It’s getting later on a Thursday night and for some reason I’m feeling kind of sentimental, so I’ve decided to write a fairly personal post for you guys. For of those you who don’t know, my passion and calling in the world of film production is cinematography. I have lensed a variety of commercials, award-winning shorts, promotional videos, weddings (video and 8mm film, believe it or not), industrial films and live music acts. In short, you name it, I’ve probably shot it at some point. In the commercial world, there are times of true creative ingenuity, but for the most part, you are limited by what the client or employer desires. For that reason, this post definitely relates more to my shaping as a cinematographer narratively. Who are the five most influential cinematographers to me personally? It’s going to be hard to narrow it down and I won’t be so daring as to try to put them in any order, but here are five true artists who helped change the way I looked at motion pictures.
1. Gianni di Venanzo (1920 – 1966)
Di Venanzo with camera; Francesco Rosi in foreground
Many cinematographers will tell you that one of the primary goals in perfecting the look of an image is finding the perfect balance between light and dark. Perhaps no other cinematographer achieved this more exquisitely than di Venanzo. The man who shot Antonionni’s La Notte and Fellini’s 8 1/2 had amazing control over the contrast of black and white negative. The darkness of the blacks and blazing white highlights, coupled with his distinctive mood influenced lighting style, give all of his films a certified dream-like quality. In looking through the nearly two dozen features he shot over the last 20 years of his life, you can see his personal stamp as an artist and technician indelibly printed. Though the bulk of his work was with black and white negative, di Venanzo proved himself equally as awe-inspiring and versatile in his color work on Fellini’s epic Juliet of the Spirits. Di Venanzo’s work has had such a hold on me that, when filming my directorial debut last fall (which was filmed black and white), his notable style was the only cinematographer’s body of work that I mentioned to our DP in helping define the mood and style of the film. Di Venanzon died in a car accident in Rome while shooting a picture in 1966; it’s a wonder what other wonderful images he could have provided us with had his life not been cut so short.
2. Robert Surtees (1906 – 1985)
Robert L. Surtees
Whereas di Venanzo’s work brightly illuminated his personal flourish, Surtees was that of a chameleon. Whether black and white, color, a bright musical or dark drama, Surtees could handle it all. Many say that the best shot movies are the ones where the images don’t stand out; meaning, the visual beauty is not so much that it distracts from the story. If this could be said of any cinematographer, I think Surtees is a fine example. He was versatile and talented, giving each one of his narratives their own distinct feel. A three-time Oscar winner and fourteen time nominee, Surtees’ work spanned over four decades and included Ben-Hur, The Last Pictures Show, Oklahoma!, King Soloman’s Mines, The Bad and the Beautiful, The Sting and The Graduate. As testament to his versatility in an ever changing industry, when he shot The Graduate in 1967, critics and fans alike heralded it as new, innovative and cutting edge in its look and lighting design; Surtees was 60 years old when he shot this film. A brilliant, brilliant cameraman, I will go out on a limb and say that if I could aspire to any style of another artist, I would like to be as good and versatile as Surtees behind the camera.
3. Jack Cardiff (1914 – 2009)
Jack Cardiff
Another artisan whose work stands out with his personal touch stamped on each and every frame. I have elaborated fondly on the work of Cardiff on this blog in two other posts: Directors who Started as Cinematographers and in my review of the film Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff. To save those loyal readers the pain of my continued adoration of this wonderful cinematographer, I will keep his segment brief. Working his way up from clapper boy in the 1920s, Cardiff became one of the most skilled, if not the most skilled, Technicolor lighting cameraman in the business. His work with the Archers demonstrates some of the most brilliantly colorful palettes of filmmaking in existence. When I think of the correalation between a great painter like Vermeer or Caravaggio in the film business, I think of Cardiff.
4. Gordon Willis (1931 – )
Willis behind the camera
People call Willis the “Prince of Darkness” due to his insatiable desire to push the bottom end latitude to the hilt in exposing his image. His repertoire during the 1970s is almost unmatched with films like both Godfather movies, All the President’s Men, Annie Hall, Klute, The Paper Chase and Manhattan. His style is evident in each and every one, a gritty, dark and moody negative that puts the viewer directly in the story, but still holding a visually stunning image. His style remains very unobtrusive, yet retains a certain classic beauty that leaves viewers pondering the visual panache of the film long after viewing it. Though you may not recognize him by name, his images have all been a strong part of our cinematic histories.
5. Sven Nykvist (1922 – 2006)
Sven Nykvist
The second and longest collaborating Director of Photography with famed Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, Nykvist is best known for his muted colors and soft lighting approach. His work with Bergman alone is enough to solidify him in the annals of the best cinematographers of all-time with films like Persona, Cries and Whispers, Fanny and Alexander and Scenes From a Marriage. But then, he came to work for American and English directors and provided us with further visual gems in films like Chaplin, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, The Sacrifice and Celebrity. The muted, autumn-esque color palette and diffused, yet controlled lighting style that Nykvist incorporated create some of the richest and satisfying, yet subtle images ever put to screen. His work is not necessarily flashy and he was a large proponent of natural lighting, but this minimalist nature, under his control, produced images that are in my opinion works of art.
Of course, there are many more DPs that I love and admire including, but not limited to, Roger Deakins, Robert Richardson, Freddie Francis, Guiseppe Rotunno, Nestor Almendros, Charles Lang, Vittoro Storaro, Gregg Toland, Lazlo Kovacs, John Alonzo and on and on. However, if I have to narrow my influences due to personal taste and whose work most comes to mind when I think of shaping my own images, then these are the gentleman that come first.
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