EOIN BUTLERtalks to Seamus McGarvey, Cinematographer
Could you explain the difference between a cinematographer and a cameraman?
As a cinematographer, my job is to take a script and help to visualise it. I'm the head of the department of cinematography, but the lines blur between departments. The five-minute beach scene at Dunkirk from the film Atonement, for example, epitomises the kind of collaboration that goes on. Originally we had scheduled to film over two or three days. But in the end Joe looked at the tides, the light was right, and thought why not do the entire shot in one take? It was a very delicate tightrope, with a whole myriad of elements, any one of which could topple at any moment. I still get nervous watching it.
How much of your job is done in advance and how much is done on the set?
I’m a great believer in preparation. It allows you to get into the head of a director, to assimilate the script and think about the tone of a film before you embark upon it. But, you know, the best-laid plans can be turned on their head in the chaos that is a film set. You have to be very light on your feet. When the actors come in they may – no they will – wish to change things. Actresses in particular will have particular ideas about how they want to look. You just have to roll with that to keep a creative as well as a political equilibrium.
You’ve worked with stars such as Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Aniston and Ben Stiller. Is there tension when you’ve got big names on set?
There are certain pressures when you work with big stars – that’s a given. The weird thing is, though, that while there is always this rambunctious, chaotic periphery, when the clapperboard goes snap, a film set is actually an incredibly tranquil place. Stars are concerned about how they look on film. But they’ll usually assume that you’re capable, that you’re going to do what’s right for the film and won’t show them in a bad light.
Christian Bale famously had words with the director of photography on the set of ‘Terminator Salvation’. Have you ever had any incidents like that?
I haven’t. But to be honest, I would actually support Bale in that instance. There is a set of unwritten rules about how to behave on a film set. There has to be an atmosphere in which actors can do their best work, particularly in emotionally wrought scenes. Christian Bale took a lot of flack, but that DP was adjusting lights in the middle of a take, which is unforgivable really.
You grew up in Armagh during the Troubles. How did you get involved in film?
I had an interest in photography from a very early age. I had a darkroom at home and used to take photographs around the town. It was an interesting solitary pursuit, a retreat if you like from all of the things that were happening outside the front door. Armagh in the early 1980s was quite a hotbed and I found it almost therapeutic being able to use the camera almost as a distancing thing.
You went to university in London and ended up shooting videos for U2, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney
I’ve always loved working on music videos and I’ve always enjoyed working with musicians, particularly people like Polly Harvey and U2, people who are true artists, because they have a different approach to pictures. They aren’t coming at it from a purely commercial point of view. The other great thing about music videos is that you can experiment. You can fail beautifully. There are so many different set-ups that, even if something doesn’t work, you always have something else to cover you. There isn’t that kind of a safety net in a motion picture.
You were nominated for an Oscar for ‘Atonement’. Did you enjoy the ceremony?
To be nominated for an Oscar was the biggest shock of my life. It had been a great year for cinematography, with films like There Will Be Blood, The Assassination of Jesse Jamesand No Country for Old Men. The great thing was that, because of my illustrious company, I knew I hadn't a hope in hell of winning. So I was just along to enjoy the ride. Unfortunately, I was shooting The Soloistin Los Angeles at the time and had to work the next morning, so I couldn't even go out partying. But I was able to go over and say hi to people, such as Penelope and Nicole Kidman, whom I had worked with. When I got to my bed that night I thought: my God, what a bizarre rollercoaster that was!
Seamus McGarvey will be honoured alongside JJ Abrams and Saoirse Ronan at the US-Ireland Alliance pre-Academy Awards party in Los Angeles on March 4th
