MITCHELL AMUNDSEN

#1: "Jonah Hex" [2009] - photo by Frank Masi

#2: [Right] with dir Dan Bradley - "Red Dawn" [2009]

MITCHELL AMUNDSEN

Born: 31 May 1958, San Francisco, CA, USA, as Charles Mitchell Amundsen. Also cred as C. Mitchell Amundsen.

Education: Montana State University [Film School], Bozeman, Montana [left in 1980].

Career: 'I was born in San Francisco and raised in Marin County in a town called Larkspur. My dad sold insurance and real estate. People from the 1960s music scene lived in that neighborhood. When I was around 10 years old, my dad bought a boat in Sausalito that we also called home. There was no film in my upbringing. It was all about music. My grandmother lived in San Francisco on the corner of Haight and Ashbury Streets, a district at the heart of the 1960s hippie music scene. My mother wouldn't let me hang out with the people on the street. I remember looking out the window and watching the street scene. I had a guitar that I tried to play, but it didn't come naturally; I'm tone deaf. On the other hand, when I picked up a camera, I had a natural inclination for still photography. I was always interested in imagery. I drew a lot, and was fascinated by the crazy, psychedelic posters that were on the streets in the Haight-Ashbury district. Photography came easy to me from the time I picked up my first 35mm camera in a high school photography class. […] I went to college in Bozeman, Montana, because they had a great still photography school. I also took motion picture classes, which sparked my interest in cinematography. When I returned home to Marin County, a friend who was selling computer chips for motion control shots to ILM got me a tour through their facility. That was around 1980 and I'd been in film school for about two years. While I was on that tour, a guy told me that Coppola's people were looking for a PA [production assistant] to run cable for a movie that he was going to make. He asked if I would be willing to leave school and work on that movie. A week later, I was being paid $100 a week to run coaxial cable during the production of 'One from the Heart'. It was an amazing experience. They were shooting at a studio on stages that Coppola owned. Vittorio Storaro was the cinematographer. I was next to him all the time, pulling cable that hooked up the camera to the video monitor. I became an AC [assistant cameraman] around 1984. Although it was a great experience, I jumped at the first opportunity to become a camera operator when the chance presented itself.' [From interview with Bob Fisher on the KODAK OnFilm website.]

Worked on music videos. Ph commercials dir by John Schwartzman [2003, 'Army of One'; for US Army], Mike McCoy [for KIA], Stewart Hendler [for Mercedes], a.o.

Joined prod comp Bandito Brothers as a dir in 2010. Directed commercials.

His brother Eric [1960-] is a c.asst and digital imaging tech [dit/D.I.T.].

Married to model/photographer Blake Pickett.

Website: Mitchell Amundsen

FILMS & TELEVISION
1992	The Ballad of Little Jo/Little Man Jo [Maggie Greenwald] c; co-2uc; ph: Declan Quinn
1998	Armageddon [Michael Bay] p (35mm & 70bu)/c; uncred cph (finished film after J. Schwartzman left prod about 2 weeks before shooting was finished to prep 'EDtv'; + c.op 'a' cam); ph: John Schwartzman; filmed 1997-98
1998	EDtv/Ed TV [Ron Howard] c; co-2uc (+ c.op); ph: John Schwartzman
2000	Pearl Harbor [Michael Bay] p/c; 2uc (+ addph); ph: John Schwartzman
2001	The Country Bears [Peter Hastings] c; 2uc: Michael Stone; aph: Kurt E. Soderling
2001	[ESPN's] Ultimate X: The Movie [Bruce Hendricks] IMAX-70/c; doc/47m; cph: Reed Smoot & Rodney Taylor; aph: Timothy Housel
2002	Bad Boys II [Michael Bay] s35/c; 2uc; ph: Amir Mokri
2002	Seabiscuit [Gary Ross] s35/b&w-c; co-2uc; ph: John Schwartzman; filmed 2002-03
2002	Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl [Gore Verbinski] s35/c; co-2uc; ph: Dariusz Wolski; filmed 2002-03
2003	National Treasure [Jon Turteltaub] s35/c; ph New York; ph: Caleb Deschanel
2003	The Bourne Supremacy [Paul Greengrass] s35/c; 2uc; ph: Oliver Wood; filmed 2003-04
2004	Transporter 2/Le transporteur II [Louis Leterrier] s35/c; ph France: Pierre Morel; addph: Michael Stone; aph: Phil Pastuhov; uwph: Patrick Longman
2004	The Dukes of Hazzard [Jay Chandrasekhar] s35/c; 2uc; ph: Lawrence Sher
2004	The Island [Michael Bay] p/c; 2uc; ph: Mauro Fiore; filmed 2004-05
2005	Eight Below [Frank Marshall] s35/c; 2uc (+ 2ud); ph: Don Burgess
2005	Mission: Impossible III [J.J. Abrams] p+s35+HD (Sony F950)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; co-2uc; ph: Dan Mindel
2006	Transformers [Michael Bay] p+s35-to-35mm scope (+ IMAX-70bu)/c; 2uc: Lukas Ettlin; uncred addph: David DuBois; aph: David B. Nowell; vfx ph: Pat Sweeney
2007	Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert [Bruce Hendricks] HD (Sony F23 & Sony F950 [3-D])-to-D-Cinema/c; concert film/74m & 90m; cph: Reed Smoot & Rodney Taylor
2007	Wanted [Timur Bekmambetov] s35 (+ D-Cinema)/c; ph New York: John Toll; 2uc: Josh Bleibtreu & Tim Wooster; aph: Jeremy Braben & (2u) Dylan Goss
2008	Love Happens/Traveling [Brandon Camp] c; concert unit ph; ph: Eric Edwards

