The DP Behind 'Sinners' Reveals How She Shot Remmick's Iconic Entrance

The movie that we can't stop talking about this year is Sinners, the horror movie directed by Ryan Coogler that was such a smash hit that they're bringing it back to theaters for Halloween weekend. (I suggest everyone check it out in IMAX —it's transcendent.)

The thing that I think made the movie so special was its visuals, which took us into a world and let us play with all the characters.

The cinematographer controlling the camera for the movie was Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who has worked with Coogler for a long time, capturing some of the most stunning scenes we've seen in a while.

Recently, she sat down for Variety’s Inside the Frame, where she talked about what it was like to work on this movie.

Let's dive in.

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What Drew Cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw To The Project?

Arkapaw got to shoot on 35MM cameras as well as IMAX. There were a ton of tools at her disposal, and they helped her capture one of the most poignant and thematically rich scenes in the movie, the arrival of Jack O'Connell's villain.

There's a ton of anticipation for that scene, which happens about halfway through the movie. He shows up at a farmhouse and finds sanctuary there after being invited in and killing the people inside — turning them into vampires.

Arkapaw told Variety that it was one of her favorite scenes. And even though it happened later in the movie, it was used to open Coogler's screenplay.

She said, “I remember when I read it, I was blown away, because I’m like, ‘Where did he come up with this stuff?’ He’s very good at just writing things that jump off the page and get people excited. And that comes from his love of cinema and being in the theater. You’re watching Jaws or The Dark Knight, and you have these scenes that just wrap their arms around you, and you feel like you’re a part of the scene. And that was how he wrote that scene.”

I feel like those two movies she referenced are the perfect descriptions of how I felt when I saw that scene. They were introducing the villain in ways we know would ultimately clash with our hero.

And you get nervous at what's coming for our heroes.

The reason it got moved back in the movie was a conversation with editor Michael Shawver.

Arkapaw said, “It was one of my favorite scenes, and it read like a Western. I was very excited to shoot it, and I could see it in my head the moment I read it. It’s about Remmick’s entrance into the film, trying to approach this desolate farmhouse where he meets these two farmers. He is trying to get into the house and take cover because he’s claiming to be chased by some Choctaw Indians.”

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Shooting That Jack O'Connell Entrance

So, how do you shoot something like this scene? Well, first you have to think about the character and then you have to seed in what we want the audience to feel. And also, if there was any exposition for the audience to know that they could show and not tell.

Arkapaw expanded on those things, saying, “It was important for Ryan that you give a hint at the fact that he can fly. Jack jumped off the box, and we did it a few times to get it right because Ryan wanted it to look a certain way. You’re close to the camera, and it just hints at the fact that maybe he’s flying, that he has supernatural powers. Later, obviously, in the scene, you see that he’s a vampire because you meet him again in the back room in the nursery.”

They shot all this at magic hour, so they really had a time limit and had to move quickly while trying to get all of this stuff. They had two days of production to get everything they needed, so time was always of the essence.

“We shot it for one day, and then we went back to complete some work, which allowed us more time to get it in camera.”

Of course, some things were bound to go wrong. Arkapaw detailed, “The IMAX camera jammed right before we were about to shoot that one shot of him looking at the sun on the horse. You see over his shoulder the sun dropping. But we were able to fix the jam, and we literally rolled right before it set.”

Summing It All Up

I love interviews like this one because they open a window into the real production of a movie and what it takes to get these landmark shots and character introductions. It's a great dissection of the process from start to finish.

I think there could be an Oscar nom in the future. This movie and Arkapaw deserve every bit of it.

Let me know what you think in the comments.