Evan Winter

No doubt this industry is ridiculously tough but I got into it knowing no one in film (also, my family is firmly middle class - so no easy hand outs there) and now I make my entire living as a director/dp of music videos. I run my own company and I have a manager and he keeps me shooting about 1.5 jobs every 2 months. Sure, I won't be buying a Bugatti anytime soon (in fact, I'll be lucky to get a Corolla) ;) but I love the work and I enjoy my life. Still, I feel a lot of sympathy for Phil's POV and as I get older and life starts to get in the way it's really tough to make it through the ups and downs of freelance life. It's also tough to see all the friends I grew up with get on with things and buy houses, get married, have kids, etc. Filmmaking (creative freelance anything really) is a choice that comes with a lot of sacrifice. The best thing to do is get a sense of what you'll have to sacrifice (financial security mostly) and then determine whether you can live without those things. Evan W.

This doesn't directly help the original poster but it might be interesting. On music videos I shoot an average of 25:1 and I'm pretty sure that's a really low ratio for most Promo directors. Evan W.

Hey Karl, I have my film processed normal and then prepped and cleaned for transfer. When I get to transfer I always have my colorist show me the footage 'flat'. I check this flat image against my DSLR screen and the images on my laptop. All I'm checking for is latitude and rough color balance consistency. The film neg always has more information in both the shadows and highlights than my DSLR stills. So, whatever look I've achieved on my stills I can achieve on my film in transfer. I find shooting stills, while on set, to be a fanstastic previs tool. It means I rarely have to face surprises when transferring. Warm regards, Evan W.

I use my Sony Alpha extensively for pre-vis. I shoot music videos so all the stuff I shoot ends up on DBeta. In transfer the footage exposes almost identically to the way it exposes on my DSLR. The only difference is that film has more latitude in the highlights and the shadows. Thus, if I have the look I want on my DSLR screen then I know, with absolute certainty, that the look I want will be on the film. Evan W.

Hi David, The stills look outstanding. Incredible work you're doing here! It also feels like the cyc is much more a part of the overall landscape as well. I also want to thank you for taking the time out to tell us all about your experiences on set and you may want to consider putting together a book of all your on-set diaries. :) Film students would chew off one of their arms to get as close to the nuts and bolts of a production as you take us. But anyhow, thanks for the diaries, thanks for being so willing to share, and I wish you all the best on getting through this strongly and safely! Evan W.

I do think editing and the aspect ratio will help the illusion. However, it does seem like it'll be a really tough sell on wide shots. I can only imagine that it's a pretty big challenge to shoot in a tight stage and try to deliver the feel of the wide open outdoors but if anyone is up to the challenge it's David. :) Evan W.

Hey David, Very cool look and huge congrats on starting your THIRTY-FOURTH feature!!!! Wow! Truly impressive that you've shot that many films in 17 years. I do have one question though and I'm a little surprised it hasn't come up yet. In all the wider stills, the sky-cyc looks particularly cyc-like to me. I understand the film is stylized and I also appreciate that once I'm looking at a 2.39 cropped image in a movie theater the feel will be different from the heavily compressed and photoshopped web images. Nonetheless, do you anticipate the cyc will appear more life-like or is the general feel from the stills where you want/need it to be creatively? Thanks! Evan W.

Congrats David! It sounds like this was a very positive experience and it's great to hear about it all firsthand. Now, good luck on that next show!!! :) Evan W.

Thanks for the insight David! And a follow-up question (open to everyone so I'm not harassing solely Mr. Mullen) - How do you go about finding the best people you can? As a music video director I'm always in new places and working with new people and I find that I rely on my local producer very heavily (perhaps too heavily) for crew recommendations (I direct/DP). Sometimes this works well and other times not so much... Evan W.

