January 2021 – Below the Line

Ben Hur Camera Operator Owen Marsh Dies at 90

January 29, 2021 Staff Comments Off

Hollywood veteran Owen Marsh, a camera operator on classic films like Ben-Hur, How the West Was Won and The Greatest Story Ever Told and for television shows from The Brady Bunch to Murder, She Wrote, died Sunday, January 9, at the age of 90, in his Portland home, as told to The Hollywood Reporter by daughter Cher Levondosky. (Selections from his bio and obit are included below.) Marsh was among the 13 founders who established what was then known as […]

End of Week Production Notes 1/29/21: SAG, PGA Lift Halt on Indie, Commercial Production, Two Acting Legends Die and More News

January 29, 2021 Edward Douglas Comments Off

Once again, we’ve gotten through another week. Under normal circumstances i.e. “the before times”, the entire entertainment industry would be in Park City, Utah to celebrate films and filmmaking at the Sundance Film Festival, which Below the Line will be covering but more with plans on figuring out what movies are worth covering over the rest of 2021. This past week saw the tragic passing of two absolute Hollywood legends, Cloris Leachman on Wednesday […]

EnergaCAMERIMAGE: Elen Lotman, ESC, on Diversity, Inclusion and Goodbye Soviet Union

January 29, 2021 Daniel Eagan Comments Off

One of the highlights of the annual EnergaCAMERIMAGE festival, the IMAGO Diversity and Inclusion panels give cinematographers across the globe the opportunity to share knowledge and experiences with colleagues. Started in 2016, the panels are free-wheeling explorations into how gender and ethnic minorities can gain footholds in the field of cinematography. IMAGO, the International Federation of Cinematographers, came together in the 1990s as a way to coordinate industry guilds and […]

Society of Camera Operators Announces Timeline for Camera Operator of the Year Awards

January 28, 2021 Staff Comments Off

The Society of Camera Operators (SOC) announced that its annual Camera Operator of the Year Awards and Creative Vision Celebration would be going virtual this year, taking place on Sunday, April 11 from 5pm to 6:30pm PST. SOC will bring together the community to celebrate the industry’s triumphs, masterful storytelling, and stand out creativity with the recipients for the Camera Operator of the Year Film & Television categories awarded live. From the […]

Crafts Spotlight: The Costumes and Production Design for Stephen King’s The Stand

January 28, 2021 Edward Douglas Comments Off

Tackling Stephen King’s 1978 post-apocalyptic novel The Stand would be a challenge for anyone, considering how sprawling it is with so many characters and locations. Frequent King collaborator Mick Garris gave it a try in 1994 with a TV mini-series that cost $28 million – a lot for those times – and now, Josh Boone (The Fault in Our Stars) is giving it a go with a 9-episode limited series […]

FilmLA Reports on Effect of COVID-19 on 2020 L.A. Production

January 27, 2021 Staff Comments Off

FilmLA has issued a pair of reports that shows the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the Los Angeles film economy, shedding light on the industry’s challenges to resume production last fall. FilmLA’s 2020 On-Location Production Report quantifies the industry’s challenges to resume production last fall with local production activity picking up considerably in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to previous years reaching 7,348 Shoot Days (SD), down 25.3 percent from the prior […]

MPSE Elects New Board Members with Steve Urban as New VP

January 27, 2021 Staff Comments Off

The Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) has elected Steve Urban to a 2-year term as Vice President, succeeding Bernard Weiser. Additionally, Jeremy Gordon was re-elected as Treasurer and Christopher Reeves as Sergeant-at-Arms in the organization’s annual Board elections. They join Mark A. Lanza, who continues in the role of President, as board officers. Newly elected as Board members at large are Peter Albrechtsen, Amber Funk, Scott Jennings and Charles Maynes. […]

Animated Short Spotlight: Taylor Meacham on the Magical World of To: Gerard

January 27, 2021 Edward Douglas Comments Off

The third in our series of spotlight on some of last year’ Animated Shorts that should be watched before Oscars and Annie Awards nominations is Taylor Meacham’s To: Gerard, a gorgeously emotional wordless film made with DreamWorks Animation that can now be seen for free on the Comcast streamer Peacock. The Gerard of the title is an older man working in the back area of a mailroom who has long […]

REVIEW: Zendaya’s Breathtaking Performance Rescues Wobbly Malcolm & Marie

January 27, 2021 J. Don Birnam Comments Off

Sam Levinson’s Malcolm & Marie will be remembered by history as the first ambitious project entirely written and produced during the catastrophic COVID-19 pandemic. The lofty aspirations of such an endeavor are also obvious in the bombastic—even loud—pronouncements and musings about the meaning of art and life of its two titular characters, as telegraphed by John David Washington and Zendaya. But Levinson’s script does not quite reach the heights for […]

Blackmagic Design Supplies Pocket Cinema Camera 6k for Crew in a Box

January 27, 2021 Staff Comments Off

A few weeks back, we wrote about “Crew in a Box,” an all-in-one remote production system that has allowed a number of major brands and networks to complete projects under COVID protocols with a plug-and-play package that allows front-of-camera talent to film high quality footage while connecting remotely to filmmakers and crew that are controlling every aspect of the shoot. Leading creative technology manufacturer Blackmagic Design has announced it has teamed with Crew in a […]