{"id":442358,"date":"2022-05-04T20:08:39","date_gmt":"2022-05-04T17:08:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/how-comics-and-oscar-isaac-dictated-moon-knights-cinematography\/"},"modified":"2022-05-04T20:08:39","modified_gmt":"2022-05-04T17:08:39","slug":"how-comics-and-oscar-isaac-dictated-moon-knights-cinematography","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-comics-and-oscar-isaac-dictated-moon-knights-cinematography\/","title":{"rendered":"#How Comics and Oscar Isaac Dictated Moon Knight&#8217;s Cinematography"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a413d4b4d121\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a413d4b4d121\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-comics-and-oscar-isaac-dictated-moon-knights-cinematography\/#%E2%80%9CHow_Comics_and_Oscar_Isaac_Dictated_Moon_Knights_Cinematography%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;How Comics and Oscar Isaac Dictated Moon Knight&#8217;s Cinematography&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CHow_Comics_and_Oscar_Isaac_Dictated_Moon_Knights_Cinematography%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;How Comics and Oscar Isaac Dictated Moon Knight&#8217;s Cinematography&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<pre><code>     &lt;span class=\"mx-1\"&gt;We chat with cinematographers Gregory Middleton and Andrew Droz Palermo about diving into the Marvel Universe and attempting to live up to their numerous artists.&lt;\/span&gt;\n&lt;\/p&gt;&lt;div id=\"\"&gt;\n\n\n\n                &lt;figure class=\"sf-entry-featured-<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a> \"&gt;\n            &lt;img width=\"800\" height=\"332\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography.jpg\" class=\"articlethumb wp-post-image\" alt=\"Moon Knight Cinematography\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography.jpg 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography-768x319.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\/&gt;                                    &lt;p&gt;\n                    &lt;span class=\"sf-entry-flag sf-entry-flag-creditline\"&gt;Marvel Studios&lt;\/span&gt;\n\n                        &lt;\/figure&gt;\n\n    &lt;!-- START BYLINE --&gt;\n    &lt;div class=\"row align-items-center justify-content-center my-4 text-center medium dark-gray\"&gt;\n        By\u00a0Brad Gullickson\u00a0\u00b7 Published on May 4th, 2022 \n        &lt;\/div&gt;\n    &lt;!-- END BYLINE --&gt;\n\n    &lt;em&gt;Welcome to &lt;strong&gt;World Builders&lt;\/strong&gt;, our ongoing <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">series<\/a> of conversations with the industry\u2019s most productive and thoughtful behind-the-scenes craftspeople. In this entry, we chat with Moon Knight\u2019s dueling directors of photography Gregory Middleton and Andrew Droz Palermo, about the show\u2019s cinematography.&lt;\/em&gt;\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<hr\/>\n<p>Comic book adaptations have a distinct advantage, or disadvantage, over other projects in terms of cinematography. <strong>Gregory Middleton<\/strong> and <strong>Andrew Droz Palermo<\/strong> did not create the <strong><em>Moon Knight<\/em><\/strong> universe. It existed decades before they ever became involved, and while the character was never as popular as Spider-Man or the Hulk, there are Moon Knight fans, and their knives are sharp. Step out of line, fail to venerate the source material properly, and they will cut you.<\/p>\n<p>Marvel Studios never layers a reflective surface on their projects. They know the comics are their own thing, but they also understand that the characters and the worlds found on the page must be felt on the screen. When discussing adaptation with cinematographers, they often reveal their process in two ways. Either they ignore what came before, or they plunge into it. On <em>Moon Knight<\/em>, Middleton and Palermo chose to embrace the comics.<\/p>\n<p>The cinematographers fell into the books. Some of what they found within perplexed them, but the rest thrilled them.\u00a0\u00a0<em>Moon Knight<\/em> is a tricky endeavor, juggling multiple perspectives and the realities they create. The costumed vigilante precariously manages his dissociative identity disorder, meaning his body is piloted by various personas, each uniquely performed by <strong>Oscar Isaac<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Series directors <strong>Mohamed Diab<\/strong>, <strong>Justin Benson<\/strong>, and <strong>Aaron Moorhead<\/strong> propel the narrative by first hanging it on Steven Grant\u2019s point of view. In episode two, we jump on over to Marc Spector. In episode three, their relationship is balanced until everything explodes in episode four. Each chapter required the cinematographers to flirt with a different mood, and the comics offered proof that the stylistic shuffling could work.