American Cinematographer - October 1998 - 66

Swanky Modes
A sequence of
frame-grabs from

the show
illustrates Aaron

Schneider's

the

remnants

the current,

create a

compelling
subjective angle;
(2) An
uncorrected

daylight-balanced
fluorescent adds
caricature to

a

involving
Buddy's lawyer

scene

and his nurse,
while a Power
Window placed
over the actress's
head preserves
and highlights
her platinumblonde hair; (3)
Noir touches

(naked lightbulbs
and an oldfashioned fan)
underscore Bob's

bumbling nature;
(4) A low angle
and

a

Schneider:

a
television show. I wanted

tungsten fixtures
add pizzazz to
this shot of

Buddy "drunk in
the gutter" at a
bowling alley; (5)
The domineering
personality of
Bob's girlfriend is
highlighted by
Schneider's
allusion to the

lighting style of
German

Expressionism.

tance

modern

doing something different. They
used a cross-processing technique on
Clockers, which gives you a negative

couple of bad days with a lot of
phone calls, but Charlie stood up for

of the

president of postproduction at
Spelling, was also supportive. While
we were shooting, I got a great call

a

more

[color]

on

music

that intercuts with the

rest

footage. The side effect of the latter is
very strange and peculiar color
rendition. I processed normal

edgy sort of stuff, but it's
very colorful if you handle it right.
Reversal is also a very slow-speed

because I wanted

film and I liked the idea that it would

positive print.
And you'd previously applied
this technique to music videos?
Schneider: Yes, a couple of
times three or four years ago. I

ous

and

force

into methods and tech¬

me

niques more reminiscent of cine¬
matography before technical advance.
As a result, Buddy Faro is a more
colorful, contrasty and nostalgic
vision of modern-day Hollywood.
Because the final product of reversal
film is a positive print, the film trans¬
fer

was

more

reminiscent of

our

favorite films of yesteryear as seen on
video today.
Tom Overton:

has

Buddy Faro also

1960s

"optical printer" look.
Wipes that are considered passe
today were used extensively in transi¬
a

tions.

you

of reversal film did

use?
Schneider:

We

used

two

remembered

production. I

beautiful

The film kind of breathes

alive. I also did

and

some

as

if it's

research and

found out which lenses cinematogra¬

a

a

top guy at

Spelling, who thought the show
a

movie. That meant

a

lot

The

biggest concern was
processing, but Yale Laboratories
really came through for us with an
us.

effort.

extra

Yale is the

only lab that is
presently processing 35mm reversal
film

on

the West Coast, and it

runs

about four times slower

through the
soup. They could only turn out
approximately 8,000 feet a day, and
would need 24 hours to begin the
turnaround. We ultimately convinced
those concerned that a one-day delay
wasn't going to be the end of the

world. We

landing on
exaggerated, wide-angle approach

the world of these characters,

with reversal?

Mannix, Cannon and MacMillan and
my

that I wanted

a

assistant
decent

cameraman

set

of [Panav-

ision] Ultraspeeds that were func¬
tional, but not too functional, if you

to

were

actually came in under
budget for exposed film too. At one
point on the set Charlie blurted out,
'When I work with you, Aaron, I'm
in my minimalist period.' I took it as
a compliment. You know,
quality
over
quantity.
Did you do any tests before
committing to the idea of shooting

phers used 20 years ago on shows like

an

reversal

how

grainless it looked. The grain struc¬
ture looks equivalent to [Eastman
EXR] 5248 or 5245. It has a fluttery
quality. The film's density varies in
areas of middle gray and mid-tones.

know what I

to

from Duke Vincent,

to

rich
trimmings of a

There

the idea, and Ken Miller, the vice

looked like

Kodak Ektachrome films in 35mm

125-speed film
[5240] balanced for tungsten, and
the other is a 160-speed film [5239]
balanced for daylight. My friends at
Kodak were very helpful in quickly
generating these two stocks for our
production. An entire section of their
manufacturing plant had to be

Schneider:

its sort of "newsreel" quality with

format. One is

a

reversal for

to use

Ektachrome?

blacks and all the

Wife. I told
What type

Did you encounter any resis¬
to the idea of using the

film looks like onscreen, but I was

videos, so I knew it was really danger¬

converted
64 October 1998

Clockers [shot

They're beautiful.

want

I decided to shoot with

reversal film. I've used it

great.

by Malik Sayeed, see
AC Sept. '95] to see what Ektachrome

tactile feeling that had its own texture
and patina, like an old-movie look,
so

think everyone in the company and
at the network looked at a print of

kind

didn't

I

Buddy Faro to look like

mixture of

uncorrected
fluorescents and

Hollywood with

run-down version.

Could you describe the
of "retro look" you were after?

artistry: (1)
Uncorrected
warm-white
fluorescents are
combined with a
wide lens to

of old

more

mean.

After

we

ended up never using a lens longer
than 50mm. Plus, I wanted the

option of working at T 1.3 in case of a
"slow-speed emergency." As a result,
our camera

under

and lens rental

came

in

budget. Despite their older
technology, these lenses performed

Schneider: I shot my

standard

exposure test using a gray-scale card
with a human face and colorful fruit
in the frame. I find

of color
is

more

over-

using real objects
readily identify with
telling than a color chart. I

we can

and

underexposed five stops in
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