Image Makers: The Adventures of America's Pioneer Cinematographers

The documentary is about the pioneer cinematographers of American cinema. It takes up the work of seven camera operators in turn. Billy Bitzer, Rollie Totheroh and Charles Rosher are three of them. William Daniels, Karl Struss, Gregg Toland and James Wong Howe follow. The film traces how cinematography grew into an art. The account begins in the early years of the medium. Interviews never heard before are used throughout. They come from the archive of the American Society of Cinematographers. Archival material sits alongside original artwork. Michael McKean takes the narrator’s chair. Michael Sragow wrote the script. The film was shown on Turner Classic Movies. The screening was part of the society’s centenary programme. The documentary brings the camera operators out from behind the screen. Michael McKean and Kevin Brownlow appear in the ninety two minute documentary. It is an American production Daniel Raim finished in 2019.