Steve Gainer, direttore della fotografia di "Punisher 2"
- Scritto da Redazione Comicus
- Pubblicato in Interviste
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Italian/English version
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Intervista a cura di Valerio Coppola e Carlo Coratelli
Traduzione a cura di Paolo Boscolo e Andrea Cassola
![](/images/rubriche/mc/080518/punisher_250.jpg)
Lexi Alexander ed io abbiamo collaborato in tanti film che praticamente è come non mi avesse mai contattato. Le piacque un mio precedente lavoro su un film intitolato “Mysterious Skin” e mi contattò mentre mi trovavo a Wilmington, nel North Carolina, a girare un film intitolato “The Beautiful Ordinary”. Ci siamo immediatamente trovati.
Ci puoi parlare di Lexi Alexander? Come è stata la vostra collaborazione durante la lavorazione? Ti ha fornito delle indicazioni particolari su quello che voleva o hai avuto piena libertà?
Adoro il suo entusiasmo e la sua professionalità. È estremamente preparata, ed è in grado di spiegare a parole quello che visivamente le piace. Questa non è una cosa facile per molti registi. Ci siamo incontrati a casa mia, dopo che avevo letto lo script. Avevo raccolto molte immagini che pensavo potessero rappresentare il modo in cui immaginavo il look del film. Lei iniziò a descrivere il modo in cui lei vedeva il film, ed io iniziai a farle vedere le mie immagini. Lei mi guardò e disse: “Ecco, ci sei” ed il mio cuore balzò dalla gioia. Dopo questo, iniziai a studiare gli albi a fumetti per avere idee e una definizione della colorazione, e riferivo il tutto a lei quotidianamente. Ci sono moltissimi punti di vista in queste foto. Avevamo molti volumi a cui ci siamo spesso riferiti. Raramente ho potuto avere la stessa libertà creativa che mi è stata data da Lexi, e godermi un team creativo come quello che aveva radunato.
Come è ormai noto l'estetica del film ha ampiamente tratto ispirazione dalle copertine della serie a fumetti ad opera di Tim Bradstreet. Come si è riflesso questo dal lato della fotografia?
Ho parlato con Dean White, che è una delle persone che stanno dietro alla colorazione del fumetto. Gli ho fatto domande sul significato o la simbologia delle tonalità e colorazioni utilizzate. Mi ha fornito qualche dettaglio su come tali decisioni vengano prese, ed ho provato ad inserire tali informazioni nel film. Ho inoltre parlato con Tim Bradstreet, e sfruttato il suo cervello per le idee. Sono stati entrambi parecchio di aiuto.
Il trailer del film è uscito da pochi giorni, e si nota particolarmente l'essenza di colori e lo schema di luci molto particolare che permea il film. Ci puoi dire come hai ottenuto questo effetto?
Le mie luci sono un tentativo di creare una rappresentazione puramente organica dei fumetti del Punitore della serie Max. È un risultato raggiunto con dozzine di luci molto larghe, piuttosto che di luci piccole. Inoltre sono molto in debito con il nostro brillante production designer, Andrei Neskoromny. Senza il suo duro lavoro, il film non sarebbe che l’ombra di ciò che abbiamo realmente ottenuto.
Cosa ha significato per te il fatto che il film sia stato girato prevalentemente in notturno? A quali scelte tecniche ha portato?
È decisamente più interessante l’illuminazione al buio, piuttosto di quella che si usa durante il giorno. Puoi letteralmente controllare il mondo attraverso l’espressione della luce. Significa inoltre che hai bisogno di una squadra decisamente più grande e di un sacco di luci.
In questo film ci sono tre personaggi principali, molto diversi tra loro e ognuno con una sua storia personale, un proprio profilo. Mosaico, Frank Castle/The Punisher, e Looney Bin Jim. Immagino che per te fosse importante usare per questi personaggi luci differenti, che sapessero caratterizzarli. Ci puoi descrivere queste differenze?
La preoccupazione più grande era quella di rendere realistico il trucco di Jigsaw. Ovviamente, quando sei di fronte a dei trucchi sul volto di qualcuno, non puoi rapportarti allo stesso modo di un volto umano. Il trucco è stato realizzato davvero bene, il che ha reso il mio lavoro molto più semplice.
Qual è stata la sfida più grande che hai dovuto affrontare in questo film?
La sfida più grande è stata quella di restare sveglio per quarantadue notti, e cercare di dormire durante il giorno. Era fastidiosamente freddo, così qualsiasi cosa fosse necessario fare sembrava richiedere il doppio del tempo.
Ci puoi descrivere una tua giornata sul set di un film come Punisher War Zone?
