Cinematographer Adam Stone and director Jeff Nichols have been close collaborators since film school and share the same sensibilities, particularly with their preference for the anamorphic format. “Not knowing any better, we shot our first low-budget indie, Shotgun Stories (2007), in widescreen,” Stone said. “That film did better than expected, and we attributed some of its success to the format—widescreen added a weight and elegant stateliness to the story.”
Cooke Optics has unveiled a specially manufactured set of anamorphic lenses called Anamorphic/i SF. The new lens range, which is complementary to the acclaimed Anamorphic/i series, offers a coating that gives cinematographers even more options for anamorphic character.
Cooke Optics' ZGC, the American distributor for the multi-award winning manufacturer of precision lenses for film and television has appointed Rich Eilers to the role of director of sales, effective February 29.
Cinematographer Shane Hurlbut, ASC used a series of 10 Cooke S4/i focal lengths to shoot Gabriele Muccino's latest feature Fathers and Daughters, starring Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried. Hurlbut's lens package for the Canon EOS D500 and MōVI digital 3-axis gyro-stabilized handheld camera gimbal included the Cooke S4/i 14mm, 18mm, 21mm, 27mm, 32mm, 40mm, 50mm, 75mm, 100mm, and 135mm lenses. Fathers and Daughters, a Voltage Films and Busted Shark production of a Voltage Pictures Film, marks the ninth feature film Hurlbut has shot with Cooke lenses.
Tokyo-based video production company Ellroy decided to see for themselves if zoom lenses from FujiFilm, for all their undoubted functionality, fall short when compared to single-focal length PL mount cine lenses in terms of image quality.
Panavision has reached a distribution agreement with German rental facility Ludwig Kameraverleih to provide filmmakers in the region with Panavision’s extensive range of spherical and anamorphic lenses, including the popular Primo 70 series for larger sensor digital cameras.
It’s an understatement to call Cooke Optics’ chairman and owner Les Zellan a digital cinema pioneer. In 2000 when he first introduced the idea of metadata technology in lens manufacturing, only a small number of people believed that digital cinema technology would ever truly replace film as Hollywood’s production medium of choice. At the time, the American Society of Cinematographers was actively campaigning against the idea of replacing film projectors with what were derisively called video projectors. Much has changed, of course, but Zellan still talks in the wary manner of pioneers who understand that, even though they’ve overcome some challenges, there are still more to face.
When J.J. Abrams and Dan Mindel, ASC, BSC took on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, they knew they were handling a cultural touchstone. As they did with Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness, they wanted to respect the antecedent while making a great, entertaining film for today’s audiences. So when it came to choosing format, lenses and the right look, they began by researching how the original Star Wars films were made.
Cooke Optics has set out a roadmap for delivery of its most recently announced lenses, as well as an update about /i3, the latest and most ambitious version of its /i Technology metadata system.
Cinematographer Felix Wiedemann has chosen Anamorphic/i lenses from Cooke Optics, the multi-award winning manufacturer of precision lenses for film and television, to shoot the action thriller Stratton.
