Ian Spelling

The Consultant Production Designer Clarence Major III on His Vision for CompWare’s Sinister Offices and the Show’s Religious Allegories

March 21, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Back when Clarence Major III was designing raves, he didn’t harbor any major designs on a career as a Production Designer. Yet here we are decades later, and Major is a 25-year Hollywood veteran with credits spanning from Higher Ed and Mike Epps: Inappropriate Behavior to Amazon Prime Video’s new show The Consultant and the upcoming sci-fi feature War of the Worlds, not to mention countless commercials. He has also […]

Prey Editor Claudia Castello on the Women Who Inspired Her, the Value of Deleted Scenes, and Why She’s Waiting to Direct

March 8, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Claudia Castello is living the life. She’s spent part of her morning surfing and now, her hair still wet, she’s on a Zoom call from her home in El Salvador to discuss her work as the Co-Editor of Prey, Dan Trachtenberg‘s well-received Predator prequel that’s now streaming on Hulu. Castello and Angela M. Catanzaro earned an ACE Eddie Award nomination in the Best Edited Feature Film (Non-Theatrical) category for their […]

Emancipation‘s Hair Dept. Head Andrea Bowman on the Importance of Authenticity, Dealing With New Orleans Weather, and Her Big Break

March 1, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Antoine Fuqua shot his Apple TV+ movie Emancipation in New Orleans, with most of the production schedule calling for location work — usually on the grounds of plantations — which meant cast and crew spent hours and hours at the mercy of the Big Easy’s mercurial weather. That presented myriad challenges for Andrea Bowman, the film’s Hair Department Head. Bowman, who goes by “Mona” and counts among her dozens of […]

Awards

Avatar: The Way of Water Sound Gurus Gwendolyn Yates Whittle and Chris Boyes on Shaping the Sonic Experience of Pandora With Jim Cameron

February 17, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Gwendolyn Yates Whittle and Chris Boyes surely liked the sound of what they heard on the morning of Jan. 24, when Riz Ahmed and Allison Williams announced that they — along with Julian Howarth, Dick Bernstein, Gary Summers, and Michael Hedges — were nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Sound category for their work on James Cameron‘s blockbuster sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water. Though Whittle and Yates […]

A League of Their Own Production Designer Victoria Paul on Paying Homage to the Original Film & Dealing With Pittsburgh Weather

January 26, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

A League of Their Own hit a home run in the eyes of viewers and critics alike, with the Amazon series earning raves for its acting, writing, and cinematography, as well as progressive storylines that Penny Marshall‘s classic film of the same name — which inspired the Prime Video show — couldn’t explore. Also drawing praise is the work of Production Designer Victoria Paul, whose team crafted the physical universe […]

Raymond & Ray Composer Jeff Beal on Crafting a Trumpet Piece for Ethan Hawke, and His Actor-Friendly Approach to Scoring Films & TV Shows

January 12, 2023 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Jeff Beal is already a five-time Emmy Award winner, and the composer’s score for the Apple TV+ movie Raymond & Ray –which spans from jaunty and jazzy to heartbreaking — could have him in the hunt for another statue. A trumpet player since his youth, Beal seemed particularly suited to Raymond & Ray, as Ethan Hawke‘s character, Ray, is a trumpet player who reluctantly reconnects with his estranged brother, Raymond […]

The Come Up Music Supervisor Adam Brodsky on Capturing That Downtown New York Sound, and His Company, Woolly Music

November 22, 2022 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Adam Brodsky wears many hats. He’s a singer and a musician who has also DJ’d and produced. And he also heads up Woolly Music, a collective of composers, producers, and music supervisors who have worked on a wide array of award-winning projects. Additionally, Brodsky has served as Music Supervisor on such TV series as Desus & Mero, King of the Road, and Black Market With Michael K. Williams. His most recent […]

New Hellraiser Composer Ben Lovett on Finding the Right Balance Between His Own Sound and Paying Homage to the Original Score

October 31, 2022 Ian Spelling Comments Off

Growing up, Ben Lovett never particularly considered himself a horror fan. He just liked good stories and didn’t really gravitate toward a single genre — of film or music. So it’s merely a coincidence that Lovett, now a respected singer-songwriter, producer, and film composer, has carved out a niche for himself in the realm of genre films, often working with directors David Bruckner, Jacob Gentry, and Jim Cummings. Lovett’s notable credits […]

Lost Ollie Cinematographer C. Kim Miles on His Big Break, Meeting Mark Hamill, & How Welcome to Marwen Helped Prepare Him for Netflix’s Family Series

October 25, 2022 Ian Spelling Comments Off

C. Kim Miles grew up in Malaysia, where there were just three available TV channels, only one of which presented programs in English. He recalls Saturday mornings soaking in Indian, Hindu, and Telugu movies with his mom, who happened to dabble in photography as a hobby. Those early experiences proved to be, pardon the pun, his first exposure to moving images and creating imagery, and they paved the way for […]

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Supervising Sound Editor Damian Del Borrello on Creating the Whispers of Eru Ilúvatar and Honoring the Legacy of the Film Trilogy

October 24, 2022 Ian Spelling Comments Off

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is as much a feast for the ears as it is for the eyes. And for that, viewers can thank Damian Del Borrello, MPSE who served as the Supervising Sound Editor on Season 1 of the epic Prime Video show, working alongside Co-Supervising Sound Editor Robert Stambler and the rest of their talented team. Del Borrello (Spartacus, Ash vs. Evil Dead, […]