SIGMA Interviews “Prom Dates” Director of Photography Bradford Lipson

Editor’s Note: SIGMA America’s Aubrey Duclos and Bradford Lipson, Director of Photography for the full-length feature film “Prom Dates” had a video conversation recently to discuss his work on this project, which is now streaming on Hulu. The majority of this film was captured on SIGMA Cine High Speed Prime lenses and SIGMA Cine Classic Prime lenses. The transcript below has been edited for grammar, brevity, and accuracy.

Bradford Lipson discusses Prom Dates and how he joined the project

SIGMA: First and foremost, congratulations on the film. I watched it and enjoyed it. I laughed. I got emotional. What a fun movie to be a part of. How did you got involved in the project and what interested you in doing this?

BRADFORD: Thank you so much. My name got thrown in the hat through the company American High which was co-producing with Hartbeat. I interviewed with Director Kim O. Nguyen, and lo and behold, I got the job. Now, that’s the easy way to say it.

The longer version, is they sent me the script, and I fell in love with it right away. It was such a well-written and comical script, but at the same time, I think it touched on some things that were really crucial. The sexuality aspect, which means a lot to me because I had an older brother who was gay, and I remember when he came out, what a big deal it was for him to sit down with me to talk to me about it. It was very similar to how it plays out in the movie, actually. He told me, and quite simply, I said, “I already knew that. Yeah, everybody knows. It’s no big deal. I love you no matter what.” And I think that kind of struck a chord with me when I read that in the script. I just fell in love with the whole writing of the movie and really appreciated the themes it hit on. When I interviewed Kim, I think I had that momentum going in. I felt like I could relate to it. I came to the table with a lot of ideas and ready to pitch a lot of things to her for the visuals. And we just hit it off, and that was the good thing. You know, that’s really what it comes down to, the on-set chemistry.

SIGMA: I kind of felt like it was this nice combination of nostalgic moments like a John Hughes type film, the raunchy moments almost like National Lampoon, but I also got a lot of throwbacks to Superbad. I felt like watching it, the team had a good grasp on your audience and what you wanted it to feel like. Do you feel it came across the way that it was envisioned?

BRADFORD: Absolutely. Yes. Kim definitely had a specific vision in mind. And I wanted to be able to capture that for her. And at the same time, it was incredibly collaborative. It was a great team. We had a phenomenal production designer, Eve McCarney, as well as our set decorator, Julie Drach, and art director Jason Garner. They just brought so much to the table, and on a film like this, that’s incredibly important. So I feel like collectively, when we came together, it was one of those special crews and special films where everybody was going for the same vision. We were all looking out for each other and helping each other raise the bar. I feel like we really captured what we were going for.

SIGMA: Was there any specific reference that you guys were going back to when you were working on the film or was it more of a combination of everybody’s creative input?

BRADFORD: I think it was a lot of everybody’s creative input. Eve, our production designer, put together an absolutely stunning lookbook that we were really able to hone in on. And the film Booksmart was referenced a bit. I think was kind of a little bit of a good anchor point for us. It had some similar kinds of things going for it. We definitely looked to John Hughes, which is very much an American High thing that they go for. So I think it was a combination of those things. And I also think, that at the same time, we were looking at other films, we were giving it our own stamp, if you will.

SIGMA: What would you say has been the audience reaction to the film?

BRADFORD: As much as I want to, I can’t just go on “do not disturb” when it comes to reactions, but I honestly don’t pay much heed to reviews. I do know it made the top 10 streaming shows and was well-received upon initial release.

Cinematography choices in Prom Dates

SIGMA: Anecdotally, are people talking to you about it, and about the cinematography in general?

BRADFORD: Yes, certainly, I’ve had a few interviews with some other production-orientated sites about the look of the show and how I shot it. And that’s been great. There are two scenes that seem to really stand out to most people. Those two scenes tend to be the moment when Hannah comes out to Jess. That’s a big one. And then there’s the other one. We’re seeing that people are really inquisitive about the stripper scene.

SIGMA: When Hannah comes out to Jess, what’s the feedback for questions or commentary that you’re getting about that scene specifically?

