American Cinematographer - May 2004 - 10

At the beginning ofeach year, the SundanceFilm Festival
tests the mettle of movie

journalists from all corners of
globe. Given the hundreds of films screened in Park
City, Utah, it takes planning and determination to get thor¬
ough coverage; this year, AC canvassed the beat with four
contributing writers (John Calhoun, Jay Holben, Jon
Silberg and Pat Thomson) and two editors (Rachael Bosley
and yours truly). Four of us donned our cold-weather gear,
burning calories with repeated climbs up Main Street
(never a cakewalk when one is wearing heavy boots at
high altitude), while Messrs. Calhoun and Holben caught
off-site screenings in New York and L.A., respectively.
After taking in dozens of films, we all conferred to
determine which titles would be covered in this issue; as always, those with exceptional
cinematography made the final cut. Flowever, we saw so many well-shot pictures that we'll
present additional articles on Sundance projects throughout the year, as they are released
theatrically.
Our special section on the festival's finest, which begins on page 62, offers insights
about six of the most accomplished projects. First up are the entries that earned the Best
Cinematography prizes in the Dramatic Feature and Documentary competitions: November,
shot by ASC member Nancy Schreiber, and Imelda, photographed by Feme Pearlstein. The
rest of our selections boast impressive creative contributions by cinematographers Robert
Primes, ASC (Baadasssss!), Xavier Perez Grobet (The Woodsman), Jim Denault (Maria Full
of Grace) and Anthony Dod Mantle, DFF (Dogvllle). An additional Sundance favorite, Open
Water(sbot in shark-infested waters by the intrepid Chris Kentis and Laura Lau) is detailed
in Points East (page 117).
In keeping with the theme of independent achievement, we also sought out the
cinematographers of two other projects that stay true to the indie ethos: Homework (shot
by Richard Rutkowski), which earned the Slamdance Film Festival's Grand Jury Award, and
My Big Fat Independent Movie (shot by Scott Peck), an affectionate parody of some wellknown classics of the genre. Both stories appear in Production Slate, which begins on
page 24.
Of course, we haven't forgotten about the opposite end of the budgetary spectrum.
We're especially excited to see Van Helsing, which gave Allen Daviau, ASC the opportunity
to work on a canvas of truly epic dimensions. Associate editor Douglas Bankston spent
several sessions with Mr. Daviau to get the inside story on the film ("Monster Hunter," page
36), which pits its titular hero against an array of Universal Studios' classic fiends-includ¬
ing Count Dracula, Frankenstein's monster and Mr. Hyde.
Unfortunately, evil is not restricted to the world of fiction, as the new CBS telefilm
Helter Skelter reminds us. Shot by Don FauntLeRoy, ASC, this intense drama revisits the
infamous 1969 murder spree by followers of cult guru Charles Manson, who remains in
prison for his grisly deeds. AC contributor Jon Silberg paid a visit to the set, where he
observed the production's commitment to authenticity ("The Mind of a Madman," page 52).
This issue of ACalso acknowledges this year's Sci-Tech award winners ("Advancing
the Art Form," page 99), as well as all of the cinematographers nominated for both ASC and
Academy Awards ("Images That Linger," page 86). For those of you who were unable to
attend the ASC Awards, our pictorial recap ("Cinematographers in the Spotlight," page 89)
captures the evening's highlights.
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American Cinematographer - May 2004

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Cinematographer - May 2004