|
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
National E-News October 2013 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | NATIONAL SPONSORSMajor National Sponsor
Platinum Sponsors
Gold Sponsors
Bronze Sponsors
National Awards Partners
National Supporters
| In this Issue:
From The President
Greetings ACS colleagues, Its been an absolutely huge month for the ACS! Congratulations to Victorian member, Adam Arkapaw on his success at the recent Emmy Awards in Los Angeles. Top of The Lake Directed by Jane Campion and Garth Davis won the Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie category. Read the article from The Australian: Emmy for Australian cinematographer Adam Arkapaw
ACCREDITATION 2013
Screenings took place at the ACS HQ, where we saw seven members gain their letters. 344# Simon Ozolins VIC Congratulations, you have earned the right to use the letters ACS after your name. It will be my great pleasure to present each of you with your Accreditation pin and certificate at the respective Awards presentations in November. The 2013 Accreditation panel comprised: Ernie Clark ACS CHAIR - SA
LIFE MEMBERSHIPwas bestowed upon the following four ACS members; Warmest congratulations to all three who have given generously of themselves to the Society and the Australian Film & Television industry. To become a Life Member of the Society one must first be nominated to the National Executive. A decision is then based upon whether or not the nominee shall have demonstrated significant or outstanding contributions made in the progress of the goals and objectives of the ACS over several years. These contributions should be clearly recognized, respected, acknowledged and endorsed by the incumbent National Executive and all members who know and have nominated the member.
THE ACS NATIONAL AGMThe AGM was held on Sunday, 15 September, once again at our National Headquarters, attended by 22 delegates representing each Branch of the Society. The following office bearers were elected for the 2013-2014 year. President : Ron Johanson ACS I have included part of my Presidents report below, but to read the full report, maybe set aside a couple of days, click on the link below.
2013 NATIONAL AGM PRESIDENTS REPORT (Part)Good morning all before we begin I would ask we stand and recognise the loss of Tasmanian Honorary Member, Jonathan Dawson, legendary gaffer; Bruce Gailey, Sound Recordist and friend of the Camera Department; Paul Clackers Clark, who all sadly passed away in August, and just recently we lost Melbourne cinematographer Bob Henderson and NSW member Esdra Giddy. A very warm welcome to you all, and particularly to Jason Hargreaves ACS, Miguel Gallagher and Warwick Field. Jason joins us as the new Queensland Branch President, taking over from Simon Russell, who has played a large part at this table, dealing with the revitalising of the web site and associated web matters. Thank you Simon. Welcome to new ACT President Miguel Rodriguez and to new Victorian President, Warwick Field. I thank you all for taking on the responsibilities of leading your Branches into the future. Of course with the election of someone new, we lose two very special people who have led with great distinction for many years. I refer to Robb Shaw Velzen, aka Hyphen and Alan Cole ACS who have both stepped down as Branch Presidents. The commitment to the Society by both Robb and Alan is something they can be very proud of, and we should be very grateful for. Robb has served for over 10 years and Alan 5. I thank them both on behalf of all the members of the Society for their contribution, loyalty, leadership and playing such a large part in the growth of the Society in recent years. That growth by the Society has been made possible by the work of many, not only at this table, but also within each and every Branch. We are a different Society now, and are perceived differently as well. Thank you to each and every one of you and your Branch committees for giving your time, dedication and energy so freely to the Society. It does not go unnoticed to read more click on the link: National Presidents Report September 2013 In closing, I thank you all once again for the honour you have afforded me, by allowing me to be your National President over the past five years. Its been a thoroughly enjoyable and rewarding experience and I am very proud of the ACS, its role within our industry, the generosity of our members and the optimism we all have for the future. Ron Johanson ACS
ROGER DEAKINS CBE BSC ASC Q&A Proudly presented by the ACS and AFTRS
I was privileged to be among those who had the opportunity to meet with FILM ROYALTY, namely Roger Deakins CBE BSC ASC to watch and discuss his film work, work which earned him his most recently the CBE Commander of the Order of the British Empire in this years Queens Birthday Honours List, for his services to film. The event was presented by the ACS and AFTRS, who provided the wonderful venue for the screening of The Assassination of Jesse James by the coward Robert Ford. We were entertained not only by the screening followed by the opportunity to mingle over a lovely lunch, but also enjoyed the informative interview and Q & A session by Kim Batterham ACS, which finished off the day nicely. I thought Id give you just a taste of what we gleaned some of the topics and comments that were discussed were firstly about The Assassination of Jesse James by the coward Robert Ford
