CONSIDER
OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES
OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY FOR A LIMITED OR ANTHOLOGY SERIES OR MOVIE
Matthew Lewis
“AN ALL-TIME TECHNICAL MASTERPIECE .”
“ THE LONG TAKES ARE CLEVERLY AND SEAMLESSLY EXECUTED .”
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
HEARTS OF GLASS
This May issue got me thinking of my personal history with lenses. I started my career in 1973 at The Disney Studios, where all our cameras were BNCR rackovers, not reflex. I remember our system that used three-strip Technicolor, converted to twostrip, with one strip color and the other black and white. It had identical Cooke prime lenses mounted side-by-side for each strip, and I loaded the black-and-white side! When I moved to Universal, I began using Panavision lenses. In those days, you had to be certified by [former head of Panavision’s camera department] Bob Dunn before you could use their lenses. They taught you how to change the flanges and how to mount them on different cameras. At first, we used all standard-speed primes, and then the faster [1.4] Super Speeds, and later the G Series anamorphics. Five years ago, I used the Primo 70mm lenses, with 8K digital cameras, for Coming to America 2 because we wanted to mimic the original film that was shot on Panavision anamorphics in the late 1980s – on film. One of my all-time favorite lenses was a macro anamorphic prime with close-focus capabilities that was crazy close. I remember working with Bruce Surtees on a Clint Eastwood film, and when I told him the T-stop of the lens he wanted for a shot was “one,” Bruce yelled back: “One what?! What’s after that?” And I said, “Nothing. Just one!” Bruce said: ‘Well, put it there at one!’”
What’s interesting is how many of today’s cinematographers use vintage lenses to cut back the sharpness of the digital sensor and make it more filmlike. The glass in today’s lenses – Zeiss, Hawk, Angénieux, Cooke, you name it – is computer-designed and incredible. We even have “smart lenses” that provide huge amounts of metadata. But did you know
that Panavision once had something called an “MFT System”? If you were certified, you could go into a room with Ralph Sasaki, put your lens up on the machine, and learn all its characteristics. The company also made a “variable diopter” that I used for a scene on a plane. We started very tight on a person typing on a computer screen, and as the crane moved, I brought the focus all the way back. And it was incredibly precise. There were fewer than five variable diopters made, and I had one.
Back then, the biggest part of a camera technician’s prep was testing every lens we wanted to use on a show. And sometimes it was a few days before you’d get the [film] test back from the lab to tell the director of photography the lens was fine to use. We got paid the camera technician’s rate when using Panavision cameras and lenses just for that reason. Today, you can have the characteristic of a lens dialed in any way you want because we’re shooting digital. But the one thing you can’t do is manipulate focus in a way that tells a story – the way our amazing Local 600 camera technicians have learned through years of experience. And even if AI one day does focus corrections, it will look and feel artificial without the human touch. Even with all the great tools we have now [like Preston’s remote focus systems, C-Motion, ARRI system, and others – Panavision’s RDC, used with their Smart Lens system was my favorite years ago], the demands on camera technicians have never been greater. Shallow-depth-offield glass, coupled with super-high ISO’s, and rigs that can move a camera through space in ways we never imagined, all make a camera technician’s craft more challenging than ever.
But if we’ve learned anything over the last 50 years of lens development, it’s that union film technicians can, and will, adapt to any trend – and technology. You can bet on it.
Baird Steptoe Sr.
Photo by Scott Everett White
National President International Cinematographers Guild IATSE Local 600
V-RAPTOR XL [X] and V-RAPTOR [X] offer 17+ stops of dynamic range, providing unmatched low-light performance and unlocking more options to capture subtle detail and nuance while maintaining color fidelity and reproduction.
Publisher
Teresa Muñoz
Executive Editor
David Geffner
Art Director
Wes Driver
NATIONAL DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
Jill Wilk
COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER
Tyler Bourdeau
COPY EDITORS
Peter Bonilla
Maureen Kingsley
CONTRIBUTORS
Ted Elrick
Margot Lester
Kevin Martin
Warrick Page
COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE
John Lindley, ASC, Co-Chair Chris Silano, Co-Chair
CIRCULATION OFFICE
7755 Sunset Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90046
Tel: (323) 876-0160
Fax: (323) 878-1180
Email: circulation@icgmagazine.com
ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES
WEST COAST & CANADA
Rombeau, Inc.
Sharon Rombeau
Tel: (818) 762 – 6020
Fax: (818) 760 – 0860
Email: sharonrombeau@gmail.com
EAST COAST, EUROPE, & ASIA
Alan Braden, Inc.
Alan Braden
Tel: (818) 850-9398
Email: alanbradenmedia@gmail.com
Instagram/Facebook: @theicgmag
1ST
2ND
NATIONAL
ADVERTISING POLICY: Readers should not assume that any products or services advertised in International Cinematographers Guild Magazine are endorsed by the International Cinematographers Guild. Although the Editorial staff adheres to standard industry practices in requiring advertisers to be “truthful and forthright,” there has been no extensive screening process by either International Cinematographers Guild Magazine or the International Cinematographers Guild.
EDITORIAL POLICY: The International Cinematographers Guild neither implicitly nor explicitly endorses opinions or political statements expressed in International Cinematographers Guild Magazine. ICG Magazine considers unsolicited material via email only, provided all submissions are within current Contributor Guideline standards. All published material is subject to editing for length, style and content, with inclusion at the discretion of the Executive Editor and Art Director. Local 600, International Cinematographers Guild, retains all ancillary and expressed rights of content and photos published in ICG Magazine and icgmagazine.com, subject to any negotiated prior arrangement. ICG Magazine regrets that it cannot publish letters to the editor.
ICG (ISSN 1527-6007) Ten issues published annually by The International Cinematographers Guild 7755 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, CA, 90046, U.S.A. Periodical postage paid at Los Angeles, California.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to ICG 7755 Sunset Boulevard Hollywood, California 90046
Copyright 2024, by Local 600, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States and Canada. Entered as Periodical matter, September 30, 1930, at the Post Office at Los Angeles, California, under the act of March 3, 1879. Subscriptions: $88.00 of each International Cinematographers Guild member’s annual dues is allocated for an annual subscription to International Cinematographers Guild Magazine. Non-members may purchase an annual subscription for $48.00 (U.S.), $82.00 (Foreign and Canada) surface mail and $117.00 air mail per year. Single Copy: $4.95
The International Cinematographers Guild Magazine has been published monthly since 1929. International Cinematographers Guild Magazine is a registered trademark. www.icgmagazine.com www.icg600.com
WIDE ANGLE
Asupremely satisfying part of this job is watching the arc of a filmmaker’s career, and this May issue, themed around those most essential of cinematic tools, Light & Glass (Gear Guide, page 16), offers two prime examples. Beginning with our story on Apple TV+’s Dope Thief (page 40), I vividly remember visiting the downtown L.A. set of an Amazon kids’ series in 2015 and being impressed by how much its ICG camera team loved working for their young Director of Photography, Eduardo Enrique Mayén. The El Salvador native, who came to the U.S. to work as the camera operator for Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki, ASC, had, even before landing a series, already announced his talent by twice winning ICG’s Emerging Cinematographer Awards.
I recall my then-10-year-old son (at his first-ever set visit) being entranced by the calm, efficient (and happy) union set. In my write-up – The New Normal: Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street – I noted how he couldn’t believe actors, just a few years older than himself, would film take after take, angle after angle for hours on end. “Why do they have to do it so many times?” he asked.
“This isn’t like most kids’ shows,” I answered, watching Mayén, who was studying LUT’s for a scene via frame grabs on his iPhone (which had been sent via AirDrop 30 minutes after capture by one of two DIT’s). “Many crank the lights up and do an entire episode in one day with three or four cameras. Gortimer shoots like a movie, using one camera and carefully setting the lighting for each shot.”
Ten years later, I’m thrilled to feature Mayén’s work as co-director of photography (with 18year ICG member Yaron Orbach) on a dramatic series, whose pilot was shot by Oscar-winner Erik Messerschmidt, ASC and directed by twotime Emmy winner Sir Ridley Scott. Shot entirely in Philadelphia, Dope Thief is notable for many reasons, including Messerschmidt’s use of modified Panaspeed large-format spherical glass that he and Dan Sasaki spent weeks developing for the Michael Mann-directed feature Ferrari, as well as Mayén and Orbach mixing their East and West Coast camera teams (along with local Philadelphia hires). The right- and left-coast crew blend meant New York-
based A-Camera 1st AC Waris Supanpong had to manage two separate checkouts (for both the pilot and the series), with half the equipment coming from Panavision Woodland Hills and the rest from Panavision New York.
The (still) self-effacing Mayén said being on set for the pilot with Orbach was crucial to his later work on the series. “After I felt like we ‘had’ the scene,” he recounted, “I would suggest that we do one more take for a ‘Ridley Shot,’ where the camera feels like it’s been tucked in a corner, capturing something special and magical in a reflection or a silhouette through a curtain. [Operators] Phil Martinez and Eduardo Fierro, SVC, were so good at capturing these beautiful moments that didn’t feel too composed. Yaron is such a talented filmmaker –alternating episodes with him was like playing music with another good musician – it was energizing to build on each other’s work.”
Also energizing is our May Web Exclusive on the new Apple+ TV series The Studio, created, written, and directed by the 5-time-Emmy-nominated team of Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen. The Studio is a tour-de-force of moving camera, with every episode containing massive, complex oners, skillfully executed by A-Camera Operator Mark Goellnicht and A-Camera 1st AC Lucas Deans.
