Matty Libatique: the NY of Highest 2 Lowest, Caught Stealing скачать в хорошем качестве

Matty Libatique: the NY of Highest 2 Lowest, Caught Stealing

The Cinematography Podcast Episode 326: Matthew Libatique, ASC Cinematographer Matty Libatique, ASC, has had a productive year. Shortly after moving to New York, he began work on Spike Lee‘s film, Highest 2 Lowest. Immediately after wrapping that project, Matty prepped for Darren Aronofsky‘s Caught Stealing, and then, following a short break, he collaborated with Bradley Cooper on Is This Thing On? (which releases in December.) He found it fascinating to explore New York City through the lenses of three distinct directors, feeling privileged to shoot three New York-centric movies back-to-back. The New York depicted in Highest 2 Lowest and Caught Stealing are starkly different, depending on where people from different socioeconomic backgrounds live. Both films effectively convey the diverse realities of living there. During location scouting with both Lee and Aronofsky, Matty noted their deep familiarity and emotional attachment to where they chose to shoot. He feels that movies faking New York locations lack the inherent authenticity of shooting in the real city. Highest 2 Lowest is a reinterpretation of the Akira Kurosawa classic, High and Low. Matty used High and Low as an influence, even though Lee was not making a direct adaptation. He found the Kurosawa film helped him see the hierarchy between the affluent and the poor, and the literal rise to the top of a hill by the wealthy industrialist from his humble origins. These themes became the seed of his visual inspiration. In Highest 2 Lowest, Denzel Washington’s record executive David King inhabits a high-rise, literally looking down on the world from a high vantage point. The film is intensely character-driven, and with a large ensemble cast, Matty often shot with two to three cameras per scene. The film used an actual exterior of the Olympia building in Dumbo, Brooklyn while the crew shot on a volume stage set for the interiors. Matty found shooting on the volume stage and working with Unreal Engine to create the background images for the penthouse set to be the most challenging aspect of the shoot. It demanded far more advance planning and preparation to perfect the background images than the production schedule allowed. Spike Lee frequently incorporates various film formats in his movies, and Matty saw an opportunity to use both a 16mm and a new KODAK Super 8 film camera once the action in Highest 2 Lowest shifted outside the controlled apartment environment. He use both the 16mm and the Super 8 on the subway and in scenes of the Puerto Rican Day parade, also combining them with different film stocks. Lee cut between these distinct formats, which made a sense of heightened chaos. Caught Stealing recreates the New York City of the 1990s, with Martin Scorsese’s After Hours serving as a major reference. Matty felt that the character Hank Thompson (Austin Butler) needed a distinct look to articulate the story. He thought about the rust-red tint of the Lee Marvin film, Point Blank, and used a Camtec Color-Con2 to deliberately bleed red color into a few key scenes. Even though Caught Stealing is entertaining and full of action, it was important to Aronofsky to tell a strong, narratively-driven story, with performance and character making the sequences as exciting and brutal as possible. Matty enjoyed tackling a fun, popcorn genre film with Aronofsky, a cinematic space they hadn’t explored together before. “It was fun—it really was fun to work with somebody that I’ve worked with for years,” Matty concludes. “We’re much older than when we met. And we’ve made a lot of films together. And it was fun.” Highest 2 Lowest is streaming on Apple TV+, Caught Stealing is in theaters, and Is This Thing On? will have its theatrical release December 19. Find Matty Libatique: Instagram @libatique Hear our previous interviews with Matty at www.camnoir.com! SHOW RUNDOWN: 00:05:18 Close Focus Remembering Robert Redford and his huge impact on independent filmmakers through the Sundance Film Festival and the Sundance Institute. 00:14:31-1:02:42 Interview ** See Show Notes at https://www.camnoir.com/ep326/ for detailed TECH SPECS and LINKS 1:03:11 Short Ends Ben’s short end: Adobe Premiere is now available for iPads and iPhones. Illya’s short end: Eleanor the Great opens this weekend, directed by Scarlett Johansson and starring 95 year old June Squibb. 1:10:30 Wrap up/Credits Host: Ben Rock Blue Sky: @benrock.com Instagram: @bejamin_rock Host and editor in Chief: Illya Friedman Instagram: @illyafriedman @hotrodcameras Producer: Alana Kode All web and social media content written by Alana Kode Composer: Kays Al-Atrakchi Check out Kays' new YouTube Channel, Kays Labs, where he repairs old synthesizers. Editor: Alana Kode