[Right] with dir Stephen Sommers [cap] & actor Dennis Quaid [uniform]

"G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra"

2008	G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra [Stephen Sommers] p+RED-to-p (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Jonathan Taylor; aph: David B. Nowell & (Europe) Adam Dale
2008	Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience [Bruce Hendricks] HD (Sony F23 [3-D])-to-D-Cinema/c; concert film/76m; cph: Reed Smoot
2008	High School [John Stalberg] s35 (+ D-Cinema)/c
2009	Jonah Hex [Jimmy Hayward] p (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Jerry M. Jacob (+ c.op 'a' cam 2u) & Brooks Guyer (+ c.op Pursuit Arm 2u); Los Angeles ph (reshoots January-February 2010 dir by Francis Lawrence): Jeff Cutter; addph Los Angeles: Tim Roarke; 2uc Los Angeles: Eric Leach; aph: John Trapman; uwph Los Angeles: Pete Romano; + small part
2009	Red Dawn [Dan Bradley] p (+ D-Cinema)/c; addph: John Schwartzman; 2uc (+ c.op 'b' cam): Jerry M. Jacob; miniature ph: Patrick Sweeney; released in 2012; remake of film (1983-84, John Milius; ph: Ric Waite)
2010	Premium Rush [David Koepp] s35 (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Lukasz Jogalla; aph: Steve Koster
2010	Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol [Brad Bird] p+s35+65mm (IMAX & Iwerks)-to-35mm scope (+ IMAX-70bu & D-Cinema)/c; 2uc; ph: Robert Elswit; filmed 2010-11
2011	[IZOD Presents] Hot Wheels: Fearless at the 500 [Mike 'Mouse' McCoy] tv-special/23m; camera: Mike Svitak, Eric Amundsen, Dean Mitchell, a.o.; paid for by Mattel, Inc., IZOD and IZOD Indycar Series; for ABC-tv
2011	Odd Thomas [Stephen Sommers] RED Epic/p-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c
2011	The Bourne Legacy [Tony Gilroy] s35+HD (Canon EOS 5D)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; uncred 2uc; ph: Robert Elswit; filmed 2011-12
2012	Now You See Me [Louis Leterrier] p (+ D-Cinema)/c; cph: Larry Fong; 2uc: Lukasz Jogalla & (France) Christophe Guyon; aph: Hans Bjerno & Dylan Goss; vfx ph: Robert Bock
2013	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ninja Turtles [Jonathan Liebesman] HD (ARRI ALEXA Plus 4:3/p)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema [also 3-D version])/c; snow unit ph; ph: Lula Carvalho
2013	Horrible Bosses 2 [Sean Anders] HD (ARRI ALEXA XT)-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c; co-2uc; ph: Julio Macat; filmed 2013-14
2014	Closed Set [Mitchell Amundsen] RED Epic Dragon-to-IMAX 70mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; short/5m; + small part; for RED's NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) exhibit
2014	Ride Along 2 [Tim Story] RED Epic Dragon-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c; 2uc: Paul Hughen; aph: David B. Nowell
2015	The Last Witch Hunter [Breck Eisner] HD (ARRI ALEXA XT Plus/p)-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c; addph (reshoots June-July); ph (in 2014): Dean Semler
2015	CHiPs [Dax Shepard] RED Epic Dragon-to-D-Cinema/c; aph: Austin Harris & Jerry Dugan; filmed 2015-16
2017	The Dark Tower [Nikolai Arcel] HD (ARRI ALEXA 65 & XT)/c; ph Los Angeles (reshoots in March); ph (in 2016): Rasmus Videbæk
2017	A Bad Moms Christmas/Bad Moms 2 [Jon Lucas & Scott Moore] RED Epic Dragon-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c; 2uc: Patrick Capone
2017	The Happytime Murders [Brian Henson] HD (Panavision DXL)-to-D-Cinema (scope)/c

