“Dune: Prophecy” Cinematographer Pierre Gill Captures the Many Moving Pieces of a Dangerous Game
A frequent collaborator with director Denis Villeneuve, award-winning cinematographer Pierre Gill respects the filmmaker’s legacy but also relishes being able to play in the same sandbox and create his own vision with Dune: Prophecy.
A prequel to Villeneuve’s Dune films, Gill maintains the epic scope of the universe in the three episodes he directed, including the pilot and finale of the acclaimed six-episode HBO show,
“Dune: Prophecy” Editors Amelia Allwarden and Anna Hauger on Weaving the Tapestry of Sisterhood’s Growing Power
No strangers to collaborating on world-building, editors Amelia Allwarden and Anna Hauger relished the chance to come together to help shape Dune: Prophecy.
The Westworld alums shaped the season finale together, as well as overseeing their own episodes of the HBO magisterial new series that extends the world of Dune set into motion by director Denis Villeneuve’s critically acclaimed films. Set long before Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) was rising to power in the desert sands of Arrakis,
“Nickel Boys” Cinematographer Jomo Fray Takes a New Angle on a Difficult Past
“Every aspect of the visual language that we built always came from being rooted in the script,” cinematographer Jomo Fray tells The Credits about director RaMell Ross’s moving film Nickel Boys.
Adapted from Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer-winning novel of the same name, the screenplay, co-written by Ross and Joslyn Barnes, follows the blooming friendship between two black teenagers – Elwood and Turner – as they’re forced to attend a reform school in the Jim Crow South during the Civil Rights Movement.
Feral Frame: How “Nightbitch” Cinematographer Brandon Trost Helped Amy Adams Unleash Her Inner Beast
In Nightbitch, six-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams hurls herself into dog mode, slurping meat from a bowl, pawing through the dirt in her backyard, and running with a pack of neighborhood canines in feral protest against the stultifying bonds of motherhood. Cinematographer Brandon Trost, teaming for the third time with writer-director Marielle Heller after Diary of a Teenage Girl and Can You Ever Forgive Me?,
The Shared DNA Between Writer/Director Jean de Meuron’s “Edge of Space” and “Top Gun: Maverick”
A visually lavish and emotionally captivating short film about the early days of manned spaceflight exploration, writer/director/producer Jean de Meuron’s directorial debut, Edge of Space, is set in 1961. The 18-minute film follows U.S. Air Force test pilot Glen Ford (played by the Sniper film series’ Chad Michael Collins), who risks it all for a suborbital test flight in the X-15 hypersonic rocket-powered aircraft. The film provides a refreshing glimpse into the decade leading to the Apollo missions,
“Maria” Cinematographer Ed Lachman on Painting Angelina Jolie’s Mythic Opera Legend With Light
Passionate Greek-American soprano Maria Callas was the world’s premier opera star when she was struck with various ailments that limited her capacity to sing. She led a life rivaling any opera drama, including a tumultuous relationship with Aristotle Onassis and explosive interactions with collaborators and fans that made her increasingly controversial. She said, “I will always be as difficult as necessary to achieve the best.”
Director Pablo Larraín chose to highlight Callas in his new film Maria.
Regional Sustainability Advisor Clara George on Greening Netflix’s “Virgin River”
A film or TV set is usually powered almost exclusively by diesel generators. These generators were loud, hot, large, environmentally unfriendly, and often used at such a low capacity that they were practically idling. They weren’t just bad for the environment; they were wasteful and highly unpleasant.
This is increasingly no longer the case, as new technologies come onto the market and new, less fuel-dependent approaches to how filmmakers and TV creators get their shots become possible.
How “Gladiator II” Editors and the VFX Supervisor Shaped Three Ferocious Scenes
Gladiator II picks up fifteen years following the events of Russell Crowe’s portrayal of Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator (2000), an epically visceral film from Ridley Scott that not only won five Oscars, including Best Picture at the 73rd Academy Awards but is considered one of the greatest action films in movie history – a notion underpinned by its quotable dialogue that has become part of the public lexicon.
“Maria” Costume Designer Massimo Cantini Parrini on Designing Angelina Jolie as a Legendary Diva
“I am happy with the theater behind my eyes,” utters legendary American-born Greek soprano Maria Callas (portrayed by Angelina Jolie after seven months of intense vocal lessons) at the film’s beginning. Drenched in the melancholy of a woman well aware that her days are numbered, the stunning film traverses between the heights of La Callas’ massive successes in the 1950s and 1960s and present day in her extravagant Parisian apartment, where she reflects on the triumphs,
“Only Murders in the Building” Editor Matthew Barbato Blends on Season 4’s Complex Delights
Only Murders in the Building began as a cozy, non-sequitur-filled whodunit anchored by three immensely winning performances by Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, and it’s never lost sight of that winning formula. Yet season over season, the series has become funnier, more ambitious, and more heartfelt, increasing the body count, laugh count, and guest star firepower while never losing sight of its chief pleasure: three lonely people who are impossibly, perfectly suited to become lifelong friends.