BRADFORD: People are asking about our choices and how we shot it and why we did it that particular way. Kim and I discussed this scene extensively. We wanted this scene to be very real and grounded, as is the overall intention of the film.

Kim and I both agreed that this scene really should feel natural. It shouldn’t feel forced. But then you also know, clearly, there’s the stripper scene, which is a whole other thing, but by and large, the whole concept was, let’s give it a natural feel and not go too crazy over the top. I bring that up because I think for, Jess’s bedroom, I wanted it to stay grounded, have a nice feel, and certainly be interesting, but it really just had to have a relatable vibe to it. And from a shooting standpoint, it was important to really honor the moment Hannah comes out. And so we just really kept it simple, which is the easiest way to say it. Jess is pacing back and forth and then she stops and you see Hannah getting ready. She’s talking and she’s working herself up to confide in Jess and we just do this very simple push in which helps emphasizes that moment.

And then what’s great about it though, is the beat afterward – how we cut to the over to see Jess’s reaction, but then we cut to that two-shot, which was just a nice way of taking away the emphasis of Hannah coming out and then just being like, “oh, you know.” The “I knew you were gay” thing, played out really nicely. I think people were curious about that scene because it played so real and grounded.

SIGMA: Is there anything about the mood, the palette and grading that you can tell us about. There was a very interesting choice of color in the film that ranged from these kind of fantastical sequences to, the grounded moments.

BRADFORD: Well, I will say Kim was very specific on color with Eve and with me. And I know that there were some colors that she wanted to steer clear of and some things she wanted to steer clear of. For example, she was not big on twinkle lights. She feels those are overused so much right now. So we were deliberately very sparing about using anything like that.

In Jess’s bedroom, we had those little lights up on the wall, but those weren’t typical twinkle lights per se, but that was kind of as close as we came. And then she was okay with it in the flashback for the prom at the very beginning. I love that color palette, by the way, and I loved how the SIGMA Classic primes portrayed that scene in a world in which it made sense. We also did have the big wall of colored twinkle lights in Vodka Heather’s drug room, which was visually striking and made sense.

SIGMA: I loved that room with her with all the lights behind her. It felt like she was in a different world or on a spaceship.

BRADFORD: That was really fun. I remember looking at the lookbook we had and just trying to make it feel like this sorority house having a party, and there’s some fun stuff going on there, but it’s not like over the top. I think on some of these types of films when there is a party scene it jumps into this kind of place of where did all this come from? I remember we made the kitchen blue just because it was different and a great way to exaggerate the space. It was easy to justify and say okay, this is kind of weird. You could see that maybe somebody screwed in a blue light bulb in the ceiling. But by and large all the other rooms other than Vodka Heather’s drug den, everything else was grounded in a reality you could see and feel.

How SIGMA Cine lenses were used to film Prom Dates

AUBREY: You touched on pairing the SIGMA Cine High Speed primes with the Classic lenses and how these worked with your creative vision.

BRADFORD: Yes, I was looking forward to working with the Classic primes and certainly getting a feel for what the difference was. having said that, I certainly looked for and saw other things shot with it to learn about the look of these lenses. I really felt that it did a nice job of separating and giving a different time period between young Hannah and Jess compared to the here and the now. So I thought that worked really well. I thought they were just spectacular. I love the muted, pastel like quality of the colors compared to the regular primes. And I like the milkiness of the lenses with their overall look. I love these lenses–absolutely loved how they flared. That was probably my favorite thing of all, was how they played out with the flare.

I had a very specific idea in my mind. For the flashback prom. And I really, really wanted to drive into the world where there was that bright light coming right at the camera. It had to feel like how it does fill in the movie where it’s this ah-ha moment when Hannah and Jess see the prom for the first time. So I think they worked really well and cut nicely up against the regular cine primes.

SIGMA: And we’re leading right next to my next question. Did you have to do much correction? Was there much that you had to do with that footage and grading to make it work?

