Cooke Optics has announced Colour, a curated exhibition exploring the intricate role that colour can play in life and on screen. In the exhibition, visitors will find films and explainers presented chronologically, where colour “becomes a character in its own right, expanding beyond the technical to reveal how it’s a powerful storytelling tool, an emotional … Read more
Cooke Optics has unveiled Panchro 65/i, a new lens series designed for 65mm and larger-format cinematography. Cooke has engineered Panchro 65/i to “faithfully carry forward the distinctive aesthetic of the Panchro line”, the organisation revealed. The lenses combine “classic character with modern performance, scaling the iconic Panchro look to cover a significantly larger image circle, … Read more
Cooke Optics has announced the departure of non-executive chairman and board advisor Kees Van Oostrum after five years. The Emmy-nominated cinematographer is stepping down to focus on filmmaking, teaching, and other business ventures. Van Oostrum departs after playing a “pivotal role” in several key initiatives at Cooke, the organisation said, including the development of the … Read more
Cooke will be attending the European Lens Summit, held for the second year at CVP’s Brentford facility, Saturday July 12 and Sunday July 13, 2025. US rental house and reseller Koerner Camera have been the host to the Pacific Northwest Lens Summit since 2017. In 2023, they partnered with CVP to bring the Summit to … Read more
Cooke’s London Gallery is now showcasing Creative Gravity, an exhibition celebrating the creative collaboration between cinematographer Lol Crawley, BSC and director Brady Corbet. The new exhibition offers an in-depth look at their artistic synergy, highlighting their work on The Brutalist (2024), Vox Lux (2018) and The Childhood of a Leader (2015). The exhibition, currently on … Read more
Cooke announce the appointment of David Hancock as CEO, effective 6 January 2025. After four successful years as CEO, including expanding the business in new sectors that o er an exciting future for Cooke, Tim Pugh informed the board earlier in 2024 that he wished to retire. Since then, he has continued to lead the … Read more
As befits a drama about a sophisticated culinary critic it is the fresh palette of colourful and appetising images that first meets the eye but these exhibit as much a love for the city of Buenos Aires as they do of gastronomic delights. Filmmakers Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn (El hombre al lado, 2011; El … Read more
Cooke announce that it will be exhibiting at Cine Gear Expo LA 7-8 June. With this year’s Expo taking place at Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Cooke will be located at booth 627 on Midwestern street. This year Cooke will showcase their PL-mount cine lenses and the new mirrorless SP3 across nine cameras on the stand. Cooke … Read more
Relive all the action from another successful edition of the celebrated festival with Lars Pettersson FSF. Once again, from 11-18 November, the picturesque little medieval city of Toruń in Poland became the backdrop for the EnergaCAMERIMAGE International Film Festival dedicated to the art of cinematography. And just as the city’s most famous son, renowned astronomer Nicholas … Read more
Typically, when a series wants to change its look from its first season to its second, there’s a prime consideration that the cinematographer has to take into account: What do you take from the first season and what do you do new for the second? That was where cinematographer Eric Branco found himself with having … Read more
Leo is the third film in the Lokesh Cinematic Universe. Inspired by the A History of Violence graphic novel series, Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Tamil-language action thriller follows family man Parthi who resides in Northwestern India where he owns a coffee shop and helps the local forest ranger rescue animals. His attempts to keep a low profile … Read more
Just over half a century ago, one of British cinema’s most memorable and heart-warming movies, The Railway Children, was released. Based on the 1906 novel of the same name by E. Nesbit and starring Jenny Agutter, Bernard Cribbins and Dinah Sheridan, the story of the Waterbury family has captivated audiences ever since. Fast forward just … Read more
Christopher, a major new Malayam action film directed by B. Unnikrishnan and starring veteran actor and superstar of Indian cinema, Mammootty, gave cinematographer Faiz Siddik the opportunity to use Cooke Anamorphic/i FF SF (Full Frame Special Flair) lenses for the first time, while paving the way for the digital anamorphic format in India. Christopher follows … Read more
Cinematographer Jonathan Pope relied on Cooke Optics 2x Anamorphic/i prime lenses and 1/2 Glimmerglass filters to recreate the film look of 1999 Los Angeles for the mystery Proof Sheet. Taking place between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, Proof Sheet tells the story of a beautiful woman in trouble and an incriminating roll of film that … Read more
DPs can try out Cooke’s new Varotal/i, S8/i and other lenses and watch the footage in a dedicated screening room in Toruń’s Old Town. Cooke Optics is offering attendees at EnergaCAMERIMAGE the unique opportunity to light and shoot tests with their lenses and view the graded results in a 4K screening room. The venerable lens … Read more
For cinematographer Ed Wu, the choice to use Cooke Optics Anamorphic/i S35 prime lenses for the Netflix original film End of the Road was easy. The harder choice was whether to go with Special Flair (SF) or not. So, he made the most logical decision – go with both. “I’ve used Cooke lenses a lot,” … Read more
For the small budget adventure-thriller Nine Bullets, DP Byron Werner used Cooke Optics Anamorphic/i prime lenses to give him the scope he needed for the intimate nature of the film, while elevating the look to that of a bigger budget project, all with the help of The Cooke Look. Nine Bullets tells the story of … Read more
Matt Lloyd ASC CSC has used Cooke Optics S4/i prime lenses extensively since they first came out – including the pilot for the limited television series Fargo. But in discussions with director, producer and actor David Oyelowo, they both knew that the look of The Water Man would need to be more majestic than a spherical lens … Read more
Cooke Optics has announced the launch of two exciting additions to its expanding range of Full Frame lenses. Two new Varotal/i FF zoom lenses bring leading-edge modern design and materials to this historic line of zoom lenses that were first seen in 1971, while the extensive Panchro/i Classic FF range offers the beloved vintage Speed … Read more
In the 1990s, almost every DP in New York was using the Cooke Optics S4/i for commercials, music videos, and independent features, according to Aaron Medick, one of the DPs on Power Book III: Raising Kanan, who also became lead DP in the second season for Power Book II: Ghost after starting as B camera/Steadicam operator and moving up to DP for Power, which launched the franchise for cable and streaming service Starz. So, it should come … Read more