Roger Deakins needs no introduction around these parts. He is, after all, one of the most prolific and talented cinematographers to ever grace the medium of film. At the Cannes Film Festival last month – where Deakins’ latest film Sicario was premiering – a representative from ARRI caught up with him. Needless to say, some delectable cinematography wisdom was imparted:
First and foremost is how Deakins approaches preparation for any given scene. He says that one of the things he’s learned from collaborating with the Coen brothers over many years is that storyboarding is crucial, not necessarily because you’re planning the exact shots that you will eventually capture, but because the process forces you to find the “essence of the scene.” He’ll meticulously storyboard everything with a director, but oftentimes that material will go out the window as soon as they arrive on set and start shooting. However, what he learned about the story and characters during the storyboarding process helps inform all of those spontaneous changes made on set.