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NOAM KROLL

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NOAM KROLL

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Noam Kroll: Independent Feature Filmmaking Masterclass (PRE-ORDER)
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noamkroll

Filmmaker & Creative in LA 🎥☀️🌴
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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

An original matte painting and final composition f

An original matte painting and final composition for Alfred Hitchcock’s NORTH BY NORTHWEST. These old analog effects may seem rudimentary by modern standards, but they often hold up better than present day CGI.

Matte paintings in old movies were hand-painted images used to extend or create environments that didn’t exist in real life, like vast landscapes.

Filmmakers would shoot part of a scene with the live actors while blocking off part of the camera frame, then rewind the film and expose the unshot portion using the painting. Alternatively they would use optical compositing / rear projection to achieve the final shot. These techniques seamlessly combined real footage with artwork, making it appear as though the actors were in much larger or more elaborate settings.

We still do this today digitally, but there is just something so timeless about the old analog method.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

“A poor craftsman blames his tools.” David Lyn

“A poor craftsman blames his tools.” David Lynch chose to shoot his legendary film INLAND EMPIRE on a Sony PD150 mini DV camcorder, despite having every cinema camera format at his disposal. At the time, the PD150 was used by film students, event videographers and super low budget indies - not iconic Hollywood directors.

But Lynch embraced the prosumer format to achieve his vision, which involved working without a script and using a skeleton crew. Not to mention the low-fi vibe he was after. None of this could have been achieved with a traditional film camera.

While film students were resisting cameras like this and waiting for money to shoot on film, one of the greatest living directors was unafraid to embrace it and saw immense potential. And 20 years after the fact, we’re still talking about it.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Huge thanks to everyone who came out to see TEACHE

Huge thanks to everyone who came out to see TEACHER’S PET this weekend. Super grateful to have had the opportunity to make this film and very excited to hit some more festivals over the summer before we move into distribution.

Also, amazing work by @danceswithfilms for putting on such a great event.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Love the camera choices on the 28 Days / Weeks / Y

Love the camera choices on the 28 Days / Weeks / Years trilogy, which create a powerful through-line across all 3 films.

28 Days Later set the tone by shooting on the legendary Canon XL1, and was one of the first (and only) theatrically released movies shot on mini DV tape.

28 Weeks Later achieved a bigger look while still maintaining the grit of the original - mainly using 16mm film, with a touch of 35mm for night scenes and Sony HD video cameras for the infrared shots.

28 Years Later has now famously pushed the iPhone to the absolute extreme, delivering some of the best visuals ever captured on a smartphone.

While these cameras could not be more different on the surface, they perfectly complement each other in the context of this trilogy. Each camera represents an accessible technology of its time, all delivering the same visual language - rooted in grit, urgency, and realism. Collectively, they help ground the viewer in the experience and create a more immersive feel.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

So excited to finally share some shots from TEACHE

So excited to finally share some shots from TEACHER’S PET, which starts its festival run this month!

This film taught me many things - one being that I love directing and DPing simultaneously. For a long time I resisted working as my own cinematographer, but on this movie I developed a new workflow to balance both roles and use that to enhance the results and not hinder them. Most shots were primarily lit with natural and available light, with just one or two LED panels or tube lights to round it out. The minimal setup, along with 2 amazing ACs and some very careful shot planning made it possible.

Fun fact: All 3 of the images on the first split screen were bonus shots that weren’t originally in the schedule, and were shot in just minutes. But they are some of my favorites in the film - sometimes the best stuff is spontaneous!

I will do a full breakdown of the cinematography on my blog/podcast soon, stay tuned…

@iamlukebarnett @barbaracrampton @michelletorian31 @saratomko19 @claytonroyaljohnson

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

4 legendary movies shot entirely (or almost entire

4 legendary movies shot entirely (or almost entirely) on a single lens:

PSYCHO - 50mm Baltar
THE WRESTLER - 12mm Zeiss Ultra Prime
THE GODFATHER - 40mm Super Baltar
CHINATOWN - 40mm Panavision Anamorphic

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Loved using the Laowa probe lens on our movie TEAC

Loved using the Laowa probe lens on our movie TEACHER’S PET. We shot a ton of inserts with it on our pickup day to help punctuate the edit and add some visual texture. The built in ring light at the end of the lens is a nice touch, and much needed given the slow f/14 aperture!

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

NEON has now officially won the Palme d’Or 6 yea

NEON has now officially won the Palme d’Or 6 years in a row with these amazing films. Not sure if any other studio has had that kind of run… they are giving A24 a run for their money!

