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NOAM KROLL

NOAM KROLL

NOAM KROLL

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LATEST BLOG POSTS

So Many Sliders

I am currently gearing up for a feature film and the script calls for some nice slow, small…

Why I Am Editing My Feature Film In FCP X

In October I go into production for my second feature which is set to be shot over 11…

New Raw Cameras, Which To Choose?

Earlier this year three potentially groundbreaking cameras were announced that have a few things in common: They shoot…

Lumix GH3: Pre-Release Thoughts

The Lumix GH2 is one of my favourite cameras in existence today. I use it for the majority…

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noamkroll

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Every film runs into issues at some point, even th

Every film runs into issues at some point, even the biggest Hollywood features. The best filmmakers know how to turn problems into opportunities instead of letting them destroy the creative process. While in post for “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” DP Robert Richardson and Quentin Tarantino decided to work with this footage that was severely damaged in the lab and lean into the aesthetic for stylistic effect, rather than re-shooting.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Red is the most psychologically associative color

Red is the most psychologically associative color in cinema, and can be used to trigger a “fight or flight” response in the brain. This is one of the many reasons it’s used so extensively in horror. But it’s even more effective when used with restraint, as seen here in “We Need To Talk About Kevin”.

This is one of the most haunting films of the century, and accomplishes so much without having to show violence on screen. The subtle red cues in production design and lighting build throughout the film and create an anticipation of violence that is scarier in our minds than it could ever be on screen. Casual viewers may not even notice it, but they definitely feel it on a subconscious level.

Worth noting, red can also of course signify many other things (love, power, obsession, etc.), and is an incredibly powerful storytelling tool across the spectrum of genres.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Fun fact: Ridley Scott had to borrow Stanley Kubri

Fun fact: Ridley Scott had to borrow Stanley Kubrick’s aerial footage from “The Shining” to complete the theatrical cut of “Blade Runner” in 1982. The studio felt the original ending was too dark and bleak, so at the last minute they decided to add some footage of Deckard and Rachel driving off into the countryside.

But Ridley and his team hadn’t shot any scenic footage or aerials that could work, so he turned to Stanley Kubrick who generously shared leftover footage from “The Shining” to complete the theatrical cut.

10 years later, Ridley Scott removed the footage and accompanying voiceover for the director’s cut, fully restoring his original vision for a darker and more ambiguous ending.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Not sure any film was ahead of its time more than

Not sure any film was ahead of its time more than “The American Friend”, at least in terms of color, mood, and atmosphere. Made in 1977 it’s now nearly 50 years old, but still has some of the most innovative use of color that surpasses the vast majority of films today. Directed by Wim Wenders and shot by Robby Müller, as they laid the groundwork for “Paris, Texas” - made 7 years later. Both films mixed natural and artificial light, while leveraging vivid saturation and colored gels to capture stunning golden hour, blue hour, and warm interior tungsten scenes.

My favorite sequences pair colored artificial light sources with daylight spilling in through windows. It creates such a unique “in-between” aesthetic that is truly original. Almost 5 decades later and it still holds up.

This film also of course predates “The Talented Mr. Ripley”, and was the first adaptation of the novel “Ripley’s Game”.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

There is no such thing as “good skin tones” in

There is no such thing as “good skin tones” in color correction. Even films with a more naturalistic look will have massive variances in tone and color based on environmental elements, lighting, and other factors.

While you should avoid muddy skin tones that feel unnatural or synthetic, beyond that you have a ton of flexibility in the grade to achieve the look you want. Don’t artificially limit your palette to make things feel “natural”, when sometimes the natural look is more vibrant or stylized.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

When your key light is a candle and you’re shoot

When your key light is a candle and you’re shooting on 100 ASA film, you bring out the insanely fast f/0.7 Carl Zeiss Planar 50mm lens. Only 10 of these lenses were ever made, originally commissioned by NASA in the 60s to capture images of the moon. Kubrick discovered these while doing technical research for BARRY LYNDON and ended up purchasing 3 to use on the production. They were the only lenses that gave him enough exposure on the Kodak 5247 film stock, and also allowed him to capture a more authentic period-specific look. Today, you could shoot digitally at high ISOs and use slower lenses, but the aesthetic wouldn’t come close.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

I love how BLUE VALENTINE mixes Super 16mm film wi

I love how BLUE VALENTINE mixes Super 16mm film with RED One digital. It’s one of many techniques director Derek Cianfrance used to make the “before & after” time periods feel distinct. Another method was having Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams live together during a filming break in between the two time periods. This gave the early scenes a warm and spontaneous feel, and the left the present day material feeling more lived in and cold. None of the choices were obvious or gimmicky, which is why they worked so well and made this film so visceral.

Also, the RED One footage holds up super well all these years later…

#filmmaker #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Crazy this 113 year old hand-cranked camera is sti

Crazy this 113 year old hand-cranked camera is still finding its way onto Hollywood feature films. It was used as recently as 2023 (Killers of the Flower Moon) and 2022 (Babylon). In both cases the Bell & Howell 2709 was used to replicate era-specific footage without relying on heavy color or VFX work for a more authentic look.

