IEC
#2: [Right] with Vilmos Zsigmond [2007] - photo by Michael Coate
M. DAVID MULLEN ASC
Born: 26 June 1962, Iwakuni, Japan, as Merritt David Mullen III.
Education: School of Film/Video of the California Institute of the Arts [CalArts], Santa Clarita [MFA in 1991].
Career: 'I had a long path toward cinematography. I was interested in filmmaking since high school and started making Super-8 films back then. Although I ended up getting a BFA in English Literature at UCLA, I had friends who got into the USC film school and I helped on their films, secretly shooting some of them. After graduation, I continued to make my own Super-8 and then 16mm short films. It wasn't until I was 27 that I decided to get a graduate degree in filmmaking; when I arrived at CalArts in 1988, I was the only incoming student with a strong cinematography background.'
Ph commercials dir by Malcolm Venville ['Sailboat', 2006, for MasterCard], a.o.
Shot test films with the Panasonic AG-DVX100 & Sony PD-150 digital cameras [2002; d: Noah Kadner; short; dv & 35mm transfer/c].
Member of the ASC since 2004.
Updated [2005] the classic textbook 'Cinematography' with original author Kris Malkiewicz.
Appeared in the doc 'Cinematographer Style' [2005, Jon Fauer; ph: J. Fauer, Jeff Laszlo, Brian Heller & David Morgan].
Awards: Independent Spirit Award nom [1999] for 'Twin Falls Idaho'; Independent Spirit Award nom [2003] for 'Northfork'.
Fashioning a 'New Suit' [2001] in 24P HD [by M. David Mullen]: "In the early spring of 2001, I invited 'New Suit' director François Velle to a digitally projected screening of 'Jackpot', a feature I shot in 24P HD for Michael & Mark Polish. Not only was he pleased with the filmlike qualities of the image, but he was intrigued by the fact that 'Jackpot' was composed for a 2.35:1 widescreen presentation [achieved by cropping the 16:9 HD frame]. Shooting 'New Suit' in a similar manner, we used a Sony HDW-F900 with the Canon 5.5-50mm and the Fujinon 7.5-150mm HD zoom lenses. On 'Jackpot', I had turned off the camcorder's artificial sharpening since excessive edge enhancement can be one of the uglier aspects of video imagery on a large screen. However, the final 35mm scope prints of 'Jackpot' exhibited some occasional softness, sometimes due to the optical quality of the Hi-Def zoom lenses at wide apertures. So for 'New Suit', I took advantage of the camera's 'detail' function, but used it at an extremely low level; this seemed to improve overall sharpness without making the image look too edge enhanced. I also decided to shoot 'New Suit' without diffusion filters except for the close-ups, where I used a 1/2 Soft-FX [the lightest grade], only rarely jumping to a 1 Soft-FX. I also tried not to shoot below an f/2.8-f/4 split, and while this increased my depth-of-field compared to shooting wide-open, we used this deeper focus for comedic or dramatic effect when staging the actors. Since 'New Suit' is a comedy, the overall look of the project is rich and colorful, but not garish. François wanted the image to have the overall warm tones of a film like 'Chinatown', so we carefully pushed the art direction, costumes, and lighting in that direction. We will also be printing the final transfer to 35mm onto Vision Premier print stock, which will keep the rich colors and blacks that one would see in digital projection or on a HD monitor. During our 20-day production, because we were shooting tape instead of film, François discovered that he was able to get more takes of performances - we ended up shooting the equivalent of 250,000' of 35mm negative, when most low-budget features generally can only afford to shoot 100,000'. We also saved a little time due to the limited number of camera reloads, since each HDCAM tape holds 50 minutes at 24P. In terms of lighting, the only consideration I make for shooting digitally is that video cameras do not handle overexposure well. Therefore, compared to shooting color negative film, more of my effort is spent controlling the brightest areas in the frame, from carefully choosing the tonality of costumes, furniture and walls, to darkening daytime windows using ND gels, to lowering the intensity of practical lamps with dimmers. However, since the Sony HDW-F900 has a sensitivity at 0 db that roughly equates to that of a 320 ASA film stock, the light levels employed when shooting are very similar to that of a typical 35mm film production. All-in-all, I'm very pleased with the quality that the 24P HD format can deliver; I hope future formats will solve some of the lingering differences between HD and 35mm, primarily in terms of resolution and exposure latitude. But for now, we have in the current 24P HD format something that delivers near-35mm quality but with unique capabilities that some filmmakers will find useful for certain projects, enough to outweigh any disadvantages. It's similar to traditional film but it also has a look that is special to itself, and most cinematographers will be happy to have this new option available to them when choosing the best way to shoot a movie." [From High Def.Org magazine, Autumn 2001.]
