Owen Roizman, Kees Van Oostrum and Lowell Peterson continue as ASC VPs
The Board of Governors of the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) has re-elected its slate of officers for another term. Continuing to serve in their roles will be Richard Crudo as president; Owen Roizman, Kees Van Oostrum and Lowell Peterson as vice presidents; Matthew Leonetti as treasurer; Fred Goodich as secretary; and Isidore Mankofsky as sergeant-at-arms.
Crudo will serve his sixth term as president. In addition to the last two years, he fulfilled the role from 2003 through 2006.
The members of the Board, elected in May by the organization’s active membership, include: John Bailey, Bill Bennett, George Spiro Dibie, Richard Edlund, Fred Elms, Daryn Okada, Lowell Peterson, Robert Primes, Rodney Taylor and Haskell Wexler.
“I am humbled to once again have the opportunity to serve this great organization,” said Crudo. “As we start to close in on our 100th anniversary, we will continue to honor the intents of our founders by protecting and promoting the interests of the cinematographer. Our Active and Associate members are the best people in the world at what they do; by their efforts the ASC will remain the industry’s standard bearers for many decades to come.”
In its entire history, the ASC has never been as busy as it is right now. Its quarterly Master Class series has set the highest standard for education and is regularly sold out in advance. Other efforts include its Student Heritage Awards, Breakfast Club seminars, panel discussions by their Education and Outreach committee, the Friends of the ASC membership, and the org’s ongoing committee collaborations with other industry participants vital to the image-making process. Perhaps most notable is the ASC Technology Committee, which has proven unique in its ability to shape the standards and practices of digital cinematography.
Crudo is also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, serving on the Executive Committee of the Cinematographers Branch as well as the Sci-Tech Committee. In addition, he has chaired and co-chaired the ASC Awards for several years throughout the past decade.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Crudo began his film career as an assistant cameraman. As a director of photography, he has shot a wide range of feature, television and commercial productions. Among his feature credits are Federal Hill, American Buffalo, American Pie, Music From Another Room, Outside Providence, Down To Earth, Out Cold, Grind, Brooklyn Rules and the upcoming Addicted. He has also directed several independent features.
ASC was founded in 1919. There are 340-plus active members today who have national roots in some 20 countries. There are also 150 associate members from ancillary segments of the industry.
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More