ROLL THE CREDITS

How does one of horror’s most unsettling sequences go from an idea in a director’s mind to the screen? In the first installment of Behind the Frame , a new Roll the Credits series exploring memorable moments in film through the eyes of the artists who helped create them, we’re revisiting The Conjuring 2 (2016), directed by James Wan. Joining us is storyboard artist James Doh, who worked directly w...

What does it take to bring a cinematographer’s vision to life? This week on Roll The Credits, Christina Chironna sits down with gaffer Chip Carey, whose credits include Django Unchained, 10 Cloverfield Lane, Hush, Special Ops: Lioness, Antebellum, and Primetime, to explore the often-overlooked art of lighting for film and television. From getting his start booking background actors on Runaway Jury...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with first assistant camera Zachary Blosser. Zachary shares the unexpected path that led him into the camera department — from making skate videos with a Hi8 camcorder and discovering a deeper love for cinema through A Clockwork Orange, to landing his first job on a feature film without ever having attended film school. He breaks down what a...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with visual effects supervisor Bodie Clare. Bodie shares the unconventional path that led him into visual effects — from discovering storytelling through Final Fantasy VII and Studio Ghibli to leaving university, teaching himself animation and beginning his career in the industry at just 19 years old. He talks about why his job is often to f...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with cinematographer David Bolen. David shares the path that led him to cinematography — from growing up in Toronto and discovering arthouse films at a young age to developing an instinctual approach centered on subjectivity, emotion and seeing the world through a character’s point of view. He talks about why he sees cinematographers as “emo...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with Justin and Josh of The Blasting Company. Justin and Josh share the path that led them to making music together — from growing up as half brothers and discovering music as a way to spend time together, to developing a creative partnership that has lasted more than two decades. They talk about what it actually means to compose music for f...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with film editor John Axelrad. John shares the path that led him to editing — from studying film production at USC and initially thinking he wanted to direct, to discovering that the editing room was where he truly belonged. They talk about what an editor actually does, why John considers editing the final rewrite of a film, and why only abo...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with producer, writer, and entrepreneur, Daril Fannin. Daril shares the unlikely path that led him to filmmaking — from growing up in a strict religious community where movies were off-limits, to discovering The Matrix at 17, spending nine years as a combat medic, and eventually moving to Los Angeles to pursue screenwriting. They talk about...

On this episode of Roll The Credits, Christina sits down with composer Stephen Rennicks, whose work includes Normal People, Room, The Quiet Girl, Frank, and Conversations with Friends. Stephen shares how he became an “accidental film composer,” why he still thinks of himself as a filmmaker first, and the philosophy that has shaped his work: if you’re listening to the music instead of watching the...

In this episode of Roll the Credits, Christina sits down with Special Effects Supervisor Gareth Wingrove to explore the craft behind some of cinema’s most memorable practical effects. Gareth shares how growing up on film sets led him into special effects and takes us inside a department responsible for everything from explosions, car chases, rain, snow, and fire to the subtle atmospheric effects a...

In this episode of Roll the Credits, Christina sits down with Foley Artist Shelley Roden of Skywalker Sound to explore one of filmmaking’s most invisible and emotionally powerful art forms. Shelley shares how childhood favorites like The Dark Crystal, The NeverEnding Story, The Muppets, and Tom and Jerry first awakened her imagination, and how an unexpected sound assignment at Ithaca College ultim...

In this episode, Christina sits down with makeup and hair designer Rebecca Buratto. Rebecca grew up in Adelaide, Australia planning to become a sound engineer. Then she watched Lord of the Rings (specifically the Orcs) and decided she wanted to make people look ugly for a living instead. She studied media makeup, landed her first TV job on a bizarre Australian comedy about Hitler's dinosaur ar...

In this episode, Christina sits down with Pierre Coffin — the filmmaker who has directed or co-directed every film in the Despicable Me and Minions franchises, and voices every single Minion. Pierre grew up moving across Asia — the son of a French diplomat and the celebrated Indonesian novelist Nh. Dini. His childhood spanned Cambodia, Japan, and eventually a suburb of Paris. His father forbade te...

