CONTENT THROUGH A LENS GE AR .
SPORE QUALITY For the tough Berlin streets, Matthias Bolliger chose “magic mushroom” primes – a set of rehoused Cooke S2/S3 lenses beset with fungus – and some unique filters from Schneider-Kreuznach
PAINTING THE STREETS
A spin-off of the gritty 4 Blocks , German series Para: We Are King may not be as renowned as other productions celebrated here, but its lens story is no less unique. In fact, DOP Matthias Bolliger’s process is rather extraordinary. “The cinematography is as explosive as the four heroines themselves,” he effuses. “After some testing, we discovered a set of old-school classics – some Cooke S2/S3s, rehoused by P+S Technik. I expected the soft look of vintage glass, having used it on a previous series. But there was something unique about this set. “Fungal spores in the internals gave distinctive shadows and a unique highlight flare”
“When I got the chance to look through them, I discovered fungal spores all through the internals. There were distinctive shadows and a unique highlight flare, especially with the 50mm Panchro. I was fascinated, so I noted down the serial number. These were the exact lenses for the show.” Not satisfied the look was murky enough for the rough Berlin streets where the characters chase their fortunes, Bolliger looked to filters. Working with the Arri Alexa Mini’s impressive sensor, he had plenty of clarity to bend. “I used Schneider-Kreuznach Radiant Softs to fine-tune the look, adding Classic Softs at times, to complement the unique quality. I experimented with Diopter Splits – at first correctly, to focus subjects on different planes – but then reversed them to give a stylised blur. It was a fast, low-cost means of creating a tilt-shift effect, and certainly shaped Para ,” he notes.
35. FEBRUARY 2022
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