Mickey Vissers
director of photography, (underwater) camera operator
Roosendaal / NL
info
info
Dear Director/Producer
In this Artist's Statement I would like to invite you to my world of cinematography,
Cinematography is the framework of the story, no matter how beautiful the frame is, it should never distract from the actual oil painting. The art of filmmaking contains all other forms of art; from classical fine art to modern dance. In a dance you should not move unless you feel it, which is the same as if the camera should not move unless there is a clear motivation for it to do so. Keeping the camera movements subtle will make sure the audience's focus is at the heart of the story, not the flashy cinematography. The best cinematography is hidden, as hidden as the double bass player in the orchestra. Although if the audience does not notice the bass specifically if not focused on it, the story would not be derived the same way if this instrument was not present.
My ambition is to make every single frame count. Coming from a photography background. I would love to see a balanced composition every single time you pause one of my films, at any given moment. I am not there yet. But I will work hard to give every frame of my moving pictures the quality of a still photograph. Another visual signature I have inherited from my photography days is the way I treat dynamic range. In photography I would never clip my highlights because this will result in a spot where no ink would be printed on the paper. I am slightly allergic to blow out skies, even in the brightest of environments I will always choose to see at least some texture in the lightest parts of the image. This being said, I am not a dynamic range freak. I draw a lot of inspiration from “Nordic Noir”. I am not afraid to go really dark if the story asks for this. I can see color as a change to add extra emotion to my work, it does not matter if the character lives in a neon, Technicolour, pastel or a complete desaturated world. Skin tones will always have my full priority. From a visual storytelling point of view nothing tells a story better than the human face!this is why I give priority to lighting and color for natural looking skin-tones.
I am not emotionally attached to brand names or logos as the story should dictate what type of camera should be used. Same goes for lenses. one could say “vintage glass” is the hype of the moment. Everybody is on the lookout for old lenses that add character to their image. Personally, I strive to capture images exactly how the human eyes see them. I am not on the lookout for the perfect horizontal lens flairs, because my own eyes don't flair. I want to be lost in the story. Seeing lens flairs on the screen pulls me out of the story for a brief moment because it makes me aware of the fact that I am watching a story shot true a lens. But of course if this is the intention, I will happily shoot flairs. But I don't like to shoot flairs just because the “look cool” without a deeper storytelling element to them.
If shooting on a budget, I would always prefer to invest the budget into people rather than gear. I will happily shoot on a smartphone, if that means we will be able to afford a professional Gaffer and Grip. Top of the line gear does not make a good film. A good crew does!
To round up my statement in one sentence; I believe in the power of simplicity.
If you as a Director or Producer, you completely agree with my artist's statement. This means that we can shoot an amazing film together.
If you do not agree with my statement, or don't fully agree with parts of my statement. This could mean we can shoot an even better film.
I wish you a lovely day, plus lots of creativity
Mickey Fishers
In this Artist's Statement I would like to invite you to my world of cinematography,
Cinematography is the framework of the story, no matter how beautiful the frame is, it should never distract from the actual oil painting. The art of filmmaking contains all other forms of art; from classical fine art to modern dance. In a dance you should not move unless you feel it, which is the same as if the camera should not move unless there is a clear motivation for it to do so. Keeping the camera movements subtle will make sure the audience's focus is at the heart of the story, not the flashy cinematography. The best cinematography is hidden, as hidden as the double bass player in the orchestra. Although if the audience does not notice the bass specifically if not focused on it, the story would not be derived the same way if this instrument was not present.
My ambition is to make every single frame count. Coming from a photography background. I would love to see a balanced composition every single time you pause one of my films, at any given moment. I am not there yet. But I will work hard to give every frame of my moving pictures the quality of a still photograph. Another visual signature I have inherited from my photography days is the way I treat dynamic range. In photography I would never clip my highlights because this will result in a spot where no ink would be printed on the paper. I am slightly allergic to blow out skies, even in the brightest of environments I will always choose to see at least some texture in the lightest parts of the image. This being said, I am not a dynamic range freak. I draw a lot of inspiration from “Nordic Noir”. I am not afraid to go really dark if the story asks for this. I can see color as a change to add extra emotion to my work, it does not matter if the character lives in a neon, Technicolour, pastel or a complete desaturated world. Skin tones will always have my full priority. From a visual storytelling point of view nothing tells a story better than the human face!this is why I give priority to lighting and color for natural looking skin-tones.
I am not emotionally attached to brand names or logos as the story should dictate what type of camera should be used. Same goes for lenses. one could say “vintage glass” is the hype of the moment. Everybody is on the lookout for old lenses that add character to their image. Personally, I strive to capture images exactly how the human eyes see them. I am not on the lookout for the perfect horizontal lens flairs, because my own eyes don't flair. I want to be lost in the story. Seeing lens flairs on the screen pulls me out of the story for a brief moment because it makes me aware of the fact that I am watching a story shot true a lens. But of course if this is the intention, I will happily shoot flairs. But I don't like to shoot flairs just because the “look cool” without a deeper storytelling element to them.
If shooting on a budget, I would always prefer to invest the budget into people rather than gear. I will happily shoot on a smartphone, if that means we will be able to afford a professional Gaffer and Grip. Top of the line gear does not make a good film. A good crew does!
To round up my statement in one sentence; I believe in the power of simplicity.
If you as a Director or Producer, you completely agree with my artist's statement. This means that we can shoot an amazing film together.
If you do not agree with my statement, or don't fully agree with parts of my statement. This could mean we can shoot an even better film.
I wish you a lovely day, plus lots of creativity
Mickey Fishers
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