The show’s Oregon-based Director of Photography, Adam Newport-Berra, first came on my radar six years ago at Sundance, where he was premiering The Last Black Man in San Francisco [ICG Magazine April 2019]. Newport-Berra said he had conceived that film as a series of “photographic tableaux” of iconic San Francisco neighborhoods, all of which were being changed by gentrification.
In our Park City conversation, Newport-Berra rattled off a list of challenges that included just two weeks of prep, a leading man who had never acted, and a director who loved full-frontal lighting – red flags that would scare off the most hardened indie filmmakers. But Newport-Berra embraced –and enhanced – each hurdle to create an awardwinning feature (that A24 picked up at Sundance and released theatrically). That type of creative malleability was no one-off – Newport-Berra went on to put his chameleon-like skills in service of a host of diverse projects, including The Bear (Season 1, Pilot), HBO’s Euphoria, music videos for Kendrick Lamar and Miley Cyrus, and now Rogen and Goldberg’s The Studio, a demanding half-hour comedy series if ever there was one.
David Geffner Executive Editor
Email: david@icgmagazine.com
Production Triage, Stop Motion
“I joined the union in 2018 after transitioning from 13 years working as a photojournalist in conflict zones. So, I approached The Pitt as though I was a photojournalist shooting a day in the life of an ER. For a show that was almost entirely shot on the same sound stage for seven months, I knew that the nuanced dramatic moments and the compounding weight bearing down on all of the characters would make the most powerful images. The support and acceptance of an incredible cast and crew made that possible.”
“This
Cover Photo by John P Johnson
Photo by Sara Terry
MARGOT LESTER Hard-Boiled
WARRICK PAGE
COMPILED BY MARGOT LESTER
BATCH ROTOSCOPING SOLUTION
PRICING VARIES; CONTACT BATCH FOR A QUOTE BATCH.FILM
BATCH uses patented machine learning to quickly preprocess high-quality mattes for every person in a film, dramatically reducing the time and cost of rotoscoping. Mattes are delivered instantly ahead of color or VFX sessions to support artistry in color grading and visual effects. Developed by Local 600 Director of Photography Zak Mulligan [ICG Magazine June/July 2022] and Colorist Seth Ricart, the platform-agnostic solution easily integrates into existing workflows. “Isolating people is one amazing element,” shares ICG Director of Photography Tim Sessler, who recently used the new tech. “But BATCH can actually create depth maps so you can easily select only a certain portion of the background, create light rays, or use it in conjunction with the matte that isolates your character(s). Within all the doom AI news that’s out there, this is finally something that empowers creativity and enhances our work.” In fact, Batch’s automated pipeline allows for maximum flexibility - clients simply upload their projects and then download mattes and depth maps.
SLYYD LIGHTING CONTROL IOS APP
Longtime ICG lighting vendor Creamsource has developed a free iOS lighting control app that manages and controls DMX-based lighting systems. It enables color matching, intelligent color communication (RGB, xy, CCT), and drag-and-drop patching. The intuitive interface and the streamlined features ease frustration – “because we all know that you really don’t need 99 percent of every DMX mode ever created,” notes the company’s press release. Advanced FX Modes and Cues will be released in future updates. “Lighting control should be an extension of your instincts, not an obstacle course,” describes Creamsource CEO Tama Berkeljon. “Slyyd is built for speed, precision, and real-world filmmaking – because when you’re racing against the clock, you don’t have time to wrestle with archaic tech that belongs in a museum.”
This new lens from Sony has a fast F1.8 aperture for low-light situations and an ultra-wide 16mm focal length for expansive views with minimal distortion. The lens enables advanced autofocus tracking and manual focus capabilities and deploys focus breathing suppression to minimize angleof-view shifts during focus transitions. The internal focusing mechanism and near-silent XD Linear Motors are perfect for handheld and gimbal work. “The 16-millimeter F1.8 G is now the widest prime lens in our G lens lineup and pairs seamlessly with all our latest full-frame Alpha-series cameras, as well as the FX3 and FX30 cinema cameras,” notes Yang Cheng, vice president of imaging solutions, Sony Electronics Inc. “With 79 E-Mount lenses now available, we are continuing our mission to ensure photographers, filmmakers and creators have a breadth of high-performing lens options to bring their visions to life.”
LEITZ THALIA 20MM LENS
$23,552
LEITZ-CINE.COM/PRODUCT/THALIA
Leitz has extended its THALIA 65 lens line with a new 20 mm that delivers more options for digital/film 65mm and VistaVision formats. “The coming wave of new extra-large-format cameras is going to need lenses, and now one of the only purpose-built 65mm lens sets that people can own got even more flexible, going from 20mm to 180mm,” explains Rainer Hercher, Leitz Cine’s managing director. “Most 65mm format lenses are based on older medium-format lenses never designed to accommodate the wide end of lens focal lengths – modern filmmaking demands a wider angle, which looks amazing on the big screen with bigger formats.” Nearly as wide as a 10mm on Super 35, the 20mm captures more information that, Hercher says, “can create awe-inspiring and immersive scenes.” The line, which includes 11 focal lengths, features a 95mm front-diameter throughout and is available in swappable PL and LPL mounts with /i metadata.
HERITAGE AUCTIONS
One of the more difficult realities – in an ocean of difficult realities – is that while so many lost so much in the January fires, some escaped unscathed. There’s no denying that if we still have most of our possessions, we feel sheepish, perhaps even a touch guilty, knowing that so many people we know – and legions more we don’t – lost everything. And we’ve got our own grieving to do – for lost friends, pets, or simply a sense of safety we know will never return. It’s hard to know how to help others and ourselves, even months after the firestorm.
Joe Maddalena, executive vice president at Heritage Auctions, is one of many who’s come up with a way to help the Southern
BY MARGOT LESTER PHOTOS COURTESY OF HERITAGE AUCTIONS
California film community recover with the Actors Auction. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, which has been a vital source of support for performers for more than 40 years. The Foundation is providing emergency financial assistance to members affected by the wildfires.
“In doing this, in conjunction with the SAGAFTRA Foundation,” Maddalena shares, “you’ll also be supporting others in the industry. So it’s a win-win.”
Maddalena adds that “being an Angeleno – I grew up in Malibu – and seeing the devastation of the fire, I was on the ground with evacuees. Seeing all the people in need, I just thought about which organizations could help
out in a meaningful way, and the SAG-AFTRA came to mind due to its legacy, its reach and its reputation. The size of SAG’s membership base is enormous and touches every part of Los Angeles and beyond. The SAG-AFTRA Foundation is the charity that assists the entire SAG-AFTRA community in times of need, so they were the natural fit and beneficiary.”
Ahead of the fund-raiser, Heritage, the world’s largest collectibles auctioneer, hosted a two-day, free appraisal event earlier this month to appraise rare memorabilia and collectibles.
Maddalena, who has pioneered this area of collecting, describes Heritage as the first auction house to seriously recognize stage
and screen props, costumes, sketches and the like not as ancillary items but as art forms. “Because of this,” he notes, “we have brought these highly desirable works to the forefront of collecting and have become influential throughout the auction world.”
In fact, Heritage is the world leader in collectibles auctions and has a reputation for record-setting auctions in the categories of entertainment, Hollywood, and pop-culture memorabilia, including Dorothy’s ruby slippers and items from HBO’s global phenomenon, Game of Thrones. The auction house also trades in wine, sports memorabilia, jewelry, multimedia assets, fine and decorative arts, sneakers, luxury accessories and timepieces. “Right now our focus is on building the auction, the appraisal event, and getting the word out, so that everyone who would be interested knows about it and can participate,” Maddalena shares. “I have a lot of help! We have a great team.”
They need one. The charity event is one of 1,400 events the auction house, the third largest in the world, hosts each year. Each day,
more than 58,000 potential bidders log onto the Heritage website from around the world to bid on items.
There’s a big difference between a standard auction and a charity event. Most auctions have a limited number of sellers, feature a handful of categories, and attract a small audience of dedicated collectors. By their nature, however, charity auctions are much larger in terms of consignors and bidders – because so many people want to be involved.
“This is not a niche auction,” Maddalena explains, “because of the amount of people who can help and the huge number of people who can be helped by the proceeds. It’s a large, general auction celebrating the performing arts.” There’s also the sheer scale of the event, which may have as many as 50 categories of items. “We are constantly mobile, and for this particular auction, it’s certainly nice to have an office and support team right here in Beverly Hills,” Maddalena adds.
Over the years, charity auctions overseen by Heritage have raised more than $100 million
for nonprofits, foundations, schools and arts organizations. Despite its enormity, Maddalena says he’s been pleasantly surprised by how smoothly things are going. “It has been only a positive experience getting it organized and working with the wonderful people at the SAGAFTRA Foundation. The immediate response has been amazing,” he describes.
In a news release announcing the event, Foundation Chairman Courtney B. Vance noted, “We’re deeply grateful to Heritage Auctions for their partnership and generosity in making this opportunity and benefit possible. This event is about more than just discovering the value of your hidden treasures – it’s about supporting a safety net for performers.”
While the idea is to raise money, items will be available at many price points, ensuring the event is accessible. Maddalena says, “It’s not an elite or closed club. The sheer diversity of what we offer helps you understand that. We make it so easy to dip your toe into the auction market.”
A date for the auction has not been set, but Maddalena says it will occur later in 2025.
PETER CRAIG
WRITER / PRODUCER / DIRECTOR / CREATOR
DOPE THIEF
BY MARGOT LESTER
PHOTOS BY JESSICA KOURKOUNIS / APPLE
Oscar-winning screenwriter and novelist Peter Craig knows a good story when he sees one.
