AmericanCinematographer201201

almost entirely to Redgrave’s monologue,
and Ackroyd moved the cameras
to parallel positions, with the 24-
290mm Optimos in a portrait-friendly
80-200mm range. “When you live with
these lenses and get to know them as
well as I do, [choosing focal lengths]
isn’t always a conscious decision,” says
the cinematographer. “It’s just a feeling
that [a given focal length] is what’s
necessary to tell the story.”
“That was one of the hardest
scenes to direct,” says Fiennes. “I had to
be building up for my own breakdown
at the end of the scene, so I had to
completely hand over my trust to Barry.
I wanted to start the scene farther back
and then get close into the actors’ faces.
You need to see the face, the eyes.
There’s something powerful running
through Vanessa in that moment.”
Ackroyd agrees. “Vanessa, like all
great actors, gave everything to the
scene and to the other actors, making
the shooting easy. She never left the set
until we’d finished. That kind of spirit in
your film is added value that no
producer, director or cinematographer
can provide.”
By the time Ackroyd arrived at
LipSync Post in London to begin the
digital grade with colorist Stuart Fyvie,
he felt most of the color work had
already been accomplished. “The real
coloring comes into play when you’re
designing the film,” he observes. “It’s in
the locations, the costumes and the
makeup. I still like to create films in the
camera. The most important work you
do in post is matching skin tones,
throwing things into light and shade
and covering up your mistakes.”
“Barry’s honesty is one of the brilliant
things about him,” Fiennes reports.
“He doesn’t ever come up with a
contrived or a decorative thing — ever.”
“The thing I hope for Coriolanus
is that every shot and every edit works
together for the right reason,” says
Ackroyd. “We didn’t do anything
special, technically speaking. What’s
special is being able to show your
emotional side. It isn’t about getting lost
in the lighting or the camerawork; it’s
about telling stories.”
●
2.40:1
TECHNICAL SPECS
2-perf Super 35mm
Aaton Penelope
Angenieux Optimo
Fujifilm Eterna 250D 8563,
500T 8573
Digital Intermediate
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