Non c’era una giornata tipo, ogni giorno aveva con sé diverse sfide, differenti condizioni climatiche, set, problemi di equipaggiamento, ecc…
Come è stato il tuo rapporto con gli attori sul set? Doug Hutchison, che abbiamo intervistato qualche tempo fa, si è detto entusiasta del tuo lavoro. E cosa ci puoi dire di Ray Stevenson?
È stato fantastico lavorare con ognuno degli attori di questa pellicola. Ray Stevenson è una persona davvero speciale. Doug Hutchison fa abbastanza paura!! Dominic West è probabilmente la persona più paziente con la quale abbia lavorato. Con Wayne Knight avevamo già lavorato in un film di Ricky Schroeder intitolato “Black Cloud”, quindi eravamo già amici. Colin Salmon è un uomo brillante, e divertente da illuminare, Dash Mihok è incredibile, voglio dire, mi è davvero piaciuto con questo cast!!
Immagino che sia davvero affascinante riuscire a creare qualcosa di forte impatto visivo, che sappia colpire il pubblico attraverso un normale fascio di luci o attraverso i colori di un tramonto. Cosa provi quando hai a che fare con tutto questo? Ci puoi descrivere le tue sensazioni?
Ogni giorno in cui mi recavo sul set, dovevo darmi un pizzicotto per essere sicuro che stesse accadendo davvero. Riprendere una cosa come questa può essere un’occasione che si presenta una sola volta nella vita, quindi mi sono goduto ogni istante, freddo e tutto il resto!!
Quali sono i tuoi prossimi progetti?
Spero che il progetto SAG sia presto stabilito, Lexi ha alcuni interessanti progetti già in cantiere, e non vedo l’ora di lavorare nuovamente con lei.
English Version
How did you get involved in this project?
Lexi and I had been attached to work on several films that never quite happened. She had liked my previous work on a film called "Mysterious Skin" and contacted me while I was in Wilmington, North Carolina shooting a film called "The Beautiful Ordinary". We clicked immediately.
Can you tell us about Lexi Alexander? How was your collaboration like during the making of? Did she give you particular hints about what she wanted or did you have full autonomy?
I love her enthusiasm and professionalism. She is very prepared, and can explain in words what she likes visually. This is not easy for many directors. We had a meeting at my house after I read the script. I had put together several images I thought represented the way I envisioned the look of the film. She started describing how she saw the film, and I began showing her my images. She looked at me and said "that's it, you get it" and my heart leapt for joy. After that I began studying the comic book for clues and color palate, and would report to her on a daily basis. There are many many looks in this picture. We had several very thick books of our looks, and referenced them often. I have rarely experienced the freedom Lexi gave me to create, nor have I relished a creative team like she assembled.
As it is known, the movie aesthetics is widely inspired by Tim Bradstreet comic covers. How did this reflect on cinematography?
I spoke with Dean White, who is one of the men behind the color of the comics. I quizzed him on the meaning and or symbolism of the tones and hues involved. He gave me some insight as to how these decisions were made, and I tried to incorporate this information into the film. i also spoke with Mr. Bradstreet, and picked his brain for ideas. They were both quite helpful.
The trailer has been released since a few days, and it is noticeable the absence of colour and the very particular lights scheme. Can you tell us how did you obtain this effect?
My lighting is an attempt to create a purely organic representation of the Punisher comics of the Max series. It is achieved with dozens of very large lights, rather than smaller ones. I also owe a great debt to our brilliant production designer Andrew Neskoromny. Without his hard work, the movie would be a shadow of what we have achieved.
What did it mean to you the fact that the film has been shot mainly in night sceneries? What technical choices did this lead to?
It is much more interesting to light in darkness rather than in daylight. You literally can control the world via the expression of light. It also means you need a much larger crew, and lots of lights.
In this film there are three main characters, very different from each other, and each one with its personal history. Jigsaw, Frank Castle/The Punisher and Looney Bin Jim. I think that it was important for you to use different lights for each of these characters, so to portray them properly. Can you describe us the differences?
The biggest concern was to make the Jigsaw makeup look real. Obviously, when you have appliances on someone's face, you can't treat them the same as a normal human. The makeup was very well done, which made my job a lot easier.
What has been the biggest challenge you had to face in this film?
The biggest challenge was staying awake for forty two nights, and trying to sleep in the daytime. It was also bitterly cold, so anything you need to do seems to take twice as long.
Can you describe a typical working day of yours on the set of Punisher War Zone?
There was no typical day, every day had different challenges, different weather, sets, equipment problems, etc., etc.
What was your relations with actors on the set like? Doug Hutchison, who we interviewed some time ago, was very enthusiastic about your work. And what about Ray Stevenson?