“You have to feel an attraction to something almost like it’s a person you’re falling in love with,” he says about choosing projects. “And you’re going to have to let yourself fall in love, or you won’t have the energy or fortitude to get all the way through the process. It’s much more emotional than logical. You’re just looking to connect.”
That connection is what drew Craig, the writer behind Top Gun: Maverick , Hunger Games: Mocking Jay , The Batman , and The Town, to adapting and show-running Dope Thief, the new Apple TV+ crime series based on the eponymous novel by Dennis Tafoya, who has two other Philadelphia-based crime novels to his credit. As the L.A.-born and raised Craig adds: “I thought the first half of the book was a perfect inciting incident for a whole show. Plus, not only do I love stories about con men, but I also particularly loved the fraud of this show – from a character standpoint. Wearing a disguise is such a clear way of rejecting yourself and your own identity. I loved the idea that I was going to write these two characters who had such a hard time living with themselves.”
Craig says the second half of Tafoya’s novel “gets more internal,” which he thought would be problematic. “That’s why I kept it in the present crisis for the entire show and just worked off this premise: how do you go on the lam when you can’t even live with yourself to begin with?”
The filmmaker pitched the idea to Sir Ridley Scott after a project they were trying to stand up fell through. “Ridley is happiest when he’s working – and he gets restless when he’s waiting around,” Craig notes with a smile. “So, I showed him the pilot for Dope Thief, and he got it immediately. He didn’t just respond to the action; he really appreciated the extremely dark humor of it.”
We asked ICG writer Margot Lester to approach Craig for more insights on Dope
Thief (whose pilot was lensed by Erik Messerschmidt, ASC, and the series co-shot by Yaron Orbach and Eduardo Mayén), to learn how a successful feature screenwriter turns a novel into episodic television.
ICG: What was your greatest challenge on this project? Peter Craig: Time. There just isn’t enough. The job requires so many decisions, so much juggling and problemsolving that it becomes impossible to keep up. If you get a few hours of sleep at night, your
head is buzzing – and you lie there thinking of everything you missed. That said, it’d be the greatest and most fun job in the world if you had another six extra hours every day. As for a specific episode, I’d say the ending of 106, “Love Songs from Mars,” was the most challenging – and rewarding. I love an action sequence when it keeps track of the characters spatially, but also emotionally. Our director on that episode was Jonathan Van Tulleken, with DP Yaron Orbach; myself; and our AD, Maggie Murphy; out there for some of
the coldest nights of the year, working with old cars, a ton of squibs, and a lot of freezing extras and stuntmen.
What insights did you glean from your collaboration with Sir Ridley? That’s a great question because the biggest insight was probably more philosophical than technical. I learned that the only way to sustain yourself in this business is through joy . Tons of people I know operate out of fear – or maybe something even more destructive, but Ridley is the opposite. He loves what he’s doing. I think if you can have access to that feeling all the time, it gets you through the grind better than anything else. Your worst problems, your hardest days? They’re also gifts. Ridley had this ability to savor all of it – the good and bad – and I took that to heart.
How did you work with Erik Messerschmidt to establish the show’s look and feel? Erik and I talked about this “eternal dusk.” And if you took a stopwatch to some of these sequences, dusk lasts about eight hours [laughs]. I actually revised the scripts to this idea: there are sometimes 10 pages of dusk. It felt like we were straining credulity a little bit at first. But then… Have you been in Philadelphia in January? It really is eternal dusk. So, we worked with that concept first: gray skies, soft light. We also knew that Ridley loves to work fast, with a lot of cameras and existing light. So, our tech scouts involved a lot of planning and adapting to the locations.
Erik won an Oscar with David Fincher. How would you describe him as a filmmaker? He is a brilliant problem solver. We had to figure out a way to devise flashbacks that didn’t slow anything down because my idea was that the past trauma was just getting absorbed into the current trauma. Erik showed me a rowing scene he shot from The Social Network which was using a pretty subtle tilt-shift, and we both loved it and went with that. Then, the day of, we just tried out desaturating it, too, and that worked, especially because we got to do interesting
things with color for the rest of the show. Erik’s brilliance is that he plans meticulously, but he’s also incredibly nimble on the day and can improvise any time he sees an opportunity.
Describe your workflow with the series directors of photography, Yaron Orbach and Eduardo Mayén. Yaron and Eduardo are fantastic, and it was a very smooth transition with both. Yaron comes out of a documentary style that’s super-fast and doesn’t require a ton of lighting to set up. He’s incredible at seeing an opportunity and seizing it. I would describe Eduardo as being very thoughtful, and someone who works extremely well with more color. I think we did a good job pairing the two DPs’ strengths with the episodes they were doing. Eduardo shoots our first break out into the countryside in Episode 5; Yaron did the brutal action sequence in the dark in Episode 6. They both got a chance to show off their considerable talents.
How does your experience as a successful novelist influence your screenwriting work? To be honest, eight episodes of TV felt a lot like writing a novel. There’s room for your characters. I took to it immediately because you have more flexibility in the structure. There’s still some formality, but you can be patient in ways that features don’t always allow.
What are the special considerations when creating adaptations from a novel like Dope Thief , or scripts for established franchises like The Batman and The Hunger Games ? This is a great question, as they’re all completely different. There are some adaptations – like the last two Hunger Games movies – where you just have certain gates you have to get through, not unlike a slalom course. Those gates are spaced close together, so if you go too far afield, you’re off the course and you’ve blown it. You’ve still got a lot of invention to do, but it’s in smaller spaces between those gates. I would use the skiing metaphor for books as well, but those are more like a downhill slalom and you really just want to stay on the course . That’s it. Follow the starting line, the finish line, and don’t go off into the trees. Finally –and here’s probably the most fun kind of adaptation for me – some books give you a starting line and maybe a few landmarks, and then they set you free to go off course completely, in any number of directions that you think will work for the story.
Many of your projects also focus on friendship and loyalty. What interests you about exploring those concepts? Nothing bonds people like trauma, and [Dope Thief’s] Ray (Brian Tyree Henry) and Manny (Wagner Moura) were already trauma-bonded from their early days [in Juvenile Hall]. I love that relationship because they don’t have much in common outside the trauma. They just kept each other alive for so long that neither trusts his ability to live on his own. So, while that’s not a particularly healthy relationship, it is real love. Because love isn’t always healthy. In fact, most of the time it isn’t! And I’m very interested in that –disentangling that feeling, especially with characters that go so far as to think they’re going to be redeemed by love. I’m interested in broken moral compasses. But it’s important to add that with all my characters, they’re broken but they’re still there.
So, you’re a novelist and an Oscarwinning screenwriter. Given that track record, what do you think makes a compelling story? It begins and ends with character. You can have a character doing the most outlandish things – crashing a test flight or acting as a vigilante at night or robbing drug houses – and it works if there’s something immediately familiar and relatable about that person. Even the craziest bank robber still gets up and brushes his teeth in the morning. He still pays rent and stands in line for coffee and he still gets annoyed at the same things everyone else does. So, if you can burrow into a character’s psyche enough and have the audience really know that person right away, as quickly as possible, then you’re certainly on the right track.
TRIAGE PRODUCTION
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY JOHANNA COELHO AND HER ICG
CAMERA TEAM DON MASKS AND GOWNS, SCRUBBING UP FOR MAX’S
HYPER-CHARGED NEW ER DRAMA, THE PITT.
BY TED ELRICK
PHOTOS BY WARRICK PAGE & JOHN P. JOHNSON / MAX
The new MAX episodic drama The Pitt (recently renewed for a second season) comes from TV-series force of nature John Wells and follows the lives of a team of healthcare professionals on one fifteenhour shift at a Pittsburgh hospital emergency room. While there are establishing shots of Pittsburgh scattered throughout, the bulk of the filming takes place on a massive 360-degree set on a Warner Brothers soundstage in Burbank, CA.
The show stars Noah Wyle as Dr. Michael Robinavitch, as well as Tracy Ifeachor, Fiona Dourif, Taylor Dearden, Isa Briones, Brandon Mendez Homer and Shabana Azeez, among others. Wells, who directed the first and last episodes of the series, along with Showrunner/Executive Producer R. Scott Gemmill, wanted The Pitt shot primarily handheld. And in an unusual hire for series television, he chose a single director of photography, Johanna Coelho (The Rookie, All Happy Families , Séance ), to lens all 15 episodes.
Along with the demanding
documentary-style handheld camera, which rapidly (and closely) follows cast members from room to room in the ER, each episode was shot in chronological order as the shift unfolds. To address the many anticipated challenges, the team had numerous discussions. Coelho says she chose ARRI’s ALEXA Mini LF because of the proximity the camera needed to be to the characters, so close that many members of her ICG camera team wore hospital scrubs, on the off chance a shoulder accidentally gets in a shot.
“I’m not using any filtration,” Coelho shares. “I still wanted it to feel cinematic
because we needed to get everything in this raw way [Wells wanted], yet remain appealing to the eye. The large format helps with that. You create this softer cinematic image that lacks depth of field. It makes you feel like you’re stuck in the bubble of this ER.”
Coelho primarily used Angénieux Optimo Primes on her A-Camera.
“We have a few primes we’ve been using because we have a language we’re trying to respect on the show,” she continues. “Our normal jump shot would be a 50 millimeter, which gets you in a medium, but close enough to the character. Then
we use a 75 millimeter to get kind of a close-up with them; that also reduces the space, and the depth of field disappears. It’s more specific for the emotional moment or the connectivity between two characters. Sometimes we used the 50-millimeter as a super close-up, and that’s what we call our ‘main shot,’ where we need to be very close to the character because something important is happening.”
