#1: From 'The Ken Show', 2013

#3: [Right]

 

   


KEN KELSCH   ASC

 

Born: ?, as Kenneth Kelsch.

Education: St. John's Atonement Seminary, Montour Falls, N.Y. [1963-65]; Montclair State University, Montclair, N.J. [BA English Literature, 1973]; Tisch School of the Arts, New York University [1974-77; MFA Film].

Career: Was a Green Beret and served in the Special Forces in Vietnam.

Ph various CNN special assignments [1983-86]. Ph commercials dir by Michael McNamara, Gary Lankford, a.o. Ph music videos dir by Abel Ferrara.

Announced [in 2004] as director [replacing Ed Caraballo] of the doc 'Never Give Up - The J. Keith Idema Story/Any Lesser Man' [status unknown].

Appeared in the doc 'A Short Film About the Long Career of Abel Ferrara' [2004; 47m].

Awards: Independent Spirit Award nom [1997] for 'The Funeral'.


 FILMS

1977

The Driller Killer [Abel Ferrara] 16mm-35bu/c; 2uc: Dale Denning & Kalman Schissel; addph: David Sperling; filmed 1977-78

1981

In Our Water [Meg Switzgable] c; doc/60m; cph: Barry Sonnenfeld, Robert Chappell & Dick Blofson

1985

Spookies/Twisted Souls [Eugenie Joseph; (dir unfinished film 'Twisted Souls') Thomas Doran & Brendan Faulkner] c; cph: Robert Chappell; 2uc: C.W. Cressler & Dale Denning; spec pfx: Larry Revene & Al Magliochetti

1990

Non-Vegetarian Zombies from Outer Space/Killer Dead [Brendan Faulkner] c/V

1992

Bad Lieutenant [Abel Ferrara] c

1993

Dangerous Game/Snake Eyes [Abel Ferrara] c

1993

Drop Squad [D. Clark Johnson] c

1994

Condition Red [Mika Kaurismäki] c; 2uc: Jacques Cheuiche

1994

The Addiction [Abel Ferrara] b&w

1994

Killer: A Journal of Murder/The Killer [Tim Metcalfe] c; addph: Fernando Arguelles

1995

Big Night [Stanley Tucci & Campbell Scott] c

1995

The Funeral [Abel Ferrara] c

1996

California [Abel Ferrara] c; mus short (with a: Mylène Farmer)/5m

1996

A Brooklyn State of Mind [Frank Rainone] c

1996

The Blackout [Abel Ferrara] c

1996

Love Notes/Backroads to Vegas [Kirsten Bulmer] c/V; ph seg 'Rachel': Alan Caudillo

1997

Montana/Nothing Personal [Jennifer Leitzes] c

1997

The Impostors [Stanley Tucci] c

1997

New Rose Hotel [Abel Ferrara] c; + small part

1998

It Had to Be You [Steven Feder] c

1998

Susan's Plan/Dying to Get Rich [John Landis] c; + small part

2000

'R Xmas [Abel Ferrara] c

2002

Nowhere to Go But Up/Happy End [Amos Kollek] c; addph: Dennis A. Livesey

2003

Asmali konak - Hayat [Abdullah Oguz] c

2003

Testosterone [David Moreton] c

2003

Return to Sleepaway Camp/Sleepaway Camp V: The Return/Nightmare Vacation V [Robert Hiltzik] c/V; cph (+ gaffer): Brian Pryzpek; sfx ph: Brian Rigney Hubbard

2003

Missing in America [Gabrielle Savage Dockterman] c

2005

Before It Had a Name/The Black Widow [Giada Colagrande] c; addph: Brian Pryzpek

2007

100 Feet [Eric Red] s35/c; + small part

2007

With a Bullet [Steven Feder] in development; screenplay dates from 1999; scheduled to start shooting in 2000; later November 2007; status unknown

2007

Chelsea on the Rocks [Abel Ferrara] HD-to-35mm/c; doc/89m; cph: David Hausen

2008

Desert Flower/Wüstenblume [Sherry Hormann] c; fashion unit ph: Deborah Schamoni

 

[Left] - "Sicak"

 

2008

Sicak [Abdullah Oguz] c

2009

Carmilla, the Homecoming [Abel Ferrara] announced; scheduled to start filming March 2010

2010

Someday Melissa [- The Story of an Eating Disorder, Loss and Hope] [Jeffrey Cobelli] c; doc/61m; cph: J. Cobelli, Lowell Freedman & Paul Dalpe

 

[Left] with Federico Castelluccio and actress Yvonne Maria Schäfer - "Lily of the Feast"

 

