comment #1

Edward says ...

What a horrible title, but I'd be interested in seeing it. "Visions of Light" is a wonderful film, which I found inspirational in my line of work as a video producer.

comment #2

NYCBusybody says ...

Hmm, not sure what Jeffrey's saying? I'm probably just not thinking on the right wavelength, but I'm not picking up his message. Interested in others' interpretations.

comment #3

Anonymous says ...

Yeah, when I think Vittorio Storaro, I immediately think of Hitler. And, for me, John Toll is the Stalin of our time. What the hell are you talking about, Wells? Being a dictator is not an art form, cinematography is. Art forms communicate using style. Really, this is pretty rudimentary stuff.

comment #4

Anonymous says ...

Maybe they should change the title to "The Cinematographer's War"

comment #5

NYCBusybody says ...

For the life of me, I cannot possibly conceive of what the devil Jeff is talking about. Why is the word "style" offensive? My god.

comment #6

Daniel says ...

"Visions of Light" is a fine doc, but it's also quite remedial. Hmmm... Is "remedial" the word I want there? "Visions" is a simple film, exactly the kind of movie that I would recommend (and have recommended) for a college student who was curious about the art of cinematography, but didn't want to be overwhelmed with information or detail.

So what I'm saying is there's plenty of ground left uncovered by "Visions" when it comes to cinematography, plenty of parts of the art and its -- dear Lord -- "style" to be examined.

But in any case, your analogy has me totally in the dark.

comment #7

Mike Gebert says ...

I think Visions of Light was better than remedial-- there were some wonderful, unexpected clips in it, like the one from the '31 Possessed-- but my thought at the end was-- okay, great introduction, now bring on the other 7 episodes!

comment #8

Daniel says ...

Mike,

I think that's what I meant by "remedial," or maybe why I tried to clarify a bit more. "Visions" lays the foundation. It gives laypeople exactly as much information as they'll ever need to learn. But for people with a genuine fascination, it should be only the beginning, which is why it can't possibly be, as Jeffrey maintains, "definitive." It's the first level. I'd love for "Cinematographer Style" to be a second level, perhaps.

But Jeffrey still needs to explain the evil of the word "style."

-Daniel

comment #9

Edward says ...

I agree with Jeffrey, it's a crappy title. I also hope - like Daniel and Mike - that it's a more indepth look at the art of cinematography.

comment #10

E. Petersen says ...

I had read about this film some time ago. It was touted as the new "Visions of Light" movie. I quickly forgot about it until this past weekend when it was all the talk at CineGear Expo. It seems the movie started out with a few free rolls of film from Kodak some interview with some cinematographers about the job they do. Three years and 110 interview later comes John Fauer's 90 minute documentary, "Cinematographer Style".

I had a chance to see the film on Tuesday and I have to say it's quite good. It by no means, I think, is meant to supplant "Visions of Light" but rather to expand its scope given the new technologies and the creative work that can come from those technologies in the advance of cinema grammar. The film is at times funny and at time intellectual but always informative. The film stays on message by allowing the cinematographers to tell their story and share their viewpoint in their own words without any cutaways.

As to the issue of the word "style", I'm reminded of my early days when I was an assistant cameraman. I had the privilege to have been instructed on film testing by Richard Crudo, ASC (past president of the ASC). One thing he mentioned which as stuck to me to this day is "a cinematographer must have 'style', it's something you can't learn or be taught - it's something that has to come from inside". That is certainly one of the messages of the movie. On numerous occasions during the movie, one cinematographer might say "I always to this" followed by another saying "I'd never do this". It cuts to the point that each cinematographer decides things in their own way given the circumstance presented to them based on internal decision making. These decision become the basis of the "style" of the cinematographer and his or hers work.

I'll agree that the use of the word "style" might lack the gravitas as "Visions of Light" but it certainly delivers on what it sells.

For those interested, the film was shot on 35mm with a DI and printed on Kodak Premier stock.