THE FILM His first seven years was spent working mainly on Feature Documentaries and Music Videos, some of which he can scarcely remember.Others which he recalled with very fond memories of his life lived and years well spent included: Blue Suede Shoes, Van Morrison in Ireland, Enitra, Zimbabwe, Around the World With Ridgeway which incidentally took him on a nine month around the world yacht race. His career has blossomed to include an abundance of well loved, respected and awarded films including eleven films directed by The Coen Brothers and those where he has worked as a visual consultant. THE COEN BROTHERS, JOEL AND ETHAN VARIETY OF DIRECTORS, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Return to Waterloo, Defense of the Realm, Sid and Nancy, Personal Services, Stormy Monday, Mountains of the Moon, Air America, The Long Walk Home, Homicide, Thunderheart, Passion Fish, The Secret Garden, The Shawshank Redemption, Dead Man Walking, Courage Under Fire, Kundun, The Siege, Anywhere but Here, The Hurricane, A Beautiful Mind, Levity, House of Sand and Fog, The Village, Jarhead, In the Valley of Elah, The Assasination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, WALLE-E, Doubt, Revolutionary Road, The Reader, How to Train your Dragon, The Company Men, Rango, In Time, Skyfall, Rise of the Guardians, The Croods, Prisoners, How to Train Your Dragon 2 FRAMING & LIGHTING While on the topic of lighting he happened to mention that he was shocked when told that he had not had to light The Shawshank Redemption with the implication that it was all naturally lit, he went on to discuss just how many lights had been used to light the particular prison scene being referred too. I guess he should take the comment as a compliment; he obviously achieved that natural look. He explained how on the train robbery scene he had overhead lights on cranes in place ready in case the scene needed them, but the atmosphere that night held the light so nicely that just before shooting he turned them off and relied on the sole use of the 5K Par attached to the train and the outlaws handheld lanterns, saying to anyone who questioned him that the lights on the cranes were Just work lights. Discussing the volume of lights needed on various films, Roger went on to joke that The Coen Brothers used to give him a hard time about his budget for lights, teasing him by saying surely couldnt he just light a scene with only three light globes, as hed done it before in Fargo. When questioned Deakins admits hes not fond of backlighting and prefers the use of contrast of light and dark, as a method of separation although to me he is a master when it comes to the use of the silhouette, using the silhouette to make beautiful memorable and evocative imagery. DEAKONIZER Deakins went to see Otto Nemenz to see how he could improve on the concept he was after in replicating something he had experimented with in photography, where he would place a small lens element in front of a 50mm giving him the vignetting effect he was now hoping to replicate, they ended up using a combination of an old wide-angle stills lens with its front element removed and placing it in front of an ARRI Macro lens. The effect giving a vignette to the image with slight but certainly visible colour aberrations which gave the evocative or even emotive effect to the cinematography, which was the affect he and Director Andrew Dominik were after, to in effect, mimic the look of old time photographs. THE FINAL CUT SPHERICAL OR ANAMORPHIC FORMAT here is just some of the Other Films touched upon: NINETEEN EIGHTY~FOUR ANIMATION HEROS AWARDS
To top the Day off Roger Deakins CBE BSC ASC was presented a framed certificate for his Honorary Membership of the ACS along with the ACS International Award for his work on Skyfall and a bundle of goodies from the ACS including a copy of The Shadowcatchers. His lovely wife, Script Supervisor, James Ellis Deakins who is traveling with him was presented with flowers. Overall a fabulous day to meet a Film Legend, Lizz Vernon
What does RSVP stand for?The letters RSVP stand for Réspondez s'il vous plaît from the French meaning "reply please". RSVP is requested on formal invitations requiring a specific form of etiquette. Etiquette dictates that if you receive an invitation with the letters RSVP printed below the details of the invitation, then you should respond as soon as possible. This makes perfect sense as it is important for anyone organising a large event to be made aware of exactly how many people will be attending the celebration, to organise seating and food & drink for the correct number of people who will attend. Sadly, there were many who said they would attend the Roger Deakins Q&A, but in the end didn't. There were 28 empty seats and we had a waiting list of over 30 who would have given anything to attend this very special event. Maybe next time please think about letting us know if you can't attend so as not to disappoint another ACS member.
