ASC Honors Student Cinematography

The 2006 American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Jordan Cronenweth Heritage Award will be presented to Brian Burgoyne of the American Film Institute (AFI), Rodrigo Rocha-Campos of Florida State University (FSU), and Joseph White from the University of Southern California (USC). The ASC Heritage Award is given annually to a graduating or recently graduated film school student from a university in the United States. The presentation will be made during the 20th Annual ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards on Feb. 26, 2006, at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles.

"Our purpose is to reach out to film students and encourage talented young people to pursue their dreams," says Laszlo Kovacs, ASC, who chairs the organization's Education Committee. "Our jury consisted of some of the world's most gifted cinematographers who thought these young filmmakers deserve to be recognized for their artful visual story-telling."

Burgoyne earned a bachelor's degree in film from New York University prior to attending AFI.

"The ASC represents such an incredible legacy of artistry and integrity," Burgoyne says. "The amazing work of their members inspires me every day. I am incredibly grateful for this recognition."

Burgoyne submitted The Red Veil, one of his AFI thesis films directed by Tarik Karam that follows a young woman in an isolated village who works as a dancer at a saloon but must overcome difficult circumstances to pursue a new life when traveling performers come to town. Burgoyne shot the film in spherical 35 mm on Kodak Vision2 5218 film with camera equipment from Clairmont Camera. The film was processed with an answer print made at FotoKem.

Rocha-Campos earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Central Florida. He taught basic and intermediate cinematography for two semesters after graduating. Rocha-Campos went on to earn a master's in film production from FSU in August 2005.
"I screened Blade Runner for one of my classes to show the students examples of modern film noir and a high-contrast look," Rocha-Campos says. "After the lecture, the students and I went to the sound stage to emulate Jordan Cronenweth's (ASC) remarkable cinematography in that classic film. What an honor it is to receive an ASC award named after him."

Rocha-Campos' short thesis film The Resurrectionist is a horror movie about a gravedigger who gets more than he bargained for when he tries to deliver a stolen corpse to a medical school. It was produced in the Super 16 mm format on Kodak Vision2 7218 film with a DI process done at Cineworks in Miami, and finished in HD and DigiBeta.

White received a bachelor's degree from the New York University Tisch School of the Arts in cinema studies, focusing on film theory and criticism. White earned a master's degree from USC in May 2004.

"It is almost impossible for me to describe my feelings of being recognized by cinematographers who have inspired me," White says. "My dream is to join their ranks someday."

White shot Rogue 379 for fellow USC student writer-director Douglas Choi. The thesis film chronicles the exploits of a CIA assassin who must cope with the dilemma of assimilating his convictions and morals in order to do his job. The film was shot in the anamorphic format on 35 mm Kodak Vision 500T 5279 and Kodak Ektachrome 100D Color Reversal 5285 stocks.

White utilized a Moviecam Compact with anamorphic Clairmont primes and a Cooke zoom lens. He cross-processed a lot of the film to create a visual dichotomy between the character's past and present. FotoKem processed the film and color timing was done at Deluxe, with a 35 mm print made on Kodak Vision Premier film.

Kovacs notes that the 2006 ASC Heritage Award is dedicated to the memory of Cronenweth who made enduring contributions to advancing the art of cinematography. Cronenweth earned his first cinematography credit in 1970 for Brewster McCloud. His credits include such classics as Blade Runner, Altered States, Cutter's Way, Zandy's Bride, The Front Page, Rolling Thunder, Gardens of Stone, and State Of Grace, as well as occasional telefilms such as Birds of Prey and the landmark documentary U-2: Rattle and Hum. He won the first ASC Outstanding Achievement Award in 1987 for Peggy Sue Got Married. His last feature credit was Final Analysis in 1992. Cronenweth died in 1996 at the age of 61.

The 20th Annual ASC Awards ceremonies will be preceded by an open house at the ASC clubhouse at 1782 N. Orange Dr. and an Internet chat with the nominees and award winners (www.theasc.com) on Feb. 25, 2006.