Director Joe Murray has come aboard the roster of Rhythm + Hues Commercial Studios. He was most recently handled by Boxer Films for commercials.
In that he is adept at live action and effects–and in meshing the two disciplines without losing the human element in his storytelling–Murray dovetails nicely with R+H, a digital studio encompassing live-action and animation directors, visual effects, design and postproduction services.
On the ad front, Murray has directed beauty, sports, and music talent including Jane Seymour, Cindy Crawford, Greg Norman, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Richard Petty, Celine Dion, Aretha Franklin, and Randy Travis, while his client list spans Acura, Budweiser, Calloway Golf, Ford, Gatorade, General Motors, General Mills, MacGregor Sports, Lexus, Polaris, and Procter & Gamble. He has also diversified into long-form with projects for Warner Bros., Lucasfilm and HBO over the years.
Murray said he was attracted to R+H’s creative talent, technical resources and expertise, and track record for problem solving and collaboration. But he cited as a prime draw R+H’s penchant for human-based storytelling.
“My point of view, no matter the project, has always been to emphasize the humanity and emotion and story elements in front of the lens,” related Murray. “In the past few years, we’ve experienced a highly accelerated evolvement in all of the technology we utilize to tell our stories from the point where the back of that lens ends; from the camera body all the way through the postproduction and delivery process. When Paul [Babb, R+H’s exec producer] called and offered me the opportunity to work with him and the many talented people at Rhythm and Hues I couldn’t resist as they have been at the forefront of this revolution without losing sight of the human story and the emotions and responsive chord we speak to in creating our images.”
Recent commercial projects at R+H include Activision, Budweiser, Chevrolet, Coca-Cola, Crayola, Electronic Arts, Hartford, Kellogg’s, Mattel, Microsoft X-Box, Miller Beer, Nasonex, Quaker State, Tide, and Ubisoft. Film Division credits include an Oscar® for Achievement in Visual Effects for Golden Compass in 2008. Recently produced theatrical movie projects include Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, and The Wolfman. Films currently in production include The A Team, The Cabin In The Woods, Little Fockers, Marmaduke, and Yogi Bear.
Edward Lachman Wins American Society of Cinematographers Award For “Maria”
The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) held its 39th annual ASC Awards on Sunday night (2/23) at the Beverly Hilton with Edward Lachman, ASC earning the marquee theatrical feature film honor for Maria. In his acceptance remarks, Lachman thanked, among others, director Pablo Larrain and actor Angelina Jolie who portrayed Maria Callas. Lachman noted that this was his second film with Larrain whom he described as “a cinematographer himself” in terms of how he thinks about images and camera movement. Lachman also hailed Jolie’s performance for capturing the spirit and heart of Callas. Lachman said he found Callas’ story inspiring, sharing that she suffered from an autoimmune disease the last 20 years of her life, but continually fought for perfection to become one of the greatest artists and opera singers of all time. He said her life is motivation for artists to rise above their circumstances to create and express themselves through their art. This marks Lachman’s first ASC Award win in a theatrical or television category. He was previously nominated for Far From Heaven (2003), Mildred Pierce (2011), Carol (2016) and El Conde (2024, Lachman's first film with director Larrain). Lachman was honored with the ASC’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017. The 39th ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards also honored Jomo Fray for Nickel Boys in the Spotlight Award category, which recognizes stellar cinematography in independent, foreign or art-house type/festival films. Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw topped the documentary category for Gaucho Gaucho. ASC Award winners in television were Robert Elswit, ASC for Ripley, Sam McCurdy, ASC, BSC for Shōgun, and Richard... Read More