Writing from East Sussex, on location for his latest project, BSC President Christopher Ross celebrates and commemorates some important cinematographic anniversaries.
Chiaroscuro
/kɪˌɑːrəˈskʊərəʊ/
noun
- pictorial representation in terms of light and shade without regard to colour
- the arrangement or treatment of light and dark parts in a pictorial work of art
i. “The artist uses chiaroscuro to create the perception of depth”
As I sit down to write this edition of “Perspective” I find myself away on location on my latest project. Home for the week is the beautiful coastal retreat of Rye, once the site of invasions by overseas forces, but now the picturesque medieval buildings are home to art galleries, coffee shops and a brilliantly curated arthouse cinema. A blessed existence.
This month, British Cinematographer asks us to call forth memories from our collective experiences in cinematography. Anniversaries are looming and it is fitting to mark the dates in celebration and commemoration.
In 1993, a film festival was created that centred its devotion around the craft that we all love, questioning the writer/director status quo of film festival focus. The vibrant, cine-punk experience that is Camerimage erupted in celebration of cinematography and its creators. Dedicated entirely to the craft of image-making, the festival has a history of elevating films according to their visual, aesthetic and technical values.
The 30th edition of EnergaCAMERIMAGE takes place in early November and the history of the festival and an overview of this year’s schedule can be found in a special supplement honouring the impact of this essential date in the film-making calendar.
Sharing the 30-year landmark celebration is that of the IMAGO Federation, founded in Rome in December 1992. The brainchild of famed Italian cinematographer Luciano Tovoli ASC AIC, a pan-European federation of like-minded societies and associations was born from its founding members: the AIC, AFC, BSC and BVK. From its European beginning to its global present, IMAGO has worked to align international cinematographers along common goals of technology and craft, welfare and diversity. The federation continues to work towards the elevation of the role of cinematography in the authorship of the moving image, as well as the preservation of the great works of our cinematic heritage.
Geopolitics is not the most cinematic of concepts, but the success of IMAGO should certainly be a cause for celebration. I look forward to assisting Mustapha Barat ABC, IMAGO’s President, on the federation’s future initiatives. At a time when nationalism is on the rise across the globe, may IMAGO continue to lead the way and unite artists across borders.
The light and shadow of the filmmaking world is something that we all take for granted, part of the storytelling tradition. There is no love without hate, no joy without sorrow… As cinematographers we mine these seams of juxtaposition for emotion and atmosphere. Sadly, there is no celebration without commemoration.
21 October marked the first anniversary of the untimely death of Halyna Hutchins, and I would like to pay tribute to her memory. Killed by a live round on set, Halyna was struck down whilst doing the job that she loved; lining up a shot, collaborating with a director, making beautiful images.
Halyna’s premature death was entirely avoidable and unites the global filmmaking community in grief for her wasted potential as a filmmaker, as a wife, as a mother.
In a tragic echo of sentiment, 18 November 2022 brings about the fifth anniversary of the death of Mark Milsome Assoc. BSC, who was killed in Ghana whilst filming a car stunt. I have written before about the tragic loss of Mark’s life but less about the person. How inspirational he was as human being (not just as a filmmaker) and his altruism and dedication to helping young filmmakers. There are many of us that owe Mark for that first phone call, for that first job. And still more that owe for that piece of advice and support that he offered without need for reciprocation.
Mark’s death, was premature and avoidable too, leaving behind a vacuum of wasted potential as a filmmaker, as a husband, as a father.
Mark and Halyna’s deaths stand as a stark warning of the hazards that surround us every time that we step onto a film set. Collective responsibility must be the way forwards to a safe and accident-free working environment. An industry centred on the wellbeing of every individual must be the roadmap for ensuring that these tragic events are never repeated.
I urge everyone to take the Mark Milsome Foundation’s Online Safety Passport Course and to be empowered to speak up and help make our sets safe and accident-free.
There is no light without dark; the imagined worlds of the images we shoot collide with our real world of joy and sadness; the eternal imbalance of work and life. But even in the darkest of places there rests a glimmer. Each of these anniversaries are celebrations, of ideas and collaborations, of memories and relationships, all in honour of lives well lived.
Raise a glass (or a cup of tea): to joy and sorrow, to darkness and light. To Mark and Halyna, may their memories sustain us and guide us. Rest in Peace.
