“Telling the story with only a few shots, I love that style. It makes you feel like you're part of the action, part of the story. It reminds me of the theater, where one act is basically like one long shot. It almost makes you forget that you're seeing a movie.” FeelsLongStoriesActionForgetSeeingStyleLike YouShotsTheaterLong Shots Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“I think all cinematographers, at least most of them, would love to do everything on location because you cannot cheat on location. It's there, it's part of the story usually. You have to deal with the elements. You have the sunshine, you have rain, you have fog - it really makes you work harder to try to match things during the day to make it look like it was shot within five minutes, movie time.” ThinkingTryingLooksStoriesDealsFiveMinutesHard WorkElementsShotsRainHarderSunshineCheatLocationFogFive MinutesWork HarderCinematographers Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“Each story has a different approach for me and I try to work with lighting that will tell you visually the story better than if it was shot in available light.” IfsTryingDifferentStoriesLightApproachShotsAvailableLightingDifferent Approach Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“I shot a lot of commercials and sometimes I enjoy the commercial shooting and sometimes I really hate it, but in thirty seconds or one minute, you can make some remarkable work shooting in one or two or three days.” TwoSometimesHateThreeEnjoyMinutesShotsShootingThirtyRemarkableSecondsOne Minute Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“European films had art. And it was easy to make a European film. They didn't come from the studio system, they weren't shot in sound studios, and that's a good thing, because in the studio system those movies would never have had a chance. And since we were coming from Europe, it was natural for us to use that simple style. Small budgets, less equipment, that was just how it was.” ArtUseFilmEasySoundNaturalChanceSimpleStyleShotsEuropeGood ThingsStudiosBudgetsEquipmentSimple Style Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“We used hand-held cameras 50 years ago. It wasn't something new. Sometimes we used a tripod, or we'd have a tracking shot, and sometimes - like when a character was being chased - we used a hand-held camera because it was right for the scene. In those cases, it helped the mood; it created immediacy and a feeling for the viewer that they were in the scene and in the moment.” YearsSometimesMomentsCharacterFeelingsHandsUsedCasesSceneShotsYears AgoCamerasMoodSomething NewViewersImmediacyTrackingTripods Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“I don't think there is any advantage to digital unless it's in a case like Slumdog Millionaire, where you have to get a shot and a big bulky film camera is out of the question.” ThinkingBigsFilmCasesShotsAdvantageCamerasDigitalMillionaireSlumdog Millionaire Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“If you need to strap a camera to you or get in a small space, then it makes sense to use digital.I do think it is possible to use a digital camera artistically, but it can only be good if you are using film technique. Film has grain, and digital has pixels, and there is not that much of a difference, but digital does not replace the need to create a scene and light it properly and spend time considering the shot.” IfsThinkingNeedsDoeUseLightFilmDifferencesSpaceSceneShotsCamerasBe GoodTechniqueMake SenseDigitalGrainConsideringEnd TimesSpend TimeSmall SpacesDigital CamerasPixels Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“There is a difference between creating something and just capturing something. And when we were using film, it was not that fast, and it was expensive, so there was incentive to make sure the shot was exactly right before we rolled. With digital, it's fast and its cheap, and it's easy to bypass the rest.” FilmEasyDifferencesCreatingShotsExpensiveDigitalIncentivesCreating SomethingBypass Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“When I was in Hungary in December I was looking at student films and I could not tell which ones were shot on film and which ones were shot digitally. I think that is because the filmmakers in Europe go to four years of film school and learn the techniques.” ThinkingYearsSchoolFilmFourStudentsShotsEuropeTechniqueFilmmakerFour YearsDecemberFilm SchoolHungary Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“These days that wouldn't happen - waiting for the light to be exactly right. Because it takes time and time is money. And with these big productions with expensive actors, you just don't have the time to get every shot exactly right.” BigsLightHappensActorsWaitingShotsProductionsThese DaysExpensiveTake TimeIt Takes TimeTime Is Money Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“Sometimes the shots serve as homages to other movies and other directors, like Hitchcock.” SometimesDirectorsShotsHomageHitchcock Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
“Jack [Nicholson] really knows about the camera. He's one of the directors who likes to play with the camera. He'll change things around, play with lighting, things like that. He'll even spend hours on the set-up for an insert shot. He's an interested person who gets involved in all the aspects of the films he is making.” KnowsPersonsPlayFilmHoursInvolvedDirectorsShotsAspectCamerasLikesGet InvolvedLightingInsertNicholson Author:Vilmos Zsigmond
