IEC
#1: From interview [BSC, 2012]
DANNY COHEN BSC
Born: 1963, as Daniel Cohen. His maternal grandparents were German Jews who fled the Third Reich in 1933 to London, UK.
Career: 'You can go to film school, but everybody's different. My first degree was a social science and nothing to do with film. I'd always done a lot of stills photography. I ended up as a photographic technician at Middlesex Polytechnic [since 1992 Middlesex University] and then became a camera assistant on small documentaries and pop promos and commercials. It's all about chance meetings. I ended up as a camera assistant and clapper/loader for eight years working with lots of cameramen with different styles, so that was my film school. I worked with the French cameraman who shot '37°2 le matin/Betty Blue' [1985]. Going to work was like going to a master-class every day.'
Ph commercials and music videos.
Member of the BSC since 2008.
Was awarded an honorary degree by Middlesex University for his work in the creative industries [2017].
Awards: BAFTA TV Craft Award nom [2006] for 'Longford'; BAFTA TV Craft Award nom [2007] for 'Joe's Palace'; 'Emmy' Award nom [2008; shared] for 'John Adams' [ep 'Don't Tread Me']; 'Oscar' AA nom [2010], BAFTA Film Award nom [2010] & ASC Film Award nom [2010] for 'The King's Speech'; ASC Film Award nom [2012] for 'Les Misérables'.
Website: Danny Cohen
Film or Digital: 'I've been really lucky that
the bulk of my work in the past five years has been on film. I'm a bit spoiled
really and not in the real world, I admit. I've shot some films on HD and shoot
commercials on video, but the bigger projects, like the next 'Johnny English'
film with Rowan Atkinson I just finished, have been on film. I just think you
have a lot more flexibility when you shoot on film. HD is good for certain
things, but there's a simplicity and texture you get when you shoot on film.
Money plays a huge part in what you shoot on these days. Everybody approaches
the question of what format to shoot in with a completely different point of
view. As a cinematographer, I think you still get the best images from film.
Plus, there's a consistency about the process: you can literally turn the camera
on and shoot. You're also not losing control of the film into post-production.
With the RED, you have to go have a cup of tea before the camera's ready to go.
It's a computer you stick a lens on, and it's not very ergonomically designed.
If you do a lot of running around and handheld work, it doesn't feel like a
naturally balanced camera. I've shot on RED and on ARRI's D-21, and both
projects looked really good. But you can't put the D-21 on your shoulder,
either, because it weighs too much. The ALEXA, as a shrunk-down version of the
D-21, is much more practical, and because ARRI has this long history in the film
industry, it's much more ergonomically designed. You can just pop it on your
shoulder and go. I've got a project coming up next month in which I'll be
shooting with the ALEXA. We could have easily decided to shoot 'The King's
Speech' on HD because it's so dialogue heavy with long, 10-minute takes. In
an ideal world, you make that format choice for aesthetic reasons, because
technology is no longer an obstacle. But it's never an ideal world.' [From
the studiodaily website, 2011.]
