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Shawn Maurer never planned to work in film. Though
he had grown up appreciating motion pictures, he never believed
he’d be making them one day. It wasn’t until enrolling in a film
class in community college that he realized the place he belonged
was behind the camera.
Maurer enrolled in the film program at Loyola Marymount
University and focused on cinematography while earning his degree
in general film production. It was there that he made the contacts
that proved invaluable during school and after. After graduating,
he began working with ZM Productions, where he met such working
directors as John Schultz, who would go on to help shape the career
he has today.
Maurer’s camerawork can be seen in Schultz’s latest
film, the family fantasy, Like Mike. Among the opportunities
this film presented to Maurer was the chance to shoot Fuji’s new
Reala 500D film. Here, Maurer discusses his ever-growing resume
of work and the benefits he discovered while acting as a "film
guinea pig."
Ryan Sanborn (MM): Was there any one film
that you saw growing up that made you say, “I want to be a cinematographer”?
Who are the cinematographers you admire most?
Shawn Maurer (SM): No. I was always enchanted
by films, but had no idea it would be my calling. Some of my favorite
cinematographers are Emmanuel Lubezki (Sleepy Hollow, Ali),
Roger Deakins (A Beautiful Mind, The Man Who Wasn’t There)
and Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now, The Last Emperor).
MM: Do you think it is easier or more difficult
for a cinematographer just starting out in the film business than,
say, an actor, director or producer?
SM: No idea. It all comes down to luck and
talent. Luck gets you in the door and the rest is up to talent.
I’ve been lucky.
MM: How did you begin to establish yourself as a cinematographer?
SM: When I met my first three directors at
Amblin; things happened from there. Peyton Reed worked really hard
to get me on Bring It On. At that time I was relatively unknown,
only doing smaller pictures like Bandwagon and two other
indie films that cost between $500,000-$1 million. But I had no
problem getting a job after that.
MM: Your career has spanned from the low budget to the
high. Which do you prefer?
SM: I prefer low-budget films because they
are often more rewarding, creatively. With fewer people on a lower
budget, you’re frequently allowed more creative control. No studio
is stepping in and everyone’s creative process is going toward the
same goal. Sometimes working with a studio can be like having too
many cooks in the kitchen and can derail a creative thought.
MM: Is there any particular process you go through before
deciding whether or not to take on a project? At what stage do you
typically come onto a film, and how do you like to prepare?
SM: I typically come onto a film very early
on, due to my close relationship with the director. Frequently,
I will talk with the director on what he envisions for the film.
From there, I read and re-read the script to see how it should be
presented visually. This is the most important process of pre-production.
MM: How did you become involved with Like Mike?
SM: While working at ZM Productions, I met
a handful of directors, including such as Peyton Reed, Jack Perez
and John Schultz. John hired me for a low-budget film shot in North
Carolina called Bandwagon. Having completed it on a $400,000
budget, he sold the film to Lakeshore Entertainment and received
limited distribution.
ZM Productions was later hired to produce ‘behind-the-scenes’
films at Amblin Entertainment and prepare EPK’s for Steven Spielberg.
This led to me landing a job shooting the "behind the scenes"
footage for Back to the Future II. This was an extensive
30-day shoot using 16mm film. By this point, I was gaining good
experience, but John wasn’t able to get me onto his next project, Drive Me Crazy. By the time Like Mike came along he
was able to include me, due to my work on Bring It On.
MM: Was there a specific reason that you
chose to film Like Mike with Fuji’s Reala 500D film? Did
it influence the direction of the cinematography or how you approached
it in any way?
SM: I performed a very brief test on wardrobe
and skin tones to determine the color palette. I chose a fairly
small scene, but one in which there was a night exterior with rain
in the shot. Since I was shooting at night with all HMIs that are
color balanced for daylight, the film stock required no color correcting–either
in camera or in the lab–to attain a neutral color balance. With
the Fujifilm Reala 500D, the colors were more muted, which was just
what I was looking for.
MM: Part of the film’s appeal seems to be
its high sensitivity to light, allowing DPs a greater choice of
location shooting. Did your work on Like Mike allow you to
‘test drive’ this promise?
SM: The film allowed me to test low-light sensitivity.
I wanted to include the skyline of LA in the background of the shot
and wanted to give that as much exposure as possible. This film
stock allowed that to happen. I rated the stock at 320 and shot
it at an F-stop of 2.3. The background was probably two stops down,
but it read wonderfully and held up great. The blacks were really
strong at 320 and I was impressed with the way the film fell into
the shadows.
MM: With light sensitive film becoming such a viable option,
do you think that more directors and cinematographers will opt to
shoot on location in the future?
SM: No. The sensitivity of the film stock will
not change that decision. However, the new film speeds makes the
lighting requirements less cumbersome and expensive.
MM: You’ve done work on a few films with
long action sequences, Like Mike being one and Bring
it On being another. What do you think the key is to making these
scenes interesting from a visual standpoint?
SM: Use as many camera angles as possible.
If a director is interested in doing quick cutting, using four or
more cameras at a time and providing varying angles will give him
as much variety as possible in the editing room.
MM: Do you plan to stay put behind the camera,
or do you have designs on tackling any other facet of the film industry?
SM: I have no aspirations to direct. At this
time, I am content behind the camera and am focused on my building
my demo reel.
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