Greig Fraser, ASC, ACS, the cinematographer of films including Lion, Zero Dark Thirty, Foxcatcher, Snow White and the Huntsman, and Mary Magdalene (currently in postproduction), and numerous commercials, relied on the Creamsource Sky, a water resistant five color 1200W LED light system from Outsight, for Lucasfilm’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
“Creamsource Sky is just so flexible and renders colors amazingly,” said Fraser, who recently won the ASC Award and earned an Oscar nomination for his lensing of Lion. “I am obsessed with the technical, and Creamsource Sky produces really great skintones. That can be a benefit and a curse when having to mix Sky with lights from other manufacturers, so I use a single brand of lighting for each source — one for skylight, one for a window, and another for facial lighting.”
For Rogue One, Fraser relied on Sky’s ability to be used in all weather conditions, finding it especially useful for the raining stage shots depicting Eadu, a storm-stricken world and Imperial terraforming operation in the Outer Rim Territories. “We had Sky rigged in the ceiling for weeks while it was ‘raining’. It’s just amazing that we can do that,” said Fraser. In addition, Creamsource Sky delivers high power output with full creative control and repeatable, calibrated color that helps users craft emotion.
Fraser first discovered Outsight LED lighting many years ago while in Sydney doing a US television commercial for Old Navy, during the very early days of LED lighting. “My gaffer brought in an original 2×1 Creamsource, and we were amazed by how much power they had,” said Fraser. “We were so impressed that we both bought one head each. Fast forward to more jobs and I saw the technology evolve to portable battery power, making lights faster and more powerful, and lights I could gel.
“I now have four 2×1 and two 1×1 Creamsource lights in my kit that have just been upgraded to the fourth generation with new LED boards for better color, more output and higher CRI,” added Fraser. “Being able to buy these lights as a younger DP meant that I could own and have control of my lighting, without relying on whatever a rental house could provide.”
In addition to his film work, Fraser just completed a commercial for Budweiser and is scheduled to shoot a Ford spot this month, using his own Outsight kit for both.
What really impresses Fraser is the amount of freedom and flexibility he gets with Outsight LEDs. “They allow you to decide on the cover seconds before shooting, which is fantastic if you can’t prelight,” said Fraser. “You save time and money, going quickly from creative to a stage full of hung lights, knowing how much colour and correction you need. With tungsten, if you dim it, you need to know exactly what stops for the colour you want to capture. On big films, you can do testing and prelight a week in advance. With Outsight LEDs, I can prelight in an hour with flexibility and control of all parameters — plus do instant trial and error for warmth. You just can’t do that with tungsten — it takes days and weeks. Now it’s just flicking a switch — it’s game changing.”
“As a pioneer in film and television lighting, we’ve designed our LED lights to be both beautiful and tough,” said Tama Berkeljon, managing director, Outsight. “DPs around the world are discovering that our Creamsource lights are built for the creativity that is needed on set or on location, with repeatable results.”
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More