While prime lenses were key to the camera language Coelho wanted to establish, she says “we put our B-Camera on an ultra-compact zoom because it’s a perfect
match to the Optimo primes. They’re almost identical. You can never tell when we go on the zoom or the prime. It’s incredible. I tested them and it’s rare to find a zoom matching so well to a prime.”
Along with shooting each episode in chronological order, additional authenticity was claimed by casting all of the background extras for the entire Season 1 shooting schedule. Since ER’s are notoriously crowded, with medical personnel jockeying to the most critical cases first, and the season
filming with each episode representing one hour in the season’s fifteen-hour shift à la 24, it’s a subtle reminder of the wait times and the stress on the staff to serve their patients who continually flood into the ER.
Also, given the wide-ranging racial and ethnic extras needed to populate an ER, and the rapid pace of production, challenges with lighting efficiency were inevitable. According to Coelho, working with her long-time Chief Lighting Technician Keelan Carothers, whom she initially met after graduating from AFI, and Production Designer Nina Ruscio, up to 50 different
shades of white were tested to use in the ER, whites that would reflect light evenly on all the actors, augmented by a boom pole light.
“Maybe 90 percent of the time with camera we used battery-operated boom pole lights,” Carothers describes. “A lot of the time it was for Noah, just for his eyes, but we could ramp up the light to be bright for our darker skin-toned actors. It’s basically this big white orb that kind of looks like our can lights.”
B-Camera Operator Aymae Sulick adds, “Sometimes they are walking with us with those boom pole lights if they were needed for certain things. And if an actor walks backward, there’s a person with them, keeping them safe. I’m often crouched down popping up somewhere and getting a shot and then popping up for something else. It’s pretty great.”
“Every surface in the ER is made of highly reflective, polished stainless steel,” Carothers notes. “And that’s challenging because you’re constantly trying to hide these lights from the hand-held cameras moving in and out of the shot, or just changing the shot line to be as realistic and documentary-style as possible.”
Key Grip Maxwell Thorpe says the team
also employed 3D printing.
“We had to get creative about lighting those 360-degree shots,” he explains. “So, we 3D-printed many lighting elements that can either be seen by the camera or are sort of unnoticeable if the camera catches them. We made very simple screen frames that attach to the overhead lights to soften the top light so that we don’t have raccoon circles under people’s eyes. We used those a lot, and then we created a couple of other little elements that go on to the cam lights to soften those. Dan Preiser made all the 3D-printed [material], and he was so clever.”
Coelho calls her collaboration with Ruscio (who has worked with Wells before) “amazing.” She notes that the built 360-degree set “was the only way to create these shots, to have a free hand with no lighting stands on the ground or anything.”
Ruscio says, “They assigned rooms for all the patients, hour by hour. The choreography of that, and maintaining clarity, was essential to how they ultimately shot. The dynamic of the show is that we have selective focus on what’s happening in the foreground, but the storylines in the background, in other rooms, are also happening and are visible as well.
There’s no physical space on the set where you can’t see from one side to the other.”
The designer says shooting chronologically “means the physical space and the continuity of effects – not just physical effects, but also emotional effects that are the arc of the characters – allowed for no place to hide. That’s why the edict from the get-go was that anyone entering the set must look like they’re part of the medical team. In terms of my work, I wanted to make the energy of the continuous space be implied. You can see there are curves everywhere, even echoed on the floor and in the ceiling. No matter where you are, you are never blocked for continuous motion.”
Coelho says the workflow meant there was no practical use for storyboarding. “You just let the operators go based on their gut instincts,” she explains. “For every episode and scene, I would watch the blocking in a private rehearsal with the director. Then we would bring the operators in and talk about the shot we wanted to design. The operators, who are so creative, also helped to coordinate with backgrounds so they know the extra
COELHO (OPPOSITE WITH A-CAMERA OPERATOR ERDEM ERTAL) SAYS WITH WELLS’ MANDATE FOR A RAW, HANDHELD LOOK, “SHOOTING LARGE-FORMAT [ALEXA MINI LF] HELPED CREATE A SOFTER CINEMATIC IMAGE THAT LACKS DEPTH OF FIELD.
elements we might need to see in the scene. It’s an amazing collaboration as we create the base shot, and as the operators get to know more and more about the show, they make adjustments within takes. The camera is a character; it’s a part of everything that’s happening.”
A-Camera Operator Erdem Ertal is no stranger to medical dramas, having previously worked on Chicago Med. But he says The Pitt was something different. “The biggest challenge was not having the time to put marks down,” he recounts. “And working with minimal camera support, being an all handheld show with no dollies, sticks or heads.”
Ertal says that while Chicago Med used three cameras, “The Pitt is shot more like a single-camera show. We would figure out the move for the A-Camera. Then we’d find the spot for B-Camera, which usually came in on the zoom to get coverage, wides and inserts. This was really a small camera show that lived on the Angénieux primes and zooms.”
And because Wells wanted all handheld,
no Steadicam, Ertal reintroduced the idea of using butt dollies. “They’ve been used on other fast-paced doc-style shows like 24 and The Bear, and have become quite helpful,” he shares. “You can make micro-adjustments, moving in small spaces, shooting low angles, without crouching down.”
The ZeeGee rig was another key addition.
“We started using the ZeeGee on Episode 2,” Ertal continues, “and for Episode 1 they had used the SlingShot rig to move the camera through the space. That’s larger and more bulky. What made the ZeeGee so great is that a Steadicam operator can use it. I get to wear my vest and arm. The ZeeGee takes the place of the sled and becomes like a handheld cradle.” He says an “athletic mindset” was needed for The Pitt, “because they would do nine to ten pages a day. That’s unusual for most TV shows. It was like live theater, in a way, because the actors had to memorize all their lines for the entire take.”
Sulick says another thing to consider is all the hospital equipment.
“When we’re around the gurney in the
trauma room scenes, everything is moving and you’re focused on things,” she explains. “We’re all wearing scrubs, and I might see Erdem’s leg and he’s wearing black scrubs, so no one knows that it’s him. And the same with reflections. We had to blend in as much as possible.”
B-Camera AC Kirsten Celo says getting scripts in advance – and being expected to understand them – was unlike most other series TV work she’d done. “Typically you just get the sides for the day,” Celo notes. “But we were supposed to read ahead and know where the story was going and where the characters would be. The actors would give each other these little head nods or these glances, or one person would be looking at another person in the background. So, it was important to catch those moments, to foreshadow – with focus – and lead the audience the same way the story was going to go. Having scripts in advance was so helpful to achieving that.”
Celo adds that because “all of the scenes have a ton of motion, blocking would be
OPPOSITE/ABOVE: DEPP CALLS THE WARNER BROS. SET
“THE MOST SPECTACULAR I’VE EVER BEEN ON. EVERYTHING IS FUNCTIONAL. EVERYTHING WORKED AND FELT REAL. YOU FORGOT YOU’RE ON A TV SET. WE JUST NEED ONE OF THE TECHNICALLY CONSULTING DOCTORS TO LEGALLY STEP IN. IT’S AMAZING.”
different for every take. You had to know not only what you were waiting for and what might happen, but you also had to be open to catch whatever actually happened in that take. You had to be spontaneous, relaxed, and have quick reflexes.”
Those reflexes extended to the ICG team’s camera tools.
As A-Camera 1st AC Jacob Depp relates: “My Light Ranger is on a seven-inch right below my 13-inch, which I use for peaking. In the emergency room, there are so many different things going on, it can become destructive. But I can tell you right now the Light Ranger helps out so much, even in situations like that, to glance and be like, OK, this is where I want the focus to be. This is where I need to put it. It’s incredible to learn to use a tool that I’ve used for so
long in one way, and then use it differently, to discover that the equipment you have is so dynamic. I would sit with the DP and discuss where the focus should and can be throughout the scene. There are maybe six characters in the room, so we’re telling the story more from their different perspectives.”
Depp calls the Warner Bros. set “the most spectacular I’ve ever been on. Everything is functional. Everything worked and felt real. You forgot you’re on a TV set. We just need one of the technically consulting doctors to legally step in. It’s amazing.”
The show includes some flashbacks to COVID-19, which presented an interesting challenge. “We shot through a real face mask,” Coelho explains. “The team built a 3D-printed system to put on the camera and hang the mask around the front. We placed it perfectly. I stacked more filtration. I didn’t use any
filtration on the show, except for the flashback.
“I didn’t want to go too heavy because the look is so white already. I used the Hollywood Black Magic 1 and Black Magic 2, so it was basically a free stack together in addition to the mask, and it feels almost like a glass right in front of you. I wanted to emphasize that very spooky aspect of the situation. We overexposed the scene a bit too.”
Coelho describes shooting Season 1 of The Pitt as a “unique and immersive experience. The crew and I have been saying we’ve never done anything like it before. The live-theatre aspect that John Wells brought to the show gave all of us an extra level of creativity and made the cast and crew feel part of a truly special bubble,” she concludes. “Lensing the 15 episodes gave me a deeper connection to the story and made me understand each character better, which really helped the visual storytelling.”
LOCAL 600 CREW
Director of Photography
Johanna “JoJo” Coelho
A-Camera Operator
Erdem Ertal, SOC
A-Camera 1st AC
Jacob Depp
A-Camera 2nd AC
Peter DePhilippis
B-Camera Operator
Aymae Sulick, SOC
B-Camera 1st AC Kirsten Celo
B-Camera 2nd AC
Kellsie Domnitz
Additional 2nd AC
John C. Hoffler Jr.
