JO PLAETE - VFX Supervisor
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 122 - Jo Plaete - VFX Supervisor VFX supervisor Jo Plaete (HERE; ALIEN: ROMULUS; FURIOSA) joins us on this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast. Jo is also the Chief Innovation Officer at Metaphysic, and we spend much of the episode discussing the company’s AI technology and its use in several recently-released films. Having come up through the VFX world, Jo compares the techniques of more traditional VFX artists to what he does today using artificial intelligence, and he likens the recently spotlighted technology to “proceduralism on steroids”. We get a deep dive into...
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MOHAMMAD RASOULOF - Director
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 121 - Mohammad Rasoulof - Director On this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast, we’re joined by director Mohammad Rasoulof (THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG, THERE IS NO EVIL, A MAN OF INTEGRITY). Mohammad’s films have come at great personal cost, both to himself and his fellow filmmakers, and as deep admirers of his work, we were thrilled to speak with him. After learning how Mohammad found his way into filmmaking, we discuss how he outmaneuvered the Iranian regime’s censorship apparatus to covertly make many of his films, and Mohammad reflects on his pivot from using...
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PINAR DEMIRDAG - Co-Founder & CEO of Cuebric
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 120 - Pinar Demirdag - Co-Founder & CEO of Cuebric In this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast, we wade into the world of artificial intelligence through a conversation with Pinar Demirdag, the co-founder and CEO of Cuberic, a generative AI platform. What follows is a lively discussion about the future possibilities of AI in filmmaking, its current applications in cinema today, and all the ethical and practical questions these changes raise. Pinar also explains what it is that Cuebric actually does, and we discuss the potential ramifications of the proliferation of...
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EDU GRAU - Cinematographer
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 119 - Edu Grau - Cinematographer Cinematographer Edu Grau (THE ROOM NEXT DOOR, PASSING, A SINGLE MAN) joins us in this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast. After an encouraging compliment from his art teacher, Edu attended a then-newly established film school in his hometown of Barcelona where he learned to foster his passion for filmmaking. Edu shares with us how, after a six month drought from work, he was selected by director Tom Ford to shoot A SINGLE MAN, and we reflect on working with actor/directors pulling double-duty. We later discuss Edu’s involvement on PASSING...
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MARK BRIDGES - Costume Designer
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 118 - Mark Bridges - Costume Designer In his podcast debut, costume designer Mark Bridges (THE FABELMANS, JOKER, PHANTOM THREAD) speaks with us on this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast. Mark was once a costume assistant on BARTON FINK and HUDSUCKER PROXY alongside Mary Zophres (Season 1, Episode 80), and he shares how he made the jump to being a costume designer in his own right after meeting director Paul Thomas Anderson to work on his debut feature, HARD EIGHT. Throughout the episode, we discuss Mark’s approach to his work, and he shares how he builds out a...
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RACHEL CLARK - Cinematographer
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 117 - Rachel Clark - Cinematographer Cinematographer Rachel Clark (EDGE OF SUMMER, QUEENIE, I AM RUTH) joins us on this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast. Hailing from northeast England, Rachel, far-removed from the film industry, nonetheless found her way into the camera department and has since worked her way up the grades to helm the department herself. We discuss the challenges and obstacles in her journey to becoming a cinematographer, and she reflects on the stubbornness that pushed her through them all. We also discuss how her approach to working as a DP has...
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MELINDA SUE GORDON - Still Photographer
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 116 - Melinda Sue Gordon - Still Photographer On this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast, still photographer Melinda Sue Gordon (OPPENHEIMER, KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON, LICORICE PIZZA) joins us to discuss the ins and outs of on-set still photography. We learn how Melinda Sue fulfills studio requests while navigating the many personalities of a cast and crew just trying to make the day, and she shares her approach to capturing images that faithfully represent the characters and tone of a film’s story. We later learn why Melinda Sue pivoted to still photography after...
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DOMINIC TUOHY - Special Effects Supervisor
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 115 - Dominic Tuohy - Special Effects Supervisor Special effects supervisor Dominic Tuohy (THE BATMAN, 1917, EDGE OF TOMORROW) joins us in this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast to discuss the craft of special effects. With a father active in the film industry, Dom was taken in by the special effects team at Pinewood Studios at an early age, and he's been working in the department for the past 40 years. Throughout the episode, we discuss the invaluable verisimilitude of special effects, and Dom muses over the magic inherent to filmmaking’s smoke and mirrors. He later...
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PEDRO PÁRAMO - Directed by Rodrigo Prieto
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 114 - PEDRO PÁRAMO - with Rodrigo Prieto On this special episode of the Team Deakins Podcast, our friend and former guest Rodrigo Prieto (Season 1, Episode 112) joins us to discuss his directorial debut, PEDRO PÁRAMO, an adaptation of the eponymous and iconic Mexican novel written by venerated author Juan Rulfo. The focus of our conversation centers around Rodrigo’s experiences as a first-time director, and we cover the lifetime of the film’s journey from prep to release. Rodrigo starts by sharing how he came to direct the project in the first place, and he reveals why...
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TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE - For Cinematographers
Team Deakins
SEASON 2 - EPISODE 113 - Technical Knowledge for Cinematographers - with David Mullen In this special episode of the Team Deakins Podcast, we’re joined by our friend and cinematographer David Mullen (Season 1, Episode 83) to discuss what and how much technical knowledge a cinematographer ought to know these days. The conversation includes specific explanations of technical details (such as the difference between film grain and digital noise) and more general subjects (such as the importance of telling a story and eliciting an emotional response from the audience). We also share a number of...
info_outlineSEASON 2 - EPISODE 88 - JOHN KNOLL - VFX SUPERVISOR
On this episode of the Team Deakins Podcast, VFX supervisor John Knoll (THE BATMAN, ROGUE ONE, PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN) joins us to talk about his career and his craft. Despite growing up among an academic family of engineers, scientists, and medical professionals, John fell in love with the fantastic imagery of cinema and television, and he saw miniature work as his way into filmmaking. From cold-calling Industrial Light & Magic at 15 to later working for them, John reflects on his life as one who turns hobbies into professions, and we learn how John fuses technology with art in his work. John reveals, with great clarity, how slit-scans are actually composed and shares how he used the effect to generate the illusion of the Starship Enterprise entering and exiting warp speed. We later discuss the leadership responsibilities of being a supervisor, including giving negative feedback in such a way that elevates a collaborator’s work. Towards the end, we also discuss the enduring appeal of miniatures for audiences and filmmakers alike. In addition to his work in VFX, John (alongside his brother Thomas) invented Photoshop, the popular photo-editing software used around the world.
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This episode is sponsored by Godox