American Cinematographer - January 1994 - 42

Careful

crew

members

exercise
touch as

a

soft

Roberts is
hurled
a

through

stunt scene.

the time.

about it?

Greenberg: That's right. We
all have to grow up.
Goldblatt: It's not

a

perfect

world. (Smiles.)

Greenberg: (Chuckles.) That's
right. It's not a perfect world.
Goldblatt: It should be, but it
isn't. That kind of

attitude,

com¬

bined with a top crew, people
who are just technically unfazed
it's just wonderful. In every
area. It makes a
very interesting
-

day. You can have fun with it.
Technically, there's not much to
talk about because words

are

words and

pictures are pictures.
Greenberg: It sounds like a
lot of attention was paid to the
pictures - the intent of the pic¬
tures.

Goldblatt: Yes. A lot. And

what

tion. I

came

to

a

realization: this

is what it's about when

making

a

film

you're

that

everyone
is there to be used and to be en¬
-

couraged. If that happens to me,
it encourages me to do better
work, and to encourage Colin
and Georgie. I might say, "Listen,
this has just come up, we've got
to do a shot that's going up a
stairwell, and can you rig a
bosun's chair..I don't ask them
how they'll do it, I ask "Can you
do it? And is it safe?" I like that.
The crew is encouraged to look at

Greenberg: Unfortunately,
given to that in
a lot of films
today.
Goldblatt: That's why I like
working with Alan. Because it's

videotape, because by the time
you've shot the thing it becomes
a
pretty personal judgement by
the director and myself. Input at
that point, it's kind of, "enough."
Greenberg: So you didn't
use the
playback much - it was

almost

rigorous. There's a real
analysis of what you're doing all

more

American

January 1994

they were saying in terms of

the story.
not much time is

40

Every scene is changed
during rehearsal or during shoot¬
ing, in terms of concept. Alan is
so
open to collaboration: people
are always encouraged to come
up with ideas. I've not experi¬
enced such a willing collabora¬

Cinematographer

used during the take
than to look back at it.

rather

Goldblatt: Yes. We'd play it
back sometimes. It was always
there. But we didn't shoot many

takes, which makes
difference. You

an

incredible

the day
by not shooting seventeen takes.
Greenberg: Did you find that
can save

because there
scenes,

there

were

a

lot of

were more com¬

plex blockings of scenes, so they
would play in one shot, result¬
ing in less cutting? Was there a
stylistic effort that way?
Goldblatt: Quite often, yes. I
like to do it like that anyway,
and Alan definitely does. Not as
much maybe as in Consenting
Adults. Of course that wasn't
such a photographic film. But

certainly we like to do it like that.
The coverage is intended to be
specific. It's not 360-degree cover¬
age - it's not a master, reverse
master, medium shots, over-the-

shoulders, singles. It just doesn't
work like that. It's

ups.

specific closeI'm not saying that what

we've done
tention

was.

worked, but the in¬
.

.

Greenberg: The intention is
important in terms of how it feels
American Cinematographer - January 1994

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