In this episode, Christina sits down with still photographer Lou Bopp. Lou never went to photography school. He grew up in St. Louis obsessed with the Magnum photographers (Elliott Erwitt, Sebastião Salgado, James Nachtwey) but didn't think he could do it professionally. That changed when he happened to be visiting a friend in Germany the week the Berlin Wall came down. He stepped through a ho...

In this episode, Christina sits down with lead sculptor Alexander Sherrod. Alex grew up in New Orleans obsessed with Ghostbusters. As a kid, he'd stuff Play-Doh figures with fireworks and film them blowing up. After Hurricane Katrina, he moved home and got a job at Mardi Gras World, where he was sculpting floats within months. A decade later, a cold call landed him his first film gig — Barry J...

In this episode, Christina sits down with storyboard artist James Doh. James originally studied automotive design before two of his professors, both concept artists, pulled him into the film industry. His first job was at the legendary main title company Imaginary Forces, where he worked on David Fincher's Seven. He's since spent three decades storyboarding for directors including David Fi...

In this episode, Christina sits down with stop motion animator Sarah de Gaudemar. Sarah grew up in the Midwest, where the entertainment industry felt impossibly far away. She found stop motion in college and broke into the industry on MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch in the mid-90s. She's since animated for some of the most iconic stop motion features and series of the past three decades, includ...

In this episode, Christina sits down with Oscar-nominated production designer Fiona Crombie. Fiona trained as a theatre designer in Sydney, spent ten years in Australian theatre, then crossed into film through her longtime collaborator Justin Kurzel — first on commercials and music videos, then on his debut feature, The Snowtown Murders. She's since designed films for directors including Yorgo...

In this episode, Christina sits down with costume designer Blair James. Blair never planned to be a costume designer. She was an acting student dressing a college musical because the production couldn't afford one. The costumes won her a national award. A few years of LA celebrity styling later, she got the call to costume design Obsession — her first feature. She walks us through it all: blin...

In this episode, Christina sits down with gaffer Julian White. Julian started out as a painter. Thirty years later, he's lit films for Werner Herzog, Ridley Scott, Robert Eggers, and John M. Chu — including The Martian, Crazy Rich Asians, and Rescue Dawn. He walks us through it all: three months of chaos in Thailand with Werner Herzog on Rescue Dawn, what it's like to light fire-only sets...

In this episode, Christina sits down with Oscar-winning filmmaker and concept artist Brandon Oldenburg. After watching Raiders of the Lost Ark in third grade, Brandon went home, bought a used Super 8, and started making movies. Decades later, he co-founded Reel FX in 1995, Moonbot Studios in 2009, and Flight School in 2017 — picking up an Academy Award along the way for The Fantastic Flying Books...

In this episode, Christina sits down with scenic painter Rut Villamagna to explore the meticulous craft behind some of cinema's most iconic creatures, props, and worlds. After getting her start on Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth in Madrid and later relocating to London, Rut has spent two decades transforming raw materials into believable reality — sculpting chrome for Star Wars, p...

In this episode, Christina sits down with large-format printing expert Bob Joyce of Underground Visuals to unpack the invisible craft behind some of the most iconic sets in television. With decades in the industry and credits spanning from Saturday Night Live to Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Kelly Clarkson Show, Bob shares what it really means to work in high-speed, large-scale production. H...

In this episode, Christina sits down with legendary script supervisor Steve Gehrke to unpack the invisible craft that holds films together. With over 40 years in the industry and credits spanning from Memento to The Dark Knight, Tenet, and Euphoria, Steve shares what it really means to be a script supervisor — and why he considers himself a filmmaker first. He breaks down how he approaches a scrip...

In this episode, we sit down with makeup department head Tegan Taylor to explore the craft, innovation, and collaboration behind creating character through makeup in film and television. Tegan shares how her path into the industry began at a young age, growing up surrounded by film and theater in Los Angeles, and breaks down what it really means to be a makeup artist at the highest level. From run...