April 2023 Issue of American Cinematographer

The April 2023 issue presents coverage of the series The Last of Us and Daisy Jones & The Six; a conversation with visual-effects innovator Robert Legato, ASC about broadcast television’s role as a testing ground for virtual-production techniques; a profile of 2023 Curtis Clark ASC Technical Achievement Award honoree Sam Nicholson, ASC; a look at the French drama Athena; and an explanation of electrical distribution on set.

 

• In his monthly column, ASC President Stephen Lighthill reflects on the increasing use of machines to create images.

 

• The Last of Us cinematographers Ksenia Sereda, RGC; Eben Bolter, BSC; Nadim Carlsen, DFF; and Christine A. Maier, AAC, BVK, along with showrunner Craig Mazin, explain how visuals grounded in reality contribute to the drama.

 

• Directors of photography Checco Varese, ASC and Jeff Cutter capture the emotional turbulence that helps propel a 1970s band to fame for the 10-part miniseries Daisy Jones & The Six.

 

• Cinematographer and visual-effects supervisor Robert Legato, ASC considers the ongoing evolution of virtual production and its roots in broadcast television.

 

• Curtis Clark ASC Technical Achievement Award honoree Sam Nicholson, ASC explains how an attraction to uncharted territory has shaped his career.

 

• Shot Craft: An introduction to electrical distribution on set, featuring a breakdown of the components that are common on today’s motion-picture productions.

 

• Global Village: Cinematographer Matias Boucard, AFC reveals how the 10-minute, action-packed shot that opens Athena was created.

 

• Clubhouse News: The latest bulletins from the Society feature new member Christian Sprenger; a BLK Behind the Camera event featuring ASC members Ernest Dickerson, Kira Kelly, Tommy Maddox-Upshaw, Donald A. Morgan and John Simmons; and Fujifilm/Fujinon Lens Day.

 

• Wrap Shot: Night of the Living Dead (1968), directed and shot by George A. Romero.