C-Camera Operator
Ellie Ann Fenton
C-Camera 1st AC
Peter DePhilippis
C-Camera 2nd AC
Ulrike “Ulli” Lamster
Additional 2nd AC Suzy Dietz
DIT
Jefferson Fugitt
Utilities
Keitu Mokhonwana
Tosha Palani
Still Photographer
John P. Johnson Warrick Page
COELHO DESCRIBES THE COLLABORATION WITH HER CAMERA OPERATORS AS “AMAZING. WE CREATE THE BASE SHOT, AND AS THE OPERATORS GET TO KNOW MORE AND MORE ABOUT THE SHOW, THEY MAKE ADJUSTMENTS WITHIN TAKES.,” SHE SHARES. “THE CAMERA IS A CHARACTER; IT’S A PART OF EVERYTHING THAT’S HAPPENING.”
HARD-BOILED
APPLE TV’S NEW CRIME DRAMA, DOPE THIEF, GOES DEEP INTO THE WORLD OF LOW (AND HIGH) LEVEL DRUG DEALERS IN THE CITY OF BROTHERLY LOVE.
BY MARGOT LESTER
PHOTOS BY JESSICA KOURKOUNIS / APPLE
“The story we’re telling is a relatively
relatively dark one –
to some degree it features the underbelly, I suppose you could say.” That’s how Oscar-winning Director of Photography Erik Messerschmidt, ASC, describes his latest project, Dope Thief. The Apple TV+ series follows Ray Driscoll (Brian Tyree Henry) and Manny Carvalho (Wagner Moura), longtime besties who met in “juvie,” who masquerade as DEA agents robbing Philadelphia’s low-level drug dealers of their ill-gotten gains. When the pair accidentally stumble onto a much larger narcotics ring being monitored by the real DEA, all hell breaks loose. The series was adapted from the novel of the same name by Dennis Tafoya – one of three crime noir stories set in Tafoya’s native Philadelphia –by Oscar-winning screenwriter Peter Craig (Exposure, page 22). Craig partnered with Sir Ridley Scott to produce the project and direct the pilot.
“To Peter’s credit,” Messerschmidt adds, “he said, ‘This is a Philadelphia story and we’re going to tell it there,’ and I admire Apple for deciding to do that. Many other producers would have tried to take it to Atlanta or Toronto for cost reasons. But Philadelphia has a specific aesthetic of grit and authenticity that lends itself to the subject matter. It’s also very unique and doesn’t look like Chicago or New York, or even Pittsburgh.”
For the pilot, Scott, Messerschmidt, and Craig collaborated to develop the show’s visual language, teaming with Production Designer Chris Seagers for a preliminary scout in Philly. Messerschmidt shares that Scott “likes a multi-camera approach and I like the puzzle of that – figuring out how to manage lighting scenarios and a coverage plan with the larger opera of five or six cameras at any given time.”
A self-proclaimed “loyal RED user,” Messerschmidt chose the RED V-RAPTOR XL to shoot the pilot. “I adore that camera,” he adds. “It’s what I shot The Killer on. I’m not in the camp that believes the camera has a part to play in the aesthetic of the
image, but it definitely has a part to play in its implementation. I like that it doesn’t necessarily have a look. When I’m in a pickle, I can lean on it. I can manipulate it the way I want it to get any look I want.”
For lensing, Messerschmidt returned to the modified Panaspeed large-format spherical glass he used on Ferrari . “Dan Sasaki and I spent weeks on that film developing those lenses to get them exactly the way we wanted,” he continues. “They kept them for me at Panavision Woodland Hills, so we dusted them off and used them for the Dope Thief pilot.” (The lens package included 1:1s, 3:1s, 4:1s, and Angénieux zooms.)
New York-based 1st AC Waris Supanpong, who handled C-Camera chores on the pilot, and A-Camera for the series, was tasked with sourcing the gear for the pilot, managing two separate checkouts with half the equipment coming from Panavision Woodland Hills and the rest from Panavision New York. “We all then met in Philadelphia to put everything together,” Supanpong notes. “It took a massive amount of coordination to make it work. Afterward, it took the same amount of
logistics to work out what was going to stay for the rest of the show.”
Joining Messerschmidt on the pilot were some of his longtime crew, including Operator Brian S. Osmond, 1st AC’s Alex Scott and Brian Wells and DIT Calvin Reibman. The remaining seven episodes were shot by L.A.-based Director of Photography Eduardo E. Mayén (three installments) and New York-based Yaron Orbach (four episodes), who brought on some of their frequent collaborators. Both DP’s were on set for the pilot, where their A and B operators worked as C and D operators.
“Eduardo and Yaron were there for prep, so they saw how we were lighting and covering and have some understanding of our intentions,” Messerschmidt notes. “That said, I’ve done enough series TV to understand that it takes on its own life after the pilot DP departs. So, there was not an expectation that they had to follow our exact methodology.”
Mayén says being on set for the pilot was crucial to his work on the series.
“We got to see how they orchestrated a visual language that produced images that
were beautiful but at the same time somehow imperfect,” he reflects. “The scenes always felt real and raw, not overproduced. It was exciting to eventually have the opportunity to add our spin to this aesthetic and strive to make beautiful images that looked effortless and raw in their execution.
“After I felt like we ‘had’ the scene,” he continues, “I would suggest that we do one more take and do the Ridley Shot,’ where the camera feels like it’s been tucked in a corner, hidden from view, capturing something special and magical in a reflection or a silhouette through a curtain. Operators Phil Martinez and Eduardo Fierro, SVC, were very good at capturing these beautiful moments that didn’t feel too composed. Alternating episodes with Yaron was great, as he’s such a talented filmmaker. It was like playing music with another good musician – it was energizing to build on each other’s work.”
To create a plan for the rest of the series, Orbach says he and Mayén “talked about the general arc of the show and the emotional arc of our main characters as it pertains to
tone and mood in addition to the seasons changing from winter to spring by the end of the show. In general, we just had an open line of communication if anything arose in the episodes we shot that would affect us individually.”
To ensure the show accurately captured Philadelphia’s many singular locations, Senior Colorist Stephen Nakamura (who has worked with Scott for 15 years and collaborated with Messerschmidt on Raised by Wolves) built a series of LUT’s to establish the somewhat monochromatic palette and serve as a guidebook for the pilot and the series. “That is not to say that everything is desaturated,” Nakamura shares. “We might go in and drain some of the saturation out of everything, but the skin tones of the actors or maybe a particular object that is very important to the emotion of the scene will retain more color than everything else. Some portions don’t have a desaturated look at all, and because they’re surrounded by images with subdued colors, they tend to jump out a bit more than they would if everything had a more traditional amount of saturation.”
To maintain the look, extra lighting had
to remain as invisible as possible, especially on continuous handheld takes where the camera roams free. “Sometimes it was tricky because we had characters with different skin tones in the same scene,” Mayén allows. “Luckily, we had a great lighting and grip crew led by Shawn Greene and Sal Lanza, respectively. They tackled any challenge that was thrown at us.”
New York-based Greene, who’s worked with Orbach for a decade and a half, says familiarity allowed them to shoot faster. “We’ve been together long enough to prelight a lot of sets without too many notes,” Greene explains. Shooting on location added to the logistical challenge, especially in tiny spaces. “It was a challenge to time the lights with actors moving swiftly through the space,” he adds. “You have to be able to adjust on-the-fly in this business, all day every day.”
Working on location also meant shooting in confined spaces. For example, in a scene in Episode 3, “Run, Die, or Relapse,” between Ryan and Manny in a small dark attic, Mayén asked the actors if he could crouch just out of frame holding a Helios tube, and they agreed.
“As Phil executed a handheld shot that
went from one character to the other in a continuous shot, I would then sneak a kiss of light or a twinkle in the eye if needed,” Mayén recalls. “It was fun to be in there so close when those guys were doing their thing – but [it took a toll on] my knees.”
Another sequence in Episode 4, “Philadelphia Lawyer,” involved a fight, an armed grenade and a pickup truck. As L.A.-based B-Camera 1st AC Caz Duffy, who worked on all eight episodes and has done projects with both DP’s, recounts, “The ones and twos in the back of the truck and they’re fighting – in a medium format wide open at 1.4 and within 5 feet. As a technician and focus puller, that’s a difficult task. But when you’re able to perform and give the bosses what they want, and they say, ‘Moving on’ after something like that, it’s pretty
rewarding. That is something that will stick with me for a long time.”
Typical of many episodic location shoots, there was a fair bit of day-fornight and day-for-dusk work. “As anyone reading ICG Magazine is aware, there’s a whole lot more to making that kind of imagery believable than just the exposure,” Nakamura describes. “Some of this comes from lighting and grip work on set, and then we can do some of it in the grade. Sometimes even VFX is involved. But it takes a DP with a certain expertise to be able to quickly make decisions about what makes the most sense to do on set and what should be handled in post.” This, Nakamura adds, was exactly the case with all of the Dope Thief
cinematographers. “When it got to me, we still had to do work to get each shot where it needed to be,” he notes, “but it came in with quite a few of the adjustments already in the ‘neg.’”