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe had a great resource in the comic books,\u201d says Palermo. \u201cBut the comic books have done so many different things. I bought an omnibus right when I got hired, and it was a lot of the older imagery, and I liked a lot of it, but I couldn\u2019t get too enthusiastic about it. None of it was a real visual foothold for me. Then, I saw some of the more recent runs, the Jeff Lemire [and Greg Smallwood] stories, and it was like, \u2018Oh man, this stuff is amazing.\u2019 There\u2019s one great cover where Marc is pulling his face off; oh my god, I was like, \u2018There\u2019s no place that this show can\u2019t go.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For the DPs, the comic books inspired their commitment to <em>Moon Knight<\/em>\u2018s narrative. Comic panels lack compromise, and the possibilities within them <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ear limitless. Middleton and Palermo strove to achieve the same effect on their canvas.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe one thing I learned when I was doing <em>Watchmen<\/em> for HBO,\u201d says Middleton, \u201cis that with a comic book, everything is drawn by the artist. They can put everything where they want, and they can put all the elements in. We try to make the same consideration for this show. Don\u2019t frame something, and don\u2019t do something unless it fits with where we\u2019re at with the story and what we\u2019re trying to hit at or not. We try to be very careful with that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Middleton and Palermo worked through hundreds of comics and sorted through their favorite bits. The challenge quickly evolved into topping the best visual flourishes offered by illustrators like Greg Smallwood. The translation was beyond intimidating.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe comics are what got me so excited,\u201d says Palermo. \u201cThe asylum stuff where every character you\u2019ve met before is a different character there. The orderlies are Billy and Bobby, and some characters are sphinxes, and you may open a door, and there are pyramids floating in space. There\u2019s one image in that run where you see the pyramids in the middle of New York City with sand piling fifty stories high or something. What an image! I really hope that our show can be as bold as these comics were.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Moon Knight<\/em>\u2018s themes surrounding identity and perspective helped the cinematographers adopt and adapt these epic images. Each episode pulls the audience into a specific realm, not just in terms of mindset but categorization. The filmmakers saw <em>Moon Knight<\/em> as a series of video shelves, each episode representing a different shelf.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis particular way of telling a story was quite unique,\u201d says Middleton. \u201cEach episode is almost a different genre. The way <strong>Jeremy<\/strong> [<strong>Slater<\/strong>] wrote the script, the first episode is like a horror movie from Steven\u2019s point of view. And Mohamed, he has a love for continuous shots to make things feel as real as possible. We put the camera with Steven to let him experience his insanity and the audience experience it with him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The series frequently plants the frame on Oscar Isaac\u2019s face. Middleton and Palermo believe our investment rests on that particular landscape. If they could tell the whole story locked on such a frame, they would. Both filmmakers are in awe of what the actor delivers in every episode.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s the place that is most interesting as a viewer,\u201d says Palermo. \u201cI care about people. Viewers love bells and whistles. We love these big action sequences, but you have to remain rooted in character. [The show] has to be pushing something forward for them as individuals. It can\u2019t just be action for action\u2019s sake, or it goes in one ear, out the other.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>No other <em>Moon Knight<\/em> shot represents style\u00a0rooted in character and performance better than the climactic summoning of the suit scene in episode one. Steven Grant locks himself in the museum bathroom. He\u2019s quivering, petrified. In the mirror, Marc Spector asks Steven to relinquish the body so the costume can come out and the werewolf beatdown can commence.<\/p>\n<p>Initially conceived as a series of edits, director Mohamed Diab wanted to maintain the anxiety and terror using a single take. However, achieving one shot could muddy the emotion by getting too technical. In Middleton\u2019s mind, it would only work if they could free up Oscar Isaac to do his thing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe didn\u2019t want to use motion control,\u201d says Middleton, \u201cbecause that would\u2019ve resulted in Oscar having to act to pre-programmed timing, and it\u2019s a big emotion. When Oscar\u2019s playing Steven, he\u2019s in a panic. He thinks he\u2019s going to die. That performance is a very active thing, so you want to make sure that he can drive the pace of that. He also has to be Marc and try to figure all that out. Once he was comfortable, you want the performance to feel alive and feel like it\u2019s really him and not feel like we\u2019re doing a special effects shot.