With Oscar wins in the cinematography and documentary categories, productions shot on RED Digital Cinema capped off a successful awards season for the company.
Erik Messerschmidt, ASC took the Best Cinematography prize for his black-and-white photography of Mank. Messerschmidt was a favorite going into Sunday night’s ceremony after winning awards from his peers at the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) and British Society of Cinematographers (BSC). Mank, which took home two Oscars, led all nominations with 10, including a nod for director David Fincher. The Netflix film was shot on a RED RANGER with a HELIUM 8K MONOCHROME sensor. It was the 17th black-and-white film in Academy Award history to be nominated for cinematography since separate categories for colour and black-and-white films were merged in 1967.
“We are incredibly proud of Erik on his Oscar win for best cinematography,” said RED Digital Cinema President Jarred Land. “It is a well-deserved recognition for creating truly breathtaking images for Fincher’s Mank. We are honored that he chose to shoot it on RED cameras, and we can’t wait to see what he does next.”
Best Documentary winners Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster collaborated with cinematographer Roger Horrocks on Netflix’s My Octopus Teacher, shot on a RED DRAGON. The touching under-the-sea story has been widely recognised this season, winning BAFTA, ACE, PGA and IDA awards. It also earned nominations from DGA, MPSE, and CAS. Horrocks claimed a Best Cinematography Award for a documentary at the Critics’ Choice Awards.
Additional productions shot on RED that received accolades this awards season include Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit, shot by Steven Meizler on the RED RANGER. The limited series earned Meizler an ASC Award. The show also won DGA, PGA, SAG, Golden Globes, AFI, ACE, ADG and WGA awards, among others. Ammonite, The Dissident, The Last Dance, The Social Dilemma and David Attenborough: Life on Our Planet were also recognised for their achievements.