One night sequence (shot in the evening) occurs in Episode 106, Long Song from Mars. It begins with Ray, feverish from an infection and wandering around in the attic of the house he and Manny have come to rob. “We stripped the camera down to make it as small as possible, and shot it at several different frame rates at the highest resolution with the iris wide open,” explains Supanpong, who has worked with Orbach for about seven years. “This is Yaron trusting Phil [Martinez, A-Camera operator] and myself to get his vision and put it on screen.” That shot is followed by an
OPPOSITE/ABOVE: SERIES CO-DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY EDUARDO MAYÉN SAYS BEING ON SET FOR THE PILOT WAS CRUCIAL. “THE SCENES ALWAYS FELT REAL AND RAW, NOT OVERPRODUCED. IT WAS EXCITING TO EVENTUALLY HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO ADD OUR SPIN TO THIS AESTHETIC AND STRIVE TO MAKE BEAUTIFUL IMAGES THAT LOOKED EFFORTLESS AND RAW IN THEIR EXECUTION.”
extended action scene.
As Orbach explains: “Our challenge was creating a long uninterrupted sequence so it feels as real as possible. A lot of time was spent rehearsing and previsualizing before we got to the location.” The action begins as Ray decides to go to the hospital, with the camera following him outside to his car and as he drives. “We shot the exterior house in a night, the car driving to the hospital on another night with a Russian arm, and the handheld work in the car on another night, plus another three freezing exterior nights at the hospital where a climactic gun battle rages,” Orbach recounts. “We followed the two main characters with long uninterrupted handheld leading and following shots to track their individual perspectives and emotional journeys.”
With all the various shootouts, chases, and fight sequences, safety meetings/ checks were critical. Stunt Coordinator Danny Hernandez and his team made safety their top priority, working closely with 1st AD Renee Hill Sweet who communicated everything clearly at pre-shoot safety meetings. As Mayén shares: “We always knew what we were up against, and I never felt unsafe.”
While much of Orbach and Mayén’s camera departments were from N.Y. or L.A., Supanpong says, “We tried our best to stay in Philly with the additional crew hiring. The city has an amazing local community, and it was a pleasure getting to meet and work with that team. Leon Sanginiti Jr. is a great assistant and a mainstay in the city. [Second AC] Jim McCann had worked with
this production team before, and I relied on him to communicate our needs with the UPM. Jim was truly the glue that held the camera department together.”
Orbach says working with such a generous and experienced local crew “allowed us unique access, especially to the harder-hit areas of Philly.”
LA-based Fierro, who’s worked previously with all three cinematographers, and was on board for all eight episodes, concludes that “when you put a crew together, you are also matching personalities, and that has to be right. The New York and Philadelphia crews were welcoming and we connected very quickly. They are my East Coast familia now. From pilot to the series crew, this was one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had.”
L.A.-BASED CAMERA OPERATOR EDUARDO FIERRO, SVC, WHO WAS ON BOARD FOR ALL EIGHT EPISODES, NOTES THAT “WHEN YOU PUT A CREW TOGETHER, YOU ARE ALSO MATCHING PERSONALITIES, AND THAT HAS TO BE RIGHT. THE NEW YORK AND PHILADELPHIA CREWS WERE WELCOMING AND WE CONNECTED VERY QUICKLY. FROM PILOT TO THE SERIES CREW, THIS WAS ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING EXPERIENCES I HAVE EVER HAD.”
LOCAL 600 CREW
EPISODE 1
Director of Photography
Erik Messerschmidt, ASC
A-Camera Operator
Brian Osmond, SOC
A-Camera 1st AC
Alex Scott
A-Camera 2nd AC
Jonathan Clark
B-Camera Operator
Mick Froehlich, SOC
B-Camera 1st AC
Brian Wells
B-Camera 2nd AC
Andy Hensler
C-Camera Operator
Philip J. Martinez, SOC
C-Camera 1st AC
Waris Supanpong
C-Camera 2nd AC
Jim McCann
D-Camera Operator
Eduardo Fierro
D-Camera 1st AC
Becki Heller
D-Camera 2nd AC
Leon Sanginiti Jr.
Additional 2nd AC
Alec Freund
DIT
Calvin Reibman
Loaders
EPISODES 2-8
Directors of Photography
Yaron Orbach (even)
Eduardo Mayen (odd)
A-Camera Operator
Philip J. Martinez, SOC
A-Camera 1st AC
Waris Supanpong
A-Camera 2nd AC
Jim McCann
B-Camera Operator
Eduardo Fierro
B-Camera 1st AC
Caz Duffy
B-Camera 2nd AC
Leon Sanginiti Jr
Loaders Ryan
PRODUCTION CREDITS
20TH CENTURY FOX FILM CORPORATION
“ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING”
SEASON 5
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: KYLE WULLSCHLEGER
OPERATOR: DANIEL SHARNOFF
ASSISTANTS: TIMOTHY TROTMAN, DAMON LEMAY, SARA BOARDMAN, AMANDA DEERY
STEADICAM OPERATOR: PETER VIETRO-HANNUM
LOADERS: CHAD KEAN, AMELIA MCLAUGHLIN
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: PATRICK HARBRON
20TH CENTURY TELEVISION
“9-1-1” SEASON 8
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ANDREW MITCHELL, PJ RUSS
OPERATORS: BRICE REID, PHIL MILLER, PAULINA GOMEZ
ASSISTANTS: JAMES RYDINGS, KAORU “Q” ISHIZUKA, CARLOS DOERR, BASSEM BALAA, MATT DEL RUTH, TODD DURBORAW
STEADICAM OPERATOR: BRICE REID
DIGITAL UTILITY: BEAU MORAN
CAMERA UTILITY: JOE PACELLA
A24
“MARGO’S GOT MONEY TROUBLES”
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: CARL HERSE, TARI SEGAL, ASC
OPERATORS: ORLANDO DUGUAY,
JESSICA LAKOFF CANNON, JESSICA CLARKE-NASH, JUSTIN WATSON, SARA INGRAM, JOHN RONEY, EMILY ZENK
STEADICAM OPERATOR: ORLANDO DUGUAY
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: CHRIS HOYLE
LOADER: NICOLA CARUSO
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: ALLYSON RIGGS
UNIT PUBLICIST: SHERYL MAIN
APPLE STUDIOS, LLC
“FILCH AKA SWIPE” SEASON 2
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ZACHARY GALLER
OPERATORS: PHILIP MARTINEZ, JUSTIN FOSTER
ASSISTANTS: WARIS SUPANPONG, GUS LIMBERIS, RANDY SCHWARTZ, TOMMY SCOGGINS
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: LOIC DE LAME
LOADERS: BRANDON OSBORN, THOMAS PARRISH
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: JON PACK
UNIT PUBLICIST: PEGGY MULLOY
COMPILED BY TERESA
MUÑOZ
The input of Local 600 members is of the utmost importance, and we rely on our membership as the prime (and often the only) source of information in compiling this section. In order for us to continue to provide this service, we ask that Guild members submitting information take note of the following requests:
Please provide up-to-date and complete crew information (including Still Photographers, Publicists, Additional Units, etc.). Please note that the deadline for the Production Credits is on the first of the preceding cover month (excluding weekends & holidays).
Submit your jobs online by visiting: www.icg600.com/MY600/Report-Your-Job
Any questions regarding the Production Credits should be addressed to Teresa Muñoz at teresa@icgmagazine.com
BEACHWOOD SERVICES, INC.
“DAYS OF OUR LIVES” SEASON 60
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID MEAGHER
OPERATORS: MARK WARSHAW, MICHAEL J. DENTON, JOHNNY BROMBEREK, JOHN BOYD, STEVE CLARK
CAMERA UTILITY: GARY CYPHER
VIDEO CONTROLLER: ALEXIS DELLAR HANSON
BLIND FAITH PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN” SEASON 2
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: HILLARY SPERA, JEFFREY WALDRON
OPERATORS: THOMAS SCHNAIDT, BLAKE JOHNSON
ASSISTANTS: CHRISTOPHER WIEZOREK, STEPHEN MCBRIDE, YALE GROPMAN, GREGORY PACE
STEADICAM OPERATOR: THOMAS SCHNAIDT
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: PATRICK CECILIAN
LOADERS: MCKENZIE RAYCROFT, BRIANNA MCCARTHY
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: JOJO WHILDEN
UNIT PUBLICIST: NICOLE KALISH
COOLER WATER PRODUCTIONS
“EUPHORIA” SEASON 3
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: MARCELL REV, ASC, HCA
CLAUDIO MIRANDA, ASC / OBLIVION (2013) photo by DAVID JAMES, SMPSP
OPERATORS: JOSH MEDAK, ROCKER MEADOWS,
ASSISTANTS: NORRIS FOX, DAN SCHROER, JONATHAN CLARK, DAN URBAIN
LOADER: CHESTER MILTON
DIGITAL UTILITY: VICTORIA BETANCOURT
REMOTE HEAD TECH/OPERATOR: SIMON TERZIAN
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: EDDY CHEN
CRANETOWN MEDIA, LLC
“MAYOR OF KINGSTOWN” SEASON 4
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: MICHAEL MCDONOUGH
OPERTORS: ALAN PIERCE, BRIAN OSMOND
ASSISTANTS: CORY STAMBLER, KIMBERLY HERMAN, BENEDICT BALDAUFF, BRIAN BRESNEHAN
DIGITAL UTILITY: MATTHEW BERAN
LOADERS: THOMAS HENRY HOLMES
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: DENNIS MONG
“NO ONE CARES”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: DREW DANIELS
OPERATOR: BIANCA BUTTI
ASSISTANTS: KALI RILEY, BAYLEY SWEITZER, ADAM RUSSELL, RACHEL FEDORKOVA
STEADICAM OPERATOR: KYLE PARSONS
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: MATTHEW INFANTE
“TULSA KING” SEASON 3 NY UNIT
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JAIME REYNOSO, ERIC MOYNIER
OPERATORS: MICHAEL F. O’SHEA, ANNE CARSON
ASSISTANTS: JUSTIN COOLEY, AARON SNOW, MANDY FORMAN, JAMES SCHLITTENHART, KEVIN WILSON
LOADERS: JEANNA CANATSEY, PAUL SPANG
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: ATSUSHI NISHIJIMA
DXO EAST PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“DEXTER: RESURRECTION”
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: RADIUM CHEUNG, JOSEPH COLLINS
OPERATORS: ELI ARONOFF, ERIC ROBINSON
ASSISTANTS: JOHN REEVES, BLAKE ALCANTARA, SARAH SCRIVENER, MAX COLLINS
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: ILYA AKIYOSHI
LOADERS: VINCENT FERRARI, OFELIA CHAVEZ
STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS: ZACH DILGARD, ANNE JOYCE, MYRNA SUAREZ
FAMILY MCMULLEN, INC.
