My LAFCA Awards Presentation for Jomo Fray, Cinematographer of 'Nickel Boys'

The devastating Los Angeles fires in January forced the postponement of this year's Los Angeles Film Critics Association awards dinner. But on February 6th, the show went on, resulting in an evening that was a little more subdued but, nonetheless, still rather joyous. It was my honor to present our award for Best Cinematography, which deservedly went to the year's best film. Here were my remarks from the stage:

Few cinematographers today are more exciting than Jomo Fray. He has shot some of the most distinctive feature debuts in recent memory, including Selah and the Spades and All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt. His images are tactile, lived-in — they stun without feeling showy. His camerawork, which is often centered on Black narratives, has the grace of a poem.

Tonight, we celebrate his crucial contribution to Nickel Boys, deservedly praised for its audacious use of first-person POV. Working alongside first-time feature director RaMell Ross, Fray had to determine precisely how the film’s teenage characters would take in their world, shooting on locations that often had to be 360-degree environments, with a nimble camera meant to replicate Elwood and Turner’s sentient perspective. From a craft standpoint, Nickel Boys was an enormous undertaking.

But anyone moved beyond words by this film doesn’t talk about aspect ratios or SnorriCam rigs. Instead, we marvel at myriad indelible shots that feel like childhood memories. Nickel Boys is full of pain and sorrow, but there’s also an incredible innocence to it — we don’t just see the film from Elwood and Turner’s perspective, we reconnect with the spirit of being young, back when our impressionable eyes were hungrily absorbing everything around us. Fray’s camera is attuned to these terrors and joys. We practically smell the stench of the so-called White House, where the Black students of Nickel are beaten. But we also delight at the sight of an adorable girl smiling under our seat on a bus.

The film invites us to experience it all in this most extraordinary of coming-of-age dramas, to bear witness to a country’s history of racism and cruelty — a history that remains so very present. Nickel Boys is an act of love and an act of defiance. And Jomo Fray makes sure we never look away.

Please join me in congratulating our winner for Best Cinematography, Jomo Fray.

I was so glad to have Jomo Fray there. I hadn't met him, and he was, unsurprisingly, terrific. (Also, everybody loved his outfit.) All of our winners can be found here. This photo was taken by Shiloh Strong.

My Interview With Matthew Libatique, Cinematographer of 'Maestro'

Years ago, when I co-wrote a book of career-spanning interviews with cinematographers, I met Matthew Libatique. He's a smart guy, so I was glad to have the opportunity to chat with him again. This time, our focus was just one film: Maestro. Read all about it here.

What's Great Cinematography?

That's the question film critic Scout Tafoya tries to answer in a new essay and video over at Fandor. To help, he asked lots of colleagues to submit their own ballots for the best cinematography in films. You can read mine -- and a lot of other folks' -- right here.

Gordon Willis, Cinematographer, 1931-2014

One of the all-time great cinematographers, Gordon Willis, died yesterday. The loss is immense. The Godfather films and many of Woody Allen's early classics wouldn't have looked the way they did without him. Last summer, I wrote a tribute to Willis as part of my series "The Greats" for Paste. Actually, his was the first in the series: I wanted to start on a high note. Here it is.

The Greats: Vilmos Zsigmond

I very much enjoyed writing about cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond for my column "The Greats" over at Paste. His legacy speaks for itself -- McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blow Out, The Deer Hunter -- but I tried my best also to suggest why cinematographers are one of the most overlooked artists on a film set. (You might say this is a topic close to my heart.) You can read my appreciation of Zsigmond here.

The Greats: Gordon Willis

I'm happy to announce a new column I'll be doing for Paste. It's called "The Greats," and it celebrates film icons -- actors, directors, cinematographers, you name it -- who are 70 or older. The rationale behind the column was simple. Whenever any giant of the movie industry dies, Twitter would immediately be full of folks reminiscing about the deceased's greatness -- and then eventually someone would tweet, "Gee, wouldn't it be nice if we appreciated these people while they were still alive?" So that's what I'm doing. I'll write this column every other week, and I hope you enjoy.

First up is the man who I once lobbied to receive our annual Career Achievement award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. Sadly, I wasn't persuasive enough, but no matter: He's a legend. Ladies and gentlemen, here's my salute to cinematographer Gordon Willis.