Polish cinematographer Slawomir Idziak spent last 4 months in Israel working on new Natalie Portman’s film. The actress and debuting director wrote a letter after the shooting in which she expressed her gratitude for the commitment and innovation of the modern system of workflow imparted on her feature directorial debut.
Slawomir Idziak has just wrapped shooting A Tale of Love and Darkness (adapted from Amos Oz's autobiographical novel). As he says “The film was a challenge for the whole team because Natalie made her debut as a director and scriptwriter and at the same time she played in the film. The Oscar nominated cinematographer worked with Portman on the basis of the modern system of workflow originated at Film Spring Open – workshops for young filmmakers conducted according to the principle of “learning through working”.
Portman fully supported Idziak’s initiative “Choices that were made early in preproduction period saved time and effort later on in locations. In many ways we avoided compromises that would have had to be made without it. Film Spring Open initiative, where this process originated and is continually being streamlined, seems to be the great opportunity for young debuting artists.”
Idziak tries to keep up with the dynamic changes in film industry ““Remodelling of the work system on a film set can bring extremely positive effects for debuting artists in terms of the quality of films and the costs of their realization,” said Idziak, “On the set of A Tale of Love and Darkness we have increased work efficiency in a small team with demanding time constraints, while providing rich film material.”
Idziak is not the only Pole who worked on the Portman’s film. Young, promising cinematographer Lukasz Baka, son of the actor Miroslaw Baka, also worked with Idziak. The young filmmaker on the basis of the experience gained on the set of A Tale of Love and Darkness will conduct workshops about the modern system of filming and postproduction within the framework of this year’s Film Spring Open founded by Idziak to provide continuous training and support for young audiovisual professionals.
Sławomir Idziak is a Polish cinematographer, having worked on over seventy Polish and foreign films. He has made fourteen films with Krzysztof Zanussi, worked on all the early films of Krzysztof Kieślowski. He has made films with such directors as Ridley Scott, John Sayles, Michael Winterbottom and John Duigan and has also written and directed two films himself. He worked on Winterbottom's film I Want You, for which he won an Honourable Mention at the 48th Berlin International Film Festival.
He moved to more mainstream films such as Gattaca (1997), Proof of Life (2000), Black Hawk Down (2001), and King Arthur (2004). In 2002, he was nominated to an Academy Award as well as a BAFTA for 'Best Cinematography' in the film Black Hawk Down.
Idziak was the director of photography for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth film adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s fantasy series, directed by David Yates. He is also Director of Photography for The Battle of Warsaw 1920 – the first of his films, and the first ever Polish-language feature film to be shot in 3D.
The vast experience as not only a filmmaker but also a lecturer at many film European film schools inspired him to establish Film Spring Open the Warsaw based organisation to provide continuous training and support for young audiovisual professionals.
Media contact:
Maria Organ, +48 531 18 24 59, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., www.filmspringopen.eu
