This year’s Shooting Gallery spread is comprised of images we call “lost and found.” They are moments from real life, snatched by the watchful eyes of Local 600 Unit Stills members from film, television sets, and live events, after the cameras stopped turning. They are idiosyncratic, mysterious and poignant, revealing the strange magic of the entertainment industry better than any behind-the-scenes documentary. Some – like a pack of screaming fans at a concert – capture the innocence of a lost era. Others, like a crewmember in silhouette on a scaffold, or a little boy napping on an equipment cart, hint at something deeply human in a process often overshadowed by (and dependent on) technology. If the act of production is wholly artificial, often losing sight of the emotional goals that are sought, then this gallery of lovely, and often surprising, photographs is where those feelings are found. It just requires the right person with a camera.
Chuck Hodes
Rollbounce (2004)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, f/3.5, 24mm (24-70mm), 1/40th second, ISO 1600
During a long and busy day shooting this 1970s period film, I made my way to the rear of the roller rink, where we had staged the camera department. I went to grab some gear only to find this little boy sound asleep underneath one of our camera carts.
Courtesy of Fox Searchlight/Chuck Hodes.
Claire Folger
The Town (2010)
Canon EOS 1DS Mark II, f5.0, 1/40th second, ISO 1600, 16 mm
This isn’t the first time publicist Amy Cohn has surprised me by being on a shelf in the camera truck! But it was the first time she had actually set up an office there to caption photos. Shot on location in the bank robbery capital of America, Charlestown, Mass.
Courtesy of Warner Bros.
Danny Feld
Shark (2006)
Producer Ian Biederman had a wonderful relationship with star James Woods on the set of the television show Shark. I often caught them in playfully fun moments between takes. This shot was especially funny and caught James by surprise. Ian was a great producer to work for and always kept the spirit up on the set.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II, 1/100th second, f2.8, 50 mm
Courtesy of Danny Feld.
Gene Page
The Reaping (2007)
Nikon D2x, 80-200mm 2.8 Nikkor lens @ 1/125 second (80mm), f/2.8, 1600 ISO
We shot this film, starring Hilary Swank and AnnaSophia Robb (pictured), in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Puerto Rico in August through November of 2005, suffering through two hurricanes. Our stage location was in an old Walmart and we had these large fake cattle around for various scenes in the film. Between takes one day, I looked over and saw AnnaSophia pushing a cart with one of the cows in it and the Walmart sign behind her. I had to shoot it and she and her parents thought it was very funny.
To date this is one of the most fun films I’ve worked on while on location.
Courtesy of Warner Bros.
Hilary Bronwyn Gayle
Ted Among the Spices (2008)
Mamiya 7, 50mm, f/4.5, shot on Kodak Tri-X 320 ISO
This photograph captures actor Ted Parks just out of makeup, preparing for his scene on the slab in the noir thriller Red 71. The morgue scenes were shot in the kitchen of the Scottish Rite Cathedral in Tucson, Arizona, the stainless steel workspaces doubling for autopsy tables. The juxtaposition of clinical instruments among kitchen appliances made for some rather humorous moments, especially with horror icon Angus Scrimm playing the coroner.
Courtesy of Hilary Bronwyn Gayle.
Jacqueline Jefferies Sekula
For The Love of Money (2011)
Nikon D3X, 85mm, f/3.2, 1/100th second, ISO 800
This picture was taken in downtown Los Angeles in November 2010 on the set of For The Love of Money. It pictures a very organized first assistant director, Sassy Lee Calhoun, who clearly has mastered function versus fashion. I think it speaks volumes for the dedication we have in this industry for being immersed in our projects.
Courtesy of All Cash Productions.
Adam Rose
Glee (2011)
Canon 5D MK II, f/5.0, 1/125th second, ISO 1600
Glee shoots on several different stages at Paramount Studios, two of them separated by an enormous moveable door. This is the only time I had ever seen it being lowered and there just happened to be a 10K backlighting the catwalk. I was able to snap off seven frames before the light went off, and a crewmember from electric walked perfectly into frame for the last two.
