Monday, January 25, 2016

favorite tv guys

Michael Slovis: Breaking Bad cinematographer

Slovis began his professional career in 1981. For many years, he worked as a camera operator on films. He became a cinematographer in 1995, working on the films Party Girl (1995), Half Past Dead (2002), Halloweentown (1998), The Thirteenth Year (1999), and Ready to Run (2000). In 2000, Slovis became a cinematographer on the series Ed, and went on to work on the series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, New Amsterdam, Fringe, Royal Pains, Rubicon, Running Wilde, and Breaking Bad.

As a director, Slovis made his directorial debut with the 2001 television film Spirit. Later, he went on to direct episodes of Ed, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Rubicon, Breaking Bad, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Hell on Wheels. In 2006, Slovis won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a One Hour Series for his work on CSI.

In 2014, he directed episodes 1 and 2 of Season 5 of the HBO series Game of Thrones. 
Slovis is an alumnus of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.




Adam Arkapaw: True Detective cinematographer 


Adam Arkapaw is an Australian cinematographer. He is best known for his work on the television series Top of the Lake and True Detective, for which he has won two Creative Arts Emmy Awards. He studied at the University of Melbourne's Victorian College of the Arts, graduating in 2006 with a Bachelor of Film and Television. n addition to numerous short films, Arkapaw photographed three Australian features over the next several years: Animal Kingdom (2010), Snowtown (2011), and Lore (2012).
He received a nomination for the AACTA Award for Best Cinematography in 2010 for his work on Animal Kingdom and in 2011 he was named one of Variety magazine's "10 Cinematographers to Watch". Arkawpaw next worked on Jane Campion's television miniseries Top of the Lake, which was filmed in New Zealand and broadcast in 2013. That year he won a Creative Arts Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie.
In 2014 he won his second Emmy Award, for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series, in recognition of his work on the HBO television series True Detective. True Detective was filmed in Louisiana and Arkapaw's cinematography received wide praise, especially for a six-minute single-take long take that was planned over months and took one and a half days to film.
 Arkapaw was the cinematographer of the 2015 film Macbeth, directed by Justin Kurzel, with whom Arkapaw previously worked on Snowtown. He also photographed McFarland, USA, an American sports film released in 2015, and the upcoming drama film The Light Between Oceans.


Dana Gonzales: Fargo cinematographer 


Dana Gonzales came up through the ranks with his 2nd unit work on Paul Haggis' Academy Award winning film Crash, Julie Taymor's The Tempest and David O. Russell's The Fighter. He swiftly moved into main unit cinematography on Michael Shroeder's Man In The Chair, starring Christopher Plummer. Soon thereafter he began his longstanding collaboration with director Ric Roman Waugh, beginning with Felon, starring Val Kilmer and Stephen Dorff followed by Snitch, starring Dwayne Johnson.

In addition to features, Dana has a thriving television career. His style ranges from the hyperreal, slick aesthetic of the ABC series Pretty Little Liars to the grittier, handheld look of Southland for TNT and the modern-day western Longmire for A&E. Over the years, his work has garnered a lot of attention and earned him an Emmy Award Nomination in Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie on the highly acclaimed FX series, Fargo and Dana was also chosen for Variety's Below The Line Impact Report for 2014.

Recently, Dana completed Brad Payton's feature film, Incarnate, starring Aaron Eckhart and Ariel Vromen's Criminal for Millennium Films, starring Kevin Costner, Ryan Reynolds, and Gary Oldman. He is currently shooting Ric Waugh's Shot Caller for Bold Films, starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lake Bell, and Jon Bernthal.

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

top 10 (1/19/16)

top 10 things to watch at this current time (1/19/16)

1. Tim and Eric's Bedtime Stories



A more cinematic step has been taken by the two comedy gods in their latest [adult swim] show, Bedtime Stories. Bedtime Stories still shows us glimpses into the comedic minds of Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, but this time there is an evil twist to it that more traditional fans of Tim & Eric might not stand behind. Bedtime Stories carries it's audience through a character's struggle through individual episodes that connect us with a new character, sometimes using big actors such as T&E regular Dr. Steve Brule aka John C. Reilly and Jason Schwartzman, as well as the same actor who got T&E on the path to stardom, Bob Odenkirk. If you've got the time, take a dip into the murk that is Bedtime Stories. Note: This show will be much more easily understood if you take time to learn who T&E are first. Please watch Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! first.

2. Fargo


Why someone didn't decide to reboot an open-ended Coen Brothers movie into a television show before this, I do not know. Fargo is similar to the original film which came out in 1996, but the two seasons take place in different time periods, bringing whole new characters and ideas to the table. While season one was good, season two blew me away. 1979 Minnesota accompanied by the stylistic choices as well as hidden Coen easter eggs in nearly every episode makes it hard to not enjoy visiting the wonderful world of Fargo. Can't wait for season three.

3. Requiem for a Dream


Requiem for a Dream is one that everyone knows, and some people avoid it because they know how hard it is to watch. I find it to be a beautifully shot, innovative film that follows the story of four people who all have to cope with their addictions. A beautiful story that uses very interesting "aronofsky shots" that is sure to move you.

 4. Birdman


Birdman is a classic. It's the movie that took home all the Oscars last year, and rightfully so. I was in New Orleans when this came out and I hadn't even really heard of it. I knew nothing about it other than the fact that it had a big cast. I decided to see it, and I sat in the theatre for 10 minutes after the credits just reevaluating my life. Birdman is that kind of movie. I was so amazed by everything about this movie. I went back home and had a Keaton marathon, but this is most definitely his masterpiece.

5. The Master


Another one of those movies for me is P.T. Anderson (my favorite director) 's The Master. A beautifully crafted story of a soldier coming back from WWII who has to learn to deal with the stresses caused during the war, and fails miserably. With two of film's greatest actors, and one of film's greatest directors, it's hard to go wrong.

 6. Death Proof


Death Proof is Tarantino's homage to "grindhouse" films of the 1970's, showing b-list actors doing incredible, real stunts in a gritty, ugly way. Some of the coolest driving stunts (and no CGI) I've ever seen come from this movie, and as always, it's a story of brutal revenge with plenty of gore along the way.

7. A Serious Man


The Coen Brothers' truly underrated gem, A Serious Man, takes us to 1967, somewhat of a spectacle into their upbringing. The story follows a Jewish family who seems to be falling apart (possibly due to a curse that their Yiddish speaking ancestors brought upon them) and the patriarch of the family's struggle.

8. The Royal Tenenbaums

The Royal Tenenbaums was the first Wes Anderson film I ever saw, and it holds a place deep in my heart. The beautiful sets that he chooses to shoot in such a play-like way seem to whisk viewers off to some sort of meadowy dream where everything is beautiful, and sad. And happy. This is a terrific film, don't let the air of white privilege scare you off.

9. Nathan for You


Brought to you by Abso-Lutely productions (a la Tim & Eric), Nathan for You takes Nathan Fielder, an awkward Canadian, to southern California where he helps struggling business owners come up with Nathan-ized ideas and present them in a quite hilarious frame. Nathan Fielder makes Michael Cera look like Fonzie.

10. A Clockwork Orange


A classic Kubrick masterpiece, Clockwork follows a gang of teenage boys in futuristic London who go around doing whatever they want. Retribution finds it's way back into the mix, and Alex eventually murders it.