Interview

Cinematographer

A Q&A With Greig Fraser, Cinematographer on Zero Dark Thirty

With Kathryn Bigelow’s extraordinary action thriller Zero Dark Thirty opening wide tomorrow across the country, viewers will have a chance to see this picture’s tale of the CIA’s decade long hunt for Osama Bin Laden. One of the most talked about scenes of the year (arguably, of the new decade) is the spectacular, harrowing final raid on Bin Laden’s compound, all shot using night vision technology. Bigelow spoke about her “tremendous” cinematographer’s handling of that crucial set piece in a recent New York Times interview.

By  |  January 10, 2013

Interview

Cinematographer, Director, Special/Visual Effects

Visionary Filmmaker & Inventor Douglas Trumbull Talks The Hobbit and his Latest Incredible Invention

The frame rate for a film refers to the frequency (or rate) at which a camera creates unique consecutive images (frames). Almost every film you have ever seen has been shot and projected at 24 frames-per-second (FPS). We have become so accustomed to seeing films this way that shooting at any other rate can be potentially jarring. Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit was shot in 3D at 48fps, twice the normal rate. It will be projected at 48fps on 400 of the 10,000 theaters when it opens on tomorrow,

By  |  December 13, 2012

Interview

Actor, Cinematographer, Director

Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, and Sam Mendes Make Skyfall an Instant Classic, While Taschen Releases the Epic “The James Bond Archives”

James Bond returns with a vengeance in Skyfall, and this superb 23rd entry in the legendary movie series is a smashingly successful tribute to the iconic British spy, who’s celebrating his 50th year in movies. After rebooting the 007 franchise with Daniel Craig as the new Bond in Casino Royale (2006), not only one of the best films in the series but one of the best films of that year,

By  |  November 8, 2012

Interview

Cinematographer

Putting the Walk in The Walking Dead: An Interview With Stargate Studios CEO and VFX Guru Sam Nicholson

Stargate Studios CEO Sam Nicholson is a visual effects legend (VFX). A cinematographer by trade, Nicholson hails from the mother ship of visual effects gigs, Star Trek: The Motion Picture. His work on The Enterprise shot Nicholson’s career to stratospheric heights and spans some of the greatest television shows in recent memory—and we’re not being hyperbolic. Nicholson founded the incredibly busy visual effects house Stargate Studios, which has performed post-production visual effects for TV shows including CSI,

By  |  October 17, 2012

Interview

Cinematographer, Director, Producer, Screenwriter

Film School 101

Cinema verite, mise-en-scene, establishing shot–think you have the chops to make it in film school? Take our film school-inspired quiz to find out.

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*Feature image courtesy of California Institute of the Arts

By  |  October 12, 2012

Interview

Cinematographer, Director, Editor, Screenwriter

Fantastic Film Schools Infographic

Our latest infographic, inspired by Hollywood Reporter's 2nd Annual List of the Top 25 Film Schools, takes a look at some of the best film schools in the country.

By  |  October 10, 2012

Interview

Cinematographer, Director, Editor, Screenwriter

Where Hollywood Hones Its Craft: Getting Film Schooled At AFI

Tucked in the hills of Griffith Park, the American Film Institute is as much a Hollywood mainstay as its film lore surroundings. From campus, one can see the hillsides housing such celebrated fixtures as the Hollywood sign, the Observatory where James Dean got into a knife fight in Rebel Without a Cause, and hundreds of eclectic, multimillion-dollar homes—many of which house Hollywood’s biggest stars—stretching all the way to the Malibu coastline.

By  |  October 9, 2012

Interview

Cinematographer, Director, Editor, Screenwriter

Back To Film School: On Location At CalArts


Across the country, aspiring filmmakers are hard at work honing their craft at film schools. Whether it's learning about the cultural impact of cinema, getting a technical training education in directing or cinematography, or advancing a lifelong love of cinema, we're celebrating film schools everywhere with a week of film school-themed content.

The Credits recently traveled to the California Institute of the Arts–one of the country's premier arts schools located just outside of Los Angeles.

By  |  October 8, 2012