Hi David, So you're almost through another feature film and I'm quite curious about the experience. I'll try and distill that curiosity down to two questions (or maybe 2.5 questions): 1. Given everything that you've gone through on 'Jennifer's Body' is there anything about your approach that you would have reconsidered? Or more precisely, what is the thing you could have done that would have made the most positive difference in the cinematography on the film? 2. What is the most valuable thing that you learned as a DP on 'Jennifer's Body'? I realize that there may be some serious overlap in your answers to the two questions and if you have the time to answer even one it'd be appreciated. All best, Evan W.

Great looking stuff David. I believe I can see the final look in my mind's eye. :) And I'm not sure if it's the angle the photo was taken at or on account of something else but the 18k HMI on the condor looks like it's incredibly high up! Thanks again for the notes and thoughts. Evan W.

Good luck on the shoot Roberto. I know your work will be fabulous and I can't wait to see the film. Evan W.

Thanks for keeping us up to date David. An excellent read, as always. It seems, when you're in production, I check the forums more for the next chapter in your production diary than for anything else. It sounds like it's been a good shoot so far and I hope the rest of it goes smashingly. Best wishes, Evan W.

There's still a fair bit of work in music videos right now although a lot of my artists are European. In fact, whenever they talk about coming over to L.A. to shoot and spend their converted Euros or Pounds I can practically hear the smile in their voice as we talk over the phone. Strangely enough, my average budget level is going up as the American dollar goes down... However, I am afraid that, as the recession tightens it grip worldwide, this temporary trend will come to a frighteningly abrupt halt. :( Evan W.

Thank you David. It feels like I'm in a Cinematography Master class at an Ivy League. :)

Hiya and I'm flattered that you referenced a video of mine, Here was the setup I used for the shoot: Arri SR3 Vision 2 7218 500T film Canon 8-64 Zoom 45 degree shutter Soft F/X filters (between 1/2 - 2) I transferred in Toronto and my colorist is probably the best in the city (he was doing me a massive favor because his typical rate hourly rate would've blown my entire transfer budget in about 15 minutes) :) As digital technology becomes better and better we're seeing results that challenge film acquisition but no matter how you acquire the images a brilliant colorist (artists themselves) and a good transfer (with enough time to do the job right) should never be overlooked or underestimated. It costs a heck of a lot of money but every penny is well spent! Good luck on all your projects! Evan W.

Thank you, That was great to watch. :) Evan W.

<rant> The film is financially successful ($40 million weekend), well reviewed (74% rotten tomatoes), and well liked (8.0 on IMDB as voted on by 26.5K people). For all those concerned about the camera work; at the very least see the film before you pass judgement. Having said that, I've seen it. The camerawork is complex and clearly carefully designed. So much of the time you are left feeling as if you want to see just a little bit more than you do (it's the essence of thrilling). It's also the audience control of Hitchcock meshed with an entirely concept driven style. What's more, I watched the film at the Grove in Hollywood and the theatre was packed (roughly 500 or so people) and not a single person left the room. The whole motion sickness thing is hype at its best. Instead of real news or information we end up with infotainment. Sure, some people will feel nauseous but some people feel nauseous sitting in the back seat of a moving car. Reading through the last two pages of posts have been a surreal experience. It feels extremely 'can't-see-the-forest-for-the-trees'... </rant> Evan