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The sequence never blinks. Marc and Steven exist in the frame together, with the supernatural threat pounding on the door. The camera swoops around Steven until he renounces control. The camera lingers on the body; we witness Marc take over. The suit envelops the avenger, and the audience feels relief.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI shot it handheld with a camera with a stand,\u201d continues Middleton. \u201cWe shot all the elements to make sure we weren\u2019t moving the camera too much, that we could shoot Oscar without motion control in the mirror so we could then track it in. And he got to play the whole scene, which is great because in his performance at the end, Steven is genuinely terrified, and it\u2019s moving. That was the end of week one, on day five, and I\u2019m watching this, and I got chills.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Moon Knight<\/em> cinematography owes itself to the comics and Oscar Isaac. Middleton and Palermo wanted to do them both justice, to step out of their way and let them communicate emotions. They\u2019re equally proud and amazed when discussing what they\u2019ve accomplished in these six episodes. The Marvel series gifted them an incredible playground where a body\u2019s inner life dictated its surroundings. They went where perspective demanded.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p data-inc=\"4\"><strong><em>Moon Knight<\/em>\u00a0is <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.disneyplus.com\/series\/moon-knight\/4S3oOF1knocS\">now streaming<\/a> on Disney+.<\/strong><\/p>\n<pre><code>    Related Topics: Marvel Explained, Moon Knight, World Builders\n    &lt;!-- AUTHOR BOX --&gt;\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<div class=\"gray-bg p-4 border small mb-5\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center text-md-center\">\n<div class=\"col-md-2\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/brad.jpg\" class=\"circle img-fluid\" width=\"100px\" height=\"100px\"\/>\n        <\/div>\n<div class=\"col-md\">\n            Brad Gullickson is a Weekly Columnist for Film School Rejects and Senior Curator for One Perfect Shot. When not rambling about movies here, he&#8217;s rambling about comics as the co-host of Comic Book Couples Counseling. Hunt him down on Twitter: <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Mouthdork\">@MouthDork<\/a>. (He\/Him)        <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<pre><code>    &lt;!-- START RECOMMENDED READING 1 --&gt;\n                                &lt;section class=\"recommended py-5\"&gt;\n            &lt;h3&gt;Recommended Reading&lt;\/h3&gt;\n\n\n        &lt;\/section&gt;\n            &lt;!-- END RECOMMENDED READING --&gt;\n\n\n\n\n&lt;\/div&gt;&lt;script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"&gt;&lt;\/script&gt;\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/moon-knight-cinematogrpahy\/#utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=moon-knight-cinematogrpahy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;How Comics and Oscar Isaac Dictated Moon Knight&#8217;s Cinematography&#8221; &lt;span class=&#8221;mx-1&#8243;&gt;We chat with cinematographers Gregory Middleton and Andrew Droz Palermo about diving into the Marvel Universe and attempting to live up to their numerous artists.&lt;\/span&gt; &lt;\/p&gt;&lt;div id=&#8221;&#8221;&gt; &lt;figure class=&#8221;sf-entry-featured-media &#8220;&gt; &lt;img width=&#8221;800&#8243; height=&#8221;332&#8243; src=&#8221;https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography.jpg&#8221; class=&#8221;articlethumb wp-post-image&#8221; alt=&#8221;Moon Knight Cinematography&#8221; srcset=&#8221;https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography.jpg 800w, https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography-768&#215;319.jpg 768w&#8221; sizes=&#8221;(max-width: 800px)&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":442359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/filmschoolrejects.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Moon-Knight-Cinematography.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-442358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442358","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=442358"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/442358\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/442359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=442358"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=442358"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=442358"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}