ACS LADIES LOUNGE - Erika Addis
In your latest edition of AC Magazine you will find a wonderful article about the ACS Ladies Lounge written by Erika Addis. Mind you, you'd be hard up to find who wrote the highly informative piece as Erika's name got lost between the pages and the double page spread lays author-less. Along with the support of our esteemed leader Ron Johanson ACS, the ACS Ladies Lounge is growing in size, bringing to our attention how important the issue of dwindling numbers of women cinematographers is. Please take the time to read the article and to check out the
Open Letter of thanks to Robb Shaw Velzen
I know you are all very busy people, but I just wanted you to take a minute to think about our outgoing President and the significant achievements he is responsible for here in the ACT Branch. I recently took over the ACT Branch as President after Robb retired due to family and business interests. Luckily for us he is staying on as Vice President. For those of you that dont know, I believe he has been President of the ACT Branch for 13 years and pretty much single handedly got our Branch to a viable financial place with good membership levels. Robb continued to grow the membership, and fostered an atmosphere where both old and new members felt comfortable. He was also the driving force behind the ACT Branch hosting the National Awards in Canberra on two separate occasions. While other members have come and gone, Robb has remained steadfast to the ACS cause with Paul by his side as ACS Branch Treasurer. Thank you Robb. Miguel Gallagher
ACS STATE & TERRITORY AWARDS
The state awards happen throughout November. I ask you all to support the Society and our hugely talented cinematographers by booking your tickets on the ACS web site for the respective ACS State & Territory Awards. The dates are as follows: Ticket booking is available through the ACS website Just Click Here! SEATS ARE LIMITED SO BOOK NOW TO AVOID ANY DISAPPONTMENT.
UPGRADE YOUR MEMBERSHIP?Have you considered upgrading your membership status? For instance, from Active to Full, if you are now a person who is and has been active as a professional cinematographer in the motion picture or television industry for a period of five years or more. Or if you joined as a Student member but are now professionally employed and therefore could upgrade to Active. An Active member is a person who is a cinematographer but does not meet the qualifications of a full member including (but not limited to) camera operators, focus pullers, clapper loaders and data wranglers. Or maybe you joined as an Associate member but would now qualify as Active or Full member. Please contact your Branch President or Membership Co-ordinator to put your membership change in place. The Society urges you to review your membership status and take this step to a higher level of membership. It will be a positive step forward for you and the Society!
CHANGE YOUR LIFE WITH AN AFTRS QUALIFICATION
AFTRS Australias national screen arts and broadcast school provides the best opportunities, education, contacts and experiences in Australia to get you on your way to a career in the industry. Applications are open now until November 1 for the 2014 intake. Entry is by merit selection only. aftrs.edu.au/awardcourses With courses on offer at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels delivered by some of the best practitioners in the country, in one of the best equipped film schools in the world, an AFTRS qualification can be life-changing.* *AFTRS was voted top #20 film school in the world by The Hollywood Reporter in 2012, when it ranked all international film schools.
