The Handmaid’s Tale DP on Using Old Lenses, Vermeer and Drones to Conjure Dystopia

*We’re sharing some of our favorite interviews of the year this week in our ‘Best of 2017’ roundup.

Liverpool-born cinematographer Colin Watkinson quit his job as a surveyor to work as an entry-level “runner” on a British soundstage, rose through the ranks to shoot Tarsem Singh’s The Fall in 2006, and on the strength of that film’s universally hailed visuals, became one of Los Angeles’ most prolific television commercial DPs.

Cinematographer Sam Levy’s Shot List Pictured Lady Bird a Year in Advance

In the beginning, there was the shot list. When Greta Gerwig organized her directorial debut, she left nothing to chance. A full year before production began on her coming-of-age story Lady Bird, the actress-turned-filmmaker sat down in New York with director of photography Sam Levy and together they planned out every shot of the movie. Levy, who got to know Gerwig when they worked on Frances Ha and Mistress America,

Wonder Woman‘s Cinematographer on Capturing the Dynamic Essence of Diana Prince

Wonder Woman was exactly who we needed, exactly when we needed her, and she reframed the landscape among a crowded superhero genre. Director Patty Jenkins and her team brought to life a leading character who could feel love, fury, compassion and power in equal parts. Diana Prince and Steve Trevor’s relationship was a romance of equals (well, sort of—Diana was willing to treat him as an equal) that was charming, tender, passionate and heartbreaking.

Cinematographer Philippe Le Sourd on Creating The Beguiled‘s Elegant Terror

Earlier this year, Sofia Coppola premiered her version of The Beguiled, an atmospheric Southern drama based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Thomas P. Cullinan. Set in a remote Virginia girls’ school during the Civil War, the story depicts the ill-starred arrival of a wounded Union solder, John McBurney (Colin Farrell), whose manipulative presence is subtly pernicious, until descending into quiet chaos. Martha Farnsworth (Nicole Kidman) icily, elegantly steers her remaining students (among them,

Cinematographer Dan Laustsen on The Shape of Water‘s Fluid Fable

Danish cinematographer Dan Laustsen worked alongside Guillermo del Toro on and off for two decades, so when it came time to shoot The Shape of Water, he shared the director’s penchant for precision. Lush, lyrical and rich in metaphor, the film pays homage to Universal Pictures’ 1940’s-era monster as it follows Sally Hawkins’ mute cleaning lady, who eventually falls in love with a creature from a South American lagoon (Doug Jones) held captive in a Cold War laboratory by a brutal bureaucrat (Michael Shannon). 

How The Ritual‘s Cinematographer Immerses You in Fear

In The Ritual, a group of friends lose one of their own in a robbery gone bad, but that’s just the beginning of the horrors in store. The atmospheric thriller pulls you deeper into the woods where they encounter sinister things they can’t explain that begin to tear their bond apart. Once they begin to turn on one another, none of them are safe. Cinematographer Andrew Shulkind’s filming style immerses you in the terror in a unique way.

Cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt on Shooting David Fincher’s Serial Killer Series Mindhunter

David Fincher does not like the color red. Cinematographer Erik Messerschmidt knows this because he shot much of the new Netflix series Mindhunter, executive produced and partially directed by the famously meticulous master of suspense. “Fincher and I both have an aversion to magenta so with Mindhunter we always erred on the side of green/yellow in our color choices,” says Messerschmidt, who met Fincher on the set of his 2014 thriller Gone Girl.

Happy Death Day Cinematographer on Resurrecting the Teen Slasher Genre

There’s nothing quite as horrifying as waking up in a strange dorm room after a night out in college. Except maybe being murdered in your sorority house and reliving your death over again until you identify your masked killer. Such is life for Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe) in the most playful slasher film of the year, Happy Death Day. Cinematographer Toby Oliver set the tone for the coed killer movie where the scares are satisfyingly spooky.

How Wonderstruck DP Edward Lachman Channeled The French Connection for Kids Adventure

Director Todd Haynes’ longtime cinematographer Edward Lachman renders contrasting visions of New York City in their latest collaboration Wonderstruck (opening Friday.) Based on Brian Selznick’s children’s book, the story follows two kids, separated by fifty years, who run away to Manhattan in search of a missing parent and wind up forging an unexpected bond. The twist: one story’s shot in black and white as an homage to the silent movie era, while the parallel tale draws on The French Connection as inspiration for its hyper-colorful street scenes.

Westworld‘s Emmy-Nominated Cinematographer on the Park’s Sinister Secrets

HBO’s Westworld hypnotized viewers this year. The titular park was a literal tourist trap, offering the well-heeled the opportunity to live out any fantasy without consequence, until the hosts get other ideas. Inspired by Michael Crichton’s 1973 film, the reboot was a hit featuring the clean, calm lines of the welcome center contrasted with the gritty Wild West themed park. Cinematographer Paul Cameron (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales) disrupted the serene pretense upheld by the park’s producers to deliver a sense of foreboding about the sinister secrets within.

