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new cinematography reel


Matteo Cocco

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Hi Matthew,

 

Since I don´t shoot commercials, I decided not to edit a traditional reel.

Cinematography is not about making beautiful pictures, but more about storytelling.

 

So I decided to edit some kind of "Cinematography Trailer" for each project, which should underline the coherence of pictures within a story.

 

Still curious to know what you think about it!

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Who says you have to shoot commercials to have a reel? And cinematography is not about storytelling, its about being a go between from the director's vision and having the technical prowess to convert it to an image. What is all this crap lately about cinematographers being story tellers? They arent...they are technical experts who can pull off what the director wants.

 

As a Director, I want to hire someone who can listen to my vision and say "yeah, I can make that happen visually." I dont want a DP who says "give me the script and Ill impose my will and creativity to make it happen." If the latter then why even have a Director?

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......And cinematography is not about storytelling, its about being a go between from the director's vision and having the technical prowess to convert it to an image. What is all this crap lately about cinematographers being story tellers? They arent...they are technical experts who can pull off what the director wants.........

 

For as long as film makers/directors are attached to the notion of story telling, good cinematographers will see their roll as to "serve the story". A phrase that comes up repeatedly in the conversations. So is cinematography about storytelling in the common modern context. Obviously yes. Use of the word "about" does not suggest that the cinematographer is the default lead storyteller. This is clearly not what Matteo is saying.

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Gregg, I see you replied but I didnt see what it said. It says "This post is hidden because you have chosen to ignore posts by Gregg MacPherson." What does this mean?

 

Well, for the benefit or amusement or others (those who can read it), my guess is that a switch has been flicked in your account so that you will not see my posts. If you consciously did that then I guess the post above is you just telling us all that you did that.

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Who says you have to shoot commercials to have a reel? And cinematography is not about storytelling, its about being a go between from the director's vision and having the technical prowess to convert it to an image. What is all this crap lately about cinematographers being story tellers? They arent...they are technical experts who can pull off what the director wants.

 

As a Director, I want to hire someone who can listen to my vision and say "yeah, I can make that happen visually." I dont want a DP who says "give me the script and Ill impose my will and creativity to make it happen." If the latter then why even have a Director?

 

If this was the case, then directors would not care who they picked as dp on their project

unfortunately (for you) there is a reason for all those couples like Tarantino/Richardson and Eastwood/Stern, and its not because they know where the buttons are

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If this was the case, then directors would not care who they picked as dp on their project

unfortunately (for you) there is a reason for all those couples like Tarantino/Richardson and Eastwood/Stern, and its not because they know where the buttons are

Unfortunately for me? :D

Have you worked with Tarentino? I worked with a guy who did and that man is in command of his set. Sure he trusts his DP but dont fool yourself, QT is involved in every aspect of his films.

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Oooh I caught you here boy, remember this discussion we had? >> index.php?showtopic=58727&hl=

 

Here's your quote from that topic

 

''Every reel I see anymore is exactly the same as the one before it. And this one falls right in line. They are these DSLR shot, blown out skylines, heavy browns but otherwise desaturated, slow mo, and too much center framing. It seems practically EVERY reel I have watched in the last 2 months (and I watch many) has these attributes. Isn't anyone original anymore?''

 

 

And now, here's your quote from this topic

''
What is all this crap lately about cinematographers being story tellers? They arent...they are technical experts who can pull off what the director wants.''

 

 

So what is it Matt? Make up your mind...

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Oooh I caught you here boy, remember this discussion we had? >> index.php?showtopic=58727&hl=

 

Here's your quote from that topic

 

''Every reel I see anymore is exactly the same as the one before it. And this one falls right in line. They are these DSLR shot, blown out skylines, heavy browns but otherwise desaturated, slow mo, and too much center framing. It seems practically EVERY reel I have watched in the last 2 months (and I watch many) has these attributes. Isn't anyone original anymore?''

 

 

And now, here's your quote from this topic

 

''What is all this crap lately about cinematographers being story tellers? They arent...they are technical experts who can pull off what the director wants.''

 

 

So what is it Matt? Make up your mind...

I dont see how those two statements are mutually exclusive? Just because many reels look the same isnt indicative of WHO is making the call to do it that way. Maybe its the Directors who like this bandwagon look, I dont know. Please help me to understand why you think those statements are contradictory?

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Well, you were judging a cinematographer's work by saying it was not original, but how can a cinematographer possibly be original by only being a technical expert? This would mean that the blown out skylines, heavy browns and center framings are the director's responsibility, it was his decision, his vision, his story, the DP only did what the director said... It's actually like saying: directing is not about story telling, directors only do what is written in the script by the screenwriter, so screenwriters are the actual storytellers.

 

When you talk about ''being original'' you talk about personal interpretations and new creative decisions made by individuals, new ways of thinking, and technical experts do not make such decisions as far as i know.

 

Watch this documentary called Cinematographer Style, it will give you a better understanding of the craft.

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Who says you have to shoot commercials to have a reel? And cinematography is not about storytelling, its about being a go between from the director's vision and having the technical prowess to convert it to an image. What is all this crap lately about cinematographers being story tellers? They arent...they are technical experts who can pull off what the director wants.

 

As a Director, I want to hire someone who can listen to my vision and say "yeah, I can make that happen visually." I dont want a DP who says "give me the script and Ill impose my will and creativity to make it happen." If the latter then why even have a Director?

 

To say that cinematographers aren't storytellers (of any kind) is a little bit far-fetched in my opinion. Obviously, their work has to serve the vision of the director (or the story for that matter), as do al the creative crafts that contribute to the process of moviemaking. (A musician isn't also just a person who would solely play the notes that have been given to him or her). It always begins with what has to be told, be it a classic linear narrative or something more experimental. But, in any case cinematography is more than just translating technically what the director wants. There's obviously also a creative side to the job. I can't image that a director would give his or her DP a shotlist with an explanation of the exact framing, choice of lens, specific camera movements, lighting diagrams, color usage, etc, for each shot in the movie, and that the only thing a DP has to do is to simply follow these notes. Off course, there are directors who will have some notion of how some shots should be filmed, but even then there will probably still going to be a discussion of some sort between the director and the DP. So it's a constant interactive creative process. Therefore, a cinematographer is creatively part of the storytelling, and thus he becomes a storyteller in his own way.

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Matteo, I enjoyed your reel, Good idea to do little trailers from various projects I didn’t find this untraditional or confusing. They are not too short at all, I would’t want to watch too much. I like Traces the best.. Overall you seem good with faces and people, especially how they move toward or away from us. Your compositions on longer lenses look more cinematic to me than some of the close wide stuff. Everything felt a bit claustrophobic but well concieved. I liked the ending of Zima with the flowers and all. --

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  • 2 weeks later...

Since not too many people actually answered your request for feedback, I'll say that I think your work is very strong. I actually like the presentation of the films as discrete video clips because it gives a sense for the visual style of each piece. There are similarities across the clips--your handheld framing of people in tight spaces, for example. But then there's the fiction vs. non-fiction shooting and it's nice to have those separated. The documentary on the artist is to me the most stunning. The shooting creates a strong sense of the artist's space. My other favorite shot was the airplane over the wheat field. Terrific stuff overall!

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