2010

Lily of the Feast [Federico Castelluccio] c; short/21m; see 2014

2010

House of Last Things/The Last House [Michael Bartlett] c

2011

4:44 Last Day on Earth [Abel Ferrara] RED-to-D-Cinema/c

2011

Caffeinism [Michael Moroney] c; short/18m

2011

Manson Girls [Susanna Lo] in development since 2008; scheduled to start filming in March; a trailer was shot at the end of 2011; in 2012 waiting for additional funds

2012

Hooking Up [Steven Feder] pre-production; scheduled to start filming in September

2012

Checkmate - Keep Your Enemies Closer [Federico Castelluccio] RED One/c; short/17m

2012

A Bedtime Story [Monica Tidwell] c; short/21m

2013

Welcome to New York [Abel Ferrara] HD/c

2013

Rawdon's Roof [Monica Tidwell] c; short/45m

2014

The Cask of Amontillado [Monica Tidwell] HD/c; short/24m

2014

The Brooklyn Banker/Lily of the Feast [Federico Castelluccio] RED Epic/c; 95m; based on the short film; see 2010

2016

The Jonathan Fleming Project [?] ?; doc/?m

 

 TELEVISION & INTERNET

1990

When I Grow Up [6 ep dir by Tom Avitabile] 13-part series; Public Service spots (60s), inserted between CBS Saturday Morning Television programming

1991

FBI: The Untold Stories [pilot 'The Judge Wood Case' dir by Abel Ferrara (left before end of shooting) & Charles Braverman] 53-part (?) series, 1991-93; pilot was in b&w and color; K. Kelsch was uncred; Donald McCuaig was the cred ph; for ABC-tv

1993

Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker [Harry Moses] tvm

1995

Idols of the Game [no director cred] 3-part ('Inventing the All-American', 'Babes in Boyland' & 'Love and Money') doc series; for TNT

1996

The Prosecutors [Rod Holcomb] pilot; for NBC-tv

1996

Subway Stories: Tales from the Underground [seg (8m) 'Love on the A Train' dir by Abel Ferrara, 'The 5:24' dir by Bob Balaban, 'HOney-Getter' dir by Alison Maclean, 'Fern's Heart of Darkness' dir by Patricia Benoit, 'Sax Cantor Riff' dir by Julie Dash, 'Underground' dir by Lucas Platt & 'The Listeners' dir by Seth Rosenfeld] tvm/82m/10 seg; other ph: Adam Kimmel (seg dir by Ted Demme), Tony Jannelli (seg dir by Jonathan Demme) & Tom Hurwitz (seg dir by Craig McKay); seg dir by Spike Lee was cut from film

1997

Every 9 Seconds/A Call for Help [Kenneth Fink] tvm

1998

Rear Window [Jeff Bleckner] tvm

1998

Invisible Child [Joan Micklin Silver] tvm

1999

Private Lies/Bye Bye America/Scheidung auf amerikanisch [Sherry Hormann] tvm

1999

Now and Again [pilot 'Origins' dir by Glenn Gordon Caron + 12 ep dir by various] 22-part series, 1999-2000; other ph: Dejan Georgevich

2000

The $treet/The Street [ep #2 'Propheting on Losses' dir by Michael Dinner, #3 'High Yield Bonds' dir by David Jones & #4 'Closet Cases' dir by Stephen Gyllenhaal] 12-part (5 unaired) series, 2000; other ph: Edward J. Pei (pilot) & Arthur Albert (3 ep)

2001

Fling [Glenn Gordon Caron] series; unaired; FOX-tv became unhappy with the direction of the series and cancelled the show during the prod of the 7th (out of 13) episode; as a result none of the completed episodes have ever been aired

2002

Hack [pilot dir by Thomas Carter] 40-part series, 2002-04; 1st season, 2002-03 (22 ep); other ph: Sharone Meir (5 ep), Adam Kane (3 ep), Michael Grady (1 ep) & Craig DiBona (12 ep)

2004

Medium [12 ep dir by various] 130-part series, 2005-11; 1st season, 2005 (16 ep)

2005

Medium [21 ep (#17-37) dir by various] 2nd season, 2005-06 (22 ep); other ph (#38): Larry Reibman; see 2004

2012

Pizza Connection [Abel Ferrara] ?-part web series/HD (Canon EOS 7D); for Vice

2015

Worth Avenue [?] ?-part miniseries, 2016; announced

 

 MISCELLANEOUS

1978

The Fox Affair [Fereidun Jorjani] key grip; ph: Peter Palian

1979

Don't Go in the House [Joseph Ellison] 1st electrics (+ small part); ph: Oliver Wood