DP Captures Ugly Behavior in Sun-Dappled New Series Riviera

Boasting a resume that includes Peaky Blinders, BAFTA Award-winning London Spies and gritty indie High-Rise, British cinematographer Laurie Rose shoots most of his projects in overcast England. But not long after he spent six weeks in a dank British warehouse working on claustrophobic shoot-em-up Free Fire, Rose spent last summer in the sunny south of France filming the first two episodes of Riviera.

Annabelle: Creation Cinematographer Maxime Alexandre on What Gave him Goosebumps

Films from The Conjuring universe have been scaring and thrilling audiences in equal measure for years. The fourth movie, Annabelle: Creation, hits theater today, and is sure to deliver more of the high-quality horror we have come to expect from the series. Already raking in praise and positive reviews, Annabelle: Creation undoubtedly owes part of its success to the vision of cinematographer Maxime Alexandre. Having worked on an array of terrifying films,

The Handmaid’s Tale DP on Using Old Lenses, Vermeer and Drones to Conjure Dystopia

Liverpool-born cinematographer Colin Watkinson quit his job as a surveyor to work as an entry-level “runner” on a British soundstage, rose through the ranks to shoot Tarsem Singh’s The Fall in 2006, and on the strength of that film’s universally hailed visuals, became one of Los Angeles’ most prolific television commercial DPs. By the time cinematographer-turned director Reed Moreno invited him to shoot The Handmaid’s Tale in Toronto,

How Emmy Nominated Queen Sugar and 13th DP Kira Kelly is Breaking the Mold

It was a no brainer for cinematographer Kira Kelly to take the call when director Ava DuVernay sought her out. The project they initially discussed didn’t pan out, but Kelly was soon tapped for DuVernay’s stirring documentary 13th. Kelly’s mesmerizing work was the perfect fit for the high pressure interviewees she filmed and earned her an Emmy nomination alongside her co-DP Hans Charles. Following the success of 13th, DuVernay brought Kelly on to season two of her hit show Queen Sugar.

How the Genius Cinematographer Brought Einstein to a Modern Audience

Casual historians often sum the life of Albert Einstein in a single equation: E=mc^2, but National Geographic’s series Genius reveals that there is so much more to the story. Cinematographer Mathias Herndl’s work on Genius sheds a new light on Einstein’s life. The famous physicist’s reckless youth and pacifist objections that give way to his invention of the atomic bomb in wartime inspired Herndl’s dynamic filmmaking. Ahead of the season finale,

Extreme Contrast: DP Shoots FX’s Fargo and Legion

Calgary-based cinematographer Craig Wrobleski happened to be in the right place at the right time four years ago when the makers of FX series Fargo came calling with an urgent request. "At the end of their first season, it was an intense schedule and they needed someone to help shoot some second unit stuff in Alberta," he says. "I live south of Calgary and had just finished another show, so they asked me to do some establishing shots."

How Taboo’s DP Conjured Painterly Tableaux of 19th Century London

When cinematographer Mark Patten got hired to shoot Tom Hardy's moody 19th century period thriller Taboo, he immediately invited Danish director Kristoffer Nyholm to check out British masterpieces at London museums. "I took Krisotoffer to see landscape paintings by William J. Turner, who was painting the Thames at the time of our story," Patten recalls. "We wanted to understand the way the light looks and start with that knowledge about the river because it gives so much life to Tom Hardy's character.

Check out This Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes Clip From Nat Geo’s Genius

Last week we shared with you the story of how the hair and make-up departments working on National Geographic's Genius have transformed stars Johnny Flynn and Geoffrey Rush into the young and not-so-young Albert Einstein at the different stages of his life. Now, we've got an exclusive clip from behind-the-scenes of the show (Nat Geo’s first foray into scripted drama, by the way) that showcases the work of showrunner Ken Biller and cinematographer Mathias Herndl. 

The Crown‘s DP on Capturing TV’s Most Lush Period Drama

The beautifully shot and lavishly produced Netflix series The Crown has raised the bar in terms of the quality that we can expect from a television series. Cinematographer Adriano Goldman chats to The Credits about how he went about achieving this, creating intimacy in grand locations and why he approached the story as though it was fiction. 

Congratulations on your work on The Crown.

Dead Men Tell No Tales DP on how They Made the Splashiest Pirates Film of All Time

Ever since Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) first set sail in Curse of the Black Pearl, nothing says summer like a rum soaked Caribbean cruise with a swashbuckling gang of rogue miscreants. Friday will mark the fifth time that Disney has ushered in blockbuster season with a Pirates of the Caribbean adventure. Dead Men Tell No Tales introduces the undead Captain Salazar (Javier Bardem) who has a vendetta against Jack.