| FILMS | |
|---|---|
|
1990 |
Love Pig/Bring Me Your Love [Chris Innis] 16mm/c; short/14m |
|
1992 |
River Bottom [Robert Diaz-LeRoy] b&w-c; 2uc: Jeff Fry; filmed 1992-94 |
|
1993 |
Now Renting [Dan Zukovic] c; short/15m |
|
1993 |
The Lipstick Camera [Mike Bonifer] c; 'b' cam op: Luc Nicknair |
|
1994 |
Bajo del perro/Under the Dog [Michael Polish] 16mm/b&w; short/15m |
|
1994 |
Vertman [Dan Zukovic] 16mm/b&w; short/7m |
|
1994 |
I Am Here [Markus Lofstrom] b&w; short/9m |
|
1994 |
Shadow Warriors/Techno-Fear/Techno Sapiens [Lamar Card] c; 2uc; ph: Keith Holland |
|
1994 |
Ritual [Stanley Bennett Clay] c; 2uc: Luc G. Nicknair; released in 2000 |
|
1995 |
Dead Cold [Kurt Anderson] c/V; 2uc: Dwight Lay |
|
1995 |
Black Scorpion/Roger Corman Presents 'Black Scorpion' [Jonathan Winfrey] c; co-2uc; ph: Geoffrey George |
|
1996 |
The Last Big Thing [Dan Zukovic] c |
|
1996 |
Daddy's Girl [Martin Kitrosser] c; 2uc: Daniel Yarussi |
|
1996 |
Soulmates [Duane Clark] s16-35bu/c |
|
1996 |
Cupid [Doug Campbell] c; 2uc: Sean Cohen & Dwight Lay |
|
1996 |
Man of Her Dreams/The Fiancé [Martin Kitrosser] c |
|
1997 |
The Night Caller [Robert Malenfant] c; 2uc: Christopher Mosio |
|
1997 |
Grizzly Mountain [Jeremy Haft] c; 2uc; ph: Andrew Parke |
|
1997 |
Rusty: A Dog's Tale/Rusty: The Great Rescue [Shuki Levy] c; reshoots ph; ph: Frank Byers; filmed 1996-97 |
|
1997 |
Vermin [Chris Innis] c; 2uc; ph: Kellee Green; + small part |
|
1997 |
Captured [Peter Liapis] c/V |
|
1998 |
The Dentist 2 [Brian Yuzna] c; 2uc; ph: Jürgen Baum |
|
1998 |
Twin Falls Idaho [Michael Polish] c |
|
1999 |
The Clean and Narrow [William Katt] c |
|
1999 |
Alone with a Stranger/Dead Simple [Peter Liapis] c; 2uc: Jürgen Baum & Ron Condon |
|
1999 |
The Perfect Tenant [Doug Campbell] c/V; 2uc: Christopher Mosio, Maximo Munzi & Lon Thompson |
|
1999 |
The Stepdaughter [Peter Liapis] c; co-2uc; ph: Maximo Munzi |
|
2000 |
A Moment of Silence [Steven L. Austin] c; short/13m |
|
2000 |
Still-Life [Neil Alumkal] scheduled as doph; unrealized |
|
2000 |
Jackpot [Michael Polish] HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm scope/c |
|
2001 |
The Hypnotist [Anna Biller] 16mm/c; short/45m; cph: William Roland; addph: Chris Nils Laine & Enis Safersah |
|
2001 |
New Suit [François Velle] HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm scope/c; see above |
|
2001 |
Stuck [Jamie Babbit] p/c; short/7m |
|
2001 |
The Tomorrow Man/Time Shifters [Doug Campbell] c |
|
2001 |
A Foreign Affair/2 Brothers & a Bride [Helmut Schleppi] HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm/c; 2uc: Esli Bijker; filmed 2001-02 |
|
2002 |
Infested [: Invasion of the Killer Bugs] [Josh Olson] HD-to-35mm/c |
|
2002 |
Northfork [Michael Polish] p/c; 2uc: Jeffrey Guziak |
|
2002 |
Tom's Nu Heaven [Dale Launer] HD/c |
|
2003 |
D.E.B.S. [Angela Robinson] HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm scope/c; expanded from the short film 'D.E.B.S.' (2002; ph: Kristian Bernier) |
|
2004 |
When Do We Eat? [Salvador Litvak] HD-to-35mm scope/c |
|
2004 |
Dark Arc [Dan Zukovic] 35mm+HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm/c; addph (35mm seq); ph (HD seq): Geoff Denham |
|
2004 |
Shadowboxer [Lee Daniels] p/c |
|
2004 |
Cordless [Oren Moverman] scheduled as doph; unrealized |
|
2004 |
The Quiet/Dot [Jamie Babbit] HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm scope/c |
|
2005 |
Akeelah and the Bee [Doug Atchison] p+HD (Sony F900)-to-35mm scope/c; 2uc: Chris Mosio; addph: S. Douglas Smith |
|
2005 |
The Astronaut Farmer [Michael Polish] p/c; 2uc: Phil Pfeiffer; addph: Jeffrey Wilkins |
|
2006 |
Solstice [Daniel Myrick] s35/c |
|
2007 |
Assassination of a High School President [Brett Simon] s35/c |
|
2008 |
