Last week, New York Film Academy welcomed Julio Macat, a cinematographer known for his work on comedies such as the Home Alone series, Wedding Crashers, and Pitch Perfect, for a Q&A after screening Horrible Bosses 2. Horrible Bosses 2 features an ensemble cast of Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, and Chris Pine. The discussion was moderated by Dean of Students Eric Conner and Associate Chair of the Cinematography Department Mike Williamson.
Macat arrived before the film started to introduce the film and let students know what to be watching for. He specifically talked about style when shooting comedy, saying that when he first started in the industry, “comedies were shot in kind of a bright way, less contrast. I’ve been able to do comedies that are less bright, more rich,” he added. He also talked about how it isn’t just music that affects the pace of a film, it’s “figuring out when the camera should be moving and when it should be static.”
After the film, Dean of Students Eric Conner introduced Macat, and started the Q&A. Macat opened up about his personal attitude toward filming, telling students that they should always be flexible and go with the flow when filming and that “the worst thing to do is to fix yourself, 100%, this is what you’re going to do—most of your best work is going to be happy accidents.”
Macat asked the students about themselves when they came up to ask questions, and when one student expressed a nervousness about lighting, Macat reassured them, saying that, “it took me years to get a hang of lighting. What helped me most about lighting [was] observing real light.”
His final word of advice to our students was to “work with something they’re passionate about.”