| FILMS | |
|---|---|
|
1995 |
A Lamp in a Window [Tamara Tracz] s16/c; short/13m |
|
1996 |
Some Small Cycle [Jason Edwards] c; short/15m |
|
1996 |
The Full Monty [Peter Cattaneo] c; uncred co-2uc; ph: John de Borman |
|
1996 |
Fifty Quid [Hester Clarke] ?; short/7m |
|
1997 |
Shit Happens [Rebecca Surridge] ?; short/?m |
|
1997 |
Daylight Hours Only [Tamara Tracz] 16mm/c; short/25m |
|
1998 |
The Snatching of Bookie Bob [John Sharian] c; short/17m |
|
1998 |
Charlie [Jon Wilson] c; short/10m |
|
1998 |
Wiper [Marc Charach] s16/c; short/22m |
|
1999 |
Leviathan [Jack Price] ?; short/?m |
|
1999 |
Rage [Newton I. Aduaka] c; addph; ph: Carlos Arango |
|
1999 |
Dead Babies/Mood Swingers [William Marsh] p/c |
|
1999 |
Rob of the Rovers [Ashley Horner] c; short/11m |
|
2000 |
Possessed Jeans [Nicolai Fuglsig] c; branded short/6m; part of Levi's 'Reel Revolution' project |
|
2001 |
Beginner's Luck [Nick Cohen & James Callis] dv-to-35mm/c; co-2uc; ph: Chris Preston |
|
2001 |
My Other Wheelchair Is a Porsche [Ravi Kumar] c; short/12m; 2uc: Ole Birkeland |
|
2001 |
Viva Mumbo [Jason Edwards] 16mm/c; short/11m |
|
2001 |
Rewind: "El último cuplé" [Johnny Shahnazarian] b&w-c; doc/60m |
|
2002 |
Ten Minutes Older: The Cello [seg 'About Time 2' dir by Mike Figgis] b&w-c; 8 seg; cred as (co-)c.op |
|
2002 |
My Wrongs 8245-8249 and 117/Dog Daze [Chris Morris] c; short/12m |
|
2003 |
Dead Man's Shoes [Shane Meadows] s16-35bu/b&w-c; addph: Zac Nicholson |
|
2003 |
Seres queridos/Only Human [Teresa De Pelegri & Dominic Harari] c |
|
2003 |
Old Street [Angus Jackson] DigiBeta/c; short/12m |
|
2003 |
Creep [Christopher Smith] s35/c; addph: Jake Polonsky; vfx ph: Richard Craske |
|
2003 |
33x Around the Sun [John Hardwick] s16/c; back drop ph: Chris Cooke & Tim Bennett |
|
2004 |
Chaos [Tony Giglio] s35/c; ph UK; ph: Richard Greatrex |
|
2004 |
Festival [Annie Griffin] c; 2uc: Kevin O'Brien |
|
2005 |
The Last Hangman/Pierrepoint [: The Last Hangman] [Adrian Shergold] 16mm-35bu/c; 2uc: Zac Nicholson |
|
2005 |
Scummy Man [Paul Fraser] c; short/16m; comm by pop group Arctic Monkeys |
|
2005 |
This Is England [Shane Meadows] s16-35bu/c |
|
2006 |
Portraits of a Lady [Neil Leifer] c; doc/40m; cph: Peter Franchella & Howie Leifer; 2uc: Adam Zebersky; prod for HBO-tv |
|
2007 |
Arctic Monkeys at the Apollo [Richard Ayoade] s16/c; concert film/76m; filmed 17 December 2007 in Manchester, England |
|
2008 |
The Boat That Rocked/Pirate Radio [Richard Curtis] s35 (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Martin Kenzie; addph 2u: Adam Gillham; aph: Jeremy Braben; uwph: Mark Silk |
|
2008 |
Glorious 39/1939 [Stephen Poliakoff] c |
|
2009 |
The King's Speech [Tom Hooper] s35-to-35mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Martin Kenzie; filmed 2009-10 |
|
2010 |
Johnny English Reborn [Oliver Parker] s35+HD (Phantom HD)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Martin Kenzie; aph: Jeremy Braben & (French unit) Steven Desbrow |
|
2011 |
Jess//Jim [Luke Snellin] HD (ARRI ALEXA)/c; short/7m |
|
2012 |
Les Misérables [Tom Hooper] s35-to-35mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Martin Foley; aph (France): Jim Swanson |
|
2013 |
X+Y [Morgan Matthews] HD/c |
|
2013 |
The Program/Icon/Lance Armstrong [Stephen Frears] RED Epic/c; 2uc: Christopher Ross |
|
2014 |
London Road [Rufus Norris] RED Epic/c |
|
2014 |
Room [Lenny Abrahamson] RED Epic Dragon-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c |