The color shot from Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon was originally intended to be black and white news reel footage, but in the edit it was kept in full color and matched to the rest of the 2.39 cinema footage. This helped it blend in more seamlessly, but you can still feel the jitters and imperfections, which add a lot of character to that scene.

This camera was also used for special effects shots on movies like Citizen Kane (1941), and even Star Wars (1977) as its technical accuracy and minimal gate weave made it ideal for optical compositing and matte paintings.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

My favorite shots in POOR THINGS are these extreme

My favorite shots in POOR THINGS are these extreme wide angles, captured on the Optex 4mm Super 16 lens. It was adapted to work with Super 35mm film, which creates a circular image surrounded by a black void as the image circle doesn’t cover the full 35mm frame. Super innovative and really set this film apart.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Ungraded shot I DP’d last week on the Alexa 35 p

Ungraded shot I DP’d last week on the Alexa 35 paired with Atlas Orion 25mm anamorphic lens. This lens vignettes a bit on the Alexa 35 sensor, but I played into the porthole look for stylistic effect. In post, you can easily crop in to 110% to get rid of it, but it can work perfectly as is if you’re going for something more experimental.

Lit with just a couple of @aputure.lighting tubes provided by @tvacom. Cc: @atlaslensco @rachelalig

ARRI ALEXA 35 film grain comparison. I finally go

ARRI ALEXA 35 film grain comparison.

I finally got to shoot with the Alexa 35 last week, and loved playing with the built in film grain modes. You can bake these straight into your raw footage so there is no need to apply additional grain in post. I have captured lots of real 16mm and 35mm film grain via high res scans in the past, and these look virtually identical. Truly impressive.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Emerald City in THE WIZARD OF OZ (first image) was

Emerald City in THE WIZARD OF OZ (first image) was a matte painting hand painted with crayons. Tiny holes were pin-pricked into the towers of the palace so flickering lights could be placed behind it to create the appearance of the building shimmering in Oz sunlight. Separately, live action footage of the characters was shot from behind and printed onto the black space to complete the illusion.

Many other shots in the movie used matte paintings and other incredibly innovative effects work, which still hold up 86 years later.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Final 1.78:1 aspect ratio vs. original open matte

Final 1.78:1 aspect ratio vs. original open matte film scan on THE SHINING. I always love watching open matte (non-cropped) versions of older movies. While not how they were intended to be viewed, it’s fascinating to see how the different framing completely alters your perception as a viewer. A reminder of the impact of aspect ratio choice on the audience.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Love these fisheye shots captured on 35mm film wit

Love these fisheye shots captured on 35mm film with the Nikor 8mm super wide angle lens. Sometimes leaning into the distortion just makes it look better.

Great work by DP @mikaaltskan and team on this elevated commercial spot for Nike.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Pretty insane technical innovation on the new F1 m

Pretty insane technical innovation on the new F1 movie. The filmmakers used a completely custom built / secret Sony camera system to create the most immersive experience possible and deliver some truly intense racing shots. This involved attaching an FX6 sensor in a box to a remote controlled rig, which sent a feed to a hidden Sony FR7 device. A huge feat, but clearly takes the movie to another level.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

“Courthouse Square” is still one of the most v

“Courthouse Square” is still one of the most versatile and widely used backlots, probably best known for its use in the Back to The Future trilogy, but also in classics like Gremlins, and even modern day movies like Maxxxine. Located on the Universal lot on Burbank.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

The secret ingredient to filmmaking is contrast. A

The secret ingredient to filmmaking is contrast. Although we usually think of contrast in purely visual terms (light vs. dark), great films use juxtaposition to reveal contrast in so many other ways. Whether on the page with oppositional dialogue between two characters, on set with dynamic blocking and color work, or in post by creating ebbs and flows within the edit and soundscape.

There are infinite ways to add contrast at literally every phase of the process, and in almost every case it just makes the finished product better.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

I love finding out a film was shot in just a few d

I love finding out a film was shot in just a few days. Some movies shot on insanely short production schedules:

VICTORIA - 1 Day
COHERENCE - 5 Days
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY - 7 Days
BLUE JAY - 7 DAYS
LOCKE - 8 DAYS

These are just a few examples. Countless features have been made in a week or less. It takes a huge amount of planning, prep, and rehearsal, but can save a ton of time and budget for the right production.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

My favorite Wes Anderson framing is not his signat

My favorite Wes Anderson framing is not his signature center-punched subject, but this variant - where the focal point is pulled down to the bottom third of the frame. The added headroom and negative space is such a great stylistic tool, and these shots can be difficult to compose which makes it all the more impressive!

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Reminder that you can start as a filmmaker at any

Reminder that you can start as a filmmaker at any age. Many of your favorite directors made their debut features in their 40s, 50s, or even 70s. Manoel de Oliveira was 73 when he made his first feature and continued making movies until he was 106. Another filmmaker, Takeo Kimura holds the Guinness record for making his debut feature at 90 years old. There is no time limit on your creativity.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

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