Every one of the actors in this film, were fantastic to work with. Ray Stevenson is a very special person. Doug Hutchison is quite scary!! Dominic West is probably the most patient person I've ever worked with. Wayne Knight had worked together before on a Ricky Schroder film called "Black Cloud" so we were friends. Colin Salmon is a brilliant man, and fun to light, Dash Mihok is amazing, I mean, I really enjoyed this cast!!!
I suppose it is very fascinating to create something of very strong visual impact, that could hit the audience through a simple ray of light, or through the colours of a sunset. What do you feel when you deal with all of this? Can you describe your sensations?
Every day I came to set, I had to pinch myself just to make sure it was really happening. Shooting a show like this might be a once in a lifetime thing, so I enjoyed every minute of it, cold and all!!
What are your future projects?
I'm hoping the SAG strike is settled soon, Lexi has some really juicy projects lined up, and I can't wait to work with her again.
How did you get involved in this project?
Lexi and I had been attached to work on several films that never quite happened. She had liked my previous work on a film called "Mysterious Skin" and contacted me while I was in Wilmington, North Carolina shooting a film called "The Beautiful Ordinary". We clicked immediately.
Can you tell us about Lexi Alexander? How was your collaboration like during the making of? Did she give you particular hints about what she wanted or did you have full autonomy?
I love her enthusiasm and professionalism. She is very prepared, and can explain in words what she likes visually. This is not easy for many directors. We had a meeting at my house after I read the script. I had put together several images I thought represented the way I envisioned the look of the film. She started describing how she saw the film, and I began showing her my images. She looked at me and said "that's it, you get it" and my heart leapt for joy. After that I began studying the comic book for clues and color palate, and would report to her on a daily basis. There are many many looks in this picture. We had several very thick books of our looks, and referenced them often. I have rarely experienced the freedom Lexi gave me to create, nor have I relished a creative team like she assembled.
As it is known, the movie aesthetics is widely inspired by Tim Bradstreet comic covers. How did this reflect on cinematography?
I spoke with Dean White, who is one of the men behind the color of the comics. I quizzed him on the meaning and or symbolism of the tones and hues involved. He gave me some insight as to how these decisions were made, and I tried to incorporate this information into the film. i also spoke with Mr. Bradstreet, and picked his brain for ideas. They were both quite helpful.
The trailer has been released since a few days, and it is noticeable the absence of colour and the very particular lights scheme. Can you tell us how did you obtain this effect?
My lighting is an attempt to create a purely organic representation of the Punisher comics of the Max series. It is achieved with dozens of very large lights, rather than smaller ones. I also owe a great debt to our brilliant production designer Andrew Neskoromny. Without his hard work, the movie would be a shadow of what we have achieved.
What did it mean to you the fact that the film has been shot mainly in night sceneries? What technical choices did this lead to?
It is much more interesting to light in darkness rather than in daylight. You literally can control the world via the expression of light. It also means you need a much larger crew, and lots of lights.
In this film there are three main characters, very different from each other, and each one with its personal history. Jigsaw, Frank Castle/The Punisher and Looney Bin Jim. I think that it was important for you to use different lights for each of these characters, so to portray them properly. Can you describe us the differences?
The biggest concern was to make the Jigsaw makeup look real. Obviously, when you have appliances on someone's face, you can't treat them the same as a normal human. The makeup was very well done, which made my job a lot easier.
What has been the biggest challenge you had to face in this film?
The biggest challenge was staying awake for forty two nights, and trying to sleep in the daytime. It was also bitterly cold, so anything you need to do seems to take twice as long.
Can you describe a typical working day of yours on the set of Punisher War Zone?
There was no typical day, every day had different challenges, different weather, sets, equipment problems, etc., etc.
What was your relations with actors on the set like? Doug Hutchison, who we interviewed some time ago, was very enthusiastic about your work. And what about Ray Stevenson?
Every one of the actors in this film, were fantastic to work with. Ray Stevenson is a very special person. Doug Hutchison is quite scary!! Dominic West is probably the most patient person I've ever worked with. Wayne Knight had worked together before on a Ricky Schroder film called "Black Cloud" so we were friends. Colin Salmon is a brilliant man, and fun to light, Dash Mihok is amazing, I mean, I really enjoyed this cast!!!
I suppose it is very fascinating to create something of very strong visual impact, that could hit the audience through a simple ray of light, or through the colours of a sunset. What do you feel when you deal with all of this? Can you describe your sensations?
Every day I came to set, I had to pinch myself just to make sure it was really happening. Shooting a show like this might be a once in a lifetime thing, so I enjoyed every minute of it, cold and all!!
What are your future projects?
I'm hoping the SAG strike is settled soon, Lexi has some really juicy projects lined up, and I can't wait to work with her again.
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