ACS HQ REPORT September 2013September has been another really busy month for the HQ. Ian Nicholson a NSW member, has commenced another 5 weeks of his classes: Introduction to Film Making on Wednesday nights for his students. Pieter de Vries ACS again has had some overseas assignments this month, but has still managed time to conduct several of his very successful DSLR workshops. The NSW Drop In this month featured NSW member Peter Barta and his new Movi Stabilized camera rig and Stefan Sedlmeier from our National sponsor ARRI Australia demonstrated their new anamorphic lenses that are now available. Videocraft another National sponsor have fully upgraded the audiovisual system in the theatre area. A new Blu- ray surround theatre system from sponsor Panasonic fits in perfectly with the new separate vision and sound mixing system that Videocraft have supplied and installed. The ACS Accreditation screenings were held in early September and the new audiovisual system allowed for this important event to run very successfully. The judging of the NSW/ACT awards took place this month with 2 long successful days of fantastic pictures for the judges to view and assess. This will make for a very successful night at the Masonic Centre Sydney on November 9 when the Awards will be presented.
A new ACS Wall of Memory was unveiled in the Bruce Hillyard ACS Reading Room by our Historian Ron Windon ACS. This Wall of Memory is dedicated to cinematographers and colleagues whose lives have been lost in the pursuit of their craft. Mylene and Malcolm Ludgate ACS generously donated this beautiful piece in memory of a friend who had died accidentally, and is remembered on the Wall of Memory. South Australian member JoAnne Bouzianis-Sellick was responsible for its design, manufacture and installation.
ACS PATRONS WALL OF CAN DO
It is with the support and generosity of our ACS Patrons that the Society is able to continue to expand and upgrade the HQ facilities for the benefit of all our members. Thanks to Peter James ACS ASC, Ernie Clark ACS, Pieter de Vries ACS and Mylene & Malcolm Ludgate ACS for their generous contributions.
A POSTCARD OR THREE FROM JOHN & LOUISE SEALE IN ALASKA
ACS SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT Showreelfinder forges alliance with Australian Guilds
Professionals in our industry make Showreelfinder.com their first stop when seeking the best and brightest talent available. Showreelfinder has now forged sponsorship partnerships with the Australian Directors Guild (ADG) the Australian Production Design Guild, and is an ongoing National Gold Sponsor of the ACS. This expands their networking efforts to a greater pool of potential employers. Showreels are viewed by industry professionals and decision makers who are actively seeking the most talented and creative individuals in their chosen fields. Showreelfinder has syndicated sites in Australia, New Zeeland and Asia, and offers dedicated online support to subscribers and visitors. Show your reel where it can be seen by the people that matter. For more information, visit Showreelfinder online at www.showreelfinder.com
ACS HQ BRUCE HILLYARD ACS READING ROOMA reminder to you all that we have an extensive range of both reading material with over 600 titles and DVDs available in the Bruce Hillyard ACS Reading Room. We are gradually putting in place a collection of Australian and International films shot by our ACS members. To see the collection of books currently available click on the link: Reading Room List
WHAT'S NEW ON THE ACS WEBSITE!Our new ACS web manager Lizz Vernon has done a wonderful job bringing the ACS website content up-to-date, with the addition of some new features. To find them, click on the following links: ARRI ZEISS A TRIP TO REMEMBER EVENTS SHOWREEL & HIGHLIGHTS
MOVIE REVIEW BLUE JASMINE by James Cunningham (ACS Victorian member)
