Behind the Scenes on the Stunning Cinematography of Sundance Winner ‘The Birth of a Nation' [PODCAST]
At the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, actor-writer-director Nate Parker's The Birth of a Nation won both the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award and sold for a record $17.5 million. Listen to our 40-minute in-depth podcast with cinematographer Elliot Davis (The Iron Lady, Twilight, Out of Sight) right here:
The Birth of a Nation cinematography
Cinematographer: Elliot Davis
Technical specs: 2.40:1, Arri Alexa XT, Red Dragon
Credit: Elliot Davis
"Nate explained to me, 'this is a dark period in history. The film should not be afraid to be dark."
Credit: Elliot Davis
"Nate had lived with this project for seven years... he already knew every frame of the movie."
Credit: Elliot Davis
"The sooner [the director] sees what you want it to look like, the better, because that's the only look they know."
Credit: Elliot Davis
"My best tool is the Digital Intermediate. If I had to make a film with only one thing, that's what I would make it with. I would give up all of my lights, of course you can't give up the camera, but I would just have the camera and the DI."
Credit: Elliot Davis
"Develop yourself as a person. To me, the way you do that is you study anything but cinematography. You want to develop a way of looking at the world, a worldview that becomes your own."
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No Film School's podcasts from the 2016 Sundance Film Festival are sponsored by Canon and Rode Microphones.
For more from Sundance, see our complete coverage of the 2016 Sundance Film Festival.