“THE FAMILY MCMULLEN”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: WILLIAM REXER, ASC
OPERATOR: JEFF MUHLSTOCK
ASSISTANTS: JOHN LARSON, SPENCER MUHLSTOCK
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: ANDREW NELSON
LOADER: RICHARD PALLERO
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: ELIZABETH FISHER
UNIT PUBLICIST: ELIZABETH PETIT
FLOWER MOVIE, LLC
“THE FLORIST”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: FREDERIK BACKAR
OPERATOR: JOHN DEVIRGILIIS
ASSISTANT: SHAUN MALKOVICH
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: ZACHARY SAINZ
HUBBLE PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“OFFICE ROMANCE”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ROBERT YEOMAN
OPERATOR: STEWART CANTRELL
ASSISTANTS: DAVID SEEKINS, ERIC SWANEK, TYLER SWANEK, EMMALINE HING
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: GABRIEL KOLODNY
LOADERS: TRUMAN HANKS, JOSEPH CROGNALE
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: ANA CARBALLOSA
UNIT PUBLICIST: BROOKE ENSIGN
LEGENDARY PICTURES
“ZEUS”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: DAN MINDEL, ASC, BSC, SASC
OPERATORS: LUKASZ BIELAN, CHRIS MCGUIRE
ASSISTANTS: SIMON ENGLAND, BAILEY NAGY
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: ROBERT HOWIE
NBC UNIVERSAL TELEVISION, LLC
“CHICAGO MED”SEASON 10
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: SHAWN MAURER
OPERATORS: JOE TOLITANO, BILLY NIELSEN
ASSISTANTS: GEORGE OLSON, PATRICK DOOLEY, BRIAN KILBORN, RICHARD COLMAN, MATTHEW WILBAT, JJ LITTLEFIELD
STEADICAM OPERATOR: CHRISTOPHER GLASGOW
LOADER: TREVOR SNYDER
DIGITAL UTILITY: TRENTON LUETTICH
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: GEORGE BURNS
2ND UNIT
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: WILLIAM NIELSEN
“CHICAGO PD” SEASON 12
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JAMES ZUCAL
OPERATORS: VICTOR MACIAS, JAMISON ACKER, CHRIS HOOD
ASSISTANTS: KYLE BELOUSEK, DON CARLSON, NICK WILSON, MARK MOORE, CHRIS POLMANSKI, STEVE CLAY
STEADICAM OPERATOR: VICTOR MACIAS
STEADICAM ASSISTANT: KYLE BELOUSEK
LOADER: REBECCA JOHNSON
DIGITAL UTILITIES: JACOB OCKER, JACOB CUSHMAN
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: LORI ALLEN
“FBI MOST WANTED” SEASON 6
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: LUDOVIC LITTEE
OPERATORS: CHRIS MOONE, SCOTT TINSLEY
ASSISTANTS: JOHN FITZPATRICK, DAN PFEIFER, JOHN CONQUY, TYLER MANCUSO
LOADERS: ANTHONY VITALE, HUSSEIN FARRAJ
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: MARK SCHAFER
“LAW
& ORDER: ORGANIZED CRIME”
SEASON 5
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JIM DENAULT, JON BEATTIE
OPERATORS: JOHN PIROZZI, NIKNAZ TAVAKOLIAN
ASSISTANTS: ALEX WATERSTON, LEE VICKERY, DERRICK DAWKINS, PATRICK ARELLANO
STEADICAM OPERATOR: NIKNAZ TAVAKOLIAN
LOADERS: WILLIE CHING, BERNARDO RUIZ POZO, VINCE FERRARI
STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS: GIOVANNI RUFINO, RALPH BAVARO, VIRGINIA SHERWOOD, DAVID GIESBRECHT
“LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT” SEASON 26
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: FELIKS PARNELL
OPERATORS: JON HERRON, CHRISTOPHER DEL SORDO
ASSISTANTS: JOSEPH METZGER, CHRISTIAN CARMODY, RYAN HADDON, MARY NEARY
STEADICAM OPERATOR: JONATHAN HERRON
LOADER: JAMES WILLIAMS, MATT CHIARELLI
“UNTITLED TRACY MORGAN
PROJECT” PILOT
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: CHARLIE GRUET
OPERATORS: ZACK SCHAMBERG, SEBASTIAN SLAYTER
ASSISTANTS: CASEY JOHNSON, CHRISTOPHER CAFARO, FRANCES DE RUBERTIS, STORR TODD
LOADERS: VICTORIA DUNN, REMINGTON LONG STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS: SCOTT GRIES, KAROLINA WOJTASIK
NETFLIX PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“THE LINCOLN LAWYER” SEASON 4
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ABRAHAM MARTINEZ
OPERATOS: DOMINIC BARTOLONE, WILL DEARBORN
ASSISTANTS: JOE CHEUNG, TODD AVERY, BRANDON DEVANIE, RYAN JACKSON
STEADICAM OPERATOR: DOMINIC BARTOLONE
STEADICAM ASSISTANT: JOE CHEUNG
DIGITAL LOADER: J. CORRIA SOTOMAYOR
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: FRANCESCO SAUTA
“THE WHISPER MAN”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: PETER DEMING
OPERATOR: FRANCIS SPIELDENNER
ASSISTANTS: COURTNEY BRIDGERS, TONY COAN, JAMES DRUMMOND, AMBER MATHES
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: JESSICA TA
LOADERS: JEFF DICKERSON, NATHAN CARR
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: DAVID LEE
UNIT PUBLICIST: JULIE KUEHNDORF
PEACHY CLEAN PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“DTF ST. LOUIS”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JAMES WHITAKER, ASC OPERATOR: BRIGMAN FOSTER-OWENS
ASSISTANTS: SEBASTIAN VEGA, JOHN HOFFLER, MAX JUNQUERA, PAUL SAUNDERS
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: KYLE SPICER
LOADER: TAYLOR SEAMAN
DIGITAL UTILITY: ALEX NGUYEN
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: TINA ROWDEN
PIONEER PRODUCTION SERVICES, LLC
“ON BRAND” SEASON 1
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: MALCOLM SERRETTE, BURKE HEFFNER
OPERATORS: CARLOS GONZALEZ, JACOB GOODWIN, SELENE PRESTON, ALEX ALBA, MICHAEL STEELE
JIB ARM OPERATOR: MICHAEL KIRSIC
CAMERA UTILITIES: STEPHEN REYES, JORDAN LEVIE, ROBERT BENEDETTI, ANTHONY DEFONZO, CAROLYN PENDER, HAROLD ERKINS, JEFF HUCK, SPENCER EDWARDS, ERIK CIMINELLI, BRIAN ANSEL
STEADICAM OPERATOR: NATHAN HUTCHINS
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: JUSTIN WARREN
LOADER: JONATHAN PROENZA
STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS: DAVID HOLLOWAY, CLIFTON PRESCOD, JOCELYN PRESCOD
PRODUCTION CREDITS
REIMAGINED PRODUCTIONS, INC.