While the narrative comparisons to the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire (1947) are abundant, there are also contextual similarities to Woody Allens latest picture Blue Jasmine (2013). Suffering a nervous breakdown after divorcing her husband Hal (Alec Baldwin), Jasmine (Blanchett) travels to the picturesque setting of San Francisco to live with her sister Ginger (Sally Hawkins) and her sisters fiancée Chili (Bobby Cannavale). Similar in setup to Williams original play, which sees the character Blanche Dubois visit her sister Stella in New Orleans under similar circumstances. However the Allen manages to pull of a fresh take on the seminal American work, with his trademark laissez-faire approach and with great provision from the films star: a knockout Cate Blanchett. It should be pointed out that Blanchett played the role of Blanche Dubois to great critical acclaim in the Sydney Theatre Companys revival of Streetcar, which toured the US in 2009. Baldwin, too, has played the role of Stanley twice. It is evident that here have been remakes and re-imaginings of Streetcar the world over. Elia Kazans 1951 film version being the most prevalent, which we can all thank for entering Stellaaa! into our lexicons. Allens Blue Jasmine is really no different to the rest in that sense, but this is certainly not just another re-make. Its Allens re-telling of an original work in his own unique way, in the way that Kurosawas Throne of Blood (1957) was a re-writing of Shakespeares Macbeth. Typical and expected direction from Allen, and a simple laid-back approach from Spanish Cinematographer, Javier Aguirresarobe, whos career of more than sixty features have include films as varied as Vicky Christina Barcelona (2006, another Allen collaboration) to the Twilight Saga (2009). Interestingly Aguirresarobe and Allen have chosen to shoot in Blue Jasmine in CinemaScope - which Allen previously used on Manhattan (1979) shot by The Godfather Cinematographer Gordon Willis. But what makes Allens Blue Jasmine different from historys other Streetcar incantations? Why does Blue Jasmine come with this reviewers recommendation, especially to Australian audiences? One reason Blanchett. Cate Blanchett embodies Jasmines nervous breakdown flawlessly, seeming like a raw nerve constantly being scratched. It is with morbid fascination that we keep watching her, almost memorized. You may even feel guilty for laughing; except that Blanchett knows exactly where to draw the line. Even more an incredible feat when you understand Allens off-screen directing style. Allen is incredibly hands off when it comes to his team of actors. He rarely auditions for roles, preferring to cast based on an actors existing body of work. He doesnt rehearse, preferring to rely on the actors own preparations. Actors often arrive on-set for the first time never having met the director, and after the cameras start rolling he lets them perform, unsaddled. He has been called the ultimate actors director by some, and lazy by others however he has brought no less than 14 of his leads to Academy Award nominations and wins, including Diane Keaton (Annie Hall, 1977), Michael Caine (Hannah and Her Sisters, 1986), Dianne Wiest (Bullets Over Broadway, 1994), Mira Sorvino (Mighty Aphrodite, 1995), Sean Penn (Sweet and Lowdown, 1999), and Penelope Cruz (Vicky Christina Barcelona, 2008) to name a few. Blanchett is in good company. Blue Jasmine is a movie for film-lovers, and Cate-admirers alike.
CML LINKS Courtesy: David Walpole (ACS WA member)http://www.cinematography.net/Aerials_Of_A_Moving_Train.htm
IMAGO: Inspiration - MASTERCLASS Vienna
The date is rapidly approaching for the IMAGO INSPIRATION Masterclass and a final line up of guests speakers has been finalised. The ACS are represented by Peter Weir & Russell Boyd ACS ASC with Dick Marks OAM acting as Moderator and Director; Christine Jeffs and John Toon ACS NZCS with Moderator, French cinematographer and Wallaby supporter; Richard Andry AFC See more details here and at the same time take a look at the new refreshed design of the IMAGO website.
A LETTER FROM NT BRANCH STUDENT MEMBER MAXIM HUSSEY
Dear Ron, We are planning on entering the 612 ABC Radio Promo competition again; with hopes of creating a sequel for the animation we did for last years winning entry. ( 612 Promo Scratch'n Productions) All the best,
EXPOSED DOWN UNDER 2014Exposed Down Under is proud to introduce our speaker line up of Rob Adams, Abraham Joffe, Matt & Katie Ebenezer, Matt Scott, David Watson & Wil Paredes.
Level 2, 26 Ridge Street, North Sydney NSW 2060 Ph: 02 8920 8535 HQ Manager: David Lewis ACS email UnsubscribeYou have received this correspondence because you are a member or affiliate of the ACS.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
© 2019 Australian Cinematographers Society | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