BRADFORD: Not really, because I wanted it to have a really big difference. I enjoyed seeing that contrasting difference. I did not have to do corrections that were too crazy at all. I stayed well within the realm of exactly what the camera captured. As a matter of fact, what I see on my frame grabs from the dailies is very close to what was in the final film.

SIGMA: Getting it in camera! That’s awesome. Which cameras were you using?

BRADFORD: We used a Sony Venice. That camera and the SIGMA lenses were a great pairing.

SIGMA: There was a scene towards the end of the film when both girls are waking up the day of the prom, and they’re in a fog and then the light is coming in. At one point Jess hears somebody knock at the door; and as she goes down to the door to open it, there’s a really dramatic lens flare. Is that is a Classic lens?

BRADFORD: Actually That was not that the Classic lens. That was the regular SIGMA Cine Prime. This was just good planning and execution in that scene. I had a very specific time I wanted to shoot that scene because that was just available light.

I had said to the first AD, the sun comes in at the right spot at a particular time. If we are here at this moment and we’re prepared and we’ve rehearsed, we can do this. We shot it in 5 minutes. We set up 10 minutes before, practiced the move, got it down, and shot within that little window where the sun was streaming in and we nailed it.

SIGMA: Wow, well it was beautiful. I for one noticed the feel of that lighting.

BRADFORD: Yeah, and again, the regular SIGMA Cine primes flare beautifully as well. I think both the Classic and the Cine primes flares were just beautifully circular. And, bokeh, too, it’s the same thing. They were just spot-on, you couldn’t see angles from the iris at all. They’re just really smooth, so I found them to be very capable and very pleasing.

SIGMA: Maybe you already touched on this, but, was there any particular scene or sequence that was your favorite.

BRADFORD: Oh my gosh, well, so from a technical and challenging standpoint, and something fun and different to do, I’d say the stripper scene was probably one of the highlights. And so I thought. Yeah, I think that would probably be the most fun and ambitious one out of everything we shot.

SIGMA: What sort of rig did you need to execute this shot?

BRADFORD: So it’s kind of an interesting story. When I read the script, I zoned in on that scene. I figured I would need to be prepared to pitch how I would execute it. I drew up a diagram. It was an overhead diagram of a Circular track, and I would connect two dollies 180 degrees opposite each other with speed-rail and then have a lazy Susan in the middle. The camera would be on our main dolly and would shoot Hannah and the stripper on a longer focal length. In my mind’s eye I thought oh it’d be so cool if they were rotating the opposite direction of the camera. So if the cameras going clockwise, they’d be going counterclockwise on the lazy Susan. The reason for the dolly on the far end is that we’d have to build a goalpost rig. This way we could mount a back light out of frame and then have that dim up with the other lights to change as Hannah goes into this fantasy moment.

I drew up this diagram and had it ready for the interview. As I’m doing the interview with Kim she asks about this particular scene. I shared the diagram with her and she rather liked the concept. And then when I got the job, I started working on it right away with my gaffer, and my key grip. It was the last thing we shot, I believe it was our last day of shooting because that was the only place that was that was a set.

SIGMA: So everything else was practical? Wow!

BRADFORD: Yes, it was the only scene on a built set because we needed the space for the circular track and I needed to control every aspect of the lighting. All the lights had to fade away at the same time. Everything from inside to outside the windows.

One of the fun things that happened as we started pre-production and breaking down this scene was filming some variations on my iPhone so Kim could see the differences. I shot it with a couple of stand-ins. We shot a couple of different versions for her to see. She ended up loving the original version I pitched, and that’s what we ultimately built, the rig that was on my initial diagram.

SIGMA: That’s really fun when you get the opportunity to think outside the box. Sometimes budget and time can get in the way of that. Hopefully that felt satisfying to get to stretch creatively.

BRADFORD: Yeah, it was great. And it executed beautifully. Kash Costner was the Key Grip, he and his guys just did a beautiful job. And Matt Nardone was the gaffer. He and his guys did a beautiful job getting everything where it needed to be create the vision. So, it was a collective effort. Our production designer, Eve, and our set decorator, Julie, and their teams, Everybody were just fantastic because, again, not one thing could be missing from that; every aspect of that had to come together nicely in order for to pull off the right look.