Jennifer's Body [Karyn Kusama] s35+HD (Phantom HD)-to-35mm (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Karl Herrmann; replaced ph Sam McCurdy during pre-production |
|
2008 |
The Smell of Success/Manure [Larry Smith (= Michael Polish)] RED-to-35mm scope/c; 2uc: James Mathers |
|
2008 |
Stay Cool [Ted Smith (= Michael Polish)] RED-to-35mm scope/c |
|
2008 |
Mary Pickford: The Muse of the Movies [Nicholas Eliopoulos] dv/b&w-c; doc/102m; ph interviews; cph: Joe Mustacchi |
|
2010 |
Seven Days in Utopia [Matt Russell] s35 (+ D-Cinema)/c; 2uc: Peter Simonite; aph 2u: Vance Holmes |
|
2011 |
A Good Thing [Mark Tobey] HD (Sony F35)/c; short/22m |
|
2011 |
Big Sur [Michael Polish] RED One & Epic-to-35mm scope (+ D-Cinema)/c |
|
2013 |
Trinity/Midnight Sun [Chris Eigeman] pre-production; filming is expected to begin summer 2016 |
|
2015 |
90 Minutes in Heaven [Michael Polish] HD (ARRI ALEXA/scope)/c; 2uc: Edward Gutentag |
|
2015 |
The Love Witch [Anna Biller] 35mm-to-D-Cinema/c |
| TELEVISION & INTERNET | |
|---|---|
|
1990 |
I'll Be Home for Christmas [Robert Diaz-LeRoy] tvm/28m; uncred 2uc (+ efx c.op): Tom Richmond; for Universal Television's Hispanic Film Project |
|
1998 |
Devil in the Flesh/Dearly Devoted [Steve Cohen] tvm; co-2uc; ph: Joseph Montgomery |
|
1999 |
Teacher's Pet/Devil in the Flesh 2 [Marcus Spiegel] tvm; 2uc: Dwight Lay & Daniel Yarussi |
|
2003 |
[Vampires:] Out for Blood [Richard Brandes] tvm; 2uc: Dwight Lay |
|
2007 |
Big Love: In the Beginning [ep #2 'Meet the Babysitter' & #3 'Moving Day' dir by David Knoller] 3-part (x 3-5m) series; for HBO-on-Demand, mobile phone, etc. |
|
2007 |
Big Love [7 ep dir by various] 53-part series, 2006-11; 2nd season, 2007 |
|
2008 |
United States of Tara [pilot dir by Craig Gillespie + 11 ep dir by various] 36-part series/HD (Genesis), 2009-11; 1st season, 2009; cph (pilot): Uta Briesewitz |
|
2009 |
The Good Wife [pilot dir by Charles McDougall] series/HD (Sony F35), 2009-present; 1st season, 2009-10; other ph: Fred Murphy |
|
2009 |
United States of Tara [12 ep dir by various] 2nd season, 2010; see 2008 |
|
2010 |
The Chicago Code/Ride Along [pilot dir by Charles McDougall] 13-part series/HD (ARRI ALEXA; pilot was shot with RED), 2011; aph (pilot): Richard Brooks Burton; other ph: Rohn Schmidt |
|
2010 |
Normal [Timothy Busfield] tvm/HD (ARRI ALEXA); for Lifetime-tv (2011) |
|
2010 |
United States of Tara [8 ep dir by various] 3rd season, 2011; see 2008 |
|
2011 |
Smash [14 ep dir by various] 32-part series/HD (ARRI ALEXA), 2012-13; 1st season, 2012 (15 ep); other ph (pilot): Shelly Johnson |
|
2013 |
Sarah Silverman: We Are Miracles [Liam Lynch] special/60m; cph: Rhet Bear; for HBO-tv |
|
2013 |
Mad Men [ep #81 'Field Trip' dir by Christopher Manley] 92-part series, 2007-15; 7th season/HD (ARRI ALEXA), 2014-15 |
|
2013 |
Hindsight [pilot dir by Michael Trim] 10-part series/HD (ARRI ALEXA), 2015; cph pilot (reshoots in 2014) + ph series: Mark Doering-Powell |
|
2014 |
Extant [ep #1-3 & #6-13 dir by various] 26-part series, 2014-15; 1st season, 2014 (13 ep); other ph: M.G. Wojciechowski (2 ep) |
|
2016 |
Designated Survivor [pilot dir by Paul McGuigan] series/HD, 2016-present; 1st season, 2016-17 (21 ep) |
|
2016 |
Westworld [ep dir by various] series/s35, 2016-present; 1st season, 2016 (10 ep); addph; ph: various |
|
2016 |
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel [pilot dir by Amy Sherman-Palladino] series/HD, 2017-present; for Amazon Studios |
|
2017 |
Get Shorty [ep dir by ?] series/HD (ARRI ALEXA Mini), 2017-present; other ph: David Franco (pilot) & Attila Szalay; for Epix-tv |
| MISCELLANEOUS | |
|---|---|
|
1990 |
Rumba [Charlie Wiener; short] gaffer; ph: Destiny Itano |
|
1992 |
The Lion King [Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff] c; anim/89m; EPK (Electronic Press Kit) ph |
|
1994 |
Toy Story [John Lasseter] c; anim/81m; EPK ph |
