The Cinematography Podcast

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 353: Isaac Bauman Cinematographer Isaac Bauman captured the visual identities of two different horror movies in They Will Kill You and Faces of Death. Both films are currently in theaters. Bauman discusses the intricate technical gymnastics required to give each film a distinct, cinematic feel. Key Podcast Highlights: -Carefully developing the look of They Will K...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 352: Ted Hope Producer Ted Hope has worked in the film business for over 40 years, producing dozens of features with several Academy Awards nominations and wins. After leaving Amazon Studios in 2020, Hope went back to his roots as an independent producer and began writing his Substack blog, Hope For Film. He argues that the independent film ecosystem as we know i...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 351: Marshall Adams, ASC and Paul Donachie Pluribus DPs Marshall Adams and Paul Donachie share a visual shorthand, love of wide shots, and creative freedom to craft inventive techniques using LED panels. Key Podcast Highlights: -Marshall and Paul’s collaboration as DPs, and how their shared aesthetic vision strengthens the show. -Getting absolute top-down permiss...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 350: Lawrence Sher, ASC DP Lawrence Sher felt creatively challenged on The Bride! The "everything burger" movie combines many film techniques and influences, 1930's and contemporary lighting, contemporary actors dropped into archival movie footage, and practical makeup effects. Key Podcast Highlights: -Creating a stylized movie with director Maggie Gyllenhaal usi...

The Cinematography Podcast 2026 Oscar Special Jenelle Riley, three-time Emmy-winning entertainment journalist and host, chats with Ben and Illya for our SEVENTH annual Oscar nominations special. With a focus on cinematography, they discuss what they liked, what will win, what should win, and their favorite movies of the year that may not have been recognized. They discuss this year’s nominations,...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 349: James Whitaker, ASC Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die DP James Whitaker, ASC played with different genres, with over 70 setups a day in the Norm's diner set. He used LED walls and projectors to cast real, interactive light on the characters in the film’s climax, and swapped to a different camera system for certain scenes to play up the glow of cell phones. Key...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 348: Danny Cohen, BSC DP Danny Cohen, BSC, reveals how he crafted the "dirty London" look of Slow Horses through motivated lighting, high ASA grain, and the grit of Slough House. Key Podcast Highlights: -How Slow Horses ditches the typical block shooting system, with one DP and one director to create the entire season’s visual look. -Using camera settings to bake...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 347: director Natasha Kermani and DP Julia Swain In the medieval horror film The Dreadful, director Natasha Kermani and cinematographer Julia Swain transport audiences to the brutal landscapes of the Dark Ages. The independent film shot in Cornwall, England over 17 winter days. Key Podcast Highlights: -Development: Kermani spent years crafting the folkloric tale,...