The entire movie was a wonderful to shoot, but I would say I felt like the warehouse scene was another highlight as far as a fun scene to shoot–We got to really play with the lighting in there, and it visually made it really interesting.

Again, starting with that was a 100% empty space. Eve, Julie and their teams did such an amazing job. They filled up that space. Then Matt and his team with the lighting. I mean, I basically said, “here’s what I want” and then designed it out with them and then they executed and created such great eye candy.

SIGMA: I’m personally curious about the logistics of the warehouse scene. As a cinematographer, the lighting is your domain. But when lights become a practical part of the environment, like in this like grungy underground metal club, whose decision does the set piece lighting become? Is that you? Is that set dec.? Is that art department? How do you all work together since these lights that are part of the stage, or part of the set, are also going to affect the picture?

BRADFORD: Great question. It’s a combination of everything. I was in the situation with Prom Dates where we had such great collaboration and communication and respect for each other, that it lent itself to great dialogue from the get-go.

As an example, we were shooting the frat house scene where after they’ve gotten out of the pool and they’re on the patio. There was something I wanted to do that I had not asked for on the scout report and I wanted to have a Titan tubes on the roof at the edge of the patio. I thought it would be more interesting and it would help us out in general.

And I remember I texted Julie Drach, (Set Decorator), I asked if they would be cool if I put these lights up. I respected their work so much I wanted them to be a part of the decisions I was making at the last minute. If they had said it really just isn’t the vibe, I would have respected that, but they said yes, go for it. So we added those, I think it was like 4 of them along the edge there that you can see at certain points and it really just lent itself to the environment.

Getting back to the warehouse, we had some big discussions about set pieces. They had a lot of rope lights that lit up and a lot of bits and bobs that worked well. But then everything else you see that’s up is all lighting design by Matt and me.

SIGMA: There has to be a conversation about set dressing that is going to affect the image so that the DP and camera department can plan appropriately.

BRADFORD: Absolutely. And every DP on every show works in a way with those departments especially nowadays because there are so many practicals that don’t necessarily work because they are, for instance, LED lights that might not have the right color temp or a variety of things can go wrong, such as the frequency of the lights, they pulse so you get flicker and whatnot. So, again, having people that you work with who have good communication skills and are able to give you the heads up very early on is crucial. During our first week of shooting, Julie brought in the little hanging lights that were going to be used for the final prom sequence. And, so we did a camera test, and of course, they were flickering like crazy, but we were able to find a shutter angle that worked and eliminated the problem.

SIGMA: Do you have anything additional to say about how the SIGMA Cine lenses worked for you?

BRADFORD: These lenses offer cinematographers an absolutely stunning look that’s doable in a budget range. I think there are a lot of films out there where you could go with SIGMA Cine primes and be incredibly happy. I love the color contrast. I love the way the skin tones looked. I was really pleased overall with how those lenses performed. They’re fast, and that’s a huge requirement for me because I love being able to shoot at the open end when I want that shallow depth of field. It’s nice to have the ability to do that. So I think the combination of what those lenses look like and how they work in that world coupled with the technical aspect of the rounded Iris, the speed of the lenses, the flares. It is a great combination.

SIGMA: Would you say comedy is your zone, or do you feel like people just keep calling you for that kind of project after you complete something similar?

BRADFORD: I am gonna say that I hope it’s not just my zone because I think just like an actor likes to do a lot of varied work and not get pigeonholed into only comedies. I feel the same way about cinematography.

First off, I love thrillers. I love anything in that genre and the horror film world. It’s so much fun to shoot. I felt like In the Dark was in that dark comedy, thriller wheelhouse, which is why I enjoyed shooting that show so much. It had that thriller aspect to it. And I was able to really capitalize on that aspect of the storytelling. I love comedies, and I tend to certainly get offered more of those, but I do love shooting all different kinds of genres.

SIGMA: Bradford thanks for taking the time to talk with us about Prom Dates, and your upcoming projects.

Prom Dates is streaming now on Hulu.

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