FILMS & TELEVISION AS CAMERA OPERATOR
1986	Raising Arizona [Joel & Ethan Coen] c.op Alaska/Colorado (+ co-c.asst); ph: Barry Sonnenfeld
1989	The Handmaid's Tale/Die Geschichte der Dienerin [Volker Schlöndorff] ph: Igor Luther
1990	CrissCross [Chris Menges] co-c.op; ph: Ivan Strasburg
1990	Freddy's Dead - The Final Nightmare [Rachel Talalay] ph: Declan Quinn
1991	Lies of the Twins [Tim Hunter; tvm] ph: Declan Quinn
1991	To Save a Child/The Craft/A Child for Satan [Robert Lieberman; tvm] ph: John Schwartzman
1991	Arizona Dream/The Arrowtooth Waltz [Emir Kusturica] c.op Alaska/Colorado; ph: Vilko Filac
1991	Ernest Scared Stupid [John Cherry] c.op; ph: Hanania Baer; as Gundar Amundsen
1991	The Heart of Justice [Bruno Barreto; tvm] ph: Declan Quinn
1992	Benny & Joon [Jeremiah S. Chechik] ph: John Schwartzman
1992	In the Line of Fire [Wolfgang Petersen] c.op 'b' cam; ph: John Bailey
1993	Fallen Angels [ep #1 'Dead-End for Delia' dir by Phil Joanou] 15-part series, 1993 & 1995; 1st season, 1993 (6 ep); ph: Declan Quinn
1993	Gypsy [Emile Ardolino; tvm] ph: Ralf D. Bode
1993	Bad Girls [Jonathan Kaplan] ph: Ralf D. Bode
1993	Higher Learning [John Singleton] ph: Peter Lyons Collister
1994	Major Payne [Nick Castle] ph: Richard Bowen
1994	Empire Records/Empire/Rock & Fun [Allan Moyle] ph: Walt Lloyd
1994	Fair Game [Andrew Sipes] c.op 'a' cam; ph: Richard Bowen
1995	Mr. Wrong [Nick Castle] ph: John Schwartzman
1995	Flipper [Alan Shapiro] co-c.op 'b' cam; ph: Bill Butler
1995	Bonnie Raitt - Road Tested [Jim Yukich; concert film] co-c.op (as Mitch Amundson); ph: Daniel Pearl
1996	Private Parts [Betty Thomas] ph: Walt Lloyd
1996	Conspiracy Theory [Richard Donner] co-c.op; ph: John Schwartzman
1997	The Man in the Iron Mask [Randall Wallace] ph: Peter Suschitzky
1997	Armageddon [Michael Bay] c.op 'a' cam (+ finished film); ph: John Schwartzman
1998	Wild Wild West [Barry Sonnenfeld] c.op 'a' cam 2u; 2uc: Bill Pope, a.o.; ph: Michael Ballhaus & Stefan Czapsky
1999	All the Pretty Horses [Billy Bob Thornton] ph: Barry Markowitz
1999	Red Planet [Antony Hoffman] c.op 'a' cam; ph: Peter Suschitzky
2004	The Dream Studio [prod: Kim Aubrey; 'making of'-doc] co-add c.op (+ co-sound); ph: ?
2006	Shine a Light [Martin Scorsese; mus doc] c.op crane shots; ph: Robert Richardson
2010	Justin Bieber: Never Say Never [Jon M. Chu (replaced Davis Guggenheim); mus doc] co-c.op; ph: Reed Smoot

MISCELLANEOUS
1981	One from the Heart [Francis Ford Coppola] co-prod asst; ph: Vittorio Storaro & Ron García
1981	The Making of 'One from the Heart' [Anthony St. John; doc/23m] co-audio; ph: A. St. John
1982	The Outsiders [Francis Ford Coppola] co-tech electronic cinema; ph: Stephen Burum
1982	Rumble Fish [Francis Ford Coppola] tech electronic cinema; ph: Stephen Burum
1983	The Cotton Club [Francis Coppola] prod asst (cable puller); ph: Stephen Goldblatt
1984	The Last Right [Robert Fortier; short] focus puller; ph: Barry Perles
1984	Firstborn/First Born/Moving In [Michael Apted] co-prod asst; ph: Ralf D. Bode
1985	Doubletake [Jud Taylor; tvm] 2nd c.asst; ph: Barry Sonnenfeld
1985	Violets Are Blue... [Jack Fisk] focus puller; ph: Ralf D. Bode
1986	Raising Arizona [Joel & Ethan Coen] co-c.asst; ph: Barry Sonnenfeld
1986	Critical Condition [Michael Apted] 2nd c.asst; ph: Ralf D. Bode
1986	The House on Carroll Street [Peter Yates] clapper loader; ph: Michael Ballhaus
1987	The Glass Menagerie [Paul Newman] focus puller; ph: Michael Ballhaus
1987	Sweet Hearts Dance [Robert Greenwald] co-1st c.asst; ph: Tak Fujimoto
1988	Heathers [Michael Lehmann] focus puller; ph: Francis Kenny
1988	Meet the Applegates [Michael Lehmann] focus puller; ph: Mitchell Dubin
1989	Bad Influence [Curtis Hanson] focus puller; ph: Robert Elswit
1990	Wheels of Terror/Terror in Copper Valley [Christopher Cain; tvm] focus puller; ph: Richard Bowen
2014	Closed Set [dir; + ph] see Films & Television