Courtesy of FOX Networks.
Justin Lubin
My Name is Earl (2009)
Canon 20D, 1/200th second, f/5.0, ISO 200
Working with Jason Lee was always a joy. In this shot, he was giving off camera lines. After the take, I turned my camera on him for a good candid, but he turned to look my way and gave me that mischievous look. Jason is an excellent photographer in his own right and always treated me with respect whenever I was on set. He was always playful when the camera stopped rolling.
© Justin Lubin.
Neil Jacobs
Conspiracy (2008)
Nikon DX2, 17mm lens @ f 2.8, 1/80th second
We were shooting on location with Val Kilmer and Gary Cole at Cerro Pelon Ranch in Galisteo, New Mexico. We were outside prepping an interior night scene, waiting for dark during a typical desert sunset. The oranges and reds in the sky, contrasting with the blue set and the studio lights made it feel like we were in a Norman Rockwell painting. I made several individual portraits of the crew using the lighting, but this photo of the crew waiting for the set to be dressed best expressed the moment.
Courtesy of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Justina Mintz
General Electric: Solar Energy (2008)
Nikon D700, 24mm @ f/2.8, 1/200th second
This image was taken on the set of a commercial for solar energy directed by a talented young cinematographer named Sean Stiegemeier, who shot plates of the windy Icelandic fjords for the blue screen. The young girl played a quiet, brooding character, but every time the director called cut, she would run off, all energy, exploring that set.
© Justina Mintz.
Lacey Terrell
Armored (2009)
Nikon D200, f/2.8, 1/125th second, 24-70mm, ASA 400
I worked with Laurence Fishburne on this heist action movie, and Laurence is a true professional and wonderful human. In the midst of this film, which mostly took place in a beautifully-decaying, while filthy, industrial warehouse, he would bring a bit of a reprieve from the intensity with music from his harmonica. For several scenes Laurence was perched atop this armored truck, and in between takes he would stay up there and play, or sometimes read the newspaper, with a rare sense of calm and patience.
Armored ©2009 Screen Gems, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Courtesy of Screen Gems.
Matt Dinerstein
Festival Of Lights (2007)
Nikon D-200, 1/40th second, 17-55mm lens @ 17mm (equal to a 25 mm), ISO 640
Disney/ABC Television hired me to photograph the lighting of the holiday lights on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue about a week before Thanksgiving. The event also features celebrities riding on floats in a parade and a stage where there are performers doing short sets. Corbin Bleu was signing autographs and was a guest artist performing on stage. As his set began, I did a 180-degree turn toward this screaming horde of teens and preteens, all totally oblivious to my presence. The image reminds me of the teen girls screaming for the Beatles, [which is] why I chose to present it in black and white. There’s even one fan covering her ears because the screaming was so intense.
© Matt Dinerstein.
Scott Garfield
The Walking Dead (2010)
Canon 5D Mark II, 70mm, 1/200th second @ f/7.1
We shot the pilot for this TV show in downtown Atlanta, during one of the hottest summers on record. Everyone on the show was beat, especially the star, Andrew Lincoln, who basically carried most of the pilot on his own. I took this photo during a much-needed break, and the trainer had his horse (which had just shot a scene being dragged to the ground by a swarm of zombies) also take a load off. For a show that has almost no happy moments in it, this one was a hilarious standout.
Copyright TWD Productions, LLC. All rights reserved.
Seacia Pavao
Sunny Side Up (2010)
Nikon D300, Nikkor 17-55, 2.8mm lens @ 23mm, f/6.3, 1/125th second, ISO1600
It was a very brisk afternoon in late October, at our Weir River Farm location in Hingham, Mass. The day started with our finally being able to capture chickens hatching — something we had been awaiting for days. But because of the morning delay, we were losing light, so adjustments were made to the schedule. One change was to scrap a scene that involved a tea set, even though the tea set, filled with piping hot tea, was already out and ready to go. Our cinematographer, Patrick Ruth, being a true Irish gentleman, suggested that everyone partake in an impromptu spot of afternoon tea.
Courtesy of Saint Aire Productions.