American Cinematographer - September 1985 - 32

director of

photography relation¬
ship philosophy I respect is the
one where you get to challenge his
ideas. In the first three weeks,
Roger learned everything and I
wasn't in a position to challenge
him, but then I moved my posi¬
tion, and he was solid on his no¬
tions and concepts, and that's
what's inspiring for a project."
The veteran cinematogra¬
pher maintains that early discus¬
sions surrounding a new movie
should not (and cannot afford to)
involve themselves with the "look
of the movie," but should empha¬
size what the "point of the movie"
is. "The concept IS the movie," he

Adam's vision.
Below: Simon and

"what you'll
urally, and you

says,

McAlpine confer.

see

evolves

nat¬

of incredible intel¬
ligence and, I think, intuitive judg¬
ment. His opinions are solid, and
man

he's definite about his sense of the
dramatic and his visual concept."
to do what he'd seen
other first-time directors do,
which was to surround themselves
with lesser talent they could domi¬

Refusing

nate,

Simon opted for superior tal¬

that would

guide him into his
job, and he did it in a very short
time, according to McAlpine.

ent

"I've worked with

a

lot

of first time directors," he says,
"and it's a very interesting war in

maintaining control and dominat¬
ing, making sure everybody's
happy, all things that don't in¬
trigue me anymore. The director-

30

American

Cinematographer

to

be.
"We have

in

lot of

a

scenes

futuristic-looking high school,
classrooms all glass, with lots of
space, alienating and grotesque. It
created for us monstrous prob¬
lems. The biggest problem for me
a

is to have to restrict a director
from tracking past a certain point.
I try to not put any
ideas or options."

limits

his

live and work with the

exaggerated modernism required
some
wide-angle depictions. "A

you some

of their overexposure in
television movies of the week. San

he liked its director, Roger

more

are a

instance, but Inside Adam Swifs

cause

Simon, "a

partic¬
lot
sophisticated than they used
any

ular shot, and audiences

(for Paul Mazursky's Tempest) and

feeling, and from that you try to
blend an interpretation of your
concept, just as an actor would."
Choosing San Diego over
Los Angeles and San Jose, Phoenix
and the San Fernando Valley
proved to have a significant influ¬
ence over the look and pace of In¬
side Adam Swit. Simon rejected
L.A. and its neighboring cities be¬

cause

light is coming from in

lover of

Greeks, and that gives

accepted it also be¬

light must have
to it," says McAlpine.
"It doesn't have to be absolute
Southern California light, but
we're not disguising that it is ei¬
ther. It's disturbing to an audience
if there's no logic to where the
logic

some

cannot impose
outside elements on it because
then you'll be faking it. You get to
a remote Greek island location
you

He

about is that the

Jose turned out to be too wet and
cold, Arizona showed more
Southwest flavor and desert terrain
than the story needed. "We
wanted to do a satire of high tech
and the dehumanization of high

tech,"

says

co-producer Missel,

who with Simon interviewed high
school students in San Diego and
Pacific Palisades and the Valley be¬
fore writing their script. San Di¬

it turns out, has one of the
highest growth real estate markets

ego,

McAlpine is
extreme

on

not a great

wide

angles, for

lot of the scenes in the house 1 did
with a 24 lens, some even with a
14,

which is

immensely

an

exagge¬

rated perspective. But if you keep
the shots symmetrical with the

walls, they won't distort if you
don't tilt or boom. The point is of
course to create an emotion or an
attitude without distracting."
The white walls and
white pieces of furniture created a

problem of another
texture.

"You have

sort - one of
work really

to

hard to keep the light off the walls
and on the people so it can lend
itself to the softest style of light¬

ing. Otherwise,

you

end

up

with

a

blob instead of textured walls in

scenes," he

says. Part of the
production's de¬
sign is meant to disturb and disori¬
ent. And while laboring to attain a
naturalistic fluidity for this film,
McAlpine was equally aware of
the need to keep some elements

your

starkness of the

in the United States. Its look is
clean and modern, and as produc¬

"cold and austere." Where he

tion manager

Richard Hashimoto
correctly observed, its permit fees
are cheaper ($1000 a day to rent
out the big sprawling house as op¬

ment

posed to $2500 in L.A.) and its
policemen and firemen restrictions

ever, was

are more

reasonable.
"The first thing I

September 1985

could, he

says, he tried to "supple¬
the uncomfortable stark¬
ness" and let it hold its own tone.
The one notion he abso¬

lutely refused
style

on

submit

to,

how¬

that you're going with a
closed mind before you start. If
means

think

to

that he should dictate a
the project. "To me, style
American Cinematographer - September 1985

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