9 minute read
GAFFER’S CAFÉ•FRANS WETERRINGS III
SHINING A LIGHT ON...
Age// Born// Education// 51 1971 Boston University, Bachelor of Science in Broadcasting & Film
Selected Filmography (as gaffer unless otherwise indicated) The Holdovers (2023) Challengers (2023) Eydie (short) (2022) Spirited (2022) Don’t Look Up (2021) (chief lighting technician) The Tender Bar (2021) Free Guy (2021) Godmothered (2020) Little Women (2019) (chief lighting technician) Equalizer 2 (2018) Okja (2017) The Lost City Of Z (2016) Irrational Man (2015) Moonrise Kingdom (2012) Surrogates (2009) Hachi: A Dog’s Tale (2009)
Lives: I grew-up in Corona Del Mar, California, but made my full-time home on the East Coast in Massachusetts, where I started two companies with my partner David Cambria – Red Herring Motion Picture Lighting, an equipment support business, in 1997, and Red Sky Studios, that has sound stages, in 2014.
Training: I got into the New England International Alliance Of Theatrical Stage Employees in 1995, and was an electrical intern on David Mamet’s Oleanna (1995, DP Andrzej Sekula).
Early career: I spent time between LA and Boston. There was no tax incentive in Boston so work was scarce. I went to LA to do an MTV show, called Undressed (1999), that happened to turn union, which got me into the Local 728. Having that on my resumé opened doors.
Hobbies: At only 13-years of age, my son is an accomplished equestrian, and I spend my free time watching him ride. I obviously love photography and travel. Luckily my passion is my work.
How did you get your first break?
In 2008, I had the opportunity to work with Oliver Wood ASC on Surrogates. I went in for the interview and was asked a lot of questions. I didn’t have the experience for a film that big and Oliver knew it. I said that I would never get approved by a studio unless someone like him gave me a shot. Twenty minutes after the interview was over, Oliver called and said, “This is your shot!”
Did you always want to be a gaffer?
Originally I wanted to be a photographer. My mother’s roommate in college worked at National Geographic, and in my sophomore year in college I was asked to send her my work. I needed a portfolio, so I brought all my best negatives to a lab to process, but they lost them. I gave up and decided to do film instead.
Learning the trade
I have been blessed to have worked for, and under, some great gaffers, including Evans Brown, Raffi Sanchez and Jeff Murrell to name a few. I don’t know that I learned my craft from them – I think you find that on your own – but they greatly influenced the attitude with which I approach my work.
Biggest DP influences
In 2014, I went for an interview on Woody Allen’s film Irrational Man – the DP was Darius Khondji AFC ASC. We hit it off, and I spent the next four years working almost solely with him all over the world.
On each production, we worked through problems. He let me make mistakes, and I learned an incredible amount. We spent time talking about colour, composition and, of course, darkness.
I have worked with some amazing cinematographers, but would say Darius has been the greatest influence on me, and it has been incredibly rewarding. He pushes you to be your best and has opened many doors for me, both personally and professionally. I consider him a dear friend. Oliver Wood ASC would be the other DP who has influenced me the most. He trusts me enough to let me do my thing.
I find that things work best with DPs who are interested in my ideas, who trust me, and who want to collaborate. That puts a spark in me and gets me excited to push the look. But it must be a collaboration.
Who are your regular crew?
When I started as a gaffer, I found that surrounding yourself with people who had more experience was very beneficial, and I have been lucky to have very consistent crew.
Thomas Keenan has been my best boy for as long as I can remember, and Robert Cuddy and Carlos Bermudez have been with me for a long time too. A lot of my sparks have gone on to be gaffers, which is exactly what you want.
I have had an amazing desk op ever since Little Women in Tim Boland. He was a theatre guy and has become an invaluable part of my crew. Tim is a grandMA operator, something different from what you normally see here in the States, and with the evolution of lighting instruments the need for a programmer is essential. He is very creative, and he gets my ‘Frans speak’!
Biggest challenge so far?
