What did the cinematographer think of "The Brutalist"? A discussion between cinematographers Kosuke Yamada, Misaki Hikosaka and Shuhei Yamamoto [CINEMORE ACADEMY Vol.37]

Thoughts on film photography

Q: You mentioned colors that can't be achieved digitally, but nowadays, even if you shoot on film, you basically scan it and do color grading (color adjustment). Do you think that color adjustment was done by timing this time?

*Timing: The process of adjusting brightness and color when printing from a film negative.

Hikosaka: I don't know. There was a colorist's name in the credits, so it looks like he did some grading.

Yamada: I think they do some grading, but the initial color development is different between film and digital. Film captures the light as it passes through the lens, so in that sense I think film is better at capturing natural colors.

Yamamoto: I guess they changed the development quite a bit. There were a lot of dark scenes, but I didn't dislike the dark areas that much. I think some parts were overexposed. The colors and brightness felt good.

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Q: While digital cameras are evolving, film photography has not declined in Hollywood, and four of the five nominees for the 2024 Academy Awards for Best Cinematography were filmed on film. Shooting on 35mm film in Japan is in a tough situation, but what are your thoughts on film photography?

Yamada: For the works that I think would be better shot on film, I suggest shooting on film, but the reality is that it's difficult to come to an agreement on the budget. Since I became a cameraman, the only work I shot entirely on film was my debut film, " Kamisama no Karute " (2011). I have shot some flashback scenes on film in other works, but everything else has been shot digitally.

Yamamoto: I have never shot on film as a cameraman, but when I was an assistant, I often handled film on the set of commercials. I loaded the film and adjusted the focus while measuring the distance. After shooting, there was a process called "telecine" where the developed film was checked and the color was adjusted, and the director, cameraman, and other staff gathered to look at the film, and there was a tremendous sense of tension and fear that the image we shot might be out of focus. I still remember that. When I pressed the "RUN" switch to start shooting, I heard a rattle and the film started to spin, and I was always nervous. I think that this is related to the feeling of shooting. I would like to shoot a movie on film someday.

Hikosaka: I've only done one short film on film, so I always say "I want to shoot it on film," but it's usually rejected with "there's no budget." It's not just the budget, but now that film development has been moved to Kansai, they seem to be concerned about things like speed. I grew up with film when I was an assistant, and I love film, so I always want to shoot it on film. It might be difficult unless you're in cahoots with the director (laughs).

Q: When shooting digitally, do you try to get closer to the look of film, such as tone?

Yamada: There was a time when digital cameras were trying to make them look like film, but in terms of latitude*, they have come to a point where they are almost the same as film. I feel like there is no comparison anymore. It's like choosing a brush, and I decide the tone based on whether film or digital is more suitable for this piece.

*Latitude: The range of exposure (brightness to darkness) that can be reproduced by film

Yamamoto: I love film, so I want to make every work look as close to film as possible (laughs). I start by choosing the LUT*, and then I always try to get as close to film tone as possible through grading. When I have the choice between 30 or 24 frames, I choose 24 frames almost 100% of the time.

*LUT (Look Up Table): A color preset that converts the color of an image using a formula.

Hikosaka: For me, the colors and direction that I find most comfortable are film tones. When I shoot test shots and do test grading, the results often end up being close to film.

The importance of understanding the script