American Cinematographer - April 2002 - 10

Ihe rapid rise of digital image-capture, in the field

and in the media, has stirred up considerable
debate in cinematography circles. Veteran directors

photography have occasionally been accused of
resisting this technology in favor of their tried-and-

true

methods, but it should be obvious to educated

observers that

cinematographers - who are always
the earliest adopters of new tools and tech¬
niques - are merely attempting to defend the sanc¬
tity of the onscreen image.
In other words, most cinematographers are
perfectly willing to work with a new format if they
feel that the resulting imagery is up to the high stan¬
dards maintained by any serious artist, and that the tools at hand are right for the job.
Many well-known and respected directors of photography have already begun exper¬
imenting with digital image-capture, and most of them are prepared to accept this
new brush for their palette - if it allows them to record an image that's both aesthet¬
ically interesting and technically acceptable.
Among the industry's "digital pioneers" are cinematographer Patrick Stewart
and director Mike Figgis, who teamed with two other camera operators on the adven¬
turous 2000 feature Time Code, which told its story in four separate DigiBeta quad¬
rants on the screen. Intent on refining and advancing their initial experiment, Stewart
and Figgis enlisted operators James O'Keeffe and Lucy Bristow for their mind-bend¬
ing DVCam followup Hotel ("A Hostile Lodging," page 36). Associate editor Doug
Bankston, who won a Maggie Award for his in-depth coverage of Time Code (see AC
April '00), did an equally fine job of interviewing Figgis and his team about their latest
cutting-edge production.
This issue of AC also presents the inside scoop on a number of other digital
projects, including the French thriller Vidocq, shot by Jean-Pierre Sauvaire ("A Master
Sleuth," page 48) and the CBS television drama The Education of Max Bickford, shot
by Michael Mayers ("Lessons in Hi-Def," page 58). Our annual roundup of the
Sundance Film Festival (page 80) otters insights from Ellen Kuras, ASC, whose impres¬
sive work on the feature Personal Velocity- which she shot in the MiniDV format
earned her the event's Excellence in Cinematography Award. Digital cinematogra¬
phy is also addressed in articles on the low-budget feature Peak Experience and the
motocross documentary A Day in the Dirt (Production Slate, page 24), the acclaimed
Afghanistan exposes Beneath the Veil and Unholy H/ar (Global Village, page 14) and
the short films Different Places and Fault (Short Takes, page 107).
Last but hardly least is our interview with cinematographer Theo Van de Sande,
ASC and director Carl Franklin, who teamed up on the 35mm thriller High Crimes ("A
Marriage Linder Siege," page 68).
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American Cinematographer - April 2002

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