American Cinematographer - December 2000 - 62

Southern Gothic
Near

right: Annie

uses

down

cards to

predict

Buddy Cole
(Giovanni Ribisi),

visions

emotionally
distraught
garage mechanic.
The porch set

experiences those
through Annie's eyes."
This calculated use of subjec¬
tivity is apparent throughout the
film, particularly during several
flashback sequences. One of these

beautiful

flashbacks shows

one of lessica's
the hotheaded Donnie
Barksdale (Keanu Reeves), recalling

during the
shoot,"

lovers,

cinematographer
Jamie Anderson

an

recalls. "For the

completely
through the
windows. We
wanted the room
to have a sense
of the outdoor
energy

[swirling]

around Annie -
wind blowing

through the
curtains and the
trees outside. I
wanted the light
to kind of find its

way

through the
layers of the
translucent
curtains and

touch her cards
and her face, but
at the same time,
I wanted to keep
the porch very

subdued
warm,

-

but not

bright." Far right:
Framed by a
prop car door,
Reeves prepares

for

an

upcoming
scene.

is

applicable in just about any situa¬
tion. 5279 is a great stock as well, but
I find myself leaning more and more
to 74 [because of its] smooth palette,
fine grain and amazing latitude."
Anderson chose Panavision
and lenses for the show, and
he notes that the Primo 4:1 zoom
cameras

invaluable piece

of his arsenal.
"I probably shot about 90 percent of
the film on the 4:1, primarily at
T2.8," he says. "Sometimes I found
myself opening up one-third of a
stop when the light was a little low or
jumping to a T2.8/4 split when I had
was an

the

room,

tend

but for the most part I

hover

right around T2.8. I'm
not sure why. I think you train your
eye to see a certain level of light, espe¬
cially when you use one primary
stock, and it gets muddled if you
to

venture

too

far outside of that

range. I'm
that stop

happiest around a T2.8;
strikes a nice balance
between a good depth of field and
plenty of separation."
One of the key challenges
Raimi and Anderson faced

on

The

Gift was finding a compelling way to
present Annie's many visions of the
future, each of which required its
own unique style. "When we first
met, Sam and I talked quite a bit
about the different vision sequences
in the movie," Anderson recalls.

"There
60 December 2000

frequently and

moments

set, and we used
it several times

sequences, I
lit almost

more

[it

that the audience

stage by

production
designer Neil
Spisak. "That

day

occur

-

Annie's

with greater clarity, our coverage
becomes much more first-person so

constructed

was a

much more

feels like] a dream world. As

and

on

a

lyrical and supernatural feel

slow-witted

was

a

he continues. "That has

the future for

a

dark country

road to the
place where lessica's body is hidden,"

her Tarot

were

several

of

these

moments
a

in the

different

one

script, and each had
subtext. [For example,]

of Annie's first visions is of her

grandmother's appearance in the
backyard. Her grandmother, we
come to understand, has long since
passed away, but the vision comes at
an unexpected moment and has an
unsettling air of reality that is confus¬
ing for Annie. We didn't want to
complicate that moment with any
visual trickery; we wanted the audi¬
be

argument that occurred during

the duo's last encounter; in addition,
the flashback of
witnessed

the

a

argument is also

shown. "Two different characters
recall the

same

moment,

photographic treatments

for [each

recollection]," Anderson

"We shot Donnie's recollection
a perspective that's close to the
two of them, favoring Donnie's point
says.

from

of view. For the bartender's version
of that moment,

pulled back and
longer lenses from a
distance, separating him and the
we

Annie is
about whether it's really happening,

that when the stormy sky appears
overhead, it has a real impact.
"In another, more dreamlike
vision, Annie finds herself walking

audience from that

so

to

just

as unsure as

and we used

different

shot with

ence

bartender who

more

moment

in

a

objective manner."
In

one

visions, she

of Annie's

sees

more

bizarre

Jessica's bound and
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