Living Stills

Semester is going haywire here, as it must be there in Ithaca. But before I run, someone asked me about still photographers, if they are present on the sets I've been on and why have them there. So, here goes:

- Yes, every single production I've been part of has had still photographers grace the occasion.
- They are there because every single department needs stills. The department that runs and survives and thrives on stills is the marketing and publicity division. Any one of us who has enjoyed a poster, a newspaper article or internet posting about our favorite films must have always seen a publicity still associated with it. These are manipulated, extremely high quality stills taken exclusively to represent the spirit of the movie before it comes out.

How appropriately timed is a video diary from the set of King Kong at www.kongisking.net. See the one about still photographers, its the second one on the column to your right. This might change as more diaries are added, but I'm sure you could find it in the index. It's very nicely done - as are the other diaries on this set. Very insightful and interesting.

So, the main job of the still photographer is to provide media to the publicity department so they can have some visual aid to accompany all the press they are putting out there. It is the first contact your audience has with your film so you want it to (1) capture the spirit of the movie and (2) represent the movie in the way you intended. It's a pretty difficult job because no one wants you there. It's like the sound guys in a sense. They get abused on set because they always seem to be in the way. But, once you are in post-production, you NEED them. The sound of your movie breaks or makes it, and the same is for the stills. I'm trying to make posters and publicity packages for festivals for my last film, and I have NO stills to work with. It's a GIANT mistake I will never make again.

Also, in final notes, I got my hair cut by Bernie's stylist. Go figure!! More questions welcome!