I would have to say The Lost City Of Z (2016) with Darius. We started in Belfast and ended in the jungles of Columbia. It was my first experience of being gaffer and key grip. The first big challenge was trying to figure-out and navigate a new system in Belfast. Then it was lighting a very remote jungle location with limited resources.
Every day in Columbia, we loaded boats, travelled up-river, got out and pulled the boats through rapids to get to the location. We had batteries and MacTech LEDs at the time, plus some 4Ks for creating shafts of light. It was mostly making sure we shot around the sun and were inside the tree canopy during the midday period. I brought my rigging gaffer, Josh Dreyfus, and he would move a head and put pulleys up for rags. It was our own Aguirre, The Wrath Of God (1972, dir. Werner Herzog, DP Thomas Mauch), an experience we will never forget.
On Okja, again with Darius, we spent several months shooting in cities and jungles in South Korea. The language and customs were the greatest hurdles. The local gaffer, Jae Hyuk Lee, was essential, a saviour, in fact.
Working On Don’t Look Up, with Linus Sandgren FSF ASC, we had a scene on a battleship at night that stands out as a challenge. Talking about angles, we used so many lights to illuminate the multitude of faces this scene had. Linus liked the ‘wedding cake’ look as we called it. Josh ran miles of cable and data around what was a very difficult location, not to mention it being zero degrees with wind chill.
Images: Frans Wetterings III on Daddy’s Home 2 with Little Frans on-set (photo by Claire Folger), and pictured with Darius Khondji AFC ASC and crew on The Lost City Of Z, and standing-by on Free Guy.
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Which film pushed you most?
Little Women, which was shot by DP Yorick Le Saux AFC, was a difficult film to light. To start it was on celluloid film and took place in the mid-1800s with lots of candlelight. Yorick had a lot of faith in me and let me run with my ideas.
A lot of locations we filmed at would not allow naked flame, so coming up with flickering fixtures was a big focus. I used a lot of DMG Lumière LEDs as a small fire effect, and Quasar Science RGB tubes for fake fireplaces. But, we also had to have enough foot-candles without sacrificing the look. Rigging gaffer Josh Dreyfus and I found lots of options – everything from lanterns, sconces and chandeliers to simple candles electrified in some way. Most worked pretty well, others not at all! Simple, less expensive options worked in the deep background, whilst some of the fancier board-operated fixtures featured more in the foreground. My board op learned to hate hue bulbs during that shoot.
How do you keep up with the latest lighting innovations?
Owning a rental company is a big help. We pretty-much just keep buying the latest and greatest, I suppose, and if I use it, we buy more. There are
I would say Darius Khondji AFC ASC has been the greatest influence on me
some lighting companies I have really taken a liking to – such as DMG Lumière, Creamsource, Astera and Chroma-Q, to name just a few – and we stay on top of what they offer.
Film vs digital
I get called a lot because I do light films shot on celluloid film, which started with Darius on Irrational Man. The truth is that I enjoy both film and digital. They are so different, but I find that I light them in similar ways. I do like the instant gratification that digital production offers, but the wonder and excitement about the unknown when shooting on film is my favourite.
Cinematographer Darius Khondji AFC ASC says:
“I met Frans while casting for Woody Allen’s film, Irrational Man, in Boston. It turned out to be the greatest meeting in years with someone who would become not only a wonderful gaffer, but a dear friend too.
I have only the best, fun memories with Frans on The Lost City Of Z, directed by James Gray, which was like a battle that we fought together in Northern Ireland and then in the jungle in Colombia. Then we went to Korea for another battle on Okja, with another great director, Bong Joon Ho. The best movies are like battles and working with Frans is like having the greatest general at your side.”
Cinematographer Martin Ruhe ASC says:
“I loved working with Frans on The Tender Bar, not only because he is so precise and a master at what he is doing, but also how he runs his crew, his presence on-set and his generosity. The Tender Bar was our first collaboration and we little prep time, which is always a bit nerve-racking. We had some conversations together with key grip Frank Montesanto, and they both understood what I imagined the film to look like. I loved working with Frans – he made it so easy for me.”
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