The Cinematography Podcast Special: Frederick Wiseman With the passing of documentarian Frederick Wiseman, here is a re-release of our 2020 interview. He discusses City Hall, Titticut Follies, High School and more. Wiseman was a prolific filmmaker, making 45 films over 50 years.  Wiseman's family and Zipporah Films kindly request that you support your local PBS affiliate or independent bookstore i...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 346: Adolpho Veloso, ABC, AIP The film Train Dreams tells a story that feels less like a narrative and more like a memory. It began as an independent project that premiered at Sundance to critical acclaim before getting acquired by Netflix. Director Clint Bentley and cinematographer Adolpho Veloso, ABC, AIP, chose to shoot in the rugged landscapes of the Pacific...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 345: Sean Bobbitt In the landscape of post-apocalyptic cinema, few franchises carry as much visual baggage as the 28 Days Later franchise. Known for pioneering the "fast zombie" and the gritty, digital lo-fi aesthetic of the early 2000s, the series has always found a novel visual approach for every entry. For the latest installment, 28 Years Later: The Bone Templ...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 344: Russell Carpenter When cinematographer Russell Carpenter began working on Avatar: The Way of Water and Avatar: Fire and Ash concurrently, he knew stepping into the world of Pandora would be a much different production environment. Carpenter and director Jim Cameron had previously collaborated on True Lies and Titanic, which won him the Academy Award for Best...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 342: Michael Bauman Cinematographer Michael Bauman recently earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography for his work on One Battle After Another. Before becoming a cinematographer, Bauman spent years as a gaffer, working under legends like Robert Elswit, Janusz Kaminski, and the late Harris Savides. This mentorship gave him a masterclass in diverse...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 342: Amy Vincent, ASC Cinematographer Amy Vincent, ASC feels like she's reached the place where she wants to be, working on the kinds of films she likes. Vincent and director Craig Brewer have collaborated on several music-forward films, including Hustle & Flow, Black Snake Moan, and a Footloose remake in 2011. Throughout the years, Vincent and Brewer have create...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 341: Caleb Heymann Cinematographer Caleb Heymann has been a key architect of the Stranger Things aesthetic since the tail end of Season 3. After starting as a second unit DP, Heymann was promoted to lead cinematographer for the blockbuster Season 4, and now its fifth and final season. The crew dedicated a full year to filming Season 5, spanning from January throu...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 340: Steve Yedlin, ASC Cinematographer Steve Yedlin, ASC, and director Rian Johnson have shared a creative shorthand for over thirty years. Their collaboration is so deep that it rarely requires extensive dialogue. “Rian will mention things he wants to do differently or specifically, but a lot of it is already in the script,” says Yedlin. Johnson describes the vi...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 339: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, ASC Cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw, ASC was first introduced to director Ryan Coogler through fellow DPs Bradford Young and Rachel Morrison. After their successful collaboration on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Coogler sent her the script for Sinners, a supernatural horror-action film. The film tells the story of twin brothers...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 338: Bryan Fuller and Nicole Hirsch Whitaker Bryan Fuller has one of the most recognizable visual signatures in modern television. Whether he’s dealing with a forensic pathologist who bakes pies (Pushing Daisies) or a sophisticated cannibal (Hannibal), his work consistently balances the grotesque with the gorgeous. His style of hyper-stylized morbid surrealism wa...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 337: Eric Lin and Lyle Vincent Rosemead tells the tragic, true story of Irene (Lucy Liu), a terminally ill single mother, and her son, Joe (Lawrence Shou). As Joe battles schizophrenia and urges toward violence, Irene is left isolated from her Chinese American community in Southern California, facing impossible choices without a safety net. After decades behind t...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 336: Alice Brooks, ASC For cinematographer Alice Brooks, ASC, shooting both Wicked and Wicked: For Good concurrently was a huge feat. The giant sets, precise camerawork and complex, live lighting cues for the musical numbers required detailed planning and prep. But first, Alice and her long-time collaborator, director Jon M. Chu, broke down the scripts and discus...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 335: Jess Hall Cinematographer Jess Hall, ASC, BSC reunited with director Matt Shakman to bring the retro-future world of The Fantastic Four: First Steps to life. The two had collaborated on several projects together, such as Marvel's Wandavision. “I have a lot of faith in Matt Shakman,” says Jess. “I went into it with a lot of goodwill behind me. I was very awar...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 334: Jeff Cutter Cinematographer Jeff Cutter first collaborated with director Dan Trachtenberg on 10 Cloverfield Lane. Their successful partnership continued on the Predator prequel, Prey, which became Hulu's most-watched streaming premiere. Jeff and Trachtenberg found they had a strong bond over their mutual interests, such as films like Die Hard with “muscular”...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 333: Jeff Cronenweth Two-time Oscar-nominated cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth, ASC is known for visually defining modern classics like Fight Club and The Social Network. With TRON: ARES, he melded three distinct realities: the digital Grid, the gritty real world, and the retro feel of the grid in the original TRON. Jeff’s involvement with TRON: ARES began through...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 332: Dan Laustsen For nearly 30 years, cinematographer Dan Laustsen, ASC, DFF and director Guillermo del Toro have produced one of cinema's most visually distinctive collaborations. Sharing a deep affinity for rich colors and dark themes, their partnership has yielded five films characterized by an unmistakable aesthetic. Del Toro's idea for Frankenstein had been...

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 331: Tobias Datum Murderbot is the story of a security unit, part-human and part-machine, that has hacked its governing module to act in its own free will: mainly to be left alone to watch TV shows. Cinematographer Tobias Datum views the Apple TV+ series as a visual exploration of a synthetic being's journey toward humanity and self-discovery. Tobias worked close...