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Crazy new 20-camera iPhone rig used on the 28 YEAR

Crazy new 20-camera iPhone rig used on the 28 YEARS LATER film set. Many wondered why a $75 million dollar movie would shoot on iPhone, but the reasons are clear - it’s an amazing creative tool, not just a marketing gimmick.

For this film director Danny Boyle and DP Anthony Dod Mantle used multiple different rigs, ranging from 8 to 10 to 20 iPhones, completely changing how scenes were lit, shot, and covered. All while framing in an incredibly wide 2.76:1 aspect ratio.

The filmmakers said “It gives you 180 degrees of vision of an action, and in the editing you can select any choice from it, either a conventional one-camera perspective or make your way instantly around reality, time-slicing the subject, jumping forward or backward for emphasis.”

“It’s a wonderful tool for actors to keep them guessing, especially experienced actors. They get to know where the cameras are and they get to know lenses and they get to know what they’re doing. But this throws them. It’s like, ‘What!?’

The iPhone was also the perfect choice to achieve an immersive audience experience - it was small enough to be mounted to the actors directly and achieve shots not possible with larger cameras.

This movie is likely to represent some of the best iPhone shots ever captured… can’t wait to see it in full.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

Super excited to share the first poster for our fe

Super excited to share the first poster for our feature film TEACHER’S PET which officially premieres next month at the Chinese Theaters in Hollywood!

Huge thanks to our incredible cast featuring @iamlukebarnett @barbaracrampton @michelletorian31 @saratomko19 @realdrewpowell @claytonroyaljohnson @alexe.godin @kevinmakely @dr.rich.handley @officialchrismann @itspafchekian @makennaginn @adawtyne

Couldn’t have pulled this off without @surfjunkieinsocal and @dr.rich.handley who worked miracles to bring it all together, along with the rest of our amazing producing team and crew.

Kicking things off with @danceswithfilms in June and more festival screenings are lining up over the summer and fall. Much more to come soon…

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

P.s. special thanks to @creepyduckdesign for the amazing poster art.

There was some confusion when I posted about eyeli

There was some confusion when I posted about eyeline levels last week — so here’s a deeper breakdown.

Eyeline refers to the direction a character is looking, but eye level (where their eyes are placed in the frame) is just as important for visual continuity. When eye levels are significantly mismatched across cuts, the edit can feel jarring, even if the eyelines technically match.

This ties into the concept of eye trace — a technique that guides the viewer’s gaze from one shot to the next through framing and editing choices. For example, if a character moves from screen left to right, the next shot will feel smoother if the focal point appears in the same part of the frame (right).

This becomes especially critical in fast-paced sequences (like action scenes), where the audience doesn’t have time to reorient between cuts.

In some cases, you can break these rules and achieve great results. But more often than not they will only make for a more fluid viewing experience.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

The Magic Mask tool in DaVinci Resolve is truly mi

The Magic Mask tool in DaVinci Resolve is truly mind blowing. In some cases it eliminates rotoscoping work entirely… Just by scribbling over the foreground area (in blue) and any tricky background issues (in red) you can instantly separate the subject from the background.

In this case I used it to add a Petzval-style background blur to a test shot without impacting the foreground. Also lifted the mid tones a bit to create a more dynamic grade. This is just one of a thousand examples - the possibilities with this tool are endless!

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

One of the most important framing decisions is whe

One of the most important framing decisions is where to place the eyeline. There are no rules, but generally if your eye lines don’t match from shot to shot, the viewer won’t have as fluid an experience. You want each shot to guide the audience’s eye to the next seamlessly.

Most filmmakers think about the rule of thirds from a vertical perspective, but the horizontal lines are crucial for eye placement. A high eyeline on the top third works well on most shot sizes (wide, close, etc.). The low eyeline works great on shots with lots of negative space. Mid level eyelines are less common, but look awesome - especially when pulled off using center framed characters.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

18 years later and still one of my favorite films

18 years later and still one of my favorite films (INTO THE WILD) and soundtracks by the amazing @eddievedder. This track is called “Toulumne”.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #intothewild #guitar

I love a good cinematic homage. Especially anythin

I love a good cinematic homage. Especially anything in reference to Antonioni and his 1960 masterpiece “L’Avventura”. Half a century later and it is still as relevant as ever, pictured here in season 2 episode 3 of “The White Lotus”.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

I love films like BLUE RUIN that are able to push

I love films like BLUE RUIN that are able to push prosumer equipment to the limits and achieve these kinds of visuals. This movie came out 12 years ago and was shot on the original C300 Mark I with standard Canon L-Series lenses, yet it still constantly comes up in discussion as a reference for cinematography. The same can’t be said for hundreds of films that have come out since shot on much more elaborate gear.

#filmmaking #filmmaker #cinematography #cinematographer

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