“REIMAGINED”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: M. DAVID MULLEN, ASC
OPERATOR: NIKNAZ TAVAKOLIAN
ASSISTANTS: ANTHONY CAPPELLO, BRIAN GIALLORENZO, BRANDON BABBIT, TREVOR BRENDEN
LOADER: NICHOLAS MISISCO
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: LINDA KALLERUS
SONY PICTURES TELEVISION
“JEOPARDY!” SEASON 39
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JEFF ENGEL
OPERATORS: DIANE L. FARRELL, SOC, MIKE TRIBBLE, JEFF SCHUSTER, L. DAVID IRETE
JIB ARM OPERATOR: MARC HUNTER
HEAD UTILITY: TINO MARQUEZ
CAMERA UTILITY: RAY THOMPSON
VIDEO CONTROLLER: JEFF MESSENGER
VIDEO UTILITIES: MICHAEL CORWIN, JEFF KLIMUCK
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: TYLER GOLDEN
“WHEEL OF FORTUNE” SEASON 40
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JEFF ENGEL
OPERATORS: DIANE L. FARRELL, SOC, L.DAVID IRETE, RAY GONZALES, MIKE TRIBBLE
HEAD UTILITY: TINO MARQUEZ
CAMERA UTILITY: RAY THOMPSON
VIDEO CONTROLLER: JEFF MESSENGER
VIDEO UTILITIES: MICHAEL CORWIN, JEFF KLIMUCK
JIB ARM OPERATOR: STEVE SIMMONS
STILL PHOTOGRAPHER: CAROL KAELSON
STAMFORD MEDIA CENTER AND PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“KARAMO” SEASON 3
OPERATORS: VICTOR MATHEWS, RON THOMPSON, CHARLES BEDI, DOMINICK CIARDIELLO, JON ROSE, ED STAEBLER, THOMAS TUCKER
JIB ARM OPERATOR: ANTHONY LENZO
CAMERA UTILITIES: FRANK CAIOLA, ROBERT FRITCHE
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: JOE MANCUSI
“WILKOS” SEASON 18
OPERATORS: VICTOR MATHEWS, RON THOMPSON, CHARLES BEDI, DOMINICK CIARDIELLO, MARC NATHAN, JON ROSE
JIB ARM OPERATOR: ANTHONY LENZO
CAMERA UTILITIES: ROBERT BENEDETTI, FRANK CAIOLA, ROBERT FRITCHE
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: JOE MANCUSI
UNIVERSAL CONTENT PRODUCTIONS, LLC
“THE BURBS” SEASON 2
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JONATHAN FURMANSKI
OPERATORS: TOM VALKO, MARC CARTER
ASSISTANTS: RYO KINNO, BENNY BAILEY, JOSH GREER, JOHN CARREON
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: PASQUALE PAOLO
DIGITAL LOADER: WILLIAM RANDALL
DIGITAL UTILITY: AUSTIN LOGAN
UNIVERSAL TELEVISION
“SUITS LA” SEASON 1
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JOE GALLAGHER
OPERATORS: JASON BLOUNT, DANIEL WURSCHL, PAIGE THOMAS
ASSISTANTS: TONY MARTIN, CHRISTOPHER GARLAND, RICH HUGHES, ALDO PORRAS, GRETCHEN HATZ, TOMMY IZUMI
LOADER: EMILY TAPANES
DIGITAL UTILITY: DILSHAN HERATH
“THE EQUALIZER” SEASON 5
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: TERRENCE L. BURKE, CLIFF CHARLES
OPERATORS: JOE BLODGETT, MALCOLM PURNELL, RICARDO SARMIENTO
ASSISTANTS: STACY MIZE, JELANI WILSON, CHRIS GLEATON, ROB WRASE, ZAKIYA LUCAS-MURRAY, COLIN MORRIS
STEADICAM OPERATOR: JOE BLODGETT
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: TIFFANY ARMOUR-TEJADA
LOADERS: CHRIS BAZATA, ALEX LILJA
STILL PHOTOGRAPHERS: EMILY ARAGONES, MICHAEL GREENBERG
WARNER BROS
“LEANNE” SEASON 1
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: STEVEN V. SILVER, ASC
OPERATORS: EDDIE FINE, DAMIAN DELLA SANTINA, JAMIE HITCHCOCK, JON PURDY
ASSISTANTS: MEGGINS MOORE, SEAN ASKINS, NIGEL STEWART, JEFF JOHNSON, WHITNEY JONES
CAMERA UTILITIES: COLIN BROWN, MATT FISHER
VIDEO CONTROLLER: KEVIN FAUST
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: BENJAMIN STEEPLES
COMMERCIALS
ARTS & SCIENCES
“GEICO”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: MIKE GIOULAKIS
OPERATOR: ANDREW LABOY
ASSISTANTS: LIAM SINNOTT, SEAN FRISOLI, EMILY BROWN
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: TODD BARNETT
CRANE OPERATOR: JOE DATRI
CRANE TECH: JESSE VIELLEUX
HEAD TECH: CHRIS SMITH
BANCHAN, LLC
“BEDFORD PARK”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: DAVID MCFARLAND
OPERATOR: SAM WOOD
ASSISTANTS: MIKE GUASPARI, EDGAR VELEZ
LOADER: MADELEINE KING
BISCUIT
“LIBERTY MUTUAL”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: BEN SERESIN, ASC
OPERATOR: ROHAM RAHMANIAN
ASSISTANTS: MICHAEL FOO, CHRIS SLANY, NOAH GLAZER, ANDREEA CORNEL BAHARA, JUSTIN CHEFE, RIO NOEL ZUMWALT
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: NATALIE CARR
CMS PRODUCTIONS
“PLYMOUTH ROCK ASSURANCE”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: PATRICK RUTH
ASSISTANTS: MARY ANNE JANKE, MICHAEL RODRIGUEZ TORRENT
COMMUNITY FILM
“OLD NATIONAL BANK”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JORDAN LEVY
ASSISTANTS: MICHAEL KUBASZAK, MATT BROWN,
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: ERIC ALMOND
ELEMENT
“DELOITTE”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JONATHAN SELA
ASSISTANTS: JIMMY JENSEN, TRISTAN CHAVEZ
STEADICAM OPERATOR: BRIAN SERGOTT
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: MATT LOVE
HEAD CRANE TECH: LUCAS BALLY
CRANE TECH: NICO BALLY
FELA
“CELSIUS”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: GAUL PORAT
ASSISTANTS: ETHAN MCDONALD, ALAN CERTEZA
STEADICAM OPERATOR: DEVON CATUCCI
LOADER: CRISS DAVIS
HUNGRY MAN
“AMAZON”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: CHRISTIAN SPRENGER
OPERATOR: JEFF BOLLMAN
ASSISTANTS: LIAM SINNOT, JOE SEGURA, JORDAN CRAMER, MELIA HALLER
RONIN OPERATOR: CHRIS HERR
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: MATT LOVE
“ILLINOIS LOTTERY”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ERIC SCHMIDT
ASSISTANTS: JOSEPH BRADY, MATT ARREDONDO
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: JASON HELGREN
REMOTE HEAD TECH: MICHAEL MONAR
FIRST MAN FILMS
“TOPPS BOWMAN”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: TOM CAMARDA OPERATOR: DOUGLAS GORDON
ASSISTANTS: JILL TUFTS, DANIEL MASON, TALIA KROHMAL
ICONOCLAST
“NIKE”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: AUTUMN DURALD, ASC
ASSISTANTS: ETHAN MCDONALD, STEPHEN EARLY, RODRIGUE GOMES
STEADICAM OPERATOR: XAVIER THOMPSON
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: ZACH HILTON
INSOMNIAC
“PLAYSTATION”
DIRECTOR OHF PHOTOGRAPY: KYLE KLUTZ
OPERATOR: JOHN PAUL MEYER
PEANUT GALLERY GROUP, INC.
“CHANEL COCO CRUSH”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: STUART WINECOFF
ASSISTANTS: PAYAM YAZDANDOOST, ERICK AGUILAR, AMANDA DAROUIE
STEADICAM OPERATOR: ARI ROBBINS, SOC
STEADICAM ASSISTANT: ERICK AGUILAR
LOADER: BEN SHURTLEFF
ROAD TRIP FILMS
“SAN DIEGO SAFARI PARK”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: KRISTIAN KACHIKIS
ASSISTANTS: SCOTT KASSENOFF, DANIEL HANYCH
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: CASEY SHERRIER
ROBERTS MEDIA, LLC
“A CHRISTMAS SPARK”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: RYAN GALVAN
ASSISTANT: MICHAEL THOMPSON
STEADICAM OPERATOR: SAWYER OUBRE
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: TRAVIS CANNAN
RUCKUS
“AXE”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: GARRETT DAVIS
ASSISTANTS: CHEVY ANDERSON, WYATT MAKER
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: PAUL SCHILENS
BTS: SHANE DUCKWORTH
SMUGGLER
“GM-LA”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: PATRICK GOLAN
OPERATOR: JOHN SKOTCHDOPOLE
ASSISTANTS: ERICK AGUILAR, ERIC UGLAND, BRYAM AGUILAR, DUMAINE BABCOCK
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: DANIEL HERNANDEZ
SPARE PARTS, INC.
“FOX SPORTS ADIDAS”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JEREMY EMERMAN
ASSISTANTS: J. LOUI LEROY, JOHN WILLIAMS
STATION
“HONDA”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: BILLY PENA
ASSISTANTS: SAMUEL BUTT, JACOB ROSENBLATT, KEVIN MILES
STEADICAM OPERATOR: HARVEY GLEN
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: MICHAEL HARDWICK
THE DEVIL YOU KNOW “SPECTRUM”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: ANTHONY ARENDT
ASSISTANTS: CHRIS TOLL, SAL ALVAREZ, HENRY NGUYEN
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: CALVIN REIBMAN
TOOL
“MENTOS”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: MARKUS MENTZER
ASSISTANTS: CHAD RIVETTI, NATHAN MIELKE
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: RAFFI VESCO
UNSIGNED, LLC
“SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL OPEN 2025”
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: CHUCK OZEAS
ASSITANTS: DENNIS LYNCH, RYAN MHOR, JAY HARDIE, TRAIANA NESCHEVA
STEADICAM OPERATOR: CHRIS CUNNINGHAM
DIGITAL IMAGING TECH: NICK FRY
Email: alanbradenmedia@gmail.com
WARRICK PAGE
THE PITT
I spent more than a decade as a photojournalist in conflict zones, so I was no stranger to real-world mass casualties; that was one of the reasons [Executive Producer] Michael Hissrich brought me onboard The Pitt. This photo was taken on my first day back after a brief absence, and the set was a completely different world than the one I’d left two weeks earlier. Everyone and everything was splattered with blood, and the crew had an even greater sense of determination than before. I knew that shooting a lot of BTS would help show the level of detail and hard work that went into accurately portraying such an incident. Having photographed real-world scenarios firsthand, I’ve seen Hollywood frequently get it wrong, but every department on The Pitt treated it with the care and reverence it deserved. And it shows.
ProductionHUB
ICG Safety App
NEW UPDATES!
Featuring:
U Report safety hazards easily
U Attach files and photos to your reports
U Chat with union reps in real time
U Access and review previouslysubmitted reports
U Get information about our Rides & Rooms program