Documentary Filmmaking / Michael M. Pessah, ASC and Buddy Squires, ASC, Episode #121

AC contributor Tara Jenkins talks with cinematographer Edu Grau, ASC, AEC — who was invited to join the Society in 2021. Grau details his experiences at the Cinema and Audiovisual School of Catalonia and the National Film and Television School in London, the chain of events that lead to his breakthrough work in Tom Ford's A Single Man, overcoming self-doubt, and the importance of being a good person both on and off the set.

AC contributor Tara Jenkins talks with cinematographer Cybel Martin, who joined the Society in 2024. Martin details her inspirations and influences, from the pivotal moment of seeing Close Encounters of the Third Kind for the first time, to her passion for the cinema of South Korea, and her experience filming the Netflix series XO, Kitty there.

In this episode, cinematographer Steve Gainer, ASC, ASK talks about his work as curator of the ASC’s historic camera collection, which include a wide variety of noteworthy filmmaking tools, from the very first mass-produced motion picture camera to the first digital-cinema units.

Michael M. Pessah, ASC and Buddy Squires, ASC talk about the art, history, and current practices of documentary filmmaking.

Cinematographer Jody Lee Lipes, ASC on the benefits and challenges of shooting 16mm for director Savanah Leaf's moving social drama.

Michael Pessah, ASC explores the legacy of Alien and offers an appreciation of its cinematographer, Derek Vanlint, CSC.

"It's all about that creative spark that births a new visual language or idea that maybe could live on its own."