I was doing some last minute holiday shopping and saw this on a 42' display in Best Buy. The TV was showing Pirates of the Caribbean and I was absolutely appalled. I remember thinking, at first, that I must be looking at behind-the-scenes footage. What made this all the more worrisome is that the display had its 'Dynamic' setting on (the TV had 'Standard', 'Dynamic', and 'Movie' settings). The Dynamic setting, as far as I could tell, increased the brightness on the image and then cranked the contrast to bring the image back but in a much poppier and saturated way. It was unnerving to hear passersby oooh and aahh at the 'incredible clarity of the image'. Meanwhile, all I could think was that Pirates now looked like a cheap indie knock-off or a CGI laden National Geographic documentary. Like other posters I couldn't imagine why, after trying so hard to make video look like film, TV manufacturers are now destroying hard work by 'turning' film into video with the mere flick of a switch. It was, I'll admit, interesting to see some of the extra detail contained in the image that is hidden by more typical display settings. When flipping back and forth I could see and then 'disappear' a zit (half-masked by foundation) on Keira Knightley's chin. I played with the TV and its functions for a good half hour in the store because I had never seen anything like it. When the auto motion plus effect was on it looked to me like a combination of extreme noise reduction (in terms of movement smearing), but with added sharpness, extra depth of field (or at least the appearance of extra depth), and that extra je ne sais quoi that one always associates with video capture. Perhaps the most interesting and frightening thing was that all the wardrobing, sets, make-up, and even the lighting started to look second rate. It seemed like I was seeing too much and too deeply into the artifice of the movie. I'm also pretty sure Dariusz Wolski would have had a fit had he seen his work transformed in this way. :o Evan W.

I just watched this tonight and I was thoroughly impressed. The film, for it's entire running length, is one beautiful shot after another. The story has fantastic elements but by and large it is shot in mundane, if exotic (to me), locations - a small Texas town, a ranch home, a barn, etc. Despite this, the movie has a structured, deliberate, and motivated feel to its lighting that augments the narrative and lifts the whole film up beyond pleasant tale to worthwhile entertainment. I've read many of David's posts here and I've always felt that we were fortunate, as a forum, for his presence. However, after seeing the 'Astronaut Farmer' I am grateful and somewhat in awe that I am offered an opportunity to converse with such a talented individual and visionary. I realize most on the forum have already seen the film but for those who haven't - do yourself a favor and watch it. This is cinematography to be admired. I'm looking forward to taking a look at Northfork; which seems to be the movie David is most often praised for. Evan W. P.S. - If I remember correctly David had misgivings about the way the capsule had to be lit (given the realities of the space, etc). The capsule looked marvelous to me. In fact, no single shot seemed like a compromise at all.

I heard from a fairly reliable source that Joseph Kahn was recently attached to direct this.

I wasn't planning to see this but because of your 'review' David I'm going to check it out in 3D at the Arclight's 10:55pm showing tonight. :) I hope it's good... Actually, although I'm not sure I'll enjoy the narrative I'm pretty confident it'll be an enjoyable experience. I've always loved the idea of 3D as the next big thing in cinema and although it may never happen it'll be fun to see how moviemakers are playing with the technology in 2007. Evan W. P.S - if anyone hasn't seen 'No Country For Old Men' then do yourself a massive favor and check it out. It's likely the best film I've seen this year. The editing, cinematography, direction, and acting are superb! (*warning*: the movie is quite violent)

Hi Richard, First off congratulations on completing and now selling a feature film! That's an amazing accomplishment!!! Also, thanks for answering questions on the AFM. It's been a very interesting and educational read. Obrigado, Evan W.

So I was going through some old stuff today and ran across two sets of slide film from a trip to Cuba. Instantly intrigued, I grabbed the slides and threw them up on a small viewer I had handy. Wow and gorgeous! The images came alive. They feel so full and so vibrant that it almost comes across as 3D. Now, I bring this up because I've been going on lately about how impressed I was when I recently viewed Red camera footage. I'm still impressed and I may very well be shooting my next music video (monday nov 19th) on the Red (I have the camera booked and I'm just sorting out the post workflow). However, looking at those slides reminded me that film has that 'je ne sais quoi' that always manages to take me to a place that feels half memory and half dream and still the film sum, somehow and inexplicably, manages to be greater than even those two parts! Gorgeous... Evan P.S - After much price quoting etc I have discovered that a Red shoot in L.A. will cost me the same (almost to the dollar) as a Super 16mm film shoot in L.A.

Great looking stuff. I like the frontal perf. close-up and thought the tunnel shot (where the camera pulls away from the lead singer) was quite cool. Thanks for sharing. Evan W.