Every Frame a Rembrandt: Art and Practice of Cinematography

Description

This book examines the art and craft of motion picture photography through a veteran professional cinematographer's personal experiences on five major motion pictures, each selected to illustrate a particular series of challenges for the photographer. Every Frame a Rembrandt is an expression heard on sound stages and locations the world over. While in most cases the expression is used lightly and not infrequently with a certain amount of sarcasm, its true meaning speaks highly of most cinematographers' commitment to producing the best, most interesting, unusual and memorable images for the screen. Through the five films he selected for this book Laszlo is able to show the broad range of complexity in motion picture photography, from the relatively simple point and shoot in the typcal western to complex in-camera effects. In recounting his war stories Laszlo is able to show the day to day activities of a cinematographer before, during and after filming the project, discussing equipment, film stocks, testing, labs, unions, agents, budget requirements, and working with the director and producer. The five films discussed are Southern Comfort, The Warriors, Rambo: First Blood, Streets of Fire, and Innerspace. The book is illustrated throughout with production stills from Laszlo's extensive collection (12 in a color insert).

"Clearly and concisely written (and enhanced with additional material by Andrew Quicke), Andrew Laszlo's Every Frame a Rembrandt is a "must" for any inspiring cinematographer, and an essential reference title for professional and academic collections." - The Bookwatch, August 2000 "This one is a good beach read and a cinematography text." - Robert Goodman, Videography, July 2000 "..a stunning new book..." - Georgia Packard SOC, The Operating Cameraman "Always one to follow through, Laszlo consistently delights his readers with an artistic approach to visual storytelling. Thoroughly entertaining. Extremely informative. A sparkling gem of pure " grade A" craftsmanship." - Georgia Packard SOC, The Operating Cameraman "This book grew out of a series of two-day seminars on cinematography that Laszlo conducts at film departments around the world. It is not a nuts-and-bolts textbook on basic or advanced cinematography, but rather an impassioned exploration of the technical and artistic creation of the cinematic image." - American Cinematographer, October 2000