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Cinematographer Eduardo Flores Torres, AMC on the set of 180°. Photo by Joaquin Cervera. |
Eduardo Flores Torres, AMC grew up in Mexico City as the son of a film producer who ran the technical side of Churubusco Studios in the late 1970s. The studio is one of the largest production facilities in Latin America. “As a kid, I often visited the studios and the backlot,” Flores says. “Eventually I realized that the cinematographer’s role was a combination of artist and technician, and that appealed to me. I watched them work and listened to them talk, and I learned to ‘see’ the light and to appreciate composition at a young age.”
Flores graduated with a special distinction in cinematography from the London International Film School in 1995. Today, his credits include television productions, commercials, and feature films such as Piedras Verdes, La Tregua and Gestación, the latter which was shot in Costa Rica during the spring of 2008. Flores also shot second unit on Babel for cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto, ASC, AMC and earlier on his career he worked as camera operator in films such as The Legend of Zorro for cinematographer Phil Meheux, BSC and Collateral Damage for Adam Greenberg, ASC.
His most recent feature assignment, 180°, teamed Flores with director/writer/producer Fernando Kalife. The story follows several characters who undergo radical changes in their lives. Flores explains that illustrating these emotional transformations without revealing too much to the audience ahead of time required subtle lighting and camerawork, and a great deal of pre-production work. The filmmakers wanted every element in the visual design to have meaning and to be properly motivated.
“We planned to give the film a very stylish look with nice, bright colors and well thought-out camera moves,” says Flores. “But we were also mindful that showing off too much – being over the top with the lighting and movement – would work against the film.”
Flores and Kalife imagined a rich but somewhat “rotten” look for Martin, the film’s main villain. “The last shot of him before his death is a night exterior at his penthouse that involves action around the swimming pool with city lights in the background, a big crane move and a helicopter, as well as a visual effects morph that ties the crane move and the helicopter shot together,” says Flores. “This type of scene requires the coordination of so many different resources. There’s a great deal of planning necessary, and a wonderful performance on the shoot day is obviously essential.”
Flores chose to work in a widescreen 2.35:1 aspect ratio using ARRI cameras, Zeiss Ultra Prime lenses and Optimo zooms. He used KODAK VISION2 100T 5212 and 200T 5217 films, as well as KODAK VISION3 500T 5219 film.
“There is no other medium or negative stock as capable of capturing images, reproducing color, and managing contrast,” says Flores. “Overall, Kodak negative films transmit the feeling in each image with unmatched fidelity. I’ve tried other media in the past and my conclusion is that if one is after quality pictures, one must shoot 35mm Kodak film.”
About 10 percent of the film was photographed in the Super 16mm film format on KODAK VISION2 200T 7217 film. These scenes depict flashbacks to childhood, and Flores designed a distinctive handheld look with a natural roughness that somewhat mimics amateur home videos.
The production was among the biggest ever in Monterrey, Mexico, financed locally and shot entirely in the vicinity. This gave the filmmakers easier access to Hollywood suppliers. Front-end lab work was handled at Deluxe Labs in Hollywood, and subsequent post work was done at The Post House, also in Hollywood.
“When I meet a director of photography whom I admire, I still feel very strongly that aura of wisdom, culture and magic that I felt as a kid when seeing them work,” he says. “It reminds me of why I love shooting so much.”
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