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Kodak Three Reeler at the 2003 IFP Los Angeles Film Festival

The Kodak Three Reeler was held in the main theatre at the Directors Guild of America headquarters in Hollywood, CA. Haskell Wexler, ASC was the star of the show and Lorette Bayle of Kodak Entertainment moderated. Lorette introduced Haskell and gave a detailed bio of his history as a filmmaker and cinematographer. Haskell, apppearing very humble, didn't want to talk until the first reel was shown. So we watched the second to the last reel of his 1968 film, Medium Cool. After the viewing, Haskell discussed not only the details of making the film but politics and his philosophy of filmmaking. Medium Cool is about the 1968 democratic convention in Chicago, where people rioted in the streets while the convention was going on. Haskell had a feeling long before the convention started that there were going to be riots and went to Chicago with a prepared script, but with an open mind about the footage he would shoot. Warren Beatty procurred a set of fake credentials so Haskell and his crew could get inside the convention center and shoot.

Directors Guild of America, Hollywood, CA. Site of the Kodak Three Reeler at the 2003 IFP Los Angeles Film Festival

Haskell Wexler, ASC

Lorette Bayle, Kodak Entertainment

The main focus of Haskell's discussion after Medium Cool (1969) was shown was on how the media and the system construct fiction. "It's all fiction, anything we shoot is making a comment about what we are looking at." Creating a fiction is wedding what's real and not real are merged. What is the fiction saying? Have your fiction say what you believe! After Medium Cool, Haskell stuck to cinematography and didn't direct any more films, because Medium Cool didn't make money.

The second film we viewed was reel four of John Sayle's Bound For Glory (1976), the story of Woody Guthrie. Haskell told some wonderful stories about making this film. Hal Ashby had a drug problem. One night while he was high, he fired Haskel. Haskel told him, "Hal I don't care what you put up your nose, I'm not leaving this picture." The next day he threw the assistant director out of his chair and continued working on the film.

The last reel we watched was reel three from The Secret of Roan Inish.

During the short Q & A session after this screening, Haskell stressed the importance of coverage. When shooting a situation that only happens once, use more than one camera, preferably three. The cost of going back and shooting something that was missed far outweighs the cost of shootinng with additional cameras.

Someone asked Haskel about the perfect director/director of photography relationship. Haskell said, "It should be treated the way porcupines make love, Very Carefully!!"

When asked if there was a moment in his career when he decided he was a cinematographer, Haskell replied,"I'm waiting for it."