“Gladiator II” Costume Designers Janty Yates and David Crossman on Lunatic Emperors & Blood-Splattered Warriors
She won an Oscar for outfitting the first Gladiator, and 20 years later, costume designer Janty Yates once again teamed with Ridley Scott to cloak ancient Rome’s ruling class in bespoke finery. Gladiator II stars Paul Mescal as a slave who fights his way to freedom, with Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, Joseph Quinn, and Fred Hechinger in featured roles. Yates and military expert David Crossman, who costumed the downtrodden gladiators,
A New Spin on “Wicked”: Choreographer Christopher Scott on his Whirlwind Creations
Wicked has danced its way through theaters, earning rave reviews and the adoration of fans all over the globe. The kinetic, kaleidoscopic movement accompanying the iconic songs was largely thanks to choreographer Christopher Scott, who crafted all-new, original numbers for the show-stopping music, ranging from intimate to epic.
The adaptation of the stage musical, based on Gregory Maguire’s “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West,” follows Elphaba (Cynthia Ervo) and Glinda (Ariana Grande) to Shiz University in the land of Oz,
“Wicked” Director Jon M. Chu Takes us Behind the Curtain of His Gravity Defying Adaptation
Spoilers aplenty!
Black hat seated atop her head, Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) peers around the corner of the Ozdust ballroom, excited to attend her first party ever.
She tentatively takes her first steps down the stairs, silhouette illuminated by the spotlight, when the music suddenly halts and her peers begin to laugh.
The excitement quickly drains from her face as she realizes that the acceptance she so desperately craved did not come.
“Gladiator II” Cinematographer John Mathieson on Capturing Robotic Rhinos & Colossal Carnage
If you’re in the mood for a visually stunning film with gladiators battling to the death in a flooded Colosseum and a very ripped Paul Mescal going head-to-head with a rhinoceros and a baboon, Ridley Scott’s pulse-pounding period actioner is the movie you’ve been waiting for. Twenty-three years after his first Oscar nomination for the original Gladiator, British cinematographer John Mathieson (Logan, Mary Queen of Scots) is back with the long-anticipated sequel,
Production Designer Nathan Crowley: The Visionary Behind “Wicked’s” Stunning Sets
Before Wicked, British production designer Nathan Crowley worked on eight Christopher Nolan movies, earning six Oscar nominations along the way. Now he’s made the unlikely pivot from dark Gotham City to effervescent Emerald City as world builder-in-chief for Universal Pictures’ Wizard of Oz prequel. Based on the Broadway musical, Wicked topped the box office this past weekend with $114 million, making it Hollywood’s most popular movie musical to date.
“Gladiator II” Production Designer Arthur Max on Rebuilding a Decadent, Debased Ancient Rome
In the first installment of our conversation with Gladiator II production designer Arthur Max, he talked about making Ridley Scott’s sequel on an even bigger scale than the original film and staging a naval battle sequence in the desert of Morocco for the opening sequence. Now, let’s find out what it took to flood the Colosseum to recreate the mock naval battle in the third act.
Did you use mostly local crew on the sequel?
Maximus Effort: “Gladiator II” Production Designer Arthur Max on Creating Colossal Constructions
Oscar-nominated production designer Arthur Max has worked on 16 of Ridley Scott’s films. These include some of American cinema’s most indelible cinematic spectacles, such as the original Gladiator (for which Max scored his first Oscar nod), Black Hawk Down, and The Martian. Despite the impressive body of work between them, Max thinks that the Roman epic actioner, Gladiator II, is their most ambitious yet.
“Wicked” Cinematographer Alice Brooks on Casting a Magical Light Over This Dazzling Adaptation
Embracing Old Hollywood and a plethora of source material, cinematographer Alice Brooks knew her Wicked vision for Oz would be rich and luxurious.
Wicked is a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, inspired by the long-running stage show based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel. It stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, a misunderstood green-skinned woman. She finds an unusual kinship with Ariana Grande’s popular girl, Glinda. When their paths lead them to the Wonderful Wizard of Oz,
“Gladiator II” Screenwriter David Scarpa on the Herculean Task of Writing a Worthy Sequel
It’s been a long time coming, but the sequel to Ridley Scott’s 2000 epic, which won the Oscar for Best Picture, opens in theaters nationwide on November 22. Starring Oscar nominee Paul Mescal (Aftersun), Pedro Pascal (The Last of Us), the iconic Denzel Washington, and original cast member Connie Nielsen, Gladiator II finally came to fruition thanks to the script from David Scarpa, who’d previously penned Scott movies All the Money in the World and Napoleon.
Mushroom Couture: “Wicked” Costume Designer Paul Tazewell on Drawing Inspiration From the Natural World
Few films this year showcase intricate detail and epic scale like director Jon M. Chu’s Wicked does. The breathtaking costuming created by acclaimed costume designer Paul Tazewell is a vital element of the filmmaker’s captivating vision.
Wicked, a prequel to The Wizard of Oz, is inspired by the long-running stage show based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 titular novel. Cynthia Erivo plays Elphaba,
