AFC’s Conversations

Quebecer André Turpin combines the roles of director of photography, director and screenwriter. Endorphin, his last film, was recently released in Canada. His career as a cinematographer relies on his loyal collaboration with Denis Villeneuve for August 32^nd on Earth, Maelstrom (Jutra for Best Cinematography) and Incendies (Genie and Jutra Awards for Best Cinematography). Since Tom at the Farm, André Turpin has been working with the young Quebecois director Xavier Dolan. He was the cinematographer for It’s Only the End of the World, the sixth feature by the most prolific director of this 69^th annual Cannes Film Festival, in competition for the Golden Palm. (BB)

Nicole Garcia ’s latest feature is an adaptation of the eponym novel written by the Italian Milena Agus: From the Land of the Moon. While she is no stranger to the Croisette with films like 15 Août, The Adversary, According to Charlie, From the Land of the Moon is in competition for the 69^th Festival’s Palme d’Or. For the cinematography of her 8^th film, Nicole Garcia called upon Christophe Beaucarne, AFC, SBC, and loyal partner of Jaco Van Doermel, Mathieu Amalric or Anne Fontaine. (BB

Filming nature and man’s relationship to it is one of the bases of Alain Guiraudie’s filmography. After Stranger by the Lake, which won the prize for Best Director at Un certain regard at Cannes in 2013, the director shot his fifth feature-length film in the Lozère, the Marais Poitevin, and Brest. Staying Vertical, a movie about wolves, paternity, and loss of status is in competition for the Golden Palm at the 69^th annual Cannes Film Festival this year.

After working on Camille Claudel 1915 and Le P’tit Quiquin, cinematographer Guillaume Deffontaines, AFC, once again teams up with Bruno Dumont on Slack Bay, in Official Compeition at the 69^th Cannes Film Festival. Guillaume Deffontaines has worked with the Larrieu brothers and Michel Leclerc a number of times, and recently filmed David Oeloffen’s movie Far From Men.

Robbie Ryan made a dazzling appearance in 2009 with the magnificent Fish Tank, directed by Andrea Arnold, and following a successful career shooting UK short films.
In 2011, he was won the Bronze Frog at Camerimage for Wuthering Heights, also directed by Andrea Arnold; they again have a film at Cannes this year. He has also shot three films for Ken Loach recently, and just finished the shoot of Yeh Din Ka Kissa (dir. Noah Baumbach) in New York – so definitely a DoP to watch…

In a filmed interview, cinematographer Reed Morano, ASC, discusses "Meadowland", her first feature film as a director, presented in Camerimage’s Director’s Debut Competition. She talks about mixing cards, camera work, the gear, the kitchen scene, the bar, shooting with animals and/or childrens, being a "former cinematographer"...

In a filmed interview, cinematographer Mátyás Erdély, HSC, discusses his work on the film Hrútar (Son of Saul), by Laszlo Nemes, presented in Camerimage’s Main Competition. His long collaboration with the direcor, the locations, the evidence of film, the laboratory, the camera tests, the narrative focus about, his lighting approach, etc.

Born in Brazil in 1979, and a citizen of the world, having lived in the USA, England, Portugal and France, Andre Szankowski, AFC, AIP, also has Polish roots (his father). For his first invitation to attend Camerimage, he will present Cosmos, the new film by Franco-Polish director Andrzej Żuławski. Get to know this trilingual cinematographer with an international career.

In a filmed interview, cinematographer Sturla Brandth Grøvlen, DFF, discusses his work on the film Hrútar (Rams), by Grímur Hákonarson, presented in Camerimage’s Main Competition.

Jean-Marie Dreujou, AFC, will participate in this year’s Camerimage festival as a member of the jury. He will also be the only French – and AFC – representative in the international competition for the Golden Frog with Wolf Totem, a film by Jean-Jacques Annaud. This interview was conducted with him just before he left for Poland. (FR)

Eden, screened out of competition at Camerimage 2014, is one of the first cinematographic attempts at capturing the “rave party” scene and the birth of the French Touch musical movement in the 1990s and its ensuing international success. This conversation with Denis Lenoir, AFC, ASC, focuses on this sociologically very “French” biopic whose main character was mostly inspired by director Mia Hansen-Løve’s own brother. (FR)

Because Volker Schlöndorff’s Diplomacy, cinematography by Michel Amathieu, was recently selected to compete in the “European Panorama” section of the 22^nd Camerimage Festival, we are publishing below an interview in which the director of photography discusses his work on the film, which was released in cinemas on 5 March 2014.

Three exciting events have just happened concerning British (and francophone) cinematographer Peter Suschitzky, ASC, who attended the Cannes Film Festival to present Matteo Garrone’s new film Tale of Tales, to serve as a member of the jury of the Critics’ Week, and to teach a Master Class under the aegis of Sony available on the Internet on 21 May. David Cronenberg’s loyal partner discusses the creation of this fantasy film inspired by traditional Italian folk tales. (FR)

Selected for the Marseilles FID Festival, the documentary directed by Caroline Champetier on Bruno Nuytten was screened on 5 July. Director and cinematographer Caroline Champetier, AFC, discusses this sensitive portrait of a legendary cinematographer who brutally decided to end his career after twelve continuous years of work on some of the greatest French films of the 1980s. (FR)

Glynn Speeckaert shares his time between feature-length French-language and English-language films, but he also shoots many advertisements all over the world. Amongst his best-known films are his collaboration with Xavier Giannoli (A l’origine and soon-to-be-released, Marguerite), Koen Mortier (Ex drummer) and Guillaume Galienne on the comedy that won the 2014 César award for best film (Me, Myself, and Mum). His name will soon be on the film posters of Fred Grivois’ Through the Air, starring Reda Kateb and Ludivine Sagnier, as well as Moonwalkers, the first feature-length film of advertisement director Antoine Bardou Jacquet. (FR)

His first feature film, See How They Fall, was screened at Cannes, and three of Jacques Audiard’s subsequent films were selected to be in the Official Competition: A Self-Made Hero, Best Screenplay in 1996, A Prophet, Grand Jury Prize in 2009, and Rust and Bone, in 2012. For his seventh feature film, Dheepan, which is in the Official Competition of the 68^th Cannes Film Festival, Jacques Audiard chose an unknown aspiring actor to play the lead role, like Tahar Rahim and Reda Kateb in A Prophet. (BB)

Below, you will find a list of links for all of the articles that we published in English during the 68^th Cannes Film Festival. Cinematographers discuss their work with us on films featured in one of the Festival’s selections. These interviews are listed in the order in which the films are screened at the Festival.
The AFC expresses its heartfelt thanks to the CNC and its associate members — Aaton-Digital, Arri, Binocle, Cinemage, Digimage, Eclair Group, K 5600 Lighting, Lee Filters, Leica, Nikon, Panavision, RVZ, Sony, Technicolor, Thales Angénieux, Transvideo, and TSF Group — for their support, thanks to which these daily updates from Cannes were made possible.
The AFC also thanks Pierre-William Glenn, Angelo Cosimano, and the whole CST team for their warm welcome and for making it possible for us to be present at the Festival.

While for many the name Slawomir Idziak, PSC remains associated with the visuals of his compatriot Kristof Kieslowski’s 1993 film Three Colours: Blue, the Polish cinematographer has since enjoyed a distinguished international career (alongside Andrew Niccol on Gattaca, Ridley Scott on Black Hawk Down, and David Yates on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix). He now returns to the forefront of the Cannes scene with A Tale of Love and Darkness, Israeli actress Natalie Portman’s highly anticipated adaptation of the eponymous novel by Amos Oz. (FR)