|
2015 |
The Danish Girl [Tom Hooper] RED Epic Dragon/c; 2uc: Paul McGeachan & John Evans |
|
2015 |
Florence Foster Jenkins [Stephen Frears] HD (ARRI ALEXA XT/p)-to-digital (scope)/b&w-c |
|
2016 |
Final Portrait [Stanley Tucci] RED Epic Dragon-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c |
|
2016 |
Victoria and Abdul [Stephen Frears] RED Epic Dragon-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c |
|
2017 |
Disobedience [Sebastián Lelio] HD/c |
|
2017 |
Night in Hatton Garden [James Marsh] HD/c |
| TELEVISION | |
|---|---|
|
1999 |
Ibiza - £99 Return [David Blair] tvm/50m; ep #6 of 6-part series 'Shockers', 1999 (3 ep) & 2001 (3 ep); 2nd series, 2001; for Channel 4 |
|
2000 |
Cyclops [Bharat Nalluri] tvm/46m; ep #4 of 6-part series 'Shockers'; 2nd series, 2001; see 1999 |
|
2001 |
Baited Breath [Jon Wilson] tvm/30m; ep series 'Western Lights'; for HTV West |
|
2001 |
Menace [Bill Eagles] 2-part tvm |
|
2002 |
Daddy's Girl [Bill Eagles] tvm |
|
2002 |
The Book Group [ep #7 'Sueños (Dreams)', #8 'Hunger', #9 'You Must Change Your Life', #10 'Drowning', #11 'Research', #12 'A'salaam Insha'lah (Peace, God Willing)' dir by Annie Griffin] 12-part series, 2002-03; 2nd season, 2003 |
|
2003 |
Box of Slice [Christopher Morris] pilot/30m; for Channel 4 |
|
2004 |
Nathan Barley [Christopher Morris] 6-part series, 2005 |
|
2005 |
Murder in Suburbia [ep #8 'Estate Agents' dir by Roger Goldby (RG) & #9 'The Wedding' dir by RG] 12-part series, 2004-05; 2nd season, 2005 |
|
2006 |
Longford [Tom Hooper] tvm |
|
2006 |
Born Equal [Dominic Savage] tvm |
|
2006 |
Joe's Palace [Stephen Poliakoff] tvm |
|
2007 |
Coming Down the Mountain [Julie Anne Robinson] tvm |
|
2007 |
A Real Summer [Stephen Poliakoff] tvm/45m |
|
2007 |
Capturing Mary [Stephen Poliakoff] tvm |
|
2007 |
John Adams [ep #1 (addph) 'Join or Die', #2 (addph) 'Independence', #3 (cph) 'Don't Tread on Me', #4 (cph) 'Reunion', #5 (cph) 'Unite or Die', #6 (cph) 'Unnecessary War' & #7 (ph) 'Peacefield' dir by Tom Hooper] 7-part miniseries/35mm-to-HDTV, 2008; other ph: Tak Fujimoto; 2uc: Kyle Rudolph; snow unit ph: Stephen Lyons |
|
2007 |
Poppy Shakespeare [Benjamin Ross] tvm |
|
2009 |
Dive [Dominic Savage] 2-part tvm/HD (Phantom HD)+?mm |
|
2009 |
Campus [Victoria Pile] pilot; followed by 6-part series, 2011 (ph by Rob Kitzmann) |
|
2010 |
This Is England '86 [Tom Harper (ep #1-2) & Shane Meadows (ep #3-4)] 4-part miniseries |
|
2011 |
This Is England '88 [Shane Meadows] tvm/RED-to-HD |
|
2011 |
Richard II [Rupert Goold] tvm/HD |
| MISCELLANEOUS | |
|---|---|
|
1993 |
Syrup [Paul Unwin; short] clapper-loader; ph: Sean Van Hales |
|
1994 |
The Young Poisoner's Handbook [Benjamin Ross] clapper-loader; ph: Hubert Taczanowski |
|
1994 |
Blue Juice [Carl Prechezer] co-c.asst (Lanzarote); ph: Richard Greatrex |
|
1995 |
Io no spik inglish [Carlo Vanzina] co-c.asst; ph: Gianlorenzo Battaglia |
|
1996 |
Twin Town [Kevin Allen] co-c.op 2u; 2uc: Paul Englefield; ph: John Mathieson |
|
1996 |
The Revengers' Comedies/Sweet Revenge [Malcolm Mowbray] co-focus puller 2u; ph: Romain Winding |
|
1996 |
Metroland [Philip Saville] clapper-loader; ph: Jean-François Robin |
|
1997 |
[Book Box:] Grandpa Chatterji [Indra Bhose; 2-part tvm] focus puller; ph: Joachim Bergamin |
|
1998 |
The Loss of Sexual Innocence [Mike Figgis] co-focus puller; ph: Benoît Delhomme |
|
1998 |
East Is East [Damien O'Donnell] co-focus puller add crew; ph: Brian Tufano |
