Piggybacking on its recent Best Cinematography win at the ASC Awards (American Society of Cinematographers) and BAFTA Awards (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) earlier this year, “Dune” and its incomparable DP Greig Fraser ACS, ASC, were honored with Oscar gold for cinematography at the 94th Academy Awards. In late 2021, Fraser was also awarded the bronze frog at Camerimage, an international film festival in Poland that recognizes the art of cinematography. 

Going into the award show with the second most nominations, “Dune,” a Warner Bros. release, debuted simultaneously in theaters and via streaming. It was nominated in a whopping ten categories at this year’s Academy Awards and became the biggest winner of the evening, earning six golden statuettes, including Film Editing, Original Score, Production Design, Sound, Visual Effects, and Cinematography.

“Dune” was shot on ARRI’s ALEXA LF and Mini LF cameras with Panavision H-Series and Ultra Vista lenses. The production was serviced with lighting and grip gear by ARRI Rental. Villeneuve and Fraser composed the visual masterpiece with a combination of wide shots (vast desert landscapes) and extreme close-ups (intimate character portraits). After working with the ALEXA Mini LF camera on “Dune,” Fraser commented: “The Mini LF has made possible what I thought was previously impossible with large-format photography. The freedom it allows me as a DP, to move the camera in whatever way I feel is best, is unbeatable. Congratulations on successfully and constantly pushing the boundaries in technology, making my job even more exciting!”

Copyright © Matt Sayles / A.M.P.A.S.

Greig Fraser accepts the Oscar® for Cinematography during the live ABC telecast of the 94th Oscars®.

“Nightmare Alley,” nominated for both Best Cinematography and Best Picture at this year’s Academy Awards was shot with ARRI Rental’s ALEXA 65 camera, as well as the ARRI ALEXA LF, Mini LF, and ARRI Signature Prime lenses. In servicing the production, ARRI Rental had many chances to catch up with cinematographer Dan Laustsen ASC, DFF, who spoke about his choice of camera: “It wasn’t just about the resolution; I chose the ALEXA 65 because I knew we were going to do a lot of wide-angle close-ups, and this format is fantastic for that. The way it falls off is really, really beautiful. Especially with what we were doing, putting diffusion behind the lens.”

Rising superstar cinematographer Ari Wegner ACS captured the breathtaking scenery and raw energy of “The Power of the Dog” with ARRI’s ALEXA Mini LF and ALEXA LF cameras. Earlier this year, Wegner made history by becoming the first female cinematographer to win the BSC’s (British Society of Cinematographers) Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature Film for “The Power of the Dog.” In the 94-year history of the Academy Awards, only one other woman (Rachel Morrison ASC, for “Mudbound” in 2018) has been nominated in the cinematography category. ARRI had the chance to interview Wegner where she commented: “The ALEXA LF was a great choice for us. We had the full-size LFs for the main work and we had a Mini LF for Steadicam.” The entire interview can be seen on YouTube. 

Also nominated for Achievement in Cinematography, DP Bruno Delbonnel ASC, AFC, shot “The Tragedy of Macbeth” with the ARRI ALEXA LF and Cooke lenses, captured in the rich ARRIRAW file format. Joel Cohn’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s 400-year-old drama is highly stylized in black and white. In an interview with ARRI, Delbonnel mentioned: “With digital, the ARRI color science is great—it suits me perfectly. With ARRIRAW, it’s like a pure neg. There’s nothing better. You have all the information you need, and then you can manipulate the image later, in post, as much as you like.” Monitors on the set displayed the images in black and white, although the camera sensor was capturing the full range of color information. Debonnel continued: “I was not interested in recreating an old-fashioned style of photography, and I didn’t want to refer to other black and white movies. I wanted something very crisp and modern…when you see skin, there’s a presence. So, the ALEXA LF was perfect for me because it gives crisp 4K images. The LF camera and Cooke lenses were the perfect combination.”