Originally from the Midwest, Perusse was introduced to the ARRIMAX working with chief lighting technician Michael Bauman. She recently worked with him again as the fixture foreman during the Santa Fe portion for "Cowboys & Aliens." Directed by Jon Favreau and shot by Matthew Libatique, ASC, the summer blockbuster stars Daniel Craig as a gunman in the Old West battling aliens. The shoot involved lighting large night exteriors of a Western town. “I’ve seen Bauman use the ARRIMAX consistently on exteriors for his features. Usually two per Condor, all on MaxMovers.” she describes.
Perusse then headed to Michigan to prep a much smaller-scale project, a dark comedy titled "30 Minutes Or Less." The film was directed by Ruben Fleischer, shot by Jess Hall, BSC with John Nadeau as gaffer. Based on a true story, the film stars Jesse Eisenberg as a pizza deliveryman who is forced to rob a bank after a bomb is strapped to his body. Two ARRIMAXes rented from Quixote Studios worked consistently throughout the shoot, mostly for low and bounced sources. For the big interior bank robbery scene, one extra ARRIMAX was picked up from local Michigan rental house Lowing Lighting & Grip. “Swapping between the spot and the wide ARRIMAX reflector is awesome. The spot lens makes the lamp a flame thrower,” she says.
Shooting conditions can vary widely from project to project, and Perusse is a first-hand witness to the performance of lights in the most extreme weather conditions. Perusse served as a gaffer on a Revlon commercial featuring Reese Witherspoon, where she utilized two ARRIMAXes as backlights for the rainy set at Paramount Studios. “One of the biggest bonuses for any best boy, is the fact that both the ARRIMAX and the MiniMax (M18) are very rain tolerant. We’ve used them both in the pouring rain with stellar results. With Cello Tech Rain protection priced at over $300/roll, that makes for good economics,” she says.
