokyo,” explained Lew. “I struggled, shooting for days and days, late nights, early mornings. In the end, I squeezed out what I needed in New York.”
Freakonomics was Lew’s first collaboration with Gibney, as was Levi’s “America” the initial teaming of the DP with Fukunaga. The two had met several years ago at the Sundance Screenwriters Lab where Fukunaga had seen Bugcrush–directed by Carter Smith and shot by Lew–which won the Grand Jury Prize for Short Filmmaking at the ’06 Sundance Film Festival. “We hadn’t stayed in touch and then out of the blue Cary contacted me about Levi’s,” recalled Lew. “Cary had just won Best Director [Dramatic] at Sundance [’09] for Sin Nombre. He had never directed a spot before but he had a definite vision for what he wanted. He is a daring guy.”
The job was very physical, entailing Lew having for example to run through knee deep water in Lake Louisiana, shooting 35mm with lighting from flares and fireworks. Lew shot on an ARRI 235 with Cooke lenses. “I tried to make it look like street photography. We never used a tripod. I carried the 235 around like a shoulder camera. We shot on the run, on the spur of the moment,” related Lew. The high-profile spot was W+K’s first for the client, serving as a “Go Forth” anthem to pioneering spirit, which laid the thematic foundation built upon for this year’s recently introduced Levi’s campaign (with a centerpiece spot shot by Savides for director John Hillcoat of Skunk).
Lew opted for 35mm on “America” because he felt film lent itself best to the job. “I didn’t think we could work quickly, freely and in low light conditions with RED for that particular project. But I have shot RED a lot on other assignments,” said Lew. “It’s fantastic that we have so many choices and tools. However, what really gets me is when producers have already prescribed a camera to use and the cameraman hasn’t even been brought on the job yet or consulted. What they prescribe is something they’ve read about in American Cinematographer or in the press. RED is one of the greatest marketed products ever but you have to assess if it’s right for your particular project. I’m open to using any camera. I love shooting digital. I love shooting film. You just have to find the right match to do justice to each job. You have to show the same care in your choice as when choosing a director and locations. I’ve shot with the F35, the EX3, the ARRI D21 which is a great camera and I’m probably going to end up being the first person in New York to shoot a major project with the new ARRI Alexa. I’m working again on the F35 this week.”
Lew’s DP filmography also encompasses: commercials for such clients as Lacoste, Target, Nike, Nautica, Clinique, Versace, VW, adidas, Panasonic, Dr Pepper, GMC, Gillette, HBO, Calvin Klein, Reebok, Toohey’s, The Gap and New Balance; short films including Who’s The Top? directed by Jennie Livingston, Welcome helmed by Dunst (’08 Sundance Film Fest), Streak directed by Demi Moore, and Dark Yellow helmed by Glen Luchford; and the Livingston-directed documentary Through The Ice (’06 Sundance Fest).
“What I like is the diversity of the work,” observed Lew. “For instance, the Levi’s spot was different from what people perceive me as doing. One thing I told my agent [William Morris Endeavor Entertainment Agency] is that I don’t want to be pigeonholed. I feel very lucky to get the opportunity to do a mix of beauty work, car work, documentaries, comedy, lifestyle. I’m grateful every day that projects that come to me are from a wide array.”
Simon Duggan, ACS Another Best Cinematography honoree at this year’s AICP Show was Simon Duggan, ACS, for Jameson Irish Whiskey’s “Lost Barrel” directed by Noam Murro of Biscuit Filmworks for TBWAChiatDay, New York. Duggan too is an artisan whose endeavors span short and long-form fare, with his feature endeavors involving directors with commercialmaking backgrounds.
“Lost Barrel” tells the tall tale of John Jameson who was caught in the great storm of 1781, which claimed the lives of four of his shipmates. It appeared Jameson too was a goner when he dove into the ocean to recover a barrel of whiskey only to be caught in the tentacles of a giant octopus. Weeks later, a funeral was held on the Dublin shoreline–and emerging out of the deep blue was Jameson himself, carrying his beloved, recovered barrel.
Duggan related, “Director Noam Murro realized it was not possible to shoot the Jameson’s ‘Lost Barrel’ spot at sea on a real ship within time and budget considerations so the shell of a full scale ship from the main sail to the stern was constructed and mounted on a hydraulic gimbal system and surrounded by bluescreen on an exterior stage. Special effects included gale force wind, rain and wave tanks to crash water over the deck and hull. We had a complement of Arriflex sync sound and high speed cameras with rain protection, rain deflectors and underwater housings. It was a mix of hand-held cameras on the rocking deck and a camera mounted to a 50-foot Technocrane with remote head, tracking back and forth along and over the length of the ship. It was quite a massive set-up but once in place it was relatively easy to shoot as everything was controllable and repeatable. The closer underwater performances with our actor were achieved in a local swimming pool lined with black matting, and wider angles were shot in the ocean harbor with a stunt double. As with all projects like this, it takes careful planning with all involved, especially our post house Animal Logic LA who digitally placed the ship back into the real ocean background and seamlessly melded live ‘in camera’ special effects with their digital visual effects.”
Asked how his spot lensing informs his feature film work, Duggan–who is currently shooting The Killer Elite directed by Gary McKendry and starring Robert DeNiro–observed, “I have a history of all my films being connected to directors with a strong commercial background, mostly from recommendations within a relatively small circle of directors. It was Alex Proyas who invited me to shoot his film I Robot that really advanced my career into mainstream features. I do love the visual collaboration with commercial directors; my present film The Killer Elite is commercial director Gary McKendry’s first feature and he has easily segued into the additional complexity and demands of long-form work with a formidable cast of actors.” (Aero Film reps McKendry for spots.)
Duggan’s industry roots are in commercials. He broke into the business in the camera department at a spot studio in Australia. He recalled, “Those were the days when most commercial production companies were fully self contained studios employing full time shooting crew including editorial. It was a great experience and a great way to work up through the camera ranks while learning something of everyone’s craft within the studio. I often attended postproduction for commercial work overseeing color grading and visual effects, giving me a good understanding of the post world.
“Some of my best experiences with commercials,” continued Duggan, “have been the productions travelling the world and seeing places not many get the opportunity [to see]. Some memorable spots are for multi national campaigns such as the Ford global Millennium campaign, Visa Card, Qantas Airlines, Australian Tourism. And lately some great spots with Noam Murro for Xbox Halo, Boag’s Beer, Stella Beers and Jameson’s.”
While most of Duggan’s work has been shot on film, several recent spots have been shot digitally as was the feature Knowing which he lensed for director Proyas on the RED One. “It was the first time I had shot with a digital or video camera and I was very happy with the results,” said Duggan. “Digital is such an immediate system and gives everyone total confidence as they shoot.”
At the same time, Duggan–whose feature/spot agent is The Caleel Agency–noted, “I’m shooting my present film on the latest Kodak neg stocks and it’s not until the final transfer that you are reminded that film still surpasses present